Creating understanding around epilepsy

This feature-length documentary weaves together three individuals battling epilepsy, and focuses on the denial, stigma, hope and determination that comes with living with seizures.

How does the brain suddenly flip a switch, start short-circuiting, and cause strange behavior that a person cannot control?

With more than 40 types of seizures, education is needed to dispel myths and misunderstanding surrounding epilepsy. This documentary aims to reduce the stigma through education and personal stories.

Film Trailer

Featured Advocates

Stacia

Stacia

Documentary Filmmaker

Stacia is a University of Minnesota graduate and Emmy award-winning TV news reporter. She worked at stations in Nebraska, Oregon, and Michigan before a seizure turned her journalism career upside down. That led her to a life-saving treatment, and the idea to produce BRAINSTORM.

Watch Stacia's story
Coach Kill

Coach Kill

NCAA Football Coach

Jerry Kill has been coaching college football for more than three decades. He and his wife Rebecca became fierce advocates for epilepsy awareness while he was fighting his own battle at the University of Minnesota. Together they founded the Chasing Dreams Coach Kill Epilepsy Fund. Kill now coaches at Rutgers University.

Watch Coach's story
Billy

Billy

Middle school student

Billy is an active middle schooler in Atlanta and suffers from epilepsy. Billy's parents have worked with doctors to try multiple treatments. A surprise meeting with Coach Kill leads them to try a new therapy.

Watch Billy's story

Depending on where the bad circuit is, and how it fires, and how it spreads, one seizure can look completely different than another.

Dr. Brien Smith | Department of Clinical Neurosciences at Spectrum Health Hospital in Grand Rapids, MI

The reason it is the way it is, and why is it the way it is, is because people don’t know. They don’t understand. 

Dr. Patricia Penovich | Minnesota Epilepsy Group in St. Paul, MN.

Select Clips

Seizures

Treatments

Stigma

BRAINSTORM is available for educational purchase

Share this film to educate employees and students across all educational institutions about the complexities of epilepsy, including schools, universities, non-profits and corporations. Contact Stacia for more information.

Contact Stacia

Upcoming broadcasts

Twin Cities Public Television – MN Channel

Friday, August 18 at 3am

Friday, August 18 at 9am

Friday, August 18 at 3pm

Friday, August 18 at 9pm

*Check your local listings

Copyright Stacia Kalinoski 2017. All Rights Reserved.