Spirit Quest Film Festival 2009

10th Gear Jettride-3800 Miles to a Cure is about a family that is struggling to save the life of their son Jett McSherry, who was born with a fatal disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Christine McSherry started the Jett Foundation in 2001with the calling of seeking out a cure for her son's fatal illness. In 2007, The Jett Foundation joined forces with the 10th gear youth cyclist, but truly having very little time to prepare for this awesome service ride. Jordan McSherry, Jett's sister, along with 25 teen cyclists went on the adventure of a lifetime when they cycled 3800 miles across the United States of America to create awareness for a fatal disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. Jordan takes the viewer on the ride in explaining her struggles in dealing with her brother's disease and why she wasn't willing to go on the ride in the first place, only to discover that the ride across the nation was an experience that she would never forget and in the process, coming into her own in that 9 week period of time, only in discovering who she was as a person, her love for her brother and the constant struggle in helping him stay alive. Since DMD affects boys, this documentary will educate you about DMD within all the stages of development, while contrasting the health and vigor of the male cyclists.

Art From the Streets is a feature length documentary about homelessness, art, community service, courage and hope. The film tells the story of an extraordinary, grassroots program in Austin, TX for homeless artists. Every Tuesday and Thursday at the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless, this program offers homeless people a place and supplies to produce art. Over one weekend, at the end of the year, they have a sale of the work, with the proceeds going to the artists. In 2005, the proceeds from the sale exceeded $80,000. The sale not only provides much needed funds to the artitsts, but it also gives them a unique sense of accomplishment and self-worth which are sorely lacking among homeless people. By following five of the artists over the course of a year, we learn about their daily struggle to survive, their passion for art, and how this all-volunteer program helps the artists accomplish their goals while enriching the lives of all involved. Viewers will visit homeless camps, learn of the daily challenges of street life, and witness the strengths of human character.

In Western Thailand, thousands of Burmese refugees have come to escape the oppression of a military government. Crossing the border forces them into poverty. The children of these refugees are unable to receive decent education and forced to work at a young age in order to support their families.However, there is a place for these children to go where they are able to find support in order to achieve a better future. The children at Baan Dada are able to receive education, love, and opportunity to help improve their future. The home was set up for young ethnic minorities from Burma who are in need of care. Now, there are approximately 60 children who live at the home. Baan Dada helps them to gain important skills for their future, understanding that the children must have knowledge and experience in order to succeed. There are a number of projects that are set up in order to teach the kids self sustainability. The older boys work with a mechanic in town each week to help learn skills. Some of the children have a band and play at local guest houses, where the money they learn goes to their savings.. The younger children draw cards and bookmarks to sell internationally, with a small part given to them, and the rest used for education. Over all, the children are taught from an early age how to take care of themselves, allowed for bright futures that they might not have outside of the home.

A love-damaged actress, who won’t admit she still yearns for the real thing, must eliminate the opposition to make love work on her terms.

A man sized crucifix with the likeness of Chirst nailed to the cross ends up dumped off as a result of a delivery gone bad. The large piece is hard to ignore, even moreso with the creepy looking Jesus hanging from it. The movement of life around it pushes it to some most unlikely places, catching those that happen upon it a little off guard, forcing them to do some 'on the spot' inner reflection on their lives and actions.While most dismiss the object as an annoyance, one person is profoundly changed by the encounter.Was it divine intervention or just pure chance?Creepy Jesus is a spiritual film that does not push a religious idea upon the audience. It is a unique story that is open to audience interpretation. No offensive language is used, however the dark tones given the subject matter is quite edgy.

