Stacy Bloom and Meg McKinney, Co-Directors and Producers of “Breathe in the Light,” call the project a labor of love. They have spent thousands of dollars of their own money to produce the documentary, and have been fundraising to pay for the editing process as well as follow-up shots. The film centers around the wilderness journey of four Alaskan women who are all victims of sexual assault. They are accompanied by guides from Alaska Mountaineering School and a wilderness therapist on a week long hike along Kesugi Ridge in the Alaska Range.
Stacy Bloom says that telling the stories, not only of the survivors’ trauma but also their healing process, is central to the film.
“So many of these films about rape are very didactic and academic, and that can be a real turnoff to a lot of people. We really wanted something that was going to look at the issue, but also look at it within the landscape–literally and figuratively–of nature, healing, and inspiration.”
Sexual assault is a very difficult conversation topic, and instances of violence often goes unreported, as many as nine in ten cases according to a U-A-A study. Meg McKinney says that she hopes the film will foster conversations about sexual violence in communities across Alaska as well as the Lower 48.
“If we’re going to get to a place where we can heal, collectively, then we need to be able to talk compassionately and in a spirit of connection…because one of the most healing experiences is for survivors to be heard and believed.”
Meg McKinney says that the idea to share the story of sexual assault survivors is linked to the idea of a hero’s transformative journey.
“It really spoke me–the thought of the journey, like Joseph Campbell. You set off with this idea of what you’re looking for. You go and have this adventure, and nine times out of ten, it’s entirely different than what you conceived it would be, then you bring it home. That’s where our project is, too. We took our women on a journey, and we all went on a journey, every single one of us.”
Stacy Bloom says the title of the film came to her from a yoga exercise. She found it appropriate, since the trek took place near the summer solstice in 2012. She says there is a deeper meaning to the choice of title, however.
“There’s a very obvious metaphor there of light, a lightness of being, overcoming darkness within a person. That was something that was explored within the film by the women who spoke of their trauma and experiences.”
The primary filming was completed last summer, and the team is currently raising funds for editing and follow-up shots with the survivors through the crowdfunding site, Kickstarter, through November 27th. More information about the film can be found at breatheinthelight.org.
