As part of the team (I’m credited with hospitality and moral support) that helped in the creation of the movie From Shock to Awe I was invited to participate in the film’s premiere at the Illuminate Film Festival where it received an Honorable Mention for Social Impact in the category of Debut Feature Competition Jury Prize and it received the Mangurama Award for Conscious Documentary Storytelling.
Including a $5000 cash prize, the Mangurama Award goes to to the most transformative non-fiction film that exhibits a strong story arc, compelling subjects and high production value. From Shock to Awe follows the journey of returned U.S. combat veterans as they abandon pharmaceutical drugs to seek relief through the controversial, mind-expanding world of cannabis, ayahuasca and MDMA, known as ecstasy.
Here is the trailer:
Here is the Q&A with the filmmakers and participants immediately following the premiere:
Here is the first review of the film from Broadway World:
The next screening of the movie will be at the Los Angeles Psychedelic Science Symposium (LAPSS) taking place on June 22-23, 2018 in the UCLA Ackerman Grand Ballroom.
https://www.facebook.com/events/227764851140732/
Additionally at the LAPSS event, Matt Kahl, Brooke Cooley and Michael Cooley and myself will all be on a panel together entitled: Veterans Helped by the Medicine.
Our moderator will be Nishi Money, MD. Nishi is a former US Air Force Flight Surgeon, with further specialization in preventive and integrative medicine. She has recently transitioned from active duty military and is very involved with the treatment and care of military veterans and their families.
Her most recent positions include serving as the Senior Medical Advisor for the Department of Homeland Security’s US Customs and Border Protection, where she oversaw the comprehensive treatment and wellness of 60,000 national and international Border Forces, and the Medical Director for Sonoma County Native American Health System for Northern California.
Her other positions have included: Global Chief of US Air Force Medical Fitness, Head Physician Epidemiologist for Department of Defense (DOD) Global Emerging Infectious Disease Surveillance and Response Systems, and DoD’s original Chief Medical Officer for Integrative Medicine for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury.
The Documentary and Film Night takes place Friday June 22nd from 7:30 – 10:00 pm.
FROM SHOCK TO AWE, Luc Conte & Janine Sagert, 7:45 – 8:15 PM
A vivid and memorable piece of filmmaking. A story of salvation told through the eyes of two vets who came back from Afghanistan wracked by guilt about the violence and death they participated in. We follow as they find a way to save their souls using plant medicines.
Also Robert Barnhart, Associate Producer for From Shock to Awe will be screening his film A New Understanding – The Science of Psilocybin at the event immediately preceding From Shock to Awe.
A NEW UNDERSTANDING – The Science of Psilocybin, Robert J. Barnhart, 7:00 – 7:40 PM
What if we had a microscope for observing the mind, a telescope for seeing the soul? A New Understanding: The Science of Psilocybin follows research meant to produce that tool and provide effective new treatments for depression and the existential distress of the terminally ill.