Alive Inside is a documentary film featuring Oliver Sacks, produced by Ximotion Media, and funded by a grant from the Donald and Shelley Rubin Foundation.
Alzheimer’s disease is terrifying because one loses one’s memory. There is no cure and the numbers of people suffering is on the rise. In the middle of this sad story Alive Inside tells a story of hope and beauty.
It follows Dan Cohen as he discovers the power Personalized Music has to “awaken” minds closed by dementia and memory loss. What Dan Cohen discovers by accident, and scientists have been studying for years, is that a person suffering from memory loss can seem to “awaken” when given music they have an emotional attachment to.
Dr. Oliver Sacks explains, ‘Music imprints itself on the brain deeper than any other human experience, Music evokes emotion and emotion can bring with it memory.
In our time filming with Dan and Dr. Sacks we have been privileged to experience this reawakening of “lost” patients many times. The effect on the patient, the family, the caregiver is both touching and inspiring. Each and every time it seems like magic.
This film is for the 5.6 million people in the U.S. struggling with with dementia and memory loss and the 10 million people connected to them. It is our hope that this film will inspire and educate the general public and create consumer demand for for this innovative approach.
The introduction of personalized music into patient’s lives can open new vistas of experience, especially those with the least ability to interact. It is our hope that this film will encourage widespread adoption of personalized music programs in nursing homes. The reward is enormous and the cost low.
