May 20th 2019 screening and Tim Snoha

On May 20th 2019 I screened the film “A Stroke Of Endurance” http://cripvideoproductions.com/astrokeofendurance.php for 2 more college classes related to sociology. I introduced the film and told the class I wrote the film partly to spread the message that disabled people are NOT better off dead. 

The response was hugely positive during the 2 Q&As. It was a ton of fun! The students had great questions and comments as always about what CP was and the production process. One student told me they found the film inspiring. Another student asked me how we got permission to shoot the film at the location where it was shot. One student asked how the actor who played Professor Ben was able to re create the stroke so well. They loved the actor Tim Snoha, who played the character with the stroke!  “He’s just a darn good, super talented actor!!” I said. Then I explained how a woman with a stroke had been involved and gave input on Professor Ben’s character to make his movements and emotions more realistic, then the actors followed my instructions really well and brought some of their own disability experience into the performance. Yet another student asked if I was trying to change the conversation on disability. One student asked what Cerebral Palsy was and if Cerebral Palsy was painful. I explained it depended on the person with CP but arthritis was common. Then this person commented that they liked how one of Professor Ben’s biggest fears was losing the ability to work. After the screening a student told me they liked how truthful the film was. 

I was given full permission by the professor to make this blog post! Special thanks to the professor for inviting me and I hope to do it again!  

Again if you are a professor and/or teacher and want to use our films as a teaching tool please contact us via our website contact page. 

In other news the actor Tim Snoha who played Professor Ben in our film "A Stroke Of Endurance" got a role in another short film called "Highly Recommended" as a character who is murdered. Here's the trailer https://vimeo.com/309203630   If you are in NYC you can view "Highly Recommended" as part of a film festival on June 1st 2019. Time and address here https://www.nyshorts.net/copy-of-film-program-4  We are so proud of you Tim! Congratulations! PLEASE NOTE: "Highly Recommended" is NOT affiliated with Crip Video Productions. "Highly Recommended" is copyrighted to its original owners. 

"A Stroke Of Endurance" featured on Stroke Survivor Blog

We are taking a break from posting our 2018 archives to share some exciting current news from our google plus page and email list that was released around January 15th 2019.

https://www.stromies.com/blog/guest-blog-margot-of-stroke-of-endurance

A fan of our film “A Stroke Of Endurance” http://cripvideoproductions.com/astrokeofendurance.php who is a stroke survivor, recommended a podcast about The Stromies https://strokecast.com/2018/12/21/episode-045-meet-the-stromies/ and the The Stromies Blog to Crip Video Productions. Then The Stromies kindly allowed our director Margot Cole to do a post about “A Stroke Of Endurance” for their blog about how the film specifically relates to stroke survivors. Super Special thanks to the wonderful ladies at The Stromies!
http://cripvideoproductions.tumblr.com/post/182046036911/guest-blog-margot-of-stroke-of-endurance

To share this post on social media use these links
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/p/BsxzZ6fnUtI/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/stromies/posts/378748266027341?__xts__[0]=68.ARC8N8zHed6Dnnm_1qQhrdx_o4_AbiD8KX6VQjTekXuFNVCzCU0fpsYxDFv0e0Wtm3t0Mm6urBqvhPPlJ2UZ_680KTKO8_xrjgr9iguvgB1AAYjLrY97RbI-Dn-iIPfwXYhCLoBIPXDThWXl2dM2YD6Wxe2GmR5XojEIy09qMwazSoqtrZAS5-bWeYPh5wZlQ9a5JMXNqG-RkDBRWHvAZHZtSQbqn65Xa6ZQqM5APvzrjjlDahwbEJLrClc5EqhHXcJkw9bCgWk26sZ3GMjIV849rYJxek0EZTpLk-k-xqgV0eAiKfQBpTfZ0ZC8SEJ83GNjadG9ji_uVVuQAj0pu1U&__tn__=-R

Our wonderful actor Tim Snoha who played Professor Ben in our film "A Stroke Of Endurance" was featured in a UnitedHealthcare insurance ad with a message about disability which you can watch for free here https://www.ispot.tv/ad/I1a1/unitedhealthcare-dual-complete-plan-more-benefits#
We hope the link plays properly. Congratulations Tim! We are so proud of you!

