PRESS RELEASE

ILLUMINATE Film Festival Goes Virtual
Silver Linings Virtual Screening Series Begins May 14 with Joseph Campbell Documentary Finding Joe

Sedona, Arizona - May 7, 2020 - American philosopher Joseph Campbell was convinced that great breakthroughs could take place at the point of breakdown. If he were alive today, perhaps he would say that a pandemic-driven disruption of this scale, despite its tragic consequences, presents a magnificent opportunity for a global reboot.

Such questioning is at the center of conscious film favorite Finding Joe, a deeply touching documentary exploring universal truths about human nature and our love of adventure, passion, testing ourselves in the face of fear and finding meaning in all that we do.

Finding Joe, directed by Patrick Tayaka Solomon, will be the inaugural film of ILLUMINATE’s new month-long, weekly watch-at-home program Silver Linings Virtual Screening Series: Loving Life After Lockdown.

A selection of ILLUMINATE’s historical favorites and conscious film classics will be featured in the free live weekly series alongside live filmmaker Q&A’s, interactive discussions and the festival’s signature Reel Healing events. Funds will be raised for COVID-19 everyday heroes.

The virtual screening of Finding Joe will show on Thursday, May 14 at 4:00pm PDT.  Joining live for an online post-screening Q&A will be the film’s director Patrick Takaya Solomon, and following the Q&A, best-selling author and film subject Alan Cohen will offer an inspiring 30-minute Reel Healing on discovering our own hero’s journey in this tumultuous time.

Additional film selections will be announced each week. The virtual film screenings will take place at a scheduled time, but may be available for a 24-hour replay period. The programs can be watched on a computer, tablet, mobile device or TV (through mirroring).  They can also be watched on AppleTV via the Eventive app.

About Finding Joe

In the early 20th century, while studying world mythology, Joseph Campbell discovered a pattern hidden in every story ever told and he called it “the hero's journey”. A truly inspirational film, Finding Joe takes us on the ultimate hero's journey: the journey of self discovery.

The film features a stellar group of writers and filmmakers who comment on the different dimensions of Joseph Campbell's vision of life: they include Deepak Chopra, Rashida Jones, Robin Sharma, Catherine Hardwicke, Sir Ken Robinson, Akiva Goldsman, Alan Cohen, Joseph Marshall III, Chungliang Al Huang, Gay Hendricks, and others. Campbell's work had a great impact on George Lucas and his Star Wars saga. 

What feels closest to home right now are the clips from many other movies about the hero's journey of separation, initiation, and return home, such as The Wizard of Oz, The Matrix, Superman, Lord of the Rings, Rocky, Spartacus, and Alice in Wonderland.

Solomon has shown the film at festivals and in theaters worldwide. During ILLUMINATE’s live virtual Q&A, he will share tales of how the film has quickly become a conscious film classic (and perhaps the story of when President Barack Obama requested a screener).

About Alan Cohen

Alan Cohen, M.A., is the author of 27 popular inspirational books, including the best-selling The Dragon Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, the award-winning A Deep Breath of Life, and the classic Are You as Happy as Your Dog? He is a contributing writer for the New York Times #1 bestselling series Chicken Soup for the Soul, and his books have been translated into 25 foreign languages. His work has been featured on Oprah.com and in USA Today and The Washington Post. Alan’s radio program Get Real is broadcast weekly on Hay House Radio, and his monthly column From the Heart is featured in magazines internationally. 

Said the late Dr. Wayne Dyer, “Alan Cohen is a major, major player in the great spiritual awakening in our world. I want powerful, enlightened, conscious people to read and apply his messages.”

ILLUMINATE Cancels 2020 Festival and Goes Virtual

ILLUMINATE’s new online venture is a response to the pandemic. In light of the continuing challenges presented by the novel Coronavirus, the ILLUMINATE team chose to cancel our 2020 film festival events as a precaution to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. As the festival operates under a policy of health first, planning for all 2020 on-location events, including the annual May festival and all currently scheduled single-night screenings, was suspended.

As conscious cinema and community are more important than ever, the festival team decided to move as quickly as possible to bring life-affirming stories to audiences via an interactive live streaming platform.

“After weeks of disheartening news cycles and “We Are One” concerts, we find ourselves desperately craving a sense of normalcy,” says Danette Wolpert, executive director of the ILLUMINATE Film Festival, “but many of us are interested in manifesting a very different ‘normal’ than the one we lived pre-pandemic. We all have a desire to live a better life, a longing to connect more deeply to ourselves and to others.  We at ILLUMINATE can offer the transformational power of movies to uplift us, unite us and connect us with the best of who we are.”

The annual ILLUMINATE Film Festival in Sedona will return in May 2021.

"The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." — Joseph Campbell

To register for a free pass to the virtual at-home screening series, visit illuminate.eventive.org.  Passes are limited.

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About Illuminate Film Festival:  ILLUMINATE is the world's premiere film festival for conscious cinema. Dedicated to expanding human consciousness through film, ILLUMINATE is a landmark destination event and global hub for spreading enlightened ideas. Founded on the premise that the language of film is universal and a dynamic force in carrying messages to the masses, the Festival showcases the best of transformational media to uplift, inspire, and transform.

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