cineSOURCE magazine

Bay Area Filmmaker Goes the Distance
by Laurie Coyle

Bay Area documentarian, David L. Brown, filming a stand-up paddle marathon across Lake Tahoe in 2008 to benefit brain injury victims. photo: courtesy D. Brown

David L. Brown vividly remembers the news on January 29, 2006, when acclaimed ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt were critically wounded by a roadside bomb while embedded with the U.S. 4th Infantry Division outside of Baghdad.

“Woodruff’s accident brought home how vulnerable media professionals are," Brown, an Emmy Award-winning Bay Area filmmaker said. "No amount of celebrity shields you from the tragedy and violence you’re covering.” Woodruff shared the story of his near-death and remarkable recovery in the ABC News documentary “To Iraq and Back,” (2007) alerting the nation to the “Silent Epidemic” of troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with traumatic brain injury (TBI)–over 350,000 to date.

At the time, Brown had no idea that the high profile story would become part of his own life and filmmaking closer to home. In 2008, he was hired to direct a multi-camera shoot of a 22-mile paddle across Lake Tahoe. The marathon event was a fundraiser for the Bob Woodruff Foundation, drawing scores of world-class skiers, surfers, and other athletes who turned out to support Woodruff’s advocacy work on behalf of TBI survivors.

“I met these amazing people who opened my eyes about how prevalent and little understood TBI really is," Brown told me. "A traumatic brain injury happens every 15 seconds, afflicting 1.5 million Americans every year. That’s a national health crisis, but it’s really the stories of individual heroism that inspired me to make the film. The paddle became a metaphor for the hero’s journey that every TBI survivor takes. That’s what set me on the course of making 'Going the Distance: Journeys of Recovery.'”

TBI is caused by an impact or external blow to the brain, and can lead to cognitive impairment, memory loss, speech aphasia and personality changes. As cognitive therapist Dr. Zeiner explains in Brown’s feature documentary, “The self that was before the blast is gone forever.” TBI survivors sustain lifelong disabilities with varying degrees of potential for treatment and recovery. For them, ‘going the distance’ means accepting that their old selves are gone, mourning the loss, recognizing physical and mental impairment, and rebuilding their lives and their self-image.

For “Going the Distance,” Brown sought out TBI survivors that were facing uphill battles but had a good chance for successful recovery. “I didn’t want to be a Pollyanna or minimize the gravity of TBI, but I’d already seen an extremely depressing, high profile TBI doc on HBO focusing on the severely impaired. I wanted to follow characters with potential for growth or transformation, to impart a hopeful message despite the trauma."

Most of Brown’s documentaries have featured feisty role models pursuing their passions and living their bliss. Whether its antiwar activists in “Seniors for Peace” or octogenarian athletes in “Surfing for Life,” the Bay Area filmmaker sees these films as stories of inspiration for the rest of us.

Jason Poole, an injured Iraq war veteran, with his twin sister in the hospital. photo: courtesy D. Brown

In “Going the Distance” Brown follows four TBI survivors whose personalities are as quirky and compelling as their stories are dramatic. Yale graduate Jay Waller survived a road-rage beating that put an end to his plans to attend medical school. He reflects on the assault that nearly ended his life, “I don’t know what my mission is on this earth, but there’s a reason why I’m still here and I guess I have to figure it out.”

African-American veteran Jason Poole was nearing the end of his third tour of duty in Iraq when an improvised explosive device (IED) destroyed part of his face and put him in a coma for two months. When Jason describes his first look in the mirror post-injury, the moment is a tragic symbol for the changes confronting all TBI survivors.

While filming Jason at the Veterans Administration Polytrauma Center in Palo Alto, Brown encountered his third character, Kristen Collins. The young beauty had been in a motorcycle accident and was volunteering at the VA after months of intensive rehabilitation. Brown was able to follow Kristen’s recovery to her graduation from nursing school–an emotional high point in “Going the Distance.”

Executive producer Rob Howard’s connections to the southern California surfing community led Brown to Ian McFarland, a 6-year old San Diego surfer who was badly injured in a car accident that killed his parents. Brown captured how Ian’s tragic circumstances led to a tremendous outpouring of support from diverse individuals who came together to provide Ian with a range of intensive and holistic therapies. The heart of the effort is Ian’s young aunt Melissa, who abandons her life as an Oklahoma schoolteacher to take on the challenge of parenting three young orphans, one of them significantly disabled.

