Approximately 23.5 million Americans live in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction. Filmmaker/director Greg Williams whose documentary The Anonymous People will be screened at The Ridgefield Playhouse on Friday, September 26 will be on hand to show his film and share his own addiction experiences with the audience as he, along with special guests, participates in a Q&A. Greg Williams has been in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drugs since age seventeen. His award-winning documentary films are touted for their compelling and purposeful content. The enlightening evening starts at 6:00 - 7:15 p.m. with a Silent Auction; 7:30 p.m. Live Spoken World Performance from Kinetic Effect of Michigan; 8:00 p.m., Film Screening, 9:00 p.m. Q&A with filmmaker. This event is underwritten by The Ridgefield Prevention Council Family University to benefit the non-profit Mission of Connecticut Turning to Youth and Families and is part of HamletHub’s “A Whole New You Series”.
The Anonymous People is the groundbreaking 2013 independent film about the emerging Addiction Recovery Advocacy Movement, which looks for solutions to problems of 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. The Anonymous People has already received widespread critical acclaim and a variety of industry awards. 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.