David Lynch and Russell Brand joined forces to help bring the Transcendental Meditation technique to one million at-risk youth during the premiere of “Meditation, Creativity and Peace” at the Billy Wilder Theatre, Hammer Museum, in Los Angeles on Tuesday, April 2. The documentary chronicles Lynch’s 16-country tour of European and Middle Eastern film schools in 2007 when he addressed tens of thousands of students about his creative process, filmmaking, and his 40-year practice of the Transcendental Meditation program.
“Proceeds from the global distribution of the documentary will be used to help students in the US and worldwide overcome traumatic stress, improve learning ability, and raise performance through Transcendental Meditation,” said Lynch. Brand, a four-year meditator, said that TM had helped him overcome his decades-long addiction to drugs and alcohol. “I have become a better human being through this meditation,” Brand said.
Lynch and Brand were joined onstage after the film by Bob Roth, executive director of the David Lynch Foundation, for a 20-minute question-and-answer session. Roth said 250,000 students have already learned to meditate, and that the Foundation is expanding its support to veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress, and to women and girls who have survived domestic abuse.
The Billy Wilder Theatre holds nearly 300 people, however more than 1,000 people unexpectedly showed up at the box office. Film buffs who were denied access to the theatre viewed the documentary in an overflow hall at the museum and on big outdoor screens hastily mounted in the museum courtyard. Other high-profile David Lynch Foundation supporters include Dr. Mehmet Oz, Ellen DeGeneres, Jerry Seinfeld, Gwyneth Paltrow, Hugh Jackman, Katy Perry, Martin Scorsese, Naomi Watts, and Laura Dern.
Click on the video link below to watch a trailer of this new documentary, Meditation, Creativity and Peace.
Click on the link below to watch a video from this Los Angeles event. This video features red carpet interviews with actor Matt Bomer, actress Maya Stojan, actor/producer Nick Zano, and comedian Russell Brand.
If you would like to arrange for your college or group to sponsor a showing of this documentary film, contact the David Lynch Foundation by emailing: info@davidlynchfoundation.org