Local film producer Adam Scorgie and director Brett Harvey are getting closer to completing their new marijuana documentary and making good on all of the promises they made to about 3,500 people who helped fund the film.
The Culture High is a follow-up to Scorgie and Harvey’s successful 2007 documentary, The Union: The Business Behind Getting High.
To date, the duo have completed a handful of interviews with the likes of Snopp Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, B-Real from Cypress Hill, former DEA agent Sean Dunagan, co-creator of HBO’s The Wire, Ed Burns, and several doctors and scientists.
Scorgie added he and Harvey are close to nailing down interviews with Kevin Smith, Joe Rogan and Sir Richard Branson, as well.
Last year, Scorgie began a Kickstarter campaign with the goal of bringing in $190,000 to help fund the production of The Culture High.
On Aug. 3, 2012, the campaign concluded with $240,022 raised.
In return, Scorgie promised various goodies ranging from an online thank-you credit for backers who contributed $15 to a theatrical screening of the documentary in the hometowns of five donors who offered $10,000.
“It adds about an extra two weeks of work sending out all those gifts and stuff like that, but the pros far outweigh the cons,” said Scorgie.
“It has helped in so many ways because when (we go) to market, we can say…people were willing to put up $240,000 of their hard-earned money to prove that this is an issue that people care about.”
Scorgie said the goal is to premiere the film at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas, in March 2014.
“Hopefully we’ll be premiering there and then doing our full release, theatrically across North America, on April 20 (2014), 4:20.”
wpaterson@kelownacapnews.com
Twitter: @PatersonWade
