Documentary film maker Geoffrey Rogers is appealing for contributions in the making of his feature length sequel to the award-winning 1993 short film "Ozone and the Politics of Medicine", which was selected by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, but refused by broadcasters.
Recent clinical and scientific information reveals more of ozone's profound medical potential. Mr. Rogers has been filming in Europe and North America, including Russia and Cuba in preparation for the film's release later this year. He's hoping to hire an Academy Award winning narrator, depending on financing.
A small private Foundation has agreed to match funding up to $40,000 with a deadline of September 25th. Interested parties can call 604-657-3555 for further information.
Ozone - A Medical Breakthrough?
a feature length investigative documentary in production
COMPLETION FUNDING PROPOSAL - SEPTEMBER 2001
Canadian Journal of Health and Nutrition article
SUMMARY THE STORY THE PROJECT KEY PLAYERS FILMED HIGHLIGHTS THE FILM'S AESTHETIC PRODUCTION TEAM PROJECT ADVISORS THE PROJECT'S COST BROADCAST / DISTRIBUTION STRATEGY FUNDING TIME LINE AUDIENCE
Producer/Director
Geoffrey Rogers /Threshold Films
#141-1857 West 4th Avenue
Vancouver, BC Canada V6J 1M4
Tel 604-657-3555
ThresholdFilms@Yahoo.com
SUMMARY
Ozone- a Medical Breakthrough? is a feature length documentary currently in production. It's subject is ozone therapy - a controversial treatment used in several countries for many years but still largely ignored by the mainstream.
Ozone is a molecule formed by three atoms of oxygen instead of the usual two. Ozone therapy consists of pure oxygen mixed with a tiny amount of ozone. Researchers in many nations have been reporting benefits from the treatment for a variety of medical conditions including arthritis, cancer, rheumatism, diabetes, gangrene, strokes and AIDS, but in North America, the treatment remains unapproved and largely ignored by the medical mainstream.
Ozone- a Medical Breakthrough? takes a critical look at the science behind this controversial treatment. Some people claim ozone has saved their lives, and a growing number of Canadian and American doctors are quietly using the treatment, despite the risk of losing their license and freedom.
Some source material will come from the award-winning film Ozone and the Politics of Medicine, which was selected as one of the outstanding documentaries of 1994 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The 29 minute film received very limited distribution, and new information and footage will make a new important feature documentary.
C$100,000 (US$ 60,000) is needed to complete filming, post-production, promotion and distribution. The project qualifies for support as public education in health issues, current affairs and social issue programming, and medical and scientific research in the public interest.
The program is endorsed by the National Film Board of Canada, but has received no direct funding. It is also supported by Cineworks Independent Filmmakers Society, a Canadian charitable organization authorized to issue official tax receipts to contributors. The project is eligible for similar status in the United States.
THE STORY
After decades of use throughout the world, most North Americans still remain largely unaware of a medical treatment that is being used for an astonishing spectrum of disorders including arthritis, gangrene, cancer, hepatitis and more recently, AIDS. Scientific and clinical evidence indicate ozone therapy could be a significant breakthrough in the battle against major deadly diseases, yet there has been little media attention in North America, and it remains unapproved and largely ignored by the medical mainstream.
Many people are aware of ozone as an atmospheric layer that protects us from the sun's harmful ultraviolet rays, and some also know of ozone's role in urban air pollution, but few are aware of ozone's sterilizing properties. A small amount of ozone, mixed with pure oxygen, has been used for decades to successfully inactivate bacteria and viruses both in industry and in medicine.
Water quality engineers consider ozone to be the safest and most effective form of water purification; three thousand cities and towns around the world use ozone to sterilize their drinking water, including Paris, Moscow, Montreal, London and Los Angeles.
The principal reference book on the subject, The Use of Ozone in Medicine (by Dr. R. Viebahn, PhD pub. Haug, 2nd Rev. English Ed. 1994) cites over 300 medical references that support the use of ozone for more than forty different medical conditions, from bed sores to brain strokes, herpes, cancer, circulatory disorders and AIDS. More than 10,000 medical practitioners are now using ozone therapy extensively worldwide.
