The Medicine: Science & Psychedelics

Short Summary

Hi.  This is Roslyn Dauber, producer and director of THE MEDICINE: Science & Psychedelics, the first feature-length documentary to explore the current medical research with psychedelic drugs at major medical schools, as well as the promising results of these studies.

First, a little about me: I've been producing documentaries related to science, consciousness and culture for 25 years.  I have been a professor and science policy wonk on Capitol Hill as well.  I love making documentaries because through my line of work, I've seen things and met people beyond my imagination.  That fine line that separates our worldly experiences and what we carry inside ourselves is curiously fluid.  Psychedelic research volunteers have reported new and profound experiences, increasing their insights, as well as their joy and passion for life.  Doing the background research for this film and meeting the researchers and volunteers has convinced me that a large audience could benefit from seeing the film, and from understanding the promise that these medicines hold.

And now, about the film:  This documentary is not about hippies, or the 60's, or nostalgia.  We show real people in difficult, even ordinary circumstances who are trying to figure out how to live their lives meaningfully.  The film provides insights into human behavior, neuroscience, the research methods for medicine, and the commitment of a small group of visionary medical researchers.  This is the most upbeat inspiring doc I've ever gotten to produce.

The campaign is important now because it will allow us to finish cutting the film, pay for images and music and our special narrator, begin festivals, and have a theatrical launch. 

In many ways, this film has become personal.  Last year was a tough one for me.  While in post-production I learned that I had a nasty case of Non-Hodgkins lymphoma.  The people in the documentary I'd gotten to know - those who had cancer and were research volunteers using psilocybin for relief of anxiety due to existential angst- are always with me.   Until then, cancer had always been an abstract problem.  Then I got to know our film subjects.  Then I got cancer.  Strange.  But it keeps me motivated to know how important being part of the film was to each of them.

I ran out of steam during chemotherapy.  It's taken me all this time to regain my strength.  I get tested every 3 months to confirm I'm N.E.D. - no evidence of disease.  I am lucky.  I am healthy now.  But in the duration, we ran out of money to finish the film.  And now we need help.  We need $175,000 to finish the feature, and a small group of corporate sponsors to help us create a short television series.  The money will go to post-production, festivals fees, and distribution costs.  If we're unsuccessful in raising the entire amount, your donations will still give us the time and fuel to fund-raise off-line, and refine the film to make it more interesting for distribution.

I feel the urgency of time in a way I did not before being ill.  I also see how much we all need each other and each other's goodwill.  We want to reach a wider community with this documentary, we want anyone from life-threatening diseases, addiction, PTSD, anxiety, spiritual searching, or a wide range of fears, to know there is a class of medicine - non-toxic and non-addictive that we can scientifically evaluate and harness for our collective benefit and quality of life.

What You Get

Okay, I need to refrain from getting on my soapbox here.  If we want to keep media open for ideas and independent thinking, we all need to support independent productions.  There are fewer avenues for fundraising than ever before as public funds diminish and foundations struggle in a tepid economy.  For this reason, crowd-funding has become extremely important.  To me, research on psychedelics is important because it helps us learn how to keep our minds open and free, to think for ourselves, and make good choices for ourselves within a global context.  Supporting the film allows this substantial body of work to become widely known, well beyond the arena of those who are already interested.  We want your involvement.

Any donation is welcome.  In thanks, we'll provide beautiful t-shirts, the film, an ebook of edited interviews, an opportunity to meet the researchers, a great party, and credits.  Be a part of sharing the results of this ongoing research to the wide wide world.

The Impact

This documentary can have a very timely impact. Getting any medicine through the approval process required by the Federal government is a lengthy and expensive proposition.  Bad press in the 60's set the process back even further.  Since the 1990's the current research has been proceeding successfully, yet there is still a long road ahead.  The more people are aware of the research process, the more informed the public opinion, the more volunteers for the research, the better the work in the end.

Other Ways You Can Help

No cash?  We still can use your help.  Please circulate our website www.themedicinescienceandpsychedelics.com  or contact us if you have some time to volunteer, tell us about groups or organizations you think might be interested, and know that whatever you can do is completely appreciated, and it does matter.  Thank you.