Malingerer

When a major surgery fails to resolve his chronic pain, an underachieving creative type must face the possibility that his pain is not entirely physical.

  • Jesse Heller
    Director
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    10 minutes 9 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 11, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    500 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - UC Denver
Director Biography - Jesse Heller

Jesse Heller was born and raised in Loveland, Colorado. His 2016 short film Whole People played in the Sante Fe Film Festival.

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Director Statement

As a person who's lived through it, I want to tell the truth about chronic pain. Recent research validates what many scientists have long suspected--that a significant amount of chronic pain is not strictly physical and can be treated with psychological interventions. At the same time, this does not mean that the pain is imaginary, or that so-called "malingerers" don't deserve compassion.

I never set out to be a documentarian, and I'm certainly no cinematographer. My style is raw, much like the DIY punk scene that raised me. But I'm a natural storyteller, one who sticks to the fundamentals of three act structure while also striving for a level of honesty that most conventional documentaries fail to attain.