Dorothy Fadiman

Dorothy Fadiman left her hometown, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and crossed the
country on a Greyhound bus in 1961 in order to study Speech Pathology at
Stanford University. She settled down with a maverick psychologist whose
passion was making it safe to think out of the box. She and her husband of
forty years have two girls, Maria, an Ethnobotanist and Renee, who teaches
art (from clay to computer video editing) at a girl's school which emphasizes
science, the arts and self esteem.

1976: A happy marriage and two nice kids. She decided to risk it all because
of a burning desire to make movies! She is still married, but they've had to
make huge adjustments to handle her mania for filmmaking.
In 1978, Dorothy released her first film, Radiance: The Experience of Light,
conceived on a mind shattering, heart opening LSD experience. Poetry, music
and visuals build an experiential bridge between every living thing on earth
and the Light of consciousness, the illumination of the Spirit. Professionals
encouraged her to find a male narrator to give the film more power. But, she
knew, even then, that it was the force of a woman's determination to move
mountains through compassion that would be the soul of her work. She
narrated Radiance herself, as she has each film since. In her next
production, Celebration, male and female forces unite within one woman and
give birth to a new, integrated sense of Self. World Peace is a Local Issue,
her first documentary, follows a City Council meeting, illustrating the
impact anti-nuclear citizens had in turning around their local government's
position on a Nuclear Freeze. Her film on alternative education, Why Do These Kids Love School?, a PBS special, documents healthy, nurturing
communities within school environments. Fix-It Shops: An Endangered Species
addresses the ecology of repairing small appliances. Recently, she completed
Woman by Woman about family planning for women in the remote villages of
India. She is now completing Steo by Step, about a woman with a severe
spinal cord injury who, with the support of her community, is learning to walk
again. She has also just returned from Ethiopia, where she filmed Seeds of Hope: Meeting the Challenges of HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. All of these films are about healing relationships, with the
planet, with each other, and within ourselves.

Her trilogy on abortion rights From the Back Alleys to the Supreme Court
& Beyond, documents the physical, emotional and financial toll restrictions
on reproductive rights place on women, as well as their partners and their
families. The films examine the deeper meanings of "choice" and how hard-won
and fragile a woman's right to a safe abortion actually is at this point in
time.

Film awards include a Gold Medal from CPB for Best Short Documentary, an
Oscar Nomination, an EMMY, a Gold Hugo from the Chicago International Film
Festival, a Blue Ribbon from the American Film Festival, several Golden
CINEs, several Gold Apples plus honors from more than fifty other national
and international organizations and festivals. (09/20/02)

The Fragile Promise of Choice
Directed by Dorothy Fadiman
Produced by Beth Seltzer, 1996, 57 min., 1 in series, Color
"The World Health Organization estimates that unsafe abortions cause more than 75,000 deaths annually, worldwide. GIRE, a major reproductive rights g...

From Danger to Dignity
A film by Dorothy Fadiman, Daniel Meyers and Beth Seltzer, 1995, 57 min., 2 in series, Color
This eye-opening documentary chronicles the double-pronged movement-the grassroots activism and intensive legislative lobbying- that culminated in Roe...

From the Back-Alleys to the Supreme Court and Beyond
A 3-part series by Dorothy Fadiman, Daniel Meyers, and Beth Seltzer, 1996, 3 in series, Color
This acclaimed series provides a comprehensive look at abortion in the United States. Combining interviews and archival footage, it covers the movin...

When Abortion Was Illegal
Produced by Dorothy Fadiman, 1992, 28 min., 3 in series, Color
"Until recently, the era of illegal abortion has been a 'sealed chapter' in U.S. women's history. The aura of shame surrounding unwanted pregnancies a...