Our actor Tim Snoha from “A Stroke Of Endurance” is getting press from Disabled In Action along with press for our article for The Stromies via Facebook. For more info see here on our google plus page!

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=1891698974285521&id=146701932118576&__xts__[0]=68.ARC2Jvk7rAaJVPhkMd16GlyFegNyQm1pkDJihWmJ9ceRR-EdN-2x1OBugVnp5jp_AU9UVKUytO9JR0OHjojDDBIAiJFNcxLJ41l9k6QXZ48f5m1aQOtW7AdP-GRPzPdEwl0_8mGhzJEhNA4gH-Ujz2tV01MlkIu2N_-LdVd3fSsEifXuSNh9MxQwSA3alJRoBg8uWzWyPyDexvMgEb-Y9YQoWBzSJKmyG_gaCpf9AcSu3v5nxuoqz-1K-JQlzUJYKyS4oNrdjNuvntwayaATkW3jGJdUWCLkVrNyKwGYxEltAw1dr4JREUYUK6jgKOpgA2BERxbwvxk3wykQeFDvdd9mgQ&__tn__=-R

Please share widely via social media and email lists! We really appreciate it!

New Mexico 2018 screening press release

This post is an archive from Spring 2018.

“A Stroke Of Endurance” New Mexico screening press release!

PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE PRESS RELEASE

An Unusual Cinematic Treat

In a place that touts itself as “The City Different,” Santa Fe plays host to countless artistic efforts that feature truly innovative and unique forms of expression. It would seem then, that in a city such as this, patrons of the arts would not easily be surprised by any sort of artistic offering. Yet, creativity comes in many forms and even folks who think they’ve seen it all, can still be delighted and astonished from time to time. And it just so happens that March 24th and 25th will present an opportunity for just that to occur.

In collaboration with Teatro Paraguas, Crip Video Productions will be presenting screenings of “A Stroke of Endurance” a film about friendship, faith, and endurance. The story, written and directed by filmmaker, Margot Cole, is about how a college student with Cerebral Palsy and her classmates must deal with varying forms of fall-out when mid-semester, their professor has a stroke that leaves him disabled.

Among the extraordinary and unexpected aspects of this film is that the film, like all of Crip Video productions, was created by people with disabilities. The mission of the production company is, “…to break barriers and increase understanding of disability through engaging characters and storytelling.” Born with mild Cerebral Palsy herself, Cole has made it her mission to empower people with disabilities through her filmmaking. By naming her production company Crip Video Productions, Cole is using the vernacular of the disabled community to further identify the focus of her works. Other productions the company has engaged in include, “Drama Sighted”, “Only Those Who Limp Allowed” and “Crips Not Creeps.”

What reviewers are saying: “Russian Embedded dolls where layers of representation keep appearing-that is what resonates in this complex and provocative film “A Stroke Of Endurance” -Geraldine Pauling Film Psychohistorian NYC.

“A Stroke of Endurance” can be seen Saturday March 24th at 7:00pm. & Sunday March 25th at 2:00pm at Teatro Paraguas, 3205 Calle Marie suite A, Santa Fe New Mexico. There is no fee to attend the screenings but donations are encouraged and accepted to help Teatro Paraguas continue with their mission. 

EDIT: This screening has already happened 

"A Stroke Of Endurance" review/Synopsis archive

This is an archived post from September 2017 from when we were still in the editing process with "A Stroke Of Endurance" but we did not post the review to our official website until after "A Stroke Of Endurance" was uploaded to youtube. To avoid major spoilers please watch "A Stroke Of Endurance"  online for free before reading this post!

Russian embedded dolls where layers of representation keep appearing-that is what resonates in this complex and provocative film "A Stroke Of Endurance" written and directed by Margot Cole, which provides a window into the disability experience and the thoughts and attitudes of ableism. Margot Cole reveals herself to be a multi faceted artist (observing of life, writer, actor, and director). 

In this her latest production released on Youtube, a group of college students, some with disabilities, some without-learn their professor has suffered a devastating stroke, leaving them temporarily unmoored. 

Ms. Cole also acts in the film as the central character Ava, in a flashback scene of her encounter with a college counselor who is clueless about her. Feeling offended by the counselor's rude and condensing attitude and the counselor's insistence that because Ava is physically disabled, she should major in disability studies, Ava indignantly departs the counselling session. 

