Here's an interview with
John Salcedo, who is the winner of the Reel Show May Film Competition, which we proudly sponsor. John won the contest with his film BRAIN STORM, a short documentary exploring the application of Hyperbaric Oxygen
Treatment (HBOT) dealing specifically with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) on injured soldiers deployed
to Iraq & Afghanistan.
In a word, it's amazing, and is generating some great buzz online. See it
here.
Paul: Hi John, tell me a little bit about your background. John: Sure, I was stationed on Johnston Atoll during my U.S. Army enlistment from 1997-1999, followed by federal employment with the U.S. Army Technical Escort Unit 2000-2001, then began a consulting career for the U.S. military in Doha, Qatar from 2001-2003. After military life, I returned to college, graduated with an A.S. Degree in Small Business Mgmt and Entrepreneurialism from Rio Hondo College; and most recently I returned to Los Angeles City College for the Film Director Certificate program. However, my G.I. Bill benefits expired - so I'm a "free-agent."
What got you into filmmaking? I'd like to consider filmmaking as a continuation of my Public Service career - To broadcast "the voice" of the unsung hero. This subject is near and dear to my heart as an advocate for veterans. I can probably summarize this in one of my quotes: "The Things That I Hear - Is NOT The World That I See."
Where did you get the idea for the film? I learned about Dr. Harch's HBOT TBI/PTSD pilot study for veterans and wanted to spread the word for the remaining six slots to complete the study.
How did it all come about? There was nothing fancy about this film; it was all achieved by simplicity.
Tell me about pre-production and prep for the thing? The pre-production was simple; the real question should be about post-production. The entire production was accomplished with a $ 1,500 budget - $1,000 went towards air travel, food, and lodging. Like I said, there was nothing fancy about this production.
What did you shoot the film on? MiniDV
How long was your shoot? 2 days
Where did you shoot the film? New Orleans, Louisiana. Whittier, California.
I'm interested in how the editing process went as you edited the film as well as everything else? Good question - It's true what Directors say about the editing - editing is what "makes" the film. The original assignment was a 3-6 minute creative cinema piece. So, after the New Orleans trip I was faced with the decision of cutting 95% percent of Dr. Harch's & Mrs. Hecker's interview or to keep the footage-- but sacrifice my semester grade for an F. I decided to keep the footage and fail the class, but was given some last minute advice by Jason E. Chang, Edit Lab Supervisor - the advice was to do a movie trailer. Thank you, Jason! The final semester grade was a "B."
How did you find that? The editing portion was frustrating at times due to limited school hardware and software capabilities. By the way the edit lab computers do not have internet access! I outgrew the school system rather quickly and lab hours were a challenge. I'll be especially grateful when I have my own advanced editing hardware and software capabilities.
What did you edit the film on? iMovie6 - try no to laugh. Hey, you laughed!
I understand that there has been huge interest in this since it was put online. Tell me about what's been happening. Since the release of the film - here are some of the events that have transpired:
* A medical journal published Dr. Harch's HBOT TBI/PTSD research - here's the link: http://casesjournal.com/casesjournal/article/view/6538
* Dr. Harch was recently asked to write a short article for the Louisiana V.A. statewide newsletter.
* Dr. Harch his research team is pushing for a Bill in Washington D.C. that will have Tricare pay for treatment of TBI (and HBOT).
* Dept of Defense announced they have three HBOT trials underway - Dr. Harch is not of them.
* Mr. Hecker has returned to work with his U.S. Army unit. Mr. & Mrs. Hecker have returned to New York - According to Mrs. Hecker, Tim has more energy and motivated to do more with a positive outlook in life. "He's a new person and it's put a new enjoyment in his life. If it wasn't for Dr. Harch - We'd surely divorced by now."
* I was recently interviewed by Marty Callaghan featuring the documentary on a veteran's online-magazine through the American Legion. http://www.legion.org/onlineupdate/2735/brainstorm-explores-treatment-tbi-ptsd
How are you finding things since winning the Reelshow competition? Despite the success on the Reelshow - the mission is not complete. The main objective is to treat six more veterans to complete Dr. Harch's pilot study. My hopes are that this media release addresses the issue to the appropriate audience. Dr. Harch deserves credit for his 20+ years of HBOT TBI research, but more importantly injured vets deserve this painless treatment. Dr. Harch is currently approved for 30 patients, but only has funding for 20. However, funding may be obtained to treat patients 21-30. The more patients recruited, the more powerful the statistics, and imaging. If you know a veteran involved in an IED blast during the recent Iraq or Afghan conflict - please contact Dr. Harch immediately at www.HBOT.com
What's your ambition? My ambitions are ambitious but not for the sake of being "rich and famous." I'd like to own several square miles of coastal ranch for a military transition camp to help veterans rehabilitate into civilian life. It's more like a "decompression camp." A place for vets to decompress and re-build a balanced life that is supported by five pillars:
1. Higher education
2. Health & Wellness
3. Internships
4. Networking
5. Community Service
What aspect of the industry do you aspire to be involved in? My sights are on Producing & Directing military themed productions supported by the Department of Defense's Film Liaison Office. To produce stories that portray military life in an accurate and positive light that may help U.S. military with recruitment and retention.
What's next for you? I would like to seek investors to fund a sequel to original documentary. To further document Dr. Harch's HBOT medical discoveries, the legislation of HBOT, the impact to the families of rehabilitated soldiers, and to study the economic benefits related to wounded soldiers returning to college or civilian jobs.
What are you working on at the moment? Just completed ACT One of a feature screenplay - details are TOP SECRET, sorry.
This past month Sjors Vervoort won the Film of the Month contest for his short Cardboard. Here, I sit down for a quick Q+A about his filmmaking process, his inspirations and future plans. You can watch Cardboard in full over here.