A 1980 study ( M. T. Jacobs) verified by the German Society of Pathologists tallied results from a survey of the treatment of 384,000 patients who had received more than 5 million ozone applications. 90% of the therapists surveyed reported "good to very good" results, and the side effects rate was .0007 per application - one of the lowest of any medical treatment!
Two peer-reviewed journals (Blood 1991 and the Journal of Hematology 1992) have published evidence that ozone will inactivate HIV in vitro without harming healthy cells. Hospital studies in London England and Montreal have shown the benefits of ozone use in certain circulatory conditions.
Russia and Cuba already use ozone extensively in their medical systems, and these two countries are responsible for some of the most compelling recent studies. A Russian delegate at the 12th World Ozone Congress in France (1995) stated that 100,000 patients have been treated in Russian hospitals.
Canadian researchers have been investigating ozone for more than ten years through the Ministry of health, Agriculture Canada, the National Research Council and the Ministry of National Defence. In 1993, the Ministry of National Defence used monkeys to show that ozone could achieve 100% sterilization of blood contaminated with a deadly version of HIV, and make it safe for transfusions. Other research indicates ozone's ability to strengthen key factors of the immune system including interferon and Interleukin-2. However, ozone remains unapproved for general medical use, the media have ignored the issue, and the public remains uninformed.
In the United States the National Institutes of Health, with a mandate to investigate promising new treatments, has yet to initiate any ozone research. Despite extensive submitted documentation, the Food and Drug Administration refuses to recognize any therapeutic merit for ozone. Until expensive controlled human trials are conducted, ozone will remain unapproved in the United States.
Every day, people are suffering and dying of treatable diseases, and thousands are obtaining ozone from doubtful sources in the medical underground with obvious risks.
The potential impact of ozone therapy on modern medicine is staggering. No other therapy has reported benefits in so many different areas of medicine, but much basic science still needs to be done.
Who will do it? And when?
THE PROJECT
Ozone, a Medical Breakthrough? will be released in film and video intended for international television broadcast and distribution.
Filming began in 1986, and seven years later resulted in a half hour version, Ozone and the Politics of Medicine. This film won Best Informative Documentary at the 1994 Atlanta Film Festival, as well as a Silver Award from the U.S. Educational Film Festival, and the Chris Award from the 1994 Columbus International Film Festival. Its greatest distinction was selection as One of the Outstanding Documentaries of 1994 by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which publicly presented the film in Los Angeles in March 1996.
Why make a new version? The original half hour film remains un-broadcast, and the story deserves to be expanded. Filming started up again in 1995 in England, France, Germany, the United States and Canada to update the story. Additional trips to Russia and Cuba have resulted in documentation of fascinating medical results. The project will also develop a broader and more compelling perspective directly addressing the concerns of broadcasters.
The essence of the story is the scientific and clinical evidence of the doctors and scientists who have blazed the trail, as well as the response from the medical mainstream. We also visit with patients who believe ozone has saved their lives, as well as with patients for whom it was too late to help.
Only six more shooting days are needed to complete the story. Additional animation will be created, and several news clips will also be added. Eight weeks of post-production will include principal editing of picture and sound, as well as music, effects and final narration by a respected internationally known personality. Final lab processing will take an additional two weeks. Major promotion will be undertaken in the seven months following the film's release.
The project is so far the only broadcast-quality, feature length documentary on the subject. The international broadcast and distribution potential is contingent on properly promoting the release, with press kits to reviewers and journalists, and follow-up with newspapers, magazines, radio and TV. The objective of the campaign is to create greater public awareness of the subject and to position the story on the international agenda.
KEY PLAYERS
Commodore Mike Shannon, MD,
Former Deputy-Surgeon General of Canada,
Coordinator of government ozone research 1986-1995
Dr. Anthony Fauci
Director, U.S. National Institute For Allergies
and Infectious Diseases, the U.S. government
department responsible for AIDS research
Dr. Michael Carpendale
Former Chief of Rehabilitative Medicine,
San Francisco Veteran's Administration Hospital
Co-author, Ozone Inactivates HIV
at Non-Cytotoxic Concentrations
(The Journal of Anti viral Research, 1991)
Dr. Bernard Poiesz
Director of Syracuse University Oncology Center,
Co-author, Inactivation of HIV Type 1 by Ozone In Vitro
(Blood Journal Oct. 11, 1991, p. 1882)
Dr. Horst Kief
Director, The Kief Clinic
Iffezheim, Germany
Dr. Kief has treated thousands of patients with ozone
Dr. R. Viebahn, PhD
Author, The Use of Ozone in Medicine
(2nd Rev. English Edition 1994)
Director, Hansler Company
Iffezheim, Germany
Dr. Manual Gomez Moraleda
Former Director,
The Ozone Research Center of Cuba
Mr. Ed Marshall
Current President and CEO
Medizone International Inc.
