A not-so-normal family deals with a not-so-normal heart. Watch or Buy it on AMAZON.
And not only does Marc have to come to terms with his own mortality, he also has to deal with anxious divorced parents who haven’t seen each other in years. Making this film almost killed the guy.
53 minutes, 2002
FESTIVALS
Full Frame International Doc Film Festival
International Documentary Association’s “Doctober” showcase
Ojai Film Festival
DISTRIBUTION
CREDITS
Produced, Directed and Edited by Marc Ostrick
Photographed by Adam Boucher
Associate Producers: Adam Boucher & Rita Stern
Additional Cameras: Ezra Soiferman, Felix Pire, Aidan McGlaze, Amelia McPartlon, Ben Boodman
Music by: Gregg Fine & Michael L’Acqua
Associate Editor: Felix Pire
Post-Production Assistant: Justina Grorich
Sound Mix: Michael Geisler, BadaBing! BadaBoom! Productions
Animation by David Criley
Heart Sounds Recorded by: Dr. Michael Criley
Cover art by Bernard Chang
SUBJECTS
Michele Ostrick
Gil Ostrick
Rosaleen Ostrick
Dr. Hillel Laks
Dr. Welton Gersony
Dr. Denton Cooley
Dr. Joseph Perloff
Pam Miner, RN
Jeff Gross, Medtronic
Dr. Cahill
Keith Miller
Adam Ross
Roz Frankel
And yours truly, Marc Ostrick
A FEW STATISTICS
25,000 people are born annually in the United States with congenital heart defects. Every year, 5,600 people, mostly infants, die from congenital heart complications. Only in the past 30 years, since the mid-seventies, has open-heart surgery been a viable and widely accessible option for people with congenital defects. Even today, it is a procedure which, though frequently performed, requires the highest levels of training and performance.
The human heart has been known to pump for a hundred years without failure, resting less than a second between contractions. It is a miracle of evolution, an emblem of endurance and a symbol of potency. The heart pumps life through our bodies and feeds fuels to our minds. Too bad mine was busted.