THE DHAMMA BROTHERS documents the extraordinary convergence of an overcrowded, understaffed maximum-security prison -- considered the end of the line in the Alabama correctional system -- and an ancient meditation program. East meets West in the Deep South.Donaldson Correctional Facility is situated in the Alabama countryside southwest of Birmingham. 1,500 men, considered the state’s most dangerous criminals, live behind high security towers and a double row of barbed and electrical wire fences. Yet within this dark environment, a spark was ignited. A growing network of men was gathering to meditate on a regular basis. Intrigued by this, Jenny Phillips, cultural anthropologist and psychotherapist, first visited Donaldson Correctional Facility in the fall of 1999. She planned to observe the meditation classes facilitated by inmates and to interview the inmate meditators about their lives as prisoners.As she met with the men, one by one in the privacy of an office, she was drawn in by their openness and willingness to talk freely about themselves. High levels of apprehension, distraction and danger characterize their lives as prisoners. Even though many of these men will never be released from prison, they were thirsty for meaningful social and emotional change. What she heard there was difficult to forget. It left her wondering if it were possible to live with a sense of inner peace and freedom within the harsh, violent prison environment.As a meditator herself, Jenny knew that meditation directly addresses the issue of personal suffering, and offers a simple yet powerful means for obtaining relief from that suffering. But were these ancient ideas, as described in the teachings of the Buddha 2600 years ago, now relevant? Could the framework of this approach to suffering be translated into some basic principles of treatment that would be applicable to 21st century North American prisoners?Were these prisoners, many of them survivors of personal trauma, even capable of withstanding the emotionally and physically demanding experience of a 10-day meditation retreat? More important, was it possible for these men, some of whom had committed horrendous crimes, to change?When returning home to Massachusetts, Jenny contacted the Vipassana Meditation Center in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, part of a worldwide network of centers dedicated to preserving meditation according to the teachings of Buddha. After a year of planning between the prison and the Vipassana staffs, in January 2002, Donaldson Correctional Facility became the first prison in North America to hold a 10-day Vipassana retreat.THE DHAMMA BROTHERS tells a dramatic story of human potential and transformation as it closely follows and documents the stories of prison inmates as they enter into this arduous and intensive program. It will challenge assumptions about the very nature of prisons as places of punishment rather than rehabilitation.Despite the extreme difficulty in obtaining permission to film inside a prison, the Alabama Department of Corrections allowed a film crew to document, not only the Vipassana retreat, but many other scenes and settings revealing the daily lives of prisoners and staff. THE DHAMMA BROTHERS draws the viewer in through memorable interviews with the inmates, the prison staff, the inmates’ families, andmembers of the surrounding community.The film combines verite footage and, because some of the inmates’ crimes attracted significant media coverage, also includes archival television reports which appeared at the time of the crimes.In interviews immediately before the Vipassana retreat, the men openly express fear and trepidation, wondering what they will find when they look deeply within and face the consequences of past actions and trauma.They are shown packing their scant belongings and preparing for the journey inside, a very short walk down the prison corridor but a sea change in their lives as prisoners. We observe the transformation of the prison gym, a frequent site for violent battles among inmates, into a monastery, a separate, restricted place in which the inmate students can eat, sleep, and meditate in total seclusion from the rest of prison society. The Vipassana teachers, Bruce and Jonathan, prepare to live and meditate with the inmates. Teachers and inmates, men from culturally different worlds, are locked together in a dramatically revealing process. This is, most likely, the first time non-inmates have ever lived among inmates inside a prison.We follow the men day to day on the retreat. Seated on meditation mats on a red rug donated by the Warden, wrapped in navy blue blankets, the men sit still in silence as they journey inside. Their days are punctuated by a strict daily routine of eating, sleeping and meditating.In individual interviews after the Vipassana retreat, the men tell their tales of pain and self-discovery. During group interviews, the spiritual warriors of Donaldson Correctional Facility discuss their collective experiences and vow to try to maintain their nascent sense of solidarity. In the nameless, faceless anonymity of prison life, where daily life is organized around social control and punishment, Vipassana has offered an alternative social identity based on brotherhood and spiritual development. But, has the retreat been genuinely transformative for the men? Or, as the Warden suggests, could they just be faking these changes to look good to the parole board? Is the transformation sustaining?In response to these questions the filmmakers returned to the prison to interview the prisoners and prison staff to see the impact of the retreat upon their daily lives. They visited the homes of prisoners’ families, and talked to them about their observations about the impact of the retreat. Also included are on-going personal letters and diaries from the inmates who have continued corresponding with the director Jenny Phillips over the past four years.

Jim Morrison was the Lizard King, Pat Corcoran was the Chameleon. Stuck in a dream state of the 1960s, Pat struggles to see life outside the limelight that once blanketed him. When a beautiful young woman named Ana saves his life, Pat agrees to drive them to her ancestral home, in hopes that she can save him from his past. Unpaved roads treat the pair to a dusty adventure full of anger management, Beethoven, The Doors, lust, and God as the road trip becomes a journey full of lessons and revelations.

A man and woman on a first date wind up spending the evening in a hospital emergency room.

Gone Fishing is the touching story of a boy and old man coming to terms with bereavement through their shared love of fishing, and the legend of Goliath, the biggest pike ever caught!The story is in part autobiographical ? while growing up, director Chris Jones and his friends would often attempt to catch the legendary `Oscar the pike?, a fish that according to local myth terrorized the lake at the end of his road, the aptly named Blue Lagoon. This was the inspiration behind the legend of `Goliath?, the big fish in this even bigger tale.Think 'Jaws' but for kids...