Week of February 20-25, 2011

Cinema Alchemy: Using the Power of Movies for Healing and Transformation

 This workshop has been CANCELLED

Movies affect us powerfully because the combined impact of music, dialogue, lighting, camera angles, and sound effects enables a film to bypass our ordinary defensive censors. Movies draw us into the viewing experience, but at the same time, and often more easily than in real life, afford a unique opportunity to retain a perspective outside the experience: the observer's view.

Cinema Alchemy teaches the art of watching films with conscious awareness, a form of mindfulness practice. Several techniques derived from spiritual traditions and transpersonal psychology will be introduced, and can help us recognize aspects of our shadow selves and latent capacities. This expanded awareness helps us let go of unhealthy patterns and, consequently, reconnect with our authentic self and spiritual essence.

Like dream work, inquiring into emotional responses to movies can open a window to our soul. Together we will build a bridge between our realizations in "reel" life and our experiences in real life. How we relate to a film’s archetypal motifs reveals our inner life. As we examine reactions to the film, we avoid focusing primarily on the film or even the story. Instead, we explore ways of watching favorite films that connect us to our higher possibilities long after this workshop ends.

Additional teaching materials are available for clinicians who want to incorporate these methods into their practice.

CEUs available for MFTs and LCSWs.

CEUs available for nurses.

Reservations Information (Accommodations & Pricing)