We just passed a major milestone – we have finally released the film for educational distribution! This was a challenging learning process for us and a huge thank you is owed to Associate Producer, Kat Cole for helping drive this along and keeping us on time and Assistant Editor, Scott Schwerdtfeger for helping tackle some technical snafus! Also, thanks to Drew McGaraghan for helping us design our beautiful disc and case art. So glad DVDs are alive & well in the educational market, or this would be a lost art.
After much discussion with other filmmakers and several distribution houses, we ultimately decided to self-distribute the film. After navigating the technical minefield of closed captioning, subtitling and what it takes to master a DVD, we have finally arrived! Today we launched an email campaign to librarians across the country to encourage them to add the film to their libraries for educators to use in their curriculum. We hope this film will have it’s greatest impact with the students of today, who will be shaping our tomorrow.
Over the past year at festivals, in classrooms, and at community screenings, the film has sparked important and life-changing reaction from viewers. Not only for those who relate directly to one or more facets of Ghazwan’s story, but also for those who live on the outside of his experiences harboring misconceptions and stereotypes.
Beyond film festivals, we have screened in secondary school classrooms to senior centers and the emotional reactions are universal. Our young generation, many of whom struggle with mental health issues, is particularly inspired by Ghazwan’s ability to overcome his suicidal thinking and believe in himself regardless of the adversity that he has faced. Older generations reflect on personal experiences with past wars and are engaged to learn about the progress made by, and the struggles of, the generations that have followed theirs. We are particularly excited to be bringing this film to colleges and universities where the next generation of influencers are being cultivated.
“A mandatory educational tool…”
Jasmina Bojic | Lecturer, International Relations, Stanford University
We could use your help!
Because we are self-distributing, we would be grateful for your help spreading the news. If you know of any educators who would be interested in the film, please feel free to pass this along to them.