“Going the Distance” reveals TBI’s profound impact on survivors’ families and social circle. With tears in his eyes, road-rage victim Jay recounts, “My family went through a hundred times more than what I went through.” The film reveals that good therapy is essential, but that love is probably the most important ingredient in a successful recovery.

There’s no doubt that the overriding message of “Going the Distance” is that it takes a village to heal a TBI survivor. Jay, Jason, Kristen and Ian have families, communities and health care professionals sharing the journey. All four protagonists have the benefit of resources, therapy and strong support systems —a point Brown wants to drive home because millions of TBI survivors are not getting that support.

By the film’s end, each protagonist has achieved a significant personal goal: Jay’s interest in medicine leads him to earn a doctorate in physical therapy. Jason gets married and volunteers at the VA childcare center, fulfilling part of his earlier dream to become a kindergarten teacher. Kristen achieves a nursing degree, noting that she brings her intimate experience with suffering and recovery to her work. Ian is regaining mobility and learning to talk again. In a feel good moment at the end of “Going the Distance,” the former surfing prodigy rides the waves again with Ricochet, a surfing Golden Retriever who wins the ASPCA title “Dog of the Year” for her service work.

When asked how typical their outcomes are, Brown acknowledges that his characters are extremely fortunate but face continued impairment and lifelong challenges–uncomfortable truths that the film doesn’t soft-pedal. He also emphasizes that most TBI survivors don’t fare as well: “It’s a sad truth that many fall through the cracks. The system is overloaded. More than half of TBIs don’t get diagnosed, let alone treated adequately. I am making this film to help turn that around.”

Six year-old Ian McFarland's parents were killed and he was severely injured in a tragic car accident but he recovered speech and mobility through his interest in surfing and with the help of Ricochet, the ASPCA 'Dog of the Year.' photo: courtesy D. Brown

The severity of the TBI crisis was brought home again and again by an advisory team of leading experts in the field. Although he’d never worked so closely with advisors before, Brown quickly understood that the documentary wouldn’t have legs without a strong strong medical and scientific foundation. The advisors made certain that “Going the Distance” did not overstate its happy endings, and that the film presented a realistic image of the TBI crisis.

The rest of Brown’s team for the production included co-editors Steve Baigel and Tal Skloot and consulting writers Stephen Most and Jane Kinzler, who contributed to creating a character-driven documentary with a strong factual spine. To provide essential background and avoid inundating viewers, they presented salient facts and statistics simply and boldly as text-on-screen.

Another challenge was creating a cinematic style to convey the horrifying force of the protagonists’ life-destroying accidents. Brown elected to shoot reenactments without being too graphic. “At the end of the day,” he says, “I want to convey emotional authenticity and the reality of their accidents without graphic violence.”

Brown adds that it takes a village to make a film as well, nowadays more than ever. He describes fundraising in a deep recession as “character building.” While “Going the Distance” has received grants, 80% of the budget was raised from individual donors. Hoping to catch the crowdfunding wave, he recently launched an IndieGoGo campaign (http://www.indiegogo.com/going-the-distance) to engage nationwide networks of TBI supporters and raise completion funds.

During his three years “going the distance” on the film, Brown says his most gratifying moments have been witnessing his subjects tackle immense difficulties with grace, humor and gumption. “That’s the spirit I want to share with viewers and it’s been an inspiring lesson for me as well. Documenting their transformation and family support has been a growth experience for me as well.”

In response to the question, what gets you out of bed in the morning in such challenging times, Brown replies, “The adventure of storytelling, believing my documentaries make a difference, and my film students at City College of San Francisco, who renew my love of the medium with their curiosity and enthusiasm.”

Reflecting on nearly 40 years of filmmaking, he describes his subjects as, “ordinary people doing extraordinary things, who show what’s possible when we act with passion and conviction. Sadly, since the Fukushima disaster in Japan, my early film about the controversy over nuclear power, “A Question of Power," has been resurrected, with screenings and orders coming in. It’s a bittersweet David and Goliath story, but inspirational too. I want to pay tribute to that activist spirit. I believe my films can have a positive impact, and that gives me the resolve to do whatever it takes to make the film.”

Coming full circle, Bob Woodruff recently described “Going the Distance,” as “the best documentary on traumatic brain injury that I’ve seen.” It will be released in early 2012.

Laurie Coyle is a San Francisco-based producer, director and writer.
Posted on Oct 17, 2011 - 11:15 AM