A documentary feature on the explosive narco culture, a phenomenon blurring the lines between war and entertainment. To a growing number of Mexicans and Latinos in the Americas, the Narco Traffickers represent the only models of fame and success, the only way out of the ghetto. This is the untold story behind the drug war, an unstoppable cycle that has created a culture of addiction on both sides of the border — addiction to the vanity of money, drugs and violence. These are the personal stories of those entangled in this war, from the musicians who profit by glorifying violence, to the man who collects the bodies the morning after.
Director Chris Bell turns his camera on the abuse of prescription drugs and, ultimately, himself. After witnessing friends and relatives face tragedy as they become addicted to prescription drugs, Bell sets out to explore the goals of pharmaceutical companies and doctors in this ever-growing market, and asks how they are any different from back-alley drug-pushers. His journey leads to experts on the nature of addiction in our culture, as well as to pharmaceutical whistleblowers that testify to the solely dollar-driven aims of pharmaceutical companies.
Ron Mann investigates the miraculous, near-secret world of fungi. Visionaries Gary Lincoff and Larry Evans lead us on a hunt for the wild mushroom and the deeper cultural experiences attached to the mysterious fungi. The oldest and largest living organisms recorded on Earth are both fungi. And their use by a new, maverick breed of scientists and thinkers has proven vital in the cleansing of sites despoiled by toxins and as a "clean" pesticide, among many other environmentally friendly applications. Combining material filmed at the Telluride Mushroom Fest with animation and archival footage, along with a neo-psychedelic soundtrack by The Flaming Lips, this film opens the doors to perception, taking the audience on an extraordinary trip where the fungi might well guide humanity to a saner, safer place.
BC's illegal marijuana trade industry has evolved into a business giant, dubbed by some involved as 'The Union', Commanding upwards of $7 billion Canadian annually. With up to 85% of 'BC Bud' being exported to the United States, the trade has become an international issue. Follow filmmakers Adam Scorgie and Brett Harvey as they demystifies the underground market and brings to light how an industry can function while remaining illegal. Through growers, police officers, criminologists, economists, doctors, politicians and pop culture icons, Scorgie examines the cause and effect nature of the business - an industry that may be profiting more by being illegal.
In the 1980s, ruthless Colombian cocaine barons invaded Miami with a brand of violence unseen in this country since Prohibition-era Chicago - and it put the city on the map. The film is the true story of how Miami became the drug, murder and cash capital of the United States, told by the people who made it all happen.