A Note from the Directors

We believe in the value of the ancient traditions that span the world in which a wise elder is depicted imparting wisdom to the younger generations.

During turbulent times it is important to sit down and listen to the wisdoms of those who have come before us. This film will coalesce around ideas of authentic living and everyday healing -- principles by which Maria Broom has lived her life. Over decades of revelations, Maria has developed her own beliefs, values, and practices, and has always remained faithful and dedicated to the Agnihotra fire - a meditation practice. Guided by love and intuition, her way of being is unique.

Our hope is that this film will impact its viewers in a way much like Maria has impacted those with whom she has crossed paths. By capturing this way of healing-as-being, the film will function as a salve, a possible remedy for the pain and perplexities of our times. It will urge the audience to consider how they are living their lives and the reasons why.

 

Meet the Directors

  • Ania Flanigan is a Baltimore based documentary filmmaker. She studied theatre at Baltimore School for the Arts, and has a BA in Humanities, the Arts, and Social Thought from Bard College Berlin in Berlin, Germany. She is fluent in Spanish, and conversational in German. As the granddaughter of Peruvian and Spanish immigrants, she has always been inspired by multicultural storytelling. She also finds inspiration in the arts community in her hometown, Baltimore, where she was born and raised. Ania has worked on a variety of projects including work on local music videos, and commercials as well as work for Soledad O’Brien Productions, and HBO. She is a co-recipient of a 2022 Saul Zaentz Innovation Fund Fellowship for a documentary she has been co-directing and producing. When she is not working in film she also teaches English as a second language at the Esperanza Center, teaches Pilates, and enjoys learning by traveling to other countries and experiencing different cultures and languages.

  • Gaia Bethel-Birch is an artist from Baltimore, Maryland.

    Since 2017 she has co-created and produced over a dozen public art and cultural events in the US and UK.

    She is an IATSE union member and has worked in film and television for HBO, Apple TV and the likes.

    Her independent work has been acknowledged and screened in Europe, the UK, and the US. Her most recent documentary (feature), The StoryDancer, is currently on the film festival circuit.

    Gaia follows the threads of the unseen and under acknowledged, within us and around us. Her work is rooted in the belief that we are each other’s greatest resource - through the weaving of stories and people she aims to bring us all closer to each other and ourselves.