Mulitple Chemical Sensitivity/Environmental Illness MCS/EI) has for too long remained invisible to the public, and those with this chronic illness left unchampioned. Susan Abod, who has had MCS and Chronic Fatigue for over 25 years, has worked on her film HOMESICK for over 10 years. As someone who also has lived with MCS/EI for over 25 years, this project is dear to my heart. I personally know the filmmaker Susan Abod. Please watch the trailer for her film HOMESICK and consider helping to sponsor her film so it can be completed and distributed. Contributions are tax-deductable. Thank you and blessings! Liora
Date: 9/18/2011 4:18:00 PM ( 13 y ) ... viewed 2548 times
OUR STORY
Imagine that houses make you sick—dangerously sick. Common products like paint, carpeting, new building materials and insecticides are poisonous enemies. Your bones ache, you’re feverish, you suffer from extreme headaches, disabling fatigue, mental confusion, asthma, nausea and sleeping disorders. The longer you stay in toxic housing, the sicker you get—and the less resources you have to deal with your desperate search for a home. You’re one of the millions of Americans suffering from the silent epidemic of Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS).
Now imagine that you’re an artist, a critically acclaimed filmmaker and singer/songwriter who lives with MCS. Susan Abod is that artist. Susan was on the fast track to musical success when she was blindsided by a diagnosis of MCS at the age of 32. Her award-winning first film, Funny, You Don’t Look Sick: An Autobiography of an Illness (1995, Cinema Guild), has been screened internationally. Ten years in the making, her feature documentary Homesick: Living with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities is the sequel.
To film Homesick, Susan hit the road with her camerawoman, learning how people around the country who live with MCS find safe housing. She interviewed people from all walks of life; their living quarters ranged from a house on stilts to tents and a teepee. Filmed over a period of ten years, the film now includes follow-up interviews with the original subjects. The trailer has been screened at the Santa Fe Film Center and at the Santa Fe Center For Contemporary Art’s Megabytes 4 Festival, and has been viewed over 200,000 times on the Homesick website. Homesick is currently in post-production, with a 64-minute rough cut. We’re almost there, but we need $6,000 to record the soundtrack and complete the post-production for the film. We need your help for Susan to complete her epic journey!
WHY YOU SHOULD CARE Homesick gives a human face to a growing environmental peril, and it is the first documentation of the long-term impact of healthier housing on people with MCS. Safe, healthy housing is the primary health-care need of people living with MCS. It’s almost inevitable that anyone with significant chemical sensitivities will be either homeless or live in substandard housing at some point. Many people become homeless while searching for safe housing, and more than a few commit suicide as a direct result of not having access to safe housing. Finding or creating a safe home environment is extremely challenging, since most people with MCS have had to stop working and have limited financial resources. The impact of this film is not limited to those who suffer from MCS, because unhealthy housing affects us all. Lives may be lost if we do not finish this film.
THE HOMESICK TEAM
We’ve got an impressive artistic roster. Susan Abod(Director, Writer) has been an award-winning filmmaker, professional singer, songwriter, recording artist, teacher and performer. You can learn more about Susan at her website or on YouTube. Bert Dalton(Musical Producer) is an award-winning jazz pianist, arranger, educator, composer and independent record producer; visit him here. Basil Shadid(Film Producer) is an owner of Seattle-based Dual Power Productions; he was the Post-Coordinator on the Academy Award nominated documentary Iraq In Fragments. Learn more about Basil here.
WHAT WE NEED AND WHAT YOU GET
To date, Homesick has been funded by grants and corporate funding. Now we need $6,000 to record the soundtrack and complete the post-production for the film. (The soundtrack budget includes the salaries for the producer and the musicians, studio time, CD mastering and printing; a detailed budget is available by request.) You can help by making a financial pledge of any size. Our fiscal sponsor is The Center for Independent Documentary (CID), and all of your donations are tax deductible. Click here for CID’s PayPal link. If we don’t meet our goal, we will continue to seek grant and corporate support, but we need to complete this project now! CLAIM YOUR PERK ON THE RIGHT OF THIS PAGE TO MAKE THIS PROJECT HAPPEN!
OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP
These times are financially tough for all of us; if money is not flowing freely for you, please give by passing on the word about our film to anyone you know who would be interested. You can also help by using IndieGoGo’s share tools. Follow our updates and comment on our progress—we need your enthusiasm!
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