Skeleton may reveal secrets of T. rex growth years; Narrated by Sir Sam Neill, documentary brings Teen Rex to life with animation

Marmarth, ND – Three keen-eyed young fossil hunters made the discovery of a lifetime when they found the remains of a rare teenage Tyrannosaurus rex that could rewrite history, scientists and filmmakers announce today. 

The boys — brothers Liam and Jessin Fisher, 7 and 10 years old at the time, and their 9-year-old cousin, Kaiden Madsen — spotted a large fossilized leg bone on a walk in the Hell Creek badlands area of North Dakota on July 31, 2022.

Believing they had found a relatively common duckbill dinosaur, they sent a photo to family friend and Marmarth native Dr. Tyler Lyson, Associate Curator of Vertebrate Palaeontology at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, who organized an excavation that began 11 months later, adding the boys and a sister, Emalynn Fisher, now 14, to his team of palaeontology volunteers and experts. 

Brushing off a tooth soon after arriving, Dr. Lyson realized the boys had found a notorious T. rex — a very rare juvenile specimen. The team unearthed it in 11 days after an estimated 67 million years in that spot.

Airlifted onto a truck by a Black Hawk helicopter, giant plaster jackets containing the “Teen Rex” are now at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, where the public will be able to follow the fossil’s preparation in the new “Discovering Teen Rex Prep Lab.” 

Remarkably, the secret of the teenage T. rex find held for nearly two years while an award-winning documentary crew, renowned palaeontologists, several of the world’s foremost natural history museums, and top animators partnered to present the kids’ discovery in dramatic cinematic fashion.

A crew from Giant Screen Films (GSF), a world-leading producer of large-format documentaries, was embedded with expedition and had 8K cameras rolling as the fossil’s diagnostic features were unearthed, including the eureka moment when Dr. Lyson confirmed that the kids had found a Tyrant King. 

As a result, audiences can experience the adventure of the discovery and excavation through an immersive new giant screen documentary, T. REX, narrated by New Zealand actor Sir Sam Neill, who portrayed Dr. Alan Grant in the Jurassic Park films. 

With hat tips to famous specimens, landmark discoveries, and wild cinematic depictions over the last century, GSF’s documentary intercuts the remarkable expedition with cutting edge computer graphics that bring the iconic T. rex—from hatchling to hulking adult—to life on the world’s largest screens. 

Extremely rare juvenile T. rex

‘Juvenile rex specimens are extremely rare,” said Dr. Lyson, who found his first dinosaur in the same area at age 6. He credits his own career to the mentorship of paleontologists who invited him to join their work in the Badlands. 

“This find is significant to researchers because the ‘Teen Rex’ specimen may help answer questions about how the king of dinosaurs grew up,” he said.

The size of the specimen’s tibia (shin bone), 82 cm, compared to the size for a full grown adult’s tibia (112 cm) suggests that it was 13 to 15 years old when it died around 67 million years ago.

Paleontologists also estimate that “Teen Rex” likely weighed around 3,500 pounds (1,632 kg), measured roughly 25 feet (7.6 m) from nose to tail, and stood about 10 feet (3 m) in height—about two-thirds the size of a full grown adult.

“It’s remarkable to consider how T. rex might have grown from a kitten-sized hatchling into the 40-foot, 8,000 pound adult predator we are familiar with,” said Dr. Thomas Holtz, a vertebrate paleontologist from the University of Maryland and renowned T. rex authority. 

He continued, “scientists can really only speculate on how ‘Teen rex’ might have lived and behaved, so discoveries like this one have the potential to provide important new information about those earlier life stages, when fastest growth likely occurred.” 

The experience was especially exciting for Jessin, a dinosaur aficionado and aspiring paleontologist who dressed up as his hero, Dr. Tyler Lyson, for Halloween a few years ago. 

And “helping these kids experience the thrill of their discovery and to be inspired by science is incredibly rewarding to me personally,” said Dr. Lyson, who was himself mentored by leading paleontologists visiting the area when he was very young. 

The boys are keen to visit the “Teen Rex Prep Lab” when it opens and the film debuts in Denver June 21. They are also excited about a later film screening for Marmarth schoolmates to share the thrill of their discovery. 

With Dr. Holtz as lead advisor, the T. REX filmmakers collaborated with a consortium of paleontologists, eight prominent natural history museums, and award-winning visual effects artists to create scientifically accurate models of rex and the Hell Creek prehistoric ecosystem, a highly studied rock formation in the Upper Midwest that contains fossil remains from the Late Cretaceous, the final days of the dinosaurs—from Triceratops to Edmontosaurus. 

