Film Screening: PLAY WAR RESPAWN by Ruth Dusseault

From the venue:

From her long-term study of war gaming in America, Ruth Dusseault composes an experimental documentary illuminating the role of imagination and play in the process of healing from the psychological wounds of war. Using experimental treatment footage from the USC’s Center for Creative Technologies, we experience virtual reality exposure therapy sessions from the perspective of an Iraqi war veteran suffering from PTSD. In Respawn, virtual footage of real war intertwines with real footage of fake war. About half the players in large-scale paintball scenario games are veterans seeking to heal using memory triggers available on a paintball field.