Stinson Beach, CA
FILMED HIGHLIGHTS
Geoffrey Rogers has 15 years documentary production experience on six continents. He is a graduate of the University of British Columbia Film and TV Studies Degree Program, with additional studies in art history, philosophy and theater. He started the ozone project 15 years ago, and has conducted the principal research, fund raising, production and distribution ever since. Other directing credits include the Public Advocacy TV campaign produced by the Media Foundation (16/35mm) and Planting Teak , on Costa Rica tree farming.
His work as a cinematographer includes, the Variety Club Telethon Ad Campaign (35mm) Snowboarding Japan 1996-2000, Howling at the Sun (16mm), Quiet Heroes (Beta) as well as The Anti Vaccine Movement (BetaSP). He was also assistant director and cinematographer for the award-winning National Film Board of Canada production, The Rise and Fall of American Business Culture (PBS broadcast).
Chuck Wintner is an acclaimed California film producer and distributor of health-related documentaries which include Victims, Angel Dust and the classic What Your Doctor Won't Tell You About Cancer (hosted by Eddie Albert), which won Best Investigative Documentary at the 1992 Houston Film Festival and was Silver Medalist at the 1992 New York Film Festival.
Lara Mazur has edited more than forty features and documentaries which have received more than fifty major awards and nominations including Genies, Geminis, Golden Sheafs and other awards at international festivals. Credit titles include, The Burning Season, Cadillac Girls, The Tramp at the Door and The David Milgaard Story.
Kalle Lasn has produced documentaries which have won awards at more than twenty major festivals, including The American Film Festival, The Chicago International Film Festival and The Competition for Films on Japan. His projects have been produced primarily through the National Film Board of Canada, and screened on PBS, CBC, NHK, and other networks internationally. Titles include Crime in Japan, The Rise and Fall of American Business Culture, Rituals, Children of the Tribe and Japan, Inc: Lessons for North America.
He is Executive Director of The Media Foundation, an award-winning public media advocacy group which has been the subject of stories by The New York Times, the BBC and Paris-TV, and whose magazine Adbusters has won the prestigious Utne Readers Award for Service Journalism.
Dr. R. Hayward Rogers, MD has more than forty years of hands-on medical experience with an emphasis on nutrition and holistic therapies, and was the first medical doctor in Canada to use ozone therapy. He has degrees in sociology, social work and medicine from the University of British Columbia, where he is Assistant Clinical Professor Emeritus in the Faculty of Medicine. He has won the Canadian Lifestyle Award from the Canadian Ministry of Health, as well as The Bronze Award the highest honor for community service from the Greater Vancouver Medical Association. He is also Founder of the Center for Integrated Healing, the first clinic of its kind in Western Canada to receive government funding for a facility advocating the use of integrated healing modalities. In June 2001, he was awarded the Order of British Columbia as a pioneer of alternative cancer therapies.
Dr. Michael Carpendale, MD is former Chief of Rehabilitative Medicine at the Veterans Administration Hospital in San Francisco and has conducted ozone research for 23 years. In 1991 he co-authored the landmark paper Ozone Inactivates HIV at Non-Cytotoxic Levels (with Dr. J Greenberg, Journal of Anti-viral Research Vol.16 Number 3). He was also chairman of the medical sessions of the 11th World Ozone Congress held in San Francisco Sept. 1993.
The look is clear and unambiguous. Cinema verité has in its essence the raw power of the documentary form. We have conflicting testimony from expert witnesses, the emotional struggle against illness and pain, and a growing political scandal that combine for an intense visual experience.
