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“I see this film as a compassionate exploration of the dying process. Joan and the members of her support system offer an articulate, heartfelt account of their journey. It ultimately raises questions about how we choose to live this day. The universal themes explored in this film make it perfectly appropriate for health professionals and the general public alike. I highly recommend it to anyone who might be open to deeply living their life.”
Laura Stell, RN
Hospice Nurse
“This is a remarkable documentary of the transition from vibrant living into a meaningful process of dying. It deserves the attention of those who teach and counsel in the field of death and dying. Jim Lemkin has crafted a visual piece which combines honesty, beauty, and spiritual depth. The interplay between the individual dying process of a vital and courageous woman facing her own end and the universal themes of life and death rooted in nature and spirit make this film accessible to all of us. I also enthusiastically recommend Walking at the Edge to anyone involved in teaching, training, and learning in the field of death and dying, grief counseling and pastoral care.”
Thayer A. Greene, PhD
Jungian Psychoanalyst
Former Chaplain, Amherst College
“Walking at the Edge shows how we can, as individuals, families and communities midwife each other through chronic diseases and the process of dying. Conscious birthing and conscious dying are one and the same – they both involve letting go and embracing the Unknown Mystery. This is what life is all about and what this fine film is about...”
Suzanne Arms
Author, Childbirth Advocate, Educator
Author of Immaculate Deception
“My husband and I were struck with the sense of intimacy that prevails in Walking at the Edge. It was as if we all went through the process with Joan. We feel that it cuts to the core of the real issues in our lives....”
Bonnie Woods
Mother, Feldenkrais Practitioner
“Mountain peaks of hope and valleys of despair; laughter and celebration, tears and fears; caring crowds and devastating loneliness... In this powerful video we hear intimate stories, review the objective facts of the situation and meet caring friends, relatives and professionals. Through the often private hell of breast cancer we see the disease's assault, but also the journey’s hope. Few videos speak the story with such clarity and with such hope. This is a treasure of strength for individual patients, couples, families and support groups.”
Rev. Dr. Richard B. Gilbert, BCC
Executive Director • The World Pastoral Care Center
Director of Chaplaincy Services • Sherman Health Systems
Elgin, IL
“Hospice nurses and nursing students who have seen this film in my ‘Dying and Death’ and ‘Holistic Health and Healing’ courses rate this film as one of their favorites. They can easily relate to the intimacy of the "lived experience" of Joan’s journey, as well as myriad care issues she and her support community face. It is a superb learning tool because it places the student at the heart of universal issues and needs that intensify at the end of life...”
Mary Anne Bright, RN, CS, EdD
Associate Professor • School of Nursing
University of Massachusetts Amherst, MA
“Walking at the Edge is a moving and evocative journey through a woman’s experience of dying. The film explores her relationships and her relationship to her own body poignantly and bravely. I highly recommend this film to those who are students and practitioners in end-of-life care.”
Joan Berzoff, PhD
Professor and Co-Director of the Doctoral Program,
Director of End-of-Life Certificate Program
Smith College School of Social Work
“Walking at the Edge offers superb insight into the fearsome and challenging concerns of cancer and its therapies, the preciousness of life and dealings with death. This film truly understands cancer and cancer care. It broadens healthcare workers’ criteria of “a successful outcome” in the treatment of cancer patients. It is essential viewing for doctors, nurses and healthcare givers of all kinds.”
Edward Valentine, MD
Oncologist • New York City
“There is a very important message that comes up in watching your film: Why is it that unless we are faced with imminent death we do not try to “keep our record straight...”? Why is it that until we know we are going to die do we not give any thought to the quality of our life..? Let me thank you for the opportunity of engaging in this “process”... (I don’t even want to call it a film).”
Srimati Preeta
Student
Madras, India
“American Public Television is very proud to offer Walking at the Edge: A Journey into Dying and Living, to Public Television stations in the United States. It is an inspirational story involving not just one person, but an exceptional profile of courage, clarity and transcendence within a small circle of souls. As a premiere distributor of social and medical documentary programming to Public Television stations nationwide, APT believes Walking at the Edge is an excellent addition to our line-up of quality, entertaining and informative programs.
We know [Walking at the Edge] has exceptional cross cultural and generational appeal—as proven by the commitment of programming executives to air the documentary on over 65% of the Public Television stations nationwide. The personal angle will be of particularly intrigue to stations and viewers—given the lack of such program content currently available as well as an increased demand for intelligent, personal barrier-conquering type of genre in the top 50 TV markets.
Tamara Meyer
Manager, Exchange
American Public Television
“…One of the strongest moments in the film comes when [Joan] falls silent, as she struggles to finish a thought. The camera stays on her face. In a commercial television documentary, we might feel we've invaded her privacy. But Lemkin has directed everyone in the documentary to speak directly into the camera.
…We already know [Joan’s] twinkling eyes and can accept a few minutes of her looking away. Finally, she finishes her thought. After the delay, she's boiled it to its essence. She knows she must surrender…
Lemkin's editing, which took five years to complete, lives up to the compact that must have emerged between him and [Joan]: She would say it all and he would spare little. The footage is …fresh, genuine and undeniably real. Despite its tenderness, it is a hard-nosed documentary that will stay with you.”
Larry Parnass
Daily Hampshire Gazette
Northampton, MA
Nov. 2, 2000
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CONTACT: JIM LEMKIN, ND 7 Cole Road • Haydenville, Mass. 01039 USA
413.268.3500 • FAX 413.268.3511 • email: director@walkingattheedge.com www.WalkingAtTheEdge.com • 57:20 minutes, color, stereo • NTSC
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