Private Project

SHUDDHI

Baba, a former resident of a Leprosy Ashram, shares his life insights with his grandson on the banks of the Ganges. Meanwhile, Dhan Ji prepares for a ritual cleansing ceremony that Baba wishes for himself.

SHUDDHI reveals the reality of Hansen's Disease (Leprosy) and its enduring stigma, creating a meditative portrait of familial tenderness and cultural respect against the backdrop of India's rivers, landscapes, and a remaining hospital for the disease. SHUDDHI, a poetic blend of documentary and auteur cinema, interweaves themes of humanness, fear, love, judgement, and the never-ending cycle of water.

  • James Higginson
    Director
    Willful Blindness, DEVOUT
  • James Higginson
    Writer
    Willful Blindness, DEVOUT
  • James Higginson
    Producer
    Willful Blindness, DEVOUT
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Genres:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    39 minutes 52 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 10, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    Germany
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    Hindi
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Rajasthan International Film Festival
    Jaipur
    India
    January 30, 2024
    World Premiere
    Best International Short Film
  • NICE International Film Festival
    Nice
    France
    May 14, 2024
    European
    Official Selection, Award: Best Director Foreign Language Documentary, Nomination for Best Foreign Language Documentary, Best Editing of a Documentary, and the Science Award
  • Jaipur International Film Festival
    Jaipur
    India
    Official Selection, Award: Short Documentary Special Jury Mention
  • Madrid International Film Festival
    Madrid
    Spain
    September 4, 2024
Director Biography - James Higginson

Director James Higginson(Emmy Award, 1988) combines his 30+ years working as a fine artist and Hollywood professional to drive his creative auteur cinematic works. He confronts and provokes the viewer with arresting images that reveal the unspoken of today's world—the sacred and the profane, the spiritual and the material. Higginson is interested in what lies beneath the surface. He seeks out the cultural subtext and exposes it in a seamless play between reality and representation, between perceptions of facts and opinions. He feels the subtext, the unsaid, can best be divined through indirect metaphor and asks us to pause, meditate, and question.

Higginson’s interest is to serve the community and utilize the Arts as a tool to elevate public awareness of pressing social problems. His artistic mission is to tell the stories that define us and, in doing so, to scrutinize contemporary life and illuminate our inherent human fragility.

WILLFUL BLINDNESS(2012)
Producer/Director/Writer/DOP
-Italian Premier: Screened during 55th VENICE BIENNALE, 2013
-German Premier: NEUER DEUTSCHER FILM SERIES, Berlin, 2013
-Silver Prize-Best Editing Feature-VEGAS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL!,2012
-Nominated-Best Experimental Film-RIFE 2012, Washington DC
-Award of Merit-LUCERNE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, 2012
-Official Selection-BRIDGE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2012

DEVOUT(2017)
Producer/Director/Writer/DOP
-Award of Excellence:Documentary Feature- IMPACT DOC AWARDS 2018
-Award of Excellence: Cinematography- IMPACT DOC AWARDS 2018
-Award of Excellence: Original Score- IMPACT DOC AWARDS 2018
-Award of Excellence: Sound Editing / Sound Mixing-INDIE FEST AWARDS 2018
-Award of Excellence: INDIE FEST AWARDS 2018

SHUDDHI(2023)
Producer/Director/Writer/DOP
-Best Director-Short Documentary- CINE PARIS FILM FESTIVAL, 2023
-Best Cinematography-CINE PARIS FILM FESTIVAL, 2023
-Award of Excellence Special Mention-Short Doc- INDIE FEST FILM AWARDS, 2023
-Award of Excellence Cinematography- INDIE FEST FILM AWARDS, 2023
-World Premiere-RAJASTHAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL-RIFF 2024
-Award: Best International Short FIlm- RAJASTHAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL-RIFF 2024
-Official Selection-JAIPUR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL-JIFF 2024
-Award: Short Documentary Special Jury Mention- JAIPUR INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL- JIFF 2024
-Award of Excellence Special Mention: Documentary Short-IMPACT DOC AWARDS 2024
-Official Selection-European Premiere-NICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024
-Best Foreign Language Documentary-NICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024(Nominated)
-Award: Best Director Foreign Language Documentary-NICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024
-Best Editing of a Documentary-NICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024(Nominated)
-Science Award-NICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024(Nominated)
-2023 Humanitarian Award: Outstanding Achievement, IndieFEST Awards
-Official Selection-MADRID INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2024

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

My visit to the Nimba Nimbadi Hospital for Hansen's Disease (Leprosy) in 2010 left a lasting impact on me. The resilience and humility of the patients inspired me to create SHUDDHI, a cinematic experience that assimilates and interprets their shared stories and conversations through an emotional and artistic lens.

By delving into the emotional dimensions of Hansen's disease, SHUDDHI can generate renewed discussion and attention to the available early detection tests, medication, and preventive measures for at-risk family members that are crucial in eradicating the disease. The film aims to increase awareness and participation in these essential testing and government-funded treatment efforts.

Through a blend of my auteur cinematic style and poignant documentary footage, SHUDDHI invites viewers on a meditative and poetic journey. By offering a unique perspective on Hansen's Disease, the film has the potential to inspire action and contribute to the ultimate goal of eradicating the disease in our lifetime.