Australian mushroom documentary

[RonnySimulacrum]

Firstly I sincerely apologize for having a joke at your expense Bluemeanie at a page not too distant from here. It was meant as a joke and not a direct attack on your personal ideology. I promptly removed it.

I appreciate your comments above and think that there is really no such thing as bad criticism. You have helped us to understand how we are being viewed by some people using ethnogens, this is extremely important to us. I had been surfing this site sometime before I made any post here. I started using this site and a similar one to gain an understanding and ideas for the documentary. Yes, on one hand I am looking for people who are willing and feel they have something to say on the topic. GOOD or Bad depending on which side of the fence one is standing. But also I started this Topic area to gain criticism and further understanding on a very broad subject. To let people have an active involvement and comment on how we are approaching things. This has been the case, some comments including your own have greatly shaped our direction and understanding. The terrific bonus that sites like this offer that cannot be found anywhere else is a uniquely Australian perspective. One of the central notions of the documentary is to provide a cultural, visual and health-scientific perspective on the topic of Australian (more specifically Victorian) magic mushrooms.

Marginalising---now this is a very interesting and important issue.

Firstly we have received many calls from non internet based ethnogen users who have been able to access information through us that they where unaware of. Or internet based users who were not aware of some really great and helpful sites. I have received calls from people for instance that have seen our poster, or through word of mouth and have called us very exited and happy, for they were not aware of other people that thought about things similar. We have exchanged numbers, given emails out and given a lot of information and sources of information out that have helped people come together or learn more and change their practices in a more beneficial manner. The documentary is getting some people that were separated to come and talk with others and exchange information. This may not be such a big thing for internet users but it is a very big thing for some other people. We also find that many people find it re-assuring that they are not alone, that there are others doing similar things. We are making more people sing together not braking the choir up.

Secondly, yes we could make a documentary that creates stereotypes and marginalises. That could create a media reaction, leading to subjugation of mushroom users, but it is not the intention and not likely. I will use a well known minority group as an example. We could make a documentary about gay man that marginalises, segregates, criticizes, oppresses, discriminates and pushed some neo-genocide ideology against Gays without even having to leave my house and I certainly would not need to include the voice of even one gay man to do so. Or I could make a social document that attempts to expose the stupidity of discriminatory behavior and lack of protective public policy’s and civil rights for homosexuals, demonstrate its historical decent and educate people about the hardships that can face them on a daily bases. To brake down the notion of heteronormativity. This would not act as a marginalising social text, it would be an educational one, allowing some, but not all gay men to have a voice-Letting them actively speak for themselves. Why would this be a marginalising text, it would act to inform and challenge commonsense notions and beliefs.

Marginal individuals are acquitted by the brilliant queer theorist Michel Foucault with madness in his essay ‘Madness and society’. He argues among other things that psychotropic drug users are a marginal group, a group that is viewed by the Western politic and capitalist societies as mad, but it is from this group that social reform is emerging. Another central premise of the documentary is to try and de-mystify psychoactive drug users as being madman, we hope to challenge this construction, this stereotype and this commonsense notion, NOT TOO CONFIRM IT. If people do not wish to speak about their recreational drug use in any form that is perfectly fine and understandable, but some people are prepared to stand up and speak out about culturally constructed Western oppression. It is not about expectance or justification or glorification it is about being who we are and having a discourse of owe own.

We plain on screening the documentary to some members of the ethnogenic community before it goes to air, and we will re-edit it after that screening based on their comments. This is an active text, you are contributing and shaping it. It is not meant to be an outsiders doco based on critics of passive observations.

We are cultural journalists, our field is cultural theory and film. If we were scientists we would approach the issue as scientists do, and go and publish journal articles.

We do not expect everyone to agree with our approach or the need for a documentary, but when we have seen very young school kids out in the field with a bag of the wrong mushrooms, we began to feel there was a need for something like this. There needs to be some educated visual text out there for the masses. DO NOT FORGET ONE MAN DIED THIS MUSHROOM SEASON IN VICTORIA BECAUSE HE ATE THE WRONG THING, WE DO NOT THINK THIS NEEDS TO HAPPEN AGAIN. If someone would like to have a psychedelic experience, they should be able to access information easily.

[RonnySimulacrum]

I was wondering If you lovely people would be able to tell me in a critical fashion what it was that you liked about or disliked about A Fungimentery.

I realize that this documentary was approaching the topic of Magic Mushrooms from a very different angle but would appreciate knowing where, it you think it seceded or failed. What important issues were missing etc. What was negative or miscued. What you would like to see covered in TFFDoco that was absents from or irrelevant to Fungimentery.

kind regards

[waterdragon]

i was particularly disappointed with the part where i didn't get to see it, apart from that i have no complaints.