Supported by a coalition of leading museums worldwide, the documentary features cameos of SUE, perhaps the most well-known T. rex specimen ever found (Field Museum, Chicago); T. rex WYREX (Houston Museum of Natural History); T. rex THOMAS (Los Angeles Natural History Museum) and HORRIDUS the Triceratops (Melbourne Museum). 

A dream documentary story

“We never could have planned the inspiring story that unfolded in front of the cameras,’ said producer and writer Andy Wood. “Kids finding any large dinosaur is remarkable, but as the shoot progressed, the team realized that we were witnessing something even more rare—a truly historic T. rex discovery. It’s been a real thrill.” 

“This is more than just a documentary—it’s a chance for families to experience the thrill of discovery through the eyes of these young explorers in a format that makes you feel like you’re right there with them,” says co-director/writer David Clark.

“This is the kind of story that documentary filmmakers dream of capturing.”

“Beyond fostering an appreciation of the fun of science, the film sends a message about getting outside and exploring,” said Dr. Lyson. “That’s a really important message that we want to come through—one that I think is just baked into this story.”

T. REX will premiere at select theatres worldwide beginning June 21, opening in 100 cities over the coming months in all immersive museum cinema formats, including large format, IMAX, 3D, and giant dome. 

GSF has also partnered with Rextooth Studios to create a graphic novel to accompany the film.

The fossil was collected on land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management (USA), permit ND2023-00084.

T. REX is a Giant Screen Films and D3D Cinema production, in partnership with:

• Field Museum, Chicago
• Denver Museum of Nature & Science
• Houston Museum of Natural Science
• Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
• in association with
• Cincinnati Museum Center
• Cleveland Museum of Natural History
• Museums Victoria, Australia, and
• New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science

Giant Screen Films 

Based in Evanston, Illinois, GSF is one of the world’s leading and most active large-format film producers. It has often partnered with the National Science Foundation and pioneered large-format films that push the boundaries of the medium. Through the magic of immersive sight and sound technologies, GSF’s productions challenge the imaginations of children and adults, offering inspiring perspective on the world and an unforgettable theater experience. Meaningful educational collaborations and partnerships extend each film’s impact far beyond the theater.

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The Associated Press, via Washington Post Three boys found a T. rex fossil in North Dakota. Now a Denver museum works to fully reveal it https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/2024/06/03/trex-dinosaurs-boys-hell-creek-denver/e5366830-21f2-11ef-bc8d-a8ae61b84dde_story.html

Reuters, United Kingdom, via Daily Mail Rare fossil of adolescent Tyrannosaurus – ‘Teen Rex’- found by US kids https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-13492939/Rare-fossil-adolescent-Tyrannosaurus–Teen-Rex-US-kids.html

Agence France Presse, Pretty cool’: US kids discover remains of teen T-Rex https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-13495169/Pretty-cool-US-kids-discover-remains-teen-T-Rex.html; French, Des enfants américains découvrent un jeune tyrannosaure en se promenant https://fr.news.yahoo.com/enfants-am%C3%A9ricains-d%C3%A9couvrent-jeune-tyrannosaure-210405290.html; Portuguese, Sorprendente descubrimiento paleontológico | Hallan los restos del rey de los dinosaurios, https://www.cronista.com/mexico/actualidad-mx/sorprendente-descubrimiento-paleontologico-hallan-los-restos-del-rey-de-los-dinosaurios-t-rex/; Japanese 子どもたちがT・レックスの希少な幼体化石を発見 米https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/7ff92ee04666638ab628496461521a3a85923762

Good Morning America (ABC Television), United States, 3 young boys and dad uncover rare dinosaur bones https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/news/video/3-young-boys-dad-uncover-rare-dinosaur-bones-110963661

Inside Edition (syndicated TV), United States, North Dakota Brothers Speak About Finding T. Rex Fossil, https://www.insideedition.com/media/videos/north-dakota-boy-says-he-was-speechless-after-finding-t-rex-fossil-87720

New York Times, United States, Family Discovers Rare T. Rex Fossil in North Dakota https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/04/science/t-rex-fossil-denver-north-dakota.html?unlocked_article_code=1.xE0.ufW4.mERCBF5yMgPT&smid=url-share

The Washington Post, United States, ‘We found a T. rex!’ How three kids made a rare dinosaur discovery https://wapo.st/4cc5H6F

