A Leaf of Faith

Christopher Bell & David Baca Jr.

Opioid painkillers are the leading cause of accidental death in the United States. After losing his older brother to prescription pills, filmmaker Chris Bell (PRESCRIPTION THUGS) - himself a 6-year opiate addict - wanted to find solutions. His research led him to Kratom, a plant from Southeast Asia that when consumed kills pain like opioids, but it doesn't carry with it many of the deadly side effects, withdrawal symptoms, or addiction problems that come with opioids. It’s even helped to wean addicts off of pharmaceutical opioids. In A LEAF OF FAITH, Chris seeks natural ways to kill the pain but not the patient.


Stardust

Gabriel Range

David Bowie is one of the most seminal legends in music history; but who was the man behind the many faces? In 1971, a 24-year-old fledgling David Bowie (Johnny Flynn) is sent to America to promote his newest record, The Man Who Sold the World. Leaving behind his pregnant wife Angie (Jena Malone), Bowie and his band embark on a makeshift coast-to-coast promotional tour with struggling Mercury Records publicist Rob Oberman (Marc Maron). Stateside, Bowie is quickly met with an audience that's not yet ready for him. During the tumultuous journey, Bowie slowly begins to realize a need to reinvent himself in order to truly become himself; it's with that realization that his iconic, celestial alter-ego Ziggy Stardust is born. Anchored by two stellar performances from Flynn and Maron, Stardust offers an intimate glimpse into the moments that inspired the creation of Bowie's first and most memorable alter-ego, illuminating the turning point that cemented his legacy as one of the world's greatest cultural icons.


Prescription Thugs

Christopher Bell

In this follow-up to his film BIGGER FASTER STRONGER, director Chris Bell turns his camera on the abuse of prescription drugs and, ultimately, himself. After witnessing friends and relatives face tragedy as they become addicted to prescription drugs, Bell sets out to explore the goals of pharmaceutical companies and doctors in this ever-growing market and asks how are they any different to back-alley drug-pushers? His journey leads to experts on the nature of addiction in our culture as well as to pharmaceutical whistleblowers that testify to the solely dollar-driven aims of pharmaceutical companies. As Bell learns more about the nefarious side of an industry he had been brought up to trust, he falls down his own hole of addiction, bringing a very intimate style and conclusion to this investigation.