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1/4
LEFT ON PURPOSE
2015 / 85 mins
DIRECTOR
Justin Schein
Midway through the filming of a documentary about his life as an anti-war activist, Mayer Vishner declares that his time has passed and that his last political act will be to commit suicide— and he wants it all on camera.
Left on Purpose began as a portrait of the life of Mayer Vishner, an antiwar Yippie activist. In the midst of filming, the aging radical informs director Justin Schein that, having had his fill of solitude and depression, he intends instead to make the project about his death – and he wants his suicide captured on camera. Forced to break down the barrier between filmmaker and subject, Schein struggles with the ethics of intervening in the literal life-or-death story unfolding before his eyes.
PRESS
"By the time Left on Purpose reaches its conclusion, it has delivered a powerful examination of the debilitating effect of clinical depression and raised disturbing questions about the right to take one’s own life."
– Hollywood Reporter
"An anguished and compassionate chronicle of Schein and Vishner's relationship."
– Village Voice
"What begins as a traditional examination of the life and times of anti-war activist Mayer Vishner soon evolves into a deeper look into depression, loneliness and being caught in a forever changing world."
– The Knockturnal
"An engrossing new documentary on activism, depression, and the right to die."
– High Times
SELECT FESTIVALS
DOC NYC 2015 — Audience Award
Woodstock Film Festival 2015 — Audience Award
Astra Film Festival Romania 2015 — Best of Fest Award
Leeds International Film Festival 2015
Big Sky 2016
Boulder International Film Festival 2016
Thessaloniki Documentary Festival 2016
Florida Film Festival 2016 — Best Documentary Award
Newport Beach Film Festival 2016
DOXA 2016
Berkeley Film Festival 2016 — Special Jury Award
Document Human Rights Film Festival 2017
WHERE TO WATCH
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