CNN International, via Yahoo! News, United States, Hiking family discovers rare T. rex fossil https://www.yahoo.com/news/hiking-family-discovers-rare-t-152912731.html

USA Today, United States, Three boys discovered teenage T. rex fossil in northern US: ‘Incredible dinosaur discovery’ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/06/04/teenage-t-rex-discovered-boys-north-dakota/73971112007/

PEOPLE, United States, 3 Boys Discover Rare T. Rex Fossil While on a Family Hike: ‘That’s a Dinosaur’ https://people.com/3-boys-discover-rare-t-rex-fossil-on-family-hike-8658169

CBS News, United States, Rare juvenile T. rex fossil found by children in North Dakota to go on display in Denver museum https://www.cbsnews.com/news/rare-juvenile-t-rex-fossil-found-north-dakota-badlands-by-children-denver-museum/

New York Post, United States, ‘Extremely rare’ dinosaur discovered by 3 tweens: My friends ‘don’t believe me that I found a T. rex’, https://nypost.com/2024/06/04/lifestyle/extremely-rare-t-rex-discovered-by-3-tweens-my-friends-dont-believe-me-that-i-found-a-t-rex/

Fox News, United States, Three boys discover rare T.rex fossil in North Dakota, https://www.foxnews.com/us/three-boys-discover-rare-trex-fossil-north-dakota

Daily Mail, United Kingdom, Teen Rex! Fossil of ‘rare’ juvenile Tyrannosaurus found by kids in North Dakota is the subject of a new documentary narrated by Jurassic Park star Sam Neill, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-13488887/kids-discover-fossil-juvenile-T-Rex.html
Scientists, kids and CGI dinosaurs star in T.REX trailer https://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/sciencetech/video-3202853/Video-Scientists-kids-CGI-dinosaurs-star-T-REX-trailer.html

The Times, United Kingdom, Schoolboys on hike discover rare ‘teen rex’ skeleton Schoolboys on hike discover rare ‘teen rex’ skeleton, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/schoolboys-on-hike-discover-rare-teen-rex-skeleton-kdkhkl8f8

The Independent, United Kingdom, Three schoolboys left ‘completely speechless’ after discovering T rex skeleton in North Dakota https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trex-skeleton-discovery-north-dakota-b2556603.html

Agencia EFE, Spain, El hallazgo de un T-Rex adolescente puede revelar porqué era el rey de los dinosaurios (The discovery of an adolescent T-Rex may reveal why it was the king of the dinosaurs) https://www.infobae.com/america/agencias/2024/06/03/el-hallazgo-de-un-t-rex-adolescente-puede-revelar-porque-era-el-rey-de-los-dinosaurios

Deutsche Presse Agentur, Germany, Wie drei Jungen einen Tyrannosaurus rex entdeckten (How three boys discovered a Tyrannosaurus rex) https://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/natur/tyrannosaurus-rex-drei-jungen-entdecken-fossil-in-north-dakota-a-28affd79-e1ba-4c30-9509-dddda2766dfc

Live Science, United States, Kids discover extremely rare teen T. rex fossils sticking out of the ground during North Dakota Badlands hike, https://www.livescience.com/animals/dinosaurs/kids-discover-extremely-rare-teen-t-rex-fossils-sticking-out-of-the-ground-during-north-dakota-badlands-hike

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

9-Apr-2013

Raising scientists: Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge Canada celebrates 20 years of inspiring biotechnology studies and careers

Cutting edge research into an experimental therapy that deploys nano-particles of gold in the fight against cancer earned an Alberta high school student, 16, top national honours today in the 2013 “Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge Canada” (SBCC).

India-born Arjun Nair, 16, a Grade 11 student at Webber Academy, Calgary, was awarded the top prize of $5,000 by a panel of eminent Canadian scientists assembled at the Ottawa headquarters of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC).

His research project, mentored at the University of Calgary, advances an experimental cancer “photothermal therapy” which involves injecting a patient with gold nanoparticles. The particles accumulate in tumours, forming so-called “nano-bullets” that can be heated to kill cancer cells.

Arjun showed how an antibiotic may overcome the cancer’s defences and make the promising treatment more effective. Arjun’s research, which a panel of expert judges led by Luis Barreto, MD, called “world class Masters or PhD-level quality,” also won a special $1,000 prize awarded to the project with the greatest commercial potential. (See full project description below, and online at http://bit.ly/12i4QIP)

Eleven brilliant students from nine Canadian regions, all just 16 to 18 years old, took part in the national finals. They had placed 1st at earlier regional SBCC competitions, conducted between March 21 and April 4.

