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Canary in a Coal Mine: A film about life with M.E.

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
A film about life with M.E., the most prevalent and devastating disease your doctor has never heard of.

by Jennifer Brea

The Title

Canary in a Coal Mine is, at its heart, a question: what does this illness signify about the world we live in and what do we all risk by ignoring the voices of the sick and the profoundly invisible? What could we all learn by paying attention to those voices?

Who is behind this film?

Jennifer Brea, Producer/Director
Jennifer is a doctoral student in the Department of Government at Harvard University on indefinite medical leave. Prior to that, she was a print journalist in Beijing and East Africa. She is a TED Fellow, and earned her AB in Politics from Princeton University.

Kiran Chitanvis, Creative Producer/ DP
Kiran is an independent filmmaker. She has worked on numerous short and feature films that have played at festivals around the world. A member of the inaugural class at the Tisch Asia Singapore campus, she holds an MFA in Film and Television Production from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. She earned an AB in Politics from Princeton University.

In addition, we are supported by: Toni Bernard, Howard Bloom, Eva Hagberg, Sarah Allegra, and Elizabeth Tova Bailey.

How will the funds raised on Kickstarter help you to make this film?

The money we raise on Kickstarter will allow us to go into production next year and will fund the time, equipment rental, and travel expenses of our Director of Photography, an assistant camera person, and a sound mixer as they shoot on location in Canada, the UK, around the US and possible on or two additional international sites.

$50,000 will get us to the end of production. If that were all we raised, we could make a film we are quite proud of for release online. However, to make a film that we believe will change the face of this illness forever, that is just the beginning. Our ultimate goal is to raise at least $200,000 through a combination of online fundraising, grants, and the support of a small cadre of executive producers.

OK, I am psyched, how do I help make this film happen?

First, give and give generously, whatever that means for you. Every dollar counts.

Second, spread the word! Crowdfunding campaigns reach and exceed their goals when very large amounts of people donate small amounts of money. So click on this link and share our page on Twitter and Facebook. Email your friends and family.

Then, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook. Stay up to date with the latest on the campaign.

If you are interested in making a tax-deductible donation or investing in the project in a deeper way, email jen@canaryinacoalminefilm.com. We'd love to have a conversation.

Rewards

We're offering a range of awards to say thank you for helping the world to #seeME!

Read more about this new ME film.

An interview with Brea will follow shortly on CFS Central.
 
Messages
2,565
Location
US
Big goals! :) Great title.

Great they teamed up with those authors and artists! "Shoot your story" is a good idea for a perk for a good donation.

I feel sad that they will need a lot of rest time in between shooting. But glad Jennifer is well enough to do this project.

Including self-filmed diaries is another wonderful idea.
 

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
Canary in a Coal Mine
OK, y'all need to slow down now. This is really too much!

I lie. DON'T slow down. Let's keep pushing, pushing, pushing. What an amazing first day. We've raised over $10,000 in less than nine hours thanks to the generosity of dozens of people and countless more who have started to help us spread this message.

Nothing prepared us for how much love and joy we would feel today, and with all of that support behind us, I think we really can do the impossible.

We are WORTH IT. We are worth a big f'ing movie. I even see people writing on their Facebook pages, that this is a film about "Myalgic Encephalomyelitis," a disease formerly known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. THAT is how powerful media can be. That is (one) of the changes I hope we can make in the world, together.
 

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115

Canary in a Coal Mine shared a link.
near Princeton, NJ, United States
We have raised over $20,000 in the less than 24 hours since our Kickstarter campaign launched yesterday! You have left us humbled, grateful, and (almost) speechless. And as you've shared your stories with us, and what this film means to you...let's just say, I probably cried five times yesterday, and we still have 30 days to go.

$50,000 gets us to a film that we're proud of. But if we want a shot at making a film that will change the way the world see M.E.--forever--we've got to aim for a professional, feature-length documentary film budget.

But first, let's get to $50K!

How do we do that? Share, share, share! http://www.canaryinacoalminemovie.com/share/
 

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
Jennifer has the right background for the job. Here's her 2009 TED Fellow Profile:
I tell stories with data, words, and moving images.

Currrently, I am a Ph.D student at Harvard studying politics and statistics. I study conflict, violence and prosperity, in Africa and in the historical US South. I am writing a memoir about my grandmother.

New discovery: the thrill of shooting and editing video, then sitting in a darkened room, watching something you've lovingly labored and fretted over for weeks, not certain whether anyone would see what you saw, and hearing everyone laugh and gasp in all the right places.

Prior to Harvard, I was a freelance writer in China and East Africa for the Guardian, the Scotsman, the Africa Report, and Ebony Magazine.

OUR GOAL: $200,000 and 6509 backers by November 22nd
 

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
Jen wrote about an hour ago, “I just ask that you carry this campaign for me for a few days.” Unfortunately, the campaign seems to be taking its toll on her:
Canary in a Coal Mine
via mobile

Had great day. Thought I was getting over slight viral flare. Went for wheelchair walk. Too bumpy. Brain swelling. Scary. I hate when this happens. Can't move, can't walk, can't bend. Can't go to the ER because they will laugh at me and send me home without an examination. we need doctors who make house calls! I know I will be fine in a few days. Feel sad because this right now, being so connected to all of you, has been the happiest moment of my life. I will probably be fine in a few days. I just ask that you carry this campaign for me for a few days. Much love, Jen.
 
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Bob

Senior Member
Messages
16,455
Location
England (south coast)
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Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
Canary In A Coal Mine - Our Big Ambition
Published on Oct 28, 2013
http://j.mp/canarykickstarter

"Let's change the face of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis ('Chronic Fatigue Syndrome')--forever."
OUR GOAL: $200,000 and 6509 backers by November 22nd

Words cannot equal our gratitude for your generosity. This campaign has invigorated a community that has for so long felt its voices marginalized and ignored. The power and the energy behind this campaign is extraordinary. This is our moment. We are going to do everything we can to tell this message from bigger and bigger platforms, and to make a film that is worthy of the trust you have put in us and the love you have showed. You have inspired us to push harder, to dream bigger....
“It only takes $1 to make history:”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLSX_kPpxAZX7uKr0d_gkQgs93Rg93xD3s&v=aSjglHBZMAk
 

Ember

Senior Member
Messages
2,115
Go Big or Go Home
October 31st, 2013
By Jennie Spotila
And this brings us back to storytelling. What makes people want to support this film is the intimate connection with Brea and others featured in it. It’s the story that pulls you in, and the story that makes you want to do something to help. If that’s true of the Kickstarter, it can be true of the film. And that could be a defining moment. We’ve longed for and dreamed of widespread public attention to the realities of having ME/CFS. Canary In A Coal Mine could deliver.
985 backers
$92,556 pledged
22 days to go
 
Messages
2,565
Location
US
I believe the $200,000 goal will be reached. I really hope we all see it go over $250,000. Imagine, a quarter million dollars.
 

Bob

Senior Member
Messages
16,455
Location
England (south coast)
I believe the $200,000 goal will be reached. I really hope we all see it go over $250,000. Imagine, a quarter million dollars.
It's a shame we can't get the full funding for the Rituximab trial so quickly.
But this shows that it's possible.
When they've got the funding that they need, I think we should ask them to ask their supporters to help fund the Rituximab trial, and set up a kickstarter account for it.
They could send out a message to each of their kickstarter supporters.