Voices from the Shadows
Welcome
Voices from the Shadows is the most important and significant film on pediatric ME that has ever been produced. ‘Voices from the Shadows’ is a breakthrough event. In a one hour feature documentary these hidden voices can at last speak out on film. It is an act of witness, supported by concerned professionals who illuminate an injustice hidden in our midst. We see for ourselves the love, integrity, determination and courage of the contributors as they bravely tell heartrending stories. The film has been born of desperation, made by the mother and brother of a severe ME patient . It is an independent and self funded project . Contributors to the film have helped and participated in allowing us to use to their documentary material, giving feedback and approval at every stage. They have also been helped by a composer who wrote and donated the music for the film.
u0022Dialogues…u0022 Project
Paediatric ME/CFS
Exercise u0026 ME/CFS – Bristol
About the Film
Trailer
u0022Introductionu0022 to Voices from the Shadows
Synopsis
Hidden away in darkened, silent rooms, for years and even decades, lie men, women and children who suffer a cruel and invisible injustice. Although shockingly ill many are disbelieved, denigrated and blamed, suffering medical neglect or even abuse by professionals. Their courage and determination remain unseen and unheard, as many are too ill to make their plight known or are silenced by fear of retribution if they do speak up. Few professionals are willing to speak out to protect them, since by doing so they risk damage to their careers and livelihoods. It is often left to carers, to partners and parents, to act as advocates. This illness, (which affects around 190,000 – 250,000 people in the UK) has been systematically denied and misdiagnosed. Medical ignorance is endemic, causing irrevocable harm to many patients. But at last international biomedical research is exposing this travesty. However, it will be many years before attitudes and policies are changed. In the meantime lives are being destroyed and children and their families remain especially vulnerable. Voices from the Shadows is located somewhere between factual documentation of the medical and psychiatric abuse of medically ill individuals and intimate witnessing of extraordinary personal acts of resistance…
Credits
Film Credits Directed u0026#038; produced by Josh Biggs u0026#038; Natalie Boulton. Editor – Josh Biggs Assistant Editor – Natalie Boulton Cinematography – Josh Biggs Research – Natalie Boulton Music – David Poore Additional Audio editing – Tim Cross Cellist – Robyn Austin Archive vIdeo material – Greg Crowhurst and Naomi’s family Archive photos – supplied by many contributors 2 photos – Matthew Dalziel Acknowledgements We would like to thank all those who have helped by offering advice and assistance. As well as the invaluable encouragement and co-operation given by the contributors to the film these included Martin Weitz, Chris Cairns, Clare Sealey and Zoe Elton. Thank you to a donor who paid for the MVFF screener and some festival submission costs. The co-operation of organisations that helped or tried to help us with gathering interviews and material for the film was very much appreciated – The 25% Group – Simon Lawrence The Richardson Research Group – Dr Irving Spurr ME Research UK
Contributors
ME Specialists
Professor Leonard Jason Professor Leonard Jason is the Director of the Center for Community Research and a Professor in the Psychology Department at DePaul University, Chicago. He has been extensively involved in research into ME/CFS for the past 20 years, during the last 15 of which he has been nationally funded, by the National Institute of Health. Not only is he a member of the USA Government Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Advisory Committee, having been chair of the research subcommittee since 2007, but he is also a past Vice-President of the International Association for CFS/ME. Professor Jason is particularly interested in topics of epidemiology, case definition and stigma. He has produced influential research in these areas, clarifying many widespread misconceptions. His work has been particularly useful in showing that patients suffering from major depression can inadvertently be included as subjects in research into ME/CFS, leading to distorted research findings. He has also shown that ME is not confined to particular socio-economic groups such as white middle class women as has often been portrayed by the media, but occurs worldwide among all races, classes, ages and both sexes. http://condor.depaul.edu/ljason/ Dr Nigel Speight Dr Nigel Speight has been a Consultant Paediatrician in Durham…
Translators
u0022Reflectionsu0022
Screenings
Reviews u0026#038; Press
Prof Chris Cairns 9/21/11 www.cfspatientadvocate.blogspot.com Voices from the Shadows “Voices from the Shadows” is a film about severe Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Natalie Boulton and her filmmaker son Josh Biggs made this film, which focuses on patients in the UK. This is an excellent, excellent film…… It is an independently made video development of the book “Lost Voices” and focus on the consequences of psychiatric and psychosocial misunderstanding about the illness. Because of its sound, editing, pacing and interviews, it carries much more of a wallop. “Voices from the Shadows” will be premiered at the Mill Valley Film Festival on Saturday, October 8th 2011 where it will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Dr. Jose Montoya, the ME clinical researcher from Stanford University, and David Tuller, a medical journalist from the NY Times. Further screenings are being arranged. A trailer of the film can be found on the webpage of the film and is presented here. I recently watched a finished version of “Voices from the Shadows” to preview it. I had seen several preliminary versions, and was struck by how the balance and pacing of the film was improved each time that I saw a new version. The film…
Mill Valley Discussion
The screening of ‘Voices from the Shadows’ at mvff was followed by a discussion panel chaired by Zoe Elton. Guest speakers were – Prof Montoya from Stanford School of Medicine, a world authority on Toxoplasmosis and one of the foremost researchers and doctors for CFS. He is working closely with ME/CFS researchers from other top US universities and has recently instigated the Stanford Chronic Fatigue Initiative http://chronicfatigue.stanford.edu/ David Tuller, lecturer in public health u0026#038; journalism for a new MA course he runs at UC Berkeley. He has frequently written for the New York Times on health issues, including several articles this year on ME/CFS. Tina Caskey, ME patient and author of ‘When Something’s Wrong’ www.whensomethingswrong.com/ Natalie Boulton, film maker ‘Voices from the Shadows’. Some photos from Mill Valley. Video of the discussion session with Prof Monotya will be available here soon.
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