REEL Recovery Film Festival - SF Bay Area Weekend Schedule Filled With World Premieres And Personal Appearances

SAN FRANCISCO, April 26, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- San Rafael-based Alcohol Justice and Studio City-based Writers In Treatment say some of the best is yet to come this weekend at the first REEL Recovery Film Festival – San Francisco Bay Area Edition - April 24-27, 2014.

At 10:30 a.m. today, Saturday, April 26, 2014, the world premiere of San Francisco filmmaker Sheila Ganz's On Life's Terms: Mothers in Recovery will take place at the Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael. The film follows five women struggling to keep their children as they battle addiction in a transformative gender-specific residential treatment program in San Rafael. Their three-year journey, sparking debate over treatment vs. incarceration, is told through intimate interviews and scenes with their kids. Filmmaker Sheila Ganz, Dr. Sushma D. Taylor, Ph.D., President/CEO of Center Point Inc., and Lisa R, one of the mom's in the film, will lead a discussion with the audience afterwards. (CEUs available).

At 11:45 a.m. today, Saturday, April 26, 2014, May I Be Frank screens at the Delancey Street Theater in San Francisco. This 2010 documentary follows 290 lb. Frank Ferrante, 54 years old, newly sober from a life filed with drugs and alcohol abuse, but sick with Hepatitis-C. Frank is taking multiple medications, undergoing chemotherapy and drinking 10 espressos a day to stay awake. A transformative moment occurs at a Café Gratitude in San Francisco and leads Frank on a 42 day journey to tackle his weight, health, relationships, and loving himself in just 42 days. Frank Ferrante will be present after the film to speak with the audience. (CEUs available).

At 6:00 p.m. today, Saturday, April 26, 2014, the world premiere of Sober Indian – Dangerous Indian will take place at the Delancey Street Theater in San Francisco. This new film tells the story of four Lakota men who left their homes on the dry Pine Ridge, South Dakota reservation to feed their alcohol addiction across the state line in Whiteclay, Nebraska – a town of 14 residents and four liquor stores that sell 4 millions cans of misery every year. It also introduces viewers to several tribal members who have overcome their addiction to find empowerment through sobriety. Director John Maisch, Pine Ridge Native American Activist Frank LaMere, and local American Indian Movement (AIM) members will be present for discussion after the film. (CEUs available).

At 8:00 p.m. today, Saturday, April 26, 2014, Perseverance: The Story of Dr. Billy Taylor will screen at the Delancey Street Theater in San Francisco. This is an inspiring tale of one of college football's greatest running backs, following his rise and his battles with substance abuse, incarceration, homelessness, and dogged fight to recover health, faith and family. Dr. Billy Taylor and Director Daniel Chace will lead a discussion with the audience after the film. (CEUs available).

At 11:00 a.m. Sunday, April 27, 2014, Without a Home will play at the Delancey Street Theater in San Francisco. This gritty film follows a young woman's desire to understand the homeless epidemic in her native city of Los Angeles. Her quest takes her on an unexpected 4-year journey into the lives of several homeless individuals as they struggle to find homes, get clean, and survive. Filmmaker Rachel Fleischer will be present for Q & A. (CEUs available).

At 11:00 a.m. Sunday, April 27, 2014, Behind the Orange Curtain will be presented at the Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael. This documentary delves into the staggering problem of teenage prescription drug abuse in one of the most affluent counties in the country.

California State Assembly Member Marc Levine will offer opening comments. After the film, Producer Natalie Costa, Muir Wood Clinical Director, Jennifer Golick, Director Marin County Prescription Drug Abuse Task Force, Mark Dale, author Erin Marie Daly, Caron Treatment Centers' Christian O'Donnell, and Dr. William Hanna, Clinical Director, Reflections, will discuss the film, the problems, and their relevance to Marin County.

(CEUs available).

At 5:20 p.m. Sunday, April 27, 2014, Mad Dance - Mental Health Trilogy will screen at the Delancey Street Theater in San Francisco. These three poetic and transformative shorts offer new maps for navigating madness with insight, healing and hope.

• Crooked Beauty - Artist-activist Jack McNamara's transformative journey from childhood abuse to psych ward inpatient to pioneering mental health advocacy.
• For Shadows - A contemplative, multi-layered memoir that unravels the tangled roots of self-harm while coming to terms with one's shadow.
• Light, In! - A haunting, visual essay about the awkward and angry junctures where our culture struggles to manage its emotional distress.

Director Ken Paul Rosenthal will be present after the films for audience discussion.

(CEUs available).

At 6:50 p.m. Sunday, April 27, 2014, Flight with Denzel Washington will be the last film of the festival. He plays an alcoholic commuter airline pilot facing criminal charges for flying under the influencing, crashing and causing fatalities. Larry Smith, a commercial pilot for United Airlines whose fascinating life story mirrors the story of Flight, will introduce the film. (CEUs available).

"Tickets for these and all remaining festival sessions are still available through BrownPaperTickets.com," stated Festival Director Michael Scippa, Director of Public Affairs for Alcohol Justice. "The cost is just $5, but if there are seats available we'll allow anyone admittance regardless of their ability to pay."  For more information about the festival, go to: FilmFestSFBay.org The goal of the REEL Recovery Film Festival is to highlight the disease as well as the hope and opportunity for recovery.

Sponsors of the REEL Recovery Film Festival San Francisco Bay Area edition include Wells Fargo Bank, Duffy's Napa Valley Rehab, Center Point Inc., Kaiser Permanente Marin/Sonoma Area, Reflections, Recovery Station TV Series, Salesforce.com Foundation, KRON-TV, The Michael Basso Foundation, Muir Wood Adolescent and Family Services, The Newport Academy, ConocoPhillips, San Francisco Fire Fighters Local 798, County of Marin Division of Mental Health and Substance Use Services, Caron Treatment Centers, SF Weekly/Bay Guardian, The Pacific Sun and numerous individuals.

Contact: Michael Scippa 415 548-0492
Jorge Castillo 415 840-3336

SOURCE Alcohol Justice