Celebrating 20 years of inspiring young scientists in Canada, this year’s SBCC involved a total of 208 high school students collaborating on 123 projects, all mentored in professional labs over several months and submitted via the regional competitions.

Since its beginning in Toronto in 1994, some 4,500 young Canadians have competed in the SBCC, an event that has inspired sister BioGENEius competitions in the USA and Australia.

2nd place, $4,000 — British Columbia: Selin Jessa, 17, Grade 12, Dr. Charles Best Secondary School, Coquitlam, won the second place prize with research into how genetic mutations naturally help some HIV patients escape symptoms. Project description: http://bit.ly/16u1zZj

Arjun and Selin will compete for Canada April 22-23 at the International BioGENEius Challenge, conducted at the annual BIO conference, this year in Chicago.

3rd place, $3,000 — Quebec: Eunice Linh You, 17, Grade 11, Laval Liberty High School, Laval, who investigated how to tailor stem cell treatments for Parkinson’s disease (see http://bit.ly/YtJJnq)

4th place, $2,000 — Greater Toronto: Lauren Chan, 17, Grade 12, University of Toronto Schools, who described a potential new therapy to reduce the severity of diabetes (see http://bit.ly/YQKWon)

5th place, $1,000 — Manitoba: Daniel Huang, 16, Grade 11, St. John’s Ravenscourt School, Winnipeg, who discovered a potential new tactic to fight the world’s deadliest brain cancer (seehttp://bit.ly/14LeurK)

Honorable mention, $500:

Jared Trask, 18, Kaitlyn Stockley, 17, Grade 12, Holy Spirit High School, Conception Bay West, Newfoundland, who, for the second consecutive year, won the Atlantic region competition by proving novel ideas for creating biofuels (see http://bit.ly/YZkOVp);

Adamo Young, 16, Grade 11, Lisgar Collegiate Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, who found that altering its nitrogen supply appears to tame a toxic fungus that ruins billions worth of grain worldwide (seehttp://bit.ly/YtJOaB);

Melanie Grondin, 17, Shawn Liu, 18, Vincent Massey Secondary School, Windsor, Ontario, who found a marker in medicine’s quest for the holy grail of leukaemia treatments: limitless supplies of healthy stem cells (see http://bit.ly/XGWICS).

Saruul Uuganbayar, 17, Grade 12, Centennial Collegiate, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, who invented a molecular therapy for mutated cells with the dream of curing cancer (see http://bit.ly/XGWBqX); and

Following the presentation ceremony at the NRC, Governor-General David Johnston, a distinguished educator prior to his vice-regal appointment, received the students at Rideau Hall.

News release in full: click here

Coverage highlights:

The Globe and Mail, click here

Agence France Presse, click here

The Canadian Press, click here

QMI news agency, click here

The Vancouver Sun, news story click here,  (op-ed) here

The Calgary Sun, click here

CTV Canada AM, click here

Full coverage summary, click here

20-Feb-2013

Unexpected prizes from a high school biotech science competition, mentored by some of Canada’s top research experts, range from rich university scholarships and commercial patents to peer-reviewed journal citations and international speaking invitations, former teen participants say.

But the reward cited most often by alumni of the Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge Canada (SBCC), this year marking its 20th annual competition, was the eye-opening experience of watching their inventive ideas succeed and being encouraged in a professional lab, creating in many a career-shaping passion for science.

News release in full: click here

Sample coverage: TED2013, click here, Vancouver Sun, click here, Agencia EFE (Spanish), click here

8-May-2012

Powerful anti-oxidant discovered in tree pulp; Grade 12 researcher wins top honors at national biotech science competition

OTTAWA — An Ontario girl, 16, who invented a disease-fighting, anti-aging compound using nano-particles from trees, won top national honours today in the 2012 Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge Canada (SBCC).

Her super anti-oxidant compound could one day help improve health and anti-aging products by neutralizing more of the harmful free-radicals found in the body. Her research is detailed below.

Janelle Tam, a Grade 12 student at Waterloo Collegiate Institute, was awarded the $5,000 first prize by an impressed panel of eminent Canadian scientists assembled at the Ottawa headquarters of the National Research Council of Canada.

