Refuge Media Project
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Images
Vigil/Celebration on the UN's Day in Support of Torture Survivors
Physical examination of a torture survivor, Atlanta
Moses, a torture survivor, Minnesota
Website
http://www.refugemediaproject.org
Topics
Health: Disease/treatment
Human Development: Migration, Refugees, Social Exclusion
Human Rights: Civil Rights, Indigenous Rights, Religion, Social Exclusion
Peace and Conflict: Arms & Military, Conflict
Project Geography
US: Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York
International: Africa, Asia, North America, South America
Budget
Raised to date: $ 65,000.00
Estimate to complete: $ 95,000.00
Total Estimated Budget: $ 160,000.00
The budget numbers above are accurate as of 04/30/2009
Status
Post Production
Media Type
Video
Project End Use
Other
Key Personnel
BEN ACHTENBERG
Project Director, Producer
Ben is an Oscar-nominated producer and distributor of documentary films on social issues. His productions on such topics as healthcare for the homeless, medical ethics, end-of-life care and disabilities have received many honors, including an Academy Award nomination (for "Code Gray"), seven CINE Golden Eagles and a first-place award in “Issues and Ethics” from the National Health and Medical Film Competition. Ben is a founder and board member of the Carmenta Foundation for Health Education and is a member of the Ignacio Martin-Baro Fund for Mental Heath and Human Rights. He is the President of Fanlight Productions, a widely-respected distributor of documentaries on healthcare, mental health, aging, disabilities, and related issues.
ROZ DZELZITIS
Associate Producer
Roz has worked closely with torture survivors, displaced refugees and asylum seekers for nearly a decade as a journalist and producer of documentary films on human rights issues in the U.S. and Central America. She is the Executive Director of May I Speak Freely Media, and a member of the board of directors of BAIDO, an association of San Francisco Bay Area international development organizations. Roz previously worked as program coordinator for the Sacred Land Film Project, and distribution coordinator of its PBS film "In the Light of Reverence."
BRUCE PETSCHEK
Videographer
Bruce is an accomplished cameraman and editor working on a remarkable range of public interest projects though his company, Seven Generations Video. He is also the Director of Photography for The Banjo Project.
Outreach/Engagement Plan(s)
With the help of our advisors and outreach partners, an educational distributor, survivors themselves and other collaborators, we will reach out to communities across the country and use the film as a tool to promote dialogue among health care and social service providers, students, and others. Please contact the Project for our full distribution plan.Funders
| Name | Amount | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carmenta Foundation for Health Education | $ 6,000.00 | 10/01/2008 | |
| Anita L. Mishler Education Fund | $ 5,990.00 | 05/01/2008 | |
| Color of Film Collaborative | $ 1,000.00 | 08/01/2006 | |
| Individual Donors | $ 42,310.00 |
Location(s)
4196 Washington Street
Boston, 02131
See Google Maps
Short Synopsis
Through the creation and dissemination of video and other educational resources, the Refuge Media Project will educate, inspire, and empower healthcare, mental health, and social service professionals and students to better meet the needs of a growing and increasingly vulnerable population: survivors of torture who are immigrants to the United States. In partnership with survivor treatment centers and other organizations working with immigrants, the Project will carry out an extensive media-based educational campaign to increase awareness of the needs of immigrant torture survivors and support for the organizations that provide them assistance in communities throughout the United States.
Description/Treatment
It’s estimated that more than 500,000 immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers in the United States have been victims of politically motivated torture. They come here from Africa, Eastern Europe, Latin America, Southeast Asia — some legally, some undocumented, some with families and some very much alone. They live in major American cities and in small towns. Some survivors bear visible scars, but many more have been wounded in ways that remain hidden.Some may visit clinics, primary health care providers or hospital emergency rooms seeking relief from their suffering — but fail to receive appropriate care because the clinicians who see them are often unaware of their patients’ backgrounds and the causes of their symptoms. In all of our communities there is a need for a better-informed and connected healthcare community, trained in best practices for identifying and responding to survivors.
In Refuge, we visit four U.S. cities (Boston, Atlanta, and Minneapolis, and Washington D.C.) to profile programs that serve torture survivors and interview a variety of stakeholders: providers who specialize in treating torture survivors, including medical doctors, psychiatrists and psychologists, social workers and nurses; students who have organized programs that provide direct service to survivors of torture and war trauma, and facilitate learning opportunities not afforded by academic curricula; and torture survivors from Africa, Asia and Latin America who speak to providers directly, in their own words about their experiences as survivors and as patients.
Themes include the prevalence of survivors in communities across the country, their unique healthcare needs, barriers to appropriate care, and strategies to advance health and healing. Also included is verité footage of provider training sessions, real patient-provider encounters, and a wide variety of other documentary material.