About the Film
A key element of the human condition is compassion. Without it, people can lose their ability to empathize with others and truly connect with the world around them.
“Overexposed: The Cost of Compassion,” is an originally produced, 38-minute documentary film that investigates and explains “compassion fatigue,” which can cause psychological, emotional and even physical impairment in people we depend on most during difficult times. Produced by MediaLab at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash., “Overexposed” investigates the lives of professionals whose primary duties are to serve others. These include health care workers, teachers, fire fighters, law enforcement officers and disaster relief workers, all of whom can experience debilitating effects from continuous exposure to trauma. Dr. Charles Figley of the Tulane Traumatology Institute in New Orleans; John Schenk, a communications specialist for the global relief organization World Vision; Bobby Senn, a retired New York City firefighter who experienced the September 11 terrorist attacks; and Ecoee Rooney, a sexual assault nurse at the Louisiana State University Hospital, are among those who provide insights aboutcompassion fatigue in the film. “Overexposed” also explains that average citizens caring for their children, or looking after aging parents, or who repeatedly encounter difficult circumstances, also can suffer from compassion fatigue. And when such personal experiences occur against a global backdrop of earthquakes, hurricanes, oil spills, drought, famine, political strife, environmental catastrophes, a struggling world economy, and other overwhelmingly bad news, any of us can become dispirited and desensitized. |
ProductionFilmmakers Elizabeth Herzfeldt-Kamprath, Katie Scaff, and Hailey Rile left no stone unturned in their production of “Overexposed: The Cost of Compassion.” Beginning in the fall of 2010 with extensive research and planning, the team had developed a contact list of experts throughout the country by November. Read more...
Directors' StatementOne evening in early September 2010, a group of colleagues, all associated with MediaLab at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington, gathered to discuss ideas for a new documentary. In that group were three of us – all women in our early 20s – who would become co-directors of “Overexposed: The Cost of Compassion.” Like all filmmakers, we wanted to pursue something meaningful. We wanted to produce a film that would make a difference. And we wanted to create something that would resonate with audiences. Read more...
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