END OF LIFE with John Bruce and Pawel Wojtasik in person
Direct from the New York Film Festival, this acclaimed new documentary is a strikingly intimate film following the filmmakers' experiences as doulas for five terminally ill patients.
Dir. John Bruce and Paweł Wojtasik. 2018. Filmmakers John Bruce and Pawl Wojtasik trained to be end-of-life doulas before embarking on this project, in which they documented hundreds of hours of interactions with five individuals in the process of dying.
The doula’s role is to work with the dying person, along with those surrounding them, to help guide and support their wishes for what a “good death” means for them. “In our culture, almost everyone fears death,” says Ram Dass, the spiritual teacher and author, and one of this documentary’s subjects.
The filmmakers’ work both as doulas and as artists allows for a more nuanced and individualized depiction. Intimately shot over four years in hospital rooms, homes and work spaces, and employing an immersive, participatory approach, End of Life invites viewers to reflect on their own feelings and responses to the human body, mortality, and the approach of death as a part of life.
NOTE: This event is free for Museum members (members must contact Museum directly).
