Film as an audiovisual medium "is capable to induce emotions of stronger intensity" (Levenson & Gross, 1995) compared for example to the International Affective Picture System (IAPS, Lang & Bradley, 1997). The IAPS is a standardized database of pictures, whereas complex film-stimuli vary regarding visual characteristics as number of actors, luminance and cutting rate etc. and are difficult to use in fMRI paradigms.

This study aims to diminish the above mentioned limitations of film stimuli by creating comparable film-stimuli in cooperation with filmmakers exclusively for the use in an experimental fMRI design.

Furthermore film is especially applicable to reveal neural correlates according to the ‘identification hypothesis’ that hopefully lead to a deeper understanding of the neural underpinnings of empathy. The created stimulus set offers the possibility to investigate another question: How does empathic emotion induction differs from self referential elicitation of emotions?

To trigger a first hand emotion the actors of the filmclips themselves will participate as subjects in the scanner. They will see themselves in a 'self-set' as actors in affective situations and an 'other-set' where they are confronted with unknown actors in comparable movie sequences. A difference in the neuronal processing of self-triggered emotions and empathic induced emotions is hypothesized.