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Logline

Sam Miltich burst onto the gypsy jazz scene as a guitar prodigy, touring Europe and playing Lincoln Center while still in high school. Then he started hearing voices. Sam suffered a complete psychotic break and was diagnosed with chronic paranoid schizophrenia. He rebuilds his life and career in the north woods of Minnesota and has come out to tell his story of recovery and bring awareness to mental illness.

Synopsis

When Sam Miltich was 15 years old he heard the music of guitar legend Django Reinhardt for the first time on Woody Allen’s film Sweet and Lowdown. He announced to his family he would devote his life to this music. Practicing 9 hours a day in his bedroom Sam taught himself to play. Coming out of the north woods of Minnesota, he was an unlikely gypsy jazz prodigy.

Sam got to play with the San Francisco Hot Club and then toured Europe with the Robin Nolan Trio. At 22, he suddenly started hearing hostile voices in his head.

“To lose your mind means to lose everything… your perception and understanding of the world – All of a sudden your own family becomes an enemy – I was in fear and in grief.”

Sam would lock himself in a closet. He thought he was the AntiChrist. Sam was diagnosed with chronic paranoid schizophrenia.

Sammo is the story of an exceptionally gifted young man’s descent into a dark and lonely place and the family and community that closed ranks around him. He takes his meds, goes to counseling, gets validation from others who share his affliction, and claims that recovery is possible. He still hears voices, but when he picks up the guitar they disappear. “Music is my joy. It’s my passion. It’s my therapy.”

Now in his 30’s, Sam can’t shake the frustration and anger he’s felt over the years: when police chastised him in the back of a squad car; when doctors could not understand his experience; paranoia that people would fear him; and especially when politicians blamed mass shootings on mental illness. Sam decided to use his unique position as an entertainer to engage the public and speak out about his condition.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Kristian Berg — Director/Producer
Kristian Berg is an award-winning writer, producer and director of film/television series and documentaries. His documentaries include The Dakota Conflict (PBS), Dakota Exile (PBS), Seth Eastman: Painting the Dakota (PBS), Greatest Trials of All Time: The Scottsboro Boys and The Capture and Trial of Adolf Eichmann (Court TV). His independent short documentary Poustinia: The Art of Gendron Jensen won the jury prize at the 2013 Woodstock Film Festival and the audience award at the 2014 Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival. Kristian acted as senior producer for the PBS series History Detectives for Oregon Public Broadcasting and the Emmy award-winning PBS science series Newton’s Apple for Twin Cities Public Television. He also produced an episode of the WGBH PBS series NOVA ScienceNOW on the 35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis and portraits of remarkable kids for ZOOM! As a senior producer at WPSU Penn State he worked with Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Dr. Nina Jablonski to create Finding Your Roots: The Seedlings in support of a middle school genetics and genealogy curriculum. Kristian grew up in Sam Miltich’s hometown of Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota and has been close to Sam’s family for many years. Sam trusts Kristian with his story and they are excited to create a film together that encourages understanding and reduces stigma for people with mental illness.

Kay DiMarco — Co-Producer
Kay is an experienced filmmaker and video producer with over 30 years in independent film, public television and educational video production. She graduated from Hampshire College in 1983 with a Bachelor of Art in Filmmaking. Her first film Open was selected for the Black Maria Film Festival and the touring Minnesota Women’s Film Festival. She was a production manager on the feature documentary Survivor: The Blues Today. As director of photography she worked with independent filmmaker Kathleen Laughlin on We Will Harbor You: A History of the Battered Women’s Movement in Minnesota and with Keith Froelich on his experimental narrative Nocturnes. From 1999-2003 she developed the visual style and managed post-production as supervising editor on the national PBS personal finance series Right on the Money produced by Twin Cities Public Television. With extension agents from multiple institutions, she produced a popular USDA funded YouTube channel called Farm Energy Answers. She has produced videos for Northeast Woody/Warm Season Biomass Consortium (NEWBio) and now works with the Dutton Institute to produce video communications for the Pennsylvania State University.

Benjamin Webb — Director of Photography
Ben is an award winning director of photography, editor and creator of fiction, documentary and experimental film who continues to provide innovative and inventive visual media that complements and expands its environment. His documentary film projects include Poustinia: The Art of Gendron Jensen, HelloPhiladelphia street interview series, and The Mechanical Animal. Has has served as Director of Photography on a variety of independent and commercially funded projects at home and abroad. These include documentary, fiction, music videos, live exhibitions and stop-motion. His work has been featured on CNN, NBC, Philadelphia Inquirer, Fader, Philadelphia Museum of Art, PAFA, and the New York Times. Ben has a BFA from Temple University in Film and Media Arts.

Greg Feinberg — Editor
Greg has been directing and editing films about incredible people, places, and ideas for 25 years. With a passion for subjects that underscore the beauty of the Arts in society, Greg’s projects have garnered numerous EMMY, Telly, CASE, and Communicator awards. Greg’s portfolio of mini-docs, TV specials, and client projects have been seen by millions+ on national PBS, streaming networks, and all across social media. His documentary film projects include Whatever Dreams They Had, What Will Become of Us?, Chautauqua: An American Narrative, and Poustinia: The Art of Gendron Jensen. Greg has a BFA from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia in Film/Video/Cinema Studies.

Bernard Beaudry — Field Audio/Sound Design
Bernie is an accomplished and well-regarded audio professional from the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul. His experience as an audio designer, studio tech, location mixer, and field audio recordist keeps him in high demand. He started at Sound80 studio in Minneapolis in the 1970’s having worked with such artists as Prince and Lipps Inc. before moving into film and television audio. He worked on staff at Twin Cities Public Television for 20 years including numerous projects with Sammo director Kristian Berg. He did sound design for the historical documentaries Minnesota Regiments and Dakota Exile for which he won Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards. For the Sammo project Bernie recorded and mixed audio from the first of Sam’s “An Improvised Life” lecture and performance (with musicians Dave Karr on saxophone, Chris Bates on bass, and Nathan Norman on drums) on Pro Tools. 

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.