Healing TREE's "The Knock Shadow" Online Auction
WHAT THIS AUCTION SUPPORTS:
Please consider supporting Healing TREE's latest short film, "The Knock Shadow". We have secured the vast majority of our budget but we need your help to cross the finish line! You can be a part of bringing this groundbreaking piece to life.
Starting on April 24, 2025, Healing TREE will be auctioning off a number of fun and unique items to bid on to raise money for "The Knock Shadow".
In the 1980's, a young, female therapist at a psychiatric ward encounters a patient whose symptoms lead her to question what is real and what isn't working in the field. "The Knock Shadow" will viscerally engage viewers, waking them up to issue of trauma in the world around them and within.
Trauma is a part of the human experience, but it has become a public health crisis. Simply put, trauma is any unhealed wound. It occurs when our capacity to cope is overwhelmed. There is big T and little t trauma. Experiencing any of the following can be traumatic: emotional abuse, neglect, bullying, domestic violence, assault, having a loved one who is addicted or mentally ill, financial stugggles, divorce, accidents, illness, systemic oppression, natural disasters, war, etc.
The CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study is one of the largest investigations of childhood abuse, neglect and household challenges, as they relate to later-life health and well-being. The ACE Study shows us that unhealed trauma is often behind many of society's toughest problems. This includes physical illness (like cancer and diabetes), mental illness, addiction, domestic violence, crime, houselessness and suicide.
It is common in our society to put a band-aid on the symptoms of trauma (i.e. managing depression and anxiety), rather than heal the root issue. This is due to the fact that, though effective treatments exist, they are not widely known or accessible. There is a lack of public awareness on the topic, as well as little integration between the trauma, mental health, and medical fields. This leads to intergenerational trauma and its widespread effects. Healing TREE exists to bridge the gaps in the system so that cycles can be broken and healing can become the new normal.
MEET THE TEAM:
Marissa Ghavami (she/they): Founder of Healing TREE, Producer / Actor - Alex Zaman
Co-produced the feature film Mass (Sundance 2021, theatrical release, winner of the Robert Altman Award, Gotham, Critics Choice and BAFTA nominee). Starred in the feature film The Gift of Christmas alongside Academy Award Nominee Bruce Davison. Acted opposite Tony Winner KO (Karen Olivio) in a workshop of Siluetas Off-Broadway.
Lea DeLaria (she/her): Producer / Actor - Sketch
Best known as Big Boo from Netflix's Orange is the New Black. Broadway credits include POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive (Bernadette). The first openly gay comic on television in America and an accomplished Jazz performer who has performed in concert venues all over the world. Winner of 3 SAG Awards, an Obie Award and Theatre World Award.
Ren Dara Santiago (they/them): Writer
Staff writer for Let The Right One In (Showtime). Winner of The Dramatist Guild's Lanford Wilson Award, TOW Foundation Fellowship, and Cornelia Street American Playwriting Award for The Siblings Play. They received the MCC Alumni Award and placed as a Finalist for the National Playwrights Conference in 2019 for Something in the Balete Tree.
Lauren Sowa (she/her): Director / Producer / Actor - Dr. Julia Gorecki
Director of Brett Was a F*ck (currently in the film festival circuit) and Future Mate (upcoming). Producer of Marisol (won the 2019 HuffPost Impact Award and was licensed by HBO.) Other films she’s produced can be seen on DUST, Tubi, Amazon Prime, Omeleto, and at film festivals all over the world. As an actor, she has been featured on FBI (CBS), The Plot Against America (HBO), The Rainbow Experiment (Paramount+), Paris is in Harlem (Slamdance '22) and Terrifier 3 (theatrical release).
Leah Gaydos (she/her): Co-Producer
Legal professional and award-winning film producer with over a decade of experience at the intersection of entertainment, law, and business. Produced more than 20 short films and two features, including Rounding, which premiered at Tribeca 2022. She has worked on major productions such as The Batman (2022) and Chicago PD, as well as serving as CFO for [REDACTED] Entertainment.
Dr. Jamie Marich (she/they): Consulting Producer
World-renowned author and educator in the field of trauma, addiction, dissociation, and expressive arts therapy. Author of more than 15 books and manuals. Writing featured in The Huffington Post and the New York Times. EMDR Therapy trainer and founder of the Institute for Creative Mindfulness, part of the Creative Mindfulness Network along with her production company Creative Mindfulness Media.
Gianna Capra (she/her): Associate Producer
Producer, writer and director with nearly a decade of experience in the industry. Her company, [REDACTED] Entertainment, produced Rounding (Tribeca 2022). She production coordinated for a limited docuseries called Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn't Exist (#2 on Netflix in August of 2022). In house producer with Kernel Productions. Narrative feature, What Rhymes with Magdalena, in distribution.
www.healingtreenonprofit.org