The Anonymous People
THE ANONYMOUS PEOPLE is a feature documentary film about the 23.5 million Americans living in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. Deeply entrenched social stigma and mass participation in widely successful anonymous 12-step groups have kept recovery voices silent and faces hidden for decades. The vacuum created by this silence has been filled by sensational mass media depictions of addiction that continue to perpetuate a lurid public fascination with the dysfunctional side of what is a preventable and treatable health condition. Just like women with breast cancer, or people with HIV/AIDS, courageous addiction recovery advocates are starting to come out of the shadows to tell their true stories. The moving story of THE ANONYMOUS PEOPLE is told through the faces and voices of the leaders, volunteers, corporate executives, and celebrities who are laying it all on the line to save the lives of others just like them. This passionate new public recovery movement is fueling a changing conversation that aims to transform public opinion, and finally shift problematic policy toward lasting recovery solutions.
"A truly insightful and unforgettable look at the negative connotations surrounding addiction and recovery, and how we need to break through those barriers or else lives are going to continue to be lost, this picture features a great blend of insightful scholarly interviews as well as true life discussions of just what a great deal of good coming out and letting the world know you need help or how to find it can truly do. This is a real must see documentary." - Joshua Brunsting, Criterioncast
Kristen Johnston