Director/Producer: Rebecca Haimowitz
Description:
62 Days is an urgent examination of a growing trend of laws that seek to control a pregnant woman's body. It tells the story of a brain-dead pregnant woman whose family was forced to keep her on life support against their will. Marlise Muñoz was 33 years old and 14 weeks pregnant with her second child when she suffered a pulmonary embolism and was pronounced brain-dead in a hospital in Texas. Marlise had been clear about her end-of-life wishes: she did not want to be on mechanical support under any circumstances. But Marlise was kept alive because of a little-known law that states "a person may not withdraw or withhold life-sustaining treatment... from a pregnant patient." The film reveals that this is not an anomaly: there are currently 32 states (and counting) with similar or identical pregnancy exclusion policies. 62 Days follows the Muñoz family as they journey from private loss, to unwanted media attention, and finally towards activism as they fight to change this law. This timely short film powerfully addresses critical issues surrounding bodily integrity and women's health and needs to be seen by anyone studying or engaged in activism around reproductive rights.
Biography:
Rebecca Haimowitz is the Co-Director/Producer of the award-winning documentary Made in India, about outsourcing surrogate mothers to India, which aired on PBS. Rebecca has directed various short documentary films, including a piece about the prison abolition movement, an NYCLU series on over-policing in NYC schools, and a film about a summer camp for autistic children. Rebecca is an Adjunct Professor at Rutgers University, where she teaches both Documentary and Fiction Filmmaking. She is committed to creating documentary and narrative films that reveal the human side behind social and political issues.
Contact Information:
e: thisisrebecca@gmail.com
w: https://www.62daysmovie.com