[spiders]

I thought Fungamentry was a comedy

[somnif]

Fungimentery went wrong when it interviewed

some metal heads who seemed to be discussing

driving on psilocybin - perhaps the they

were talking about the passengers tripping

though my interpretation was that the driver

was tripping.

Besides that, good doco.

[spiders]

I thought it was un representative - four of the people they interviewed had only ever had one mushroom experience.

[RonnySimulacrum]

Greetings

We are preparing a web-site for ‘The Forbidden Fruit’ Documentary. It is not going to be anything too flash for starters, I would like to keep it simple. However I am really keen to have a page with a list of artists associated with the project, with links to some of their work. I think some of the art I have been exposed to while doing this project has been great and we would like to do our best to get it the recognition it deserves.

I am aware that some of you have not arranged interviews or sent me your work in a form that can then be incorporated into the documentary. This is not a problem at all at the moment, but we will be going into post-production next year. So we would still very much like to arrange something with those who are still working on things or we have lost communication with.

But all I need for now is your full name or name of studio and a link or two to your work. If you feel like doing a little bio feel free we will try and fit it in, but no more than 100 words.

Hope this site will be of some help to you, and will bring a lot of people to experience your gift. As I believe it will. If you know of any other Oz psychedelic artists please send them our way, it can be visual, music, poetry, writing, performance etc.

Kind regards

Jonathan Carmichael

And

Ben Lee

@

[email protected]

[RonnySimulacrum]

-----------------Mushroom Doco update--------------------

I apologize for the delays with the Web Page we are trying to get it up as soon as possible. Hope to expand its content ones it is up. Suggestions welcome.

Has anyone got some suggestions of the Top ten or so best Entheogen/shaman/drug films or Docos that may help us with form/content and modes of address and editing? Basically we are trying to take an anthropological approach to this whole thing.

We are starting to wind up the interviews in the next 3 months or so and then move to post-production, we will be doing a brief bite of camera work next Mushroom Season if people are interested in getting patches down on tape or doing a last minute interview?

Very Thankful for all the support and contributions----you know who you are.

We will be at Earthcore and have the go ahead to film at the eclipse, but do not now if we have the money to get there------so may be there?

[This message has been edited by RonnySimulacrum (edited 23 November 2002).]

[RonnySimulacrum]

I Well be going to the outback eclipse festival after Earthcore----long week.

I will be there shooting on Forbidden Fruit a Documentary and on another one about the Trance Movement entitled Children Of the Sun.

So if anyone would like to meet up and chat or maybe do an interview, it would be cool by me.

[spiders]

You may meet my friends and I there...You'll know if you do...

[RonnySimulacrum]

This would be a good thing, the more the merrier.

I will be livening on Sunday after Ecore so I will see you on the road or chat too you all there.

I will have a flag on my tent or on the red car. It is in aboriginal colors and has black heads that turn into mushrooms with a desert red background.

If I am not about it would be best not to disturb the girls that I am staying with, They only drink coffee and I do not want them getting on my back.

But If I am there-----The only boy----Come and chat----you will know it is me.

Looking forward to meting people with similar interests.

[RonnySimulacrum]

BACK FROM THE WESTERN LANDS

Sorry if you sent me an email, I did not get them, My account filled up on the first day and then just stop or spat them back at you. So please re send them.

Got some nice filming at both events. The eclipse was something very special, if you where there you know what i mean. Met some really nice and interesting people from all around the world.

Got absolutely no sleep and apologies for my vagueness towards people I caught up with, but I was filming around the clock and had no time to stop and get my head together. Needed “total coverage”.

[This message has been edited by RonnySimulacrum (edited 11 December 2002).]

[spiraleyes]

oh what, i didnt get to see your vagina

[RonnySimulacrum]

well you are coming aroung for the weekend. You may get luckey

[RonnySimulacrum]

Any one how is going to be in Melbourne for the Mini III Ethno-Botany conference that would like to do an interview about mushrooms or other entheogen’s please have a think about what you would like to get down.

Looking forward to seeing you all there.

[This message has been edited by RonnySimulacrum (edited 15 December 2002).]

[RonnySimulacrum]

Mushroom Doco NYE Party

See Dates, Events and B-News for details.

Kind regards

Jonny

[RonnySimulacrum]

The NYE party at RUBYS went down well. Everyone seemed to have a grate time and there where no problems that I am a where of.

I do not know if there was any one from this site there or not but I did notice about 10 people from the MEBII conference around the club. Any feedback if you where there would be appreciated. There could have been more because I was tied up most of the night organizing things. Then I played till the sun came up and the light came booming in the back door, went up steers and it was all just ending.

I made about $500 all of which will go towards the Mushroom doco.

We will use the money to cover some of the costs it will take to get me up to BB area and to speak at Exodus ~ Intra Cortex. I believe I will be interview Torsten, Mulga, Des Tramacchi and however else is in the area and is willing or think they have something to contribute, eg, Art. I WILL ONLY BE UP THIS WAY ONE FOR THE DOCO SO PLESE CONTACT ME ASAP IF YOU ARE INTERESTED.

