ADDICTED TO LIFE
Film Poster for "Addicted to Life" directed by Pola Rapaport. A woman in a wheelchair race, film laurels and quotes included.
ADDICTED TO LIFE
Film Poster for "Addicted to Life" directed by Pola Rapaport. A woman in a wheelchair race, film laurels and quotes included.
The dramatic life of Paralympic gold-medalist Marieke Vervoort, and her courageous stand for end-of-life choices: the right to die gave her the will to live.

ADDICTED TO LIFE

Regular price $129.00
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BEST DOCUMENTARY - Chelsea Film Festival | AUDIENCE AWARD, BEST DOC - Rome BIOPIC Festival | BEST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY - International Sport Film Festival Slovenia | BEST AUTHOR - Millenium Film Festival | BEST DOCS - DOK.FEST Munich | BEST OF WOMEN'S VOICES - Portland Film Festival | "Intimate... a unique project" - The Guardian

Paralympics • Disability • Medical Aid-in-Dying • Right-to-Die • Sports • Women’s issues •  LGBT • Social Work • Law • Ethics

Date of Completion: 2022 | Run Time: 86 & 55 minutes​​ | Language: English with French and Dutch subtitles | Captions: Yes | Includes: Transcript | Writer, Director & Editor: Pola Rapaport | Producers: Pola Rapaport & Wolfgang Held | Co-Producers: Mark Daems & Rebecca Borden | Director of Photography: Wolfgang Held | Original Music: Naima Joris & Loup Mormont

Strong-willed, funny, and charismatic, Belgian triathlon champion Marieke Vervoort’s time is running out. At 29, paralyzed from the waist down, a debilitating, chronic illness she has had for 15 years has begun to take its toll. As Marieke’s strength falters and her pain increases, she decides to take control by signing papers to die by the controversial procedure of medical aid-in-dying (MAID), legal in her home country. Liberated and empowered by having the legal permission to die, Marieke rediscovers the freedom and thrill of competition. For over a decade, all she wants is to live fully. Through sheer willpower, she qualifies for the Paralympics and wins Gold in Paralympic and World Championship wheelchair-racing. While managing the struggle and emotions of friends and family as they try to accept her decision, Marieke continues to live life to the max: international travel, media attention, and a wildly physical bucket list, including indoor-skydiving, Lamborghini racing and bungee-jumping. With unlimited access, ADDICTED TO LIFE intimately documents this determined, vulnerable, and astonishing athlete through her final inspirational three years. Marieke’s acceptance of death becomes an affirmation of life. In this timely film, Marieke’s story demystifies one of the most controversial issues of our time.

Educational Media Reviews Online | Reviewed by Beth Carpenter, Undergraduate Engineering & Instruction Librarian, University at Buffalo
"This film shows a very real human experience that would make for good class discussion and debate."

Meghan Kallman | State Senator, Rhode Island District 15 
"ADDICTED TO LIFE tells an unflinching, yet tender story: following the experience of an elite athlete with a progressive degenerative disease, the film highlights the complexity, pain, and beauty of being able to choose to end one's life with dignity." 

Brown University Warren Alpert Medical School | Tom Bledsoe, MD MACP
"This film made a deep impression on both the medical students and the faculty in attendance. Those new to the topic left with much to think about and those with settled opinions left unsettled, also with much to think about. The film is a powerful presentation of the issues around medical assistance in dying and even euthanasia and its powerful effect is on both the emotional and intellectual levels for the audience. The experience of watching it highlights important issues for those who care about and care for persons with serious illness."

AWARDS
Best Documentary | Chelsea Film Festival
Audience Award, Best Documentary | Rome BIOPIC Festival
Feature Documentary BronzeSocial Justice Film Festival
Honorable Mention | International Women’s Film Festival
Best Feature DocumentaryInternational Sport Film Festival Slovenia
Best AuthorMillenium Film Festival
Best Docs DOK.FEST Munich
Best of Women's Voices Portland Film Festival
Best Directing | BOSIFEST Film Festival

FESTIVALS
Hamilton Film Festival
Milano International FICS Final Of Fests
Ostend International Film Festival