The varying conditions under which the footage was collected define the scope, integrity and perspective of the project. 16mm footage of interviews contrasts with grainier video clips from TV news shows and foreign sources. State-of-the-art digital animation and graphics will combine with interviews and reality footage to create a richer texture, and a sense of being there in the midst of an international story that is still unfolding today. As the program develops, tension steadily increases and related information heightens the stakes of a genuine international drama.
The components of emotion, scientific discovery, and political ramifications all add power to the story line. The pro and con, the give and take will crystallize a situation that has huge implications for modern medicine and the health of millions of people.
Time is a major player in this documentary. Through metaphor and the actual passing of time we see fifteen years of information-gathering unfold in 58 minutes, with compelling and growing tension. The audience will actually see the passing of time on the faces of some of the key players. Three participants have died since the project began, adding poignant emphasis.
This is truly an issue with life and death consequences.
Why release this project on film? Although the project has limited theatrical potential, the credibility and exposure that major international film festivals provide can be invaluable to this particular type of subject matter. The prestige of selection by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would not have been possible for the original project without a film print.
COST OF THE PROJECT
The total projected cost of the project is about $350,000 (all figures in Canadian dollars), including deferred costs and wages. Broadcast quality journalism involving extensive travel is expensive and this figure is actually low for feature-length documentaries. The producer has agreed to defer most wages for his own work and has committed thousands of dollars in his own funds in anticipation of compensation from broadcast and distribution revenue.
A total of $130,000 in actual expenses has been spent so far, with an additional $120,000 in deferral and in-kind contributions, leaving $100,000 still needed to adequately complete and promote the new film. This includes administrative charges, fund raising commissions, and an allotment for promotion.
The success of this project will be in direct proportion to the money spent on promotion - press kits, publicity and advertising. Substantially more funding could be spent on promotion with correspondingly more successful results.
BROADCAST / DISTRIBUTION STRATEGY
Key broadcasters throughout the world will be targeted with a proposal and a copy of the original documentary. We hope to then identify broadcast partners, and can then fine-tune the final version to their needs, including a version for francophone countries.
FilmOption Internationale (Montreal) held world broadcast rights to the original version. Moving Images Distribution (Vancouver), Aquarius Productions (U.S.) also had contracts for non-exclusive distribution of the original version. These distributors may potentially represent the new version.
The program will also be distributed through video wholesalers and promoted by direct mail for institutional markets such as libraries and medical professionals and institutions. A comprehensive media campaign will target film critics and medical journalists within the mainstream press as well as in specialized medical and health-related media.
FUNDING
The project is in urgent need of funding to bring it to completion and to promote it. The producer has recently used an inheritance of $17,000 to continue filming, but that money has been spent. The John and Lotte Hecht Foundation (Vancouver) contributed $37,000 towards the original documentary and will match funding to some level for the feature version. The project has only nominal support from the National Film Board of Canada. To date, the only additional funding has come from Dr. R.H.Rogers and Dr. Marion Rogers, the producer¹s own funds, videotape sales of the original version, as well as small contributions from a handful of private individuals.
A comprehensive fund raising campaign is needed, which targets government funding, broadcasters, charitable and private sources. The project qualifies for eligibility criteria such as public education, health education, scientific and medical research, and social issue journalism.
It cannot be predicted whether eventual revenue will be sufficient to cover money already spent and deferred costs. Donors can obtain a Canadian tax creditable receipt through Cineworks Filmmakers Society (604-685-2463).
The Progress in Medicine Foundation will be the American conduit. American tax-deductible donations can be made to
Progress in Medicine Foundation
or on line here.
PO Box 554
Mira Loma, CA 91752
PROJECT TIME LINE
With adequate funding, filming and post-production can be completed in four months. Although shooting is almost finished, it will be necessary to have most of the budget in place before final editing is completed in order to optimize distribution impact and to bring the story up to the minute. The last major shoot is being planned for September 2001 to include Ottawa and Washington D.C. All other remaining images will be filmed locally in Vancouver or obtained through stock footage. With adequate funding, the project can be completed by November 2001.
AUDIENCE
Who is the potential audience? The documentary is being made for international television audiences, specifically sophisticated, intelligent adults who are interested in science, medicine and social issues. The project's targets for broadcast are PBS Frontline, CBC Witness (or Rough Cuts), the BBC and various cable networks. There are also specific institutional and professional markets such as medical practitioners, schools, libraries and universities.