Documentary Hopes to Remove Stigma Associated with Marijuana

Weed the People, a new film by director Abby Epstein and producer Ricki Lake, highlights the benefits of medicinal marijuana and focuses on children whose lives have been improved by using cannabis treatment.

The filmmakers hope to remove the stigma associated with the drug, said Epstein. “These are babies — literally babies — in the film going through chemo and you see how much this medicine, in some cases, their parents are crediting it for saving their lives. It’s pretty dramatic,” she said.

The documentary follows the journey of families fighting to gain access to cannabis treatments for their children diagnosed with cancer. It sheds light on the everyday struggles of those who risk legal implications to save their children’s lives.

“We’ve been brainwashed to think that this plant doesn’t have medicinal value,” said Lake.

She said the project started both with her late husband and a 7-year-old girl who contacted Lake while she was a contestant on “Dancing With the Stars.” Lake said she called Epstein to explain she was taking the girl to meet with a doctor about medical marijuana, and Epstein responded, “I think this is our next movie.”

Lake and Epstein hope the project will advance the medical understanding of marijuana — and possibly even help counter the United States’ current opioid crisis.