American Meth - Local Filmmaker Goes National (continued)

(Click to return to original page.) ..... he said of the different cities in which the film won awards. The film had previously won awards in the New Mexico Filmmakers Showcase and the TriMedia Film Festival in Fort Collins, Colo. "His screening was packed, and his Q&A especially — I think it lasted over an hour because people were just so intrigued and had so many questions regarding the issue," said Suzanne DeLaurentiis, the owner of the Cinema City Film Festival. "It was just heart wrenching to see the drug addiction in this country right now, especially with this drug in particular." DeLaurentiis said "American Meth" beat out nearly 30 other documentaries shown at the Los Angeles festival. More than 1,000 different films were considered by critics to be screened. Hunt's "American Meth" has participated in nine film festivals and is invited to at least seven more. The film is being made available on DVD and being considered for television broadcast by HBO and Showtime, Hunt said. Hunt, who has a background of broadcast journalism here in Farmington, first addressed the meth issue in a 2004 film, "Meth Monster." "Meth Monster" looked at the meth abuse problem on the oil and gas fields in San Juan County. That background allowed Hunt to address the problem from a national perspective. "With all due respect to Meth Monster,' that was for Farmington," Hunt said. "American Meth' is more than a movie, it's a movement. And that's becoming more and more apparent by the e-mails and the phone calls and the responses — that's what's so exciting about it." Kilmer's role in the film was significant in getting it noticed across the country. "It gets people's attention," Hunt said of Kilmer's participation in the film. It also validates it because if he's willing to be a part of it, it must be decent." Getting Kilmer on board the project was as simple as a phone call and an explanation of the film, before he agreed and arranged to narrate. "He's not the movie, but he brings a lot to it," Hunt said. The expensive and time consuming project was initially funded entirely by Hunt. Since then, the director has established the American Meth Foundation to help bear some of the high costs. The project has received significant donations from local companies and organizations including Aztec Well Service, San Juan Regional Medical Center and Piñon Hills Community Church. "I couldn't have done it without all of the support of the people here," Hunt said. "What I've been given is the currency of independent film making, which is people telling you you can do it, you're doing a great job and keep at it." Helping fund a project that has a chance of fighting a problem like meth makes donating a no-brainer, said Jason Sandel, a vice president of Aztec Well Service who has assisted Hunt in funding the project from the very beginning. "For some real change or some real effect to be coming about based on my support, and the support of my company, I'm just proud as can be," Sandel, who is also a Farmington city councilor, said. The film goes beyond what others have done, Hunt said. "Before American Meth,' people did meth movies but it was just dark and scary, and it was overwhelming," Hunt said. "But this one says, all right, it is scary but there's something you can do."