The Child May Not Remember, But The Body Remembers: James Redford set to release Ground-Breaking Film RESILIENCE in the UK

A Ground-Breaking New Film on the Biology of Stress and Adverse Childhood Experiences and its links to major illnesses

Today Dartmouth Films are proud to announce that it will release KPJR Films’ documentary RESILIENCE: The Biology of Stress & The Science of Hope through special UK-wide screenings, commencing with its London Premiere screening and Q&A at the Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square on Thursday 27th April with Director James Redford and Dr Graham Music, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychotherapist at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.

Produced by Karen Pritzker and James Redford, Executive Produced by Regina K. Scully and Co-Produced by Dana Schwartz, RESILIENCE: The Biology of Stress & The Science of Hope chronicles the promising beginnings of an international movement to prevent childhood trauma, treat Toxic Stress, and greatly improve the health of future generations. The film follows the birth of a new movement among paediatricians, therapists, educators and communities, who are using cutting-edge brain science to disrupt cycles of violence, addiction and disease.

The original research was controversial, but the findings revealed the most important public health findings of a generation. RESILIENCE is a one-hour documentary that delves into the science of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and the birth of a new movement to treat and prevent Toxic Stress. Now understood to be linked with a wide range of medical conditions from heart disease and cancer to substance abuse and depression, extremely stressful experiences in childhood can alter brain development and have lifelong effects on health and behaviour.

However, as experts and practitioners profiled in RESILIENCE are proving, what’s predictable is preventable. These physicians, educators, social workers and communities are daring to talk about the effects of divorce, abuse and neglect. And they’re using cutting edge science to help the next generation break the cycles of adversity and disease.

Director James Redford said “We created RESILIENCE to make this science digestible and relevant to everyone, and to showcase some of the inspiring individuals who are putting that science into action. There is a growing group of paediatricians, educators and communities who are proving that cycles of disease and adversity can be broken.”

PAPER TIGERS
The RESILIENCE companion film PAPER TIGERS tells the story of Lincoln Alternative High School, which saw a dramatic turnaround after implementing a trauma-informed approach to discipline. Following six students over the course of a year, PAPER TIGERS is a testament to what the latest developmental science shows: just one caring adult can help break the cycle of adversity in a young person's life.

THE BIG PICTURE: RETHINKING DYSLEXIA
A dyslexic high school student pursues admission to a leading college – a challenge for a boy who didn’t learn to read until 4th grade. Additional accounts of the dyslexic experience from children, experts, and iconic leaders at the top of their fields, help us to understand that dyslexia, a persistent problem with learning to read, can be as great a gift as it sometimes is an obstacle.

JAMES REDFORD - BIOGRAPHY
James started his collaboration with Karen Pritzker on HBO’s THE BIG PICTURE: RETHINKING DYSLEXIA, a film that gave hope to millions of families around the world who have struggled to educate their dyslexic children. From there, they turned their story-telling eye on the hidden menace of adverse childhood experiences with two documentaries—PAPER TIGERS and RESILIENCE: THE BIOLOGY OF STRESS AND THE SCIENCE OF HOPE. PAPER TIGERS, currently on the festival and screening circuit, aired on PIVOT TV near the end of 2015. James also co-founded and is current Chair the Redford Center, a film production non-profit that translates complex environmental challenges into human stories that inspire. Recent honours include the 2014 WildCare Environmental Award, 2015 filmmaker envoy for USC/US State Department’s American Film Showcase as well as serving the leadership circle for the UN’s second annual Media for Social Impact Summit. James lives in Marin County and is married to Kyle Redford, a popular educational blogger for Edweek, Huffpost and Noodle.

KAREN PRITZKER - Biography
Karen is a film producer, editor and writer. She executive produced PAPER TIGERS as well as THE BIG PICTURE: RETHINKING DYSLEXIA, a documentary that demystified dyslexia and generated widespread awareness of this misunderstood disability. RESILIENCE, Pritzker’s third documentary with James Redford, chronicles the dawn of a new movement led by trailblazers in paediatrics, education and social welfare who are using cutting-edge science and field-tested therapies to protect children from the insidious effects of Toxic Stress. In addition to her film credits, Pritzker co-founded the My Hero Project, an interactive website for kids that is devoted to telling the stories of ordinary people who have accomplished extraordinary things. She is also President of Seedlings Foundation.

ABOUT KPJR FILMS
KPJR Films is a cinematic and educational collaboration between Karen Pritzker and James Redford, producing documentary films that confront society's hidden challenges to spur social engagement. One story at a time.

ABOUT DARTMOUTH FILMS
Dartmouth Films are pioneers in Britain of independent documentaries – finding new ways of funding, making and distributing films which have impact. They work with cinemas, broadcasters, online providers and civil society and community groups to get films seen. They distributed James Redford’s previous film – The Bigger Picture: Rethinking Dyslexia, about dyslexia - in the UK three years ago.