We next view Ava lamenting over Professor Ben's stroke. She believes it was possibly a result of her silently cursing him, and wishing him dead, because of her dismay over the high cost of a textbook, that Professor Ben had explained, was for required reading. Following the professor's return to the classroom, his students observe him struggling with a difficult recovery. Classmate Alice suggests that Ava might help Professor Ben manage the disabling effects of his stroke by sharing her experience of living with a disability. Alice explains that it "doesn't overcome your life" and in fact one "can actually thrive in spite of a handicap". Ms. Cole imbues her theatre of life with karmic restitution as Professor Ben gratefully accepts Ava's help. Their disabilities inform their relationship showing how endurance and coping with challenges, foster strength. 

Ms. Cole presents to her viewers, through a lens of subjective experiences, the broad spectrum of abilities and disabilities both in herself and in others. Her graceful beauty enhances the dynamic and powerful insights in this film. - Geraldine Pauling (disabled psychologist) NYC 9/09/17

"A Stroke Of Endurance" screening premiere and review archive

These are achieved posts from Fall 2017. Older posts on the bottom.

December 5th 2017: 

“A Stroke of Endurance” screening premiere!

This post may contain spoilers for “A Stroke Of Endurance”. Please see our previous post to watch the film first!

Today(December 5th) was the public premiere screening of our newest film “A Stroke Of Endurance” at KCC. (This screening is why the film had to be released early with the captioned version to come later)  There was a pre screening pizza party and performance about disability. Then we moved into a room with a projector and watched the film. I (Margot) introduced the film as I usually do at Crip Video Productions screenings. I mentioned how the film was shot at KCC. It was nice to see the audience reactions. At the end of the screening we had a special Q&A panel with most of the cast of the film, like most of the student characters and the actor who plays Professor Ben. I was glad that the cast got to share what they liked and remembered about our shooting and production process. 

One of the cast members Tim Snoha, who plays Professor Ben mentioned how I found him through Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts which has listings of disabled actors. One audience member asked how I thought of the story of the film. I told them that I had really known a professor who had a stroke but that a lot of other elements were fictionalized to give the characters better character arcs. One person asked how long it took to write the film. I told them most of the events which inspired the story occurred in November 2015,I started writing in early 2016, and the script was ready for shooting in February 2017. One audience member asked who did and didn’t have acting experience. One person asked if we thought connections between students and professors are important. 

One person asked about the dizzy spell scene and one cast member mentioned his experience as an EMT. I told them I based aspects of that dizzy spell scene on what another woman with a stroke described about her stroke and that getting on the floor like in the scene seems to be the general recommendation for vertigo. I told them I had heard from a fan who had a stroke who said the film helped her a lot and that she felt the symptoms were accurate. The cast said they enjoyed being part of the project and may want to be part of new projects which thrills me. 

All in all the audience seemed to love the film and were very engaged so we can’t wait to do this again! Special thanks to Kingsborough Community College and Students Unlimited club for letting us screen the film! Special thanks to the cast and crew! We have permission from KCC to write this blog post!

November 28 2017: 

https://twitter.com/LarkTheatre/status/935582012236279809

“A Stroke of Endurance” just got press via the official “The Lark Theater” twitter!

Special thanks to “The Lark Theater”! 

November 24 2017:

http://geopoliticallyincorrect.blogspot.com/2017/11/autistichistorymonth-astrokeofendurance.html 

The brand new Crip Video Productions film “A Stroke Of Endurance” just got a wonderful review! Special thanks to the writer of this review at “Halfway Up Rysy Peak. GeoPoliticallyCorrect” for his tireless support of our work. It is an honor to get such a great review! We thank him for for taking the time to write an entire blog on the film! 

By the way, the open captioned version of “A Stroke Of Endurance” will be uploaded right before Christmas(I’m creating it now). And an audio described version will be uploaded in 2018. Sorry for the delay. We had to upload the versions separately to speed production up.

For everybody reading this: You can now view a “A Stroke Of Endurance” via our official site here http://cripvideoproductions.com/astrokeofendurance.php (accessible versions will be added to the same page!)