Posted on June 8, 2018
Zack Johnson, Conor Lewis, and Bryan Lemon are the young minds behind the latest asbestos documentary, “Dirty Laundry.” From the San Luis Obispo mountains to the Hoboken shores — this film has been creating a buzz throughout the country.
The film highlights the cousins’ 4,200 mile bike ride across the nation in honor of their grandmother, Iva, who lost her life to mesothelioma. What they slowly uncover through a variety of fascinating interviews and research, is a trail of broken families, all bound by the common thread of asbestos exposure. Part expose, part entertaining travelogue, part family drama; this story told by first-time filmmakers reminds us all that “Big Business” probably doesn’t have our best interests at heart.
We have had a lot of interest by our ADAO community in the development and celebration of this movie.
Many of our ADAO Warriors and Advisory Board Members, like Dr. Courtney Broaddus, Dr. Raja Flores, Dr. Brad Black, Marilyn Amento, Julie Gundlach, Mike and Jessica Mattmuller, and Jordan Zevon, Dusti Rice-Thompson, and others were interviewed in this film about their journey and medical knowledge.
On Friday, March 16th, Linda and I attended the San Luis Obispo’s International Film Festival premiere for the screening and panel discussion of “Dirty Laundry”. The response from viewers on the day we previewed was one of shock and awe! Viewers could not believe that asbestos is still legal in our country. Questions about policies and prevention were addressed and Zack, Conor, and Linda were questioned on their filmmaking, prevalence of asbestos, and the progress and challenges to ban asbestos.
Many of you have asked, “How can I see this documentary? Where can I purchase the DVD? Will it be available online?” Well, the answer to all those questions is “not right now”. This documentary is going through various International film festivals – a total of seven just this year! Given the schedule and commitment to their participation in various festivals, it prevents the filmmakers from any other distribution methods. Once this documentary becomes available, ADAO will be one of the first to screen the film. The schedule of past and upcoming film festivals as we know it today are as follows:
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- San Luis Obispo International Film Festival
- KC Film Fest
- Newport International Film Festival
- The Workers Unite Film Festival
- Illinois International Film Festival
- Hoboken International Film Festival
- St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase (upcoming!) July 15, 2018
- New Hope Film Festival (upcoming!) July 20-29, 2018
Your stories and testimonials in this film make a difference…together, we are making change happen! It’s time to ban asbestos.
Unable to support the film in person? Help keep the buzz going by joining the conversation on Twitter/Facebook/Instagram: ht
Ellen Costa
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