One ongoing problem that has plagued most of America has been the opioid epidemic. Many in the US have known someone suffering from the throes of addiction. Documentarian Nicholas Manting Brewer paints a sobering picture of this disease in Who We Are: Life, Loss & Hope in the Opioid Epidemic.
While many shows and series (including Hulu’s Dopesick) have tackled the crisis, Brewer’s 27-minute film focuses on one family: the Isaacs. In 2013, 19-year-old Joshua Isaac died after a heroin overdose. The film is a character study of sorts of a truly broken family. Joshua’s parents, Rick and Joyce, struggle to cope with his death, yet they also use it as a teachable moment for other families.
While dealing with the pain and uncertainty (how long was Joshua using opioids and where he got them from pop up), the Isaacs use their son’s death as a way of warning and guiding other families about the perils of opioid addiction.
While series like Dopesick and issues like the Sackler case are important in highlighting the scourge of opioid addiction, the Isaacs are also vital. Even at only 27 minutes, Brewer’s film packs a punch and is a clarion call for an ongoing epidemic.
This documentary is suitable for community screenings raising drug issue awareness. Educators in health and wellness classes for high school or college university students could add this to their syllabus. Aud: P.
Editor's Choice
In the United States, at least 91 people die every day from an overdose to opioids, including prescription painkillers and heroin. The ripples of these deaths linger in the memories of those who survive, and those who they leave behind. Who We Are takes viewers on an immersive journey into the lives of people left in the wake and provides an intimate and meditative portrait of life, loss, and hope through the families experiencing this U.S. crisis, the opioid epidemic.
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Not One More Support Group
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Group
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Murtaza
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Joyce and Lauren
FILM FESTIVALS
- FICSAM Mental Health Film Festival
- Collected Voices Film Festival
- Reel East Texas Film Festival
- Los Angeles CineFest
- Wales International Documentary Festival
- The Black Cat Picture Show Film Festival
THE FILMMAKER
Nicholas Manting Brewer is an award-winning documentary storyteller and film editor based out of Los Angeles, CA by way of Augusta, GA. His work has been screened at several film festivals, including Sundance, South by Southwest, and the Cleveland International film festival. Nicholas earned his B.A. in Anthropology from New College of Florida and his MFA from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. In 2018, Nicholas co-founded Standard Deviation Productions. He hopes to make films that connect people in an increasingly polarized world.
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WHO WE ARE
Catalog # EPF16034 ● ISBN: 978-1-933724-74-4 ● UPC: 6-82086-16034-4 ● NTSC
27 Minutes ● Copyright 2018 ● English
Buy DVD: $29.95
Buy DVD w/ Public Performance Rights: $250
For purchase orders, to book screenings and for other inquiries, please contact:
Larry Rattner - larry@epfmedia.com