In all, some 13 brilliant students in Grades 11 or 12, all just 16 to 18 years old, took part in the national finals. They were top prize winners of nine regional SBCC competitions conducted nationwide in March and April, events that showcased youthful Canadian talent in the fast-growing field of biotech science.

News release in full: click here

Sample coverage:

Agence France Presse, click here, in French here

Huffington Post, click here

Montreal Gazette, click here

CBC National Radio (As It Happens), click here

The Record (Kitchener, Waterloo), click here

Maclean’s Magazine, click here and here 

Press Trust of India, click here

Coverage summary: click here

20 Jul 11

Take a second look at your iced or steaming tea. Guided by scientific experts, three New York City high school students using tabletop DNA technologies found several herbal brews and a few brands of tea contain ingredients unlisted on the manufacturers’ package.

The teen sleuths also demonstrated new-to-science genetic variation between broad-leaf teas from exported from India versus small-leaf teas exported from China.

Guided by DNA “barcoding” experts at The Rockefeller University, an ethno-botanist at Tufts University and a molecular botany expert at The New York Botanical Garden, co-authors Catherine Gamble, 18, Rohan Kirpekar, 18, and Grace Young, 15, of Trinity School in Manhattan, published their findings today in the Nature journal Scientific Reports.

The unlisted ingredients included weeds such as annual bluegrass and herbal plants such as chamomile. The surprise ingredients are mostly harmless but could affect a tiny minority of consumers with acute allergies. Three (4 percent) of the 70 tea products tested and 21 (35 percent) of 60 herbal products had unlisted ingredients.

Full news release: click here

Coverage summary: click here

Example coverage, by The New York Times (includes video): click here. By Scientific American: click here

10 May, 2011

While many 16-year-olds are content with PlayStation, Toronto-area student Marshall Zhang used the Canadian SCINET supercomputing network to invent a new drug cocktail which could one day help treat cystic fibrosis.

The Grade 11 student at Bayview Secondary School in Richmond Hill so impressed eight eminent scientists at the National Research Council of Canada laboratories in Ottawa they awarded him first prize today in the 2011 Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge.

Full news release: click here

Coverage summary: click here

Coverage by

The Toronto Star: click here

CTV Canada AM: click here

The Canadian Press: click here

Xinhua News Service (China), click here

Maclean’s Magazine, click here

CBC TV Toronto, click here

27-Apr-2010

Research by a 14-year-old science prodigy from Saskatoon into the molecular fingerprint of a disease that has devastated lentil crops in Canada, Asia and Africa has earned the top national prize of the 2010 Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge (SABC).

Grade 9 student Rui Song, the youngest-ever national finalist in the event’s 17-year history, “astonished” nine judges at Canada’s National Research Council with her search for an early way to tell apart two strains of a crop-killing fungus, one strain of which can wipe out half a farmer’s lentil harvest if left unrecognized and untreated.

Full news release, click here

Coverage summary, click here

Example coverage:

The Canadian Press: click here

CanWest News Service, click here

The Globe and Mail, click here

Maclean’s Magazine, click here

Xinhua News Service (China), click here

Two New York City high school students exploring their homes using the latest high-tech DNA analysis techniques were astonished to discover a veritable zoo of 95 animal species surrounding them, in everything from fridges to furniture, from sidewalks to shipping boxes, and from feather dusters to floor corners.

Guided by DNA “barcoding” experts at The Rockefeller University and the American Museum of Natural History, Grade 12 students Brenda Tan and Matt Cost of Trinity School, Manhattan, also revealed a lot of apparent consumer fraud in progress, finding that the labels of 11 of 66 food products purchased at local markets misrepresented the actual contents.

The January edition of BioScience magazine will report on their “DNA House” project, detailed as well online at http://phe.rockefeller.edu/barcode/dnahouse.html

Full news release: click here

Genetic research by a 16-year-old Saskatchewan student that could one day help farmers grow “designer wheat” — tailoring the starch content of grain grown for different markets — has earned the top national prize in the 2009 Sanofi-Aventis BioTalent Challenge (SABC).

Grade 10 Student Scott Adams of Saskatoon’s Walter Murray Collegiate Institute won the $5,000 national 1st place prize today with a ground-breaking study showing agricultural scientists a novel way to turn off a gene in wheat and alter its starch elements, making it possible potentially to grow wheat customized for different markets ranging from textiles to foods such as pasta and bread.

Full release text: here

Sample coverage, by The Canadian Press, click here

Coverage summary: http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=r4A3wrznE3TxgCE7tecxF-A&hl=en