To name a couple of people I am very interested in catch up with,

Reville, Floyd, Neil Pike

Any one else please contact me.

I was also wondering if any Vic Heads where heading up there?

[RonnySimulacrum]

Erowid finale posted my Pics

http://www.erowid.org/plants/mushrooms/mus...tml#psil-subaer

There will probably never be mushroom left for me in these spots again.

[RonnySimulacrum]

Attention all those who are hoping to catch up with me on my only trip up north for the doco. I urge anyone who is interested in doing an interview to call me, hopefully I will be able to catch you.

I am leaving tonight in my car and driving up towards Mullumbimby, Byron Bay, Coffs Harbour and Intra Cortex. Am hoping to catch up with as many people as possible and do interviews, so if you can put the feelers out for me, it would be much appreciated.

I will try to check email daily, but as a more reliable contact please do not hesitate to call me on;

0409 995 948

Or Ben Lee back in Melbourne, who can forward any message on to me, on;

0417 670627

Hope I catch you around,

Jonathan

[RonnySimulacrum]

Well I have successfully landed back home after being away for 2 weeks. I had a load of fun and got about 4 hours of filming done. Firstly I would like to thank everyone I meet for there kindness, hospitality and friendship. I am constantly reminding my self how lucky we all are to be part of a community that is so empathic and open minded. We all seem to be much more positive, helpful and loving, or maybe we are just not afraid to show fillings to others because we have successfully integrated owe fillings into owe being as a hole.

Also thanks for all the people back in Melbourne that made it possible, most notable Ben Lee and Dj GroovyBoots. And all the wonderful people that came out to support the doco on NYE at Ruby’s (Note we are having another party there on the 22 of FEB).

I guess you would all like to know how Exodus-IC was?

Well I had a grate time at the party and it was unbelievably different from Melbourne outdoor parties, lots of freaks and mad haters. IC was very good, with Trout headlining it went off, this man is the real thing and he can chat for days on end about all sorts of things. The whole panel set up ran smoothly and the audience was very educated and seemed to be happy with the panels set up as well. The conference was held in a couple of big tents that became an extremely transeunt and diverse psychedelic space of magnificence and mystical wonder every evening. With mass jam sessions, sacrament homage films and bubble man-who was in all reality a very strange entity that travel here from another universe in a bubble he blow for himself. Thanks again too all off you involved with putting this together, job well done. I would also like to give a special thanks to Floyd Davies (author of ‘Conspiritor’) for conception of the project and Neal whose technical Mojo kept the space alive. Mulga for getting me in and making me welcome.

I will also give full pints to Julian for staging an intergalactic psychedelic take over. Which in all reality was a success because he usurped most of the organisers and lots of others (about 28 people all up) and led them to the ‘Western Lands’ to experience existential madness personified. Well it was the exodus festival after all.

Well if you were away for 2 weeks what else did you do?

I spent most of my time in the Mullumbimby area with lots of very nice and loving people. I had never been there before and enjoyed my self immensely as well as loved the lushes’ environment. My time in Mullum was the highlight of the trip. For that I would like to send a very special thanks to Floyd for the hospitality in your rainforest retreat and Trout/Floyd for there extremely strange storeys, Torsten for his counsel-Thanks also for the dinner nice people (Yes that means you DL-T and Daniel). Thanks to both of the lovely people who spent some time showing me around there wonderful gardens (I will however, never remember all of the names of the plants and what they can be utilized for), they where both very inspiring sites. If I did not go to Mullun I would have gone home with mixed filings about the trip, but in Mullun a got the luxury of siting down and having long conversions with people about many different things and I left for home with a focused and content hart and mind.

The plants truly speak through you all.

It was a bite disappointing I could not catch up with everyone that I wonted too but that is life and we will all meet soon I am shore. Cheers for trying anyway.

Lessons gained.

1. Never drive 4000 km by your self.

2. Exchange all your $$$ to Euros before going into Byron Bay

3. When in Rome, be a Roman.

4. Acacia

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE FOR THERE TIME, FRIENDSHIP AND SUPORT.

PS- I am getting to my emails.

[ 27. January 2003, 15:22: Message edited by: RonnySimulacrum ]

[xShiva.spacetechnology]

how did this project turn out?

im keen to watch the doco.

[Francois le Danque]

me too! it just seems to have ...stopped. don't leave us hanging man!

[alkatrope]

Haha I never realised those sub photos on Erowid were yours, Ronny!

[Chlorophylliac]

Hi Ronny, great to hear about the doco, should hopefullly open the critics eyes a little.

i don't know if it's already been mentioned, (there was too much to read!)

but my biggest criterea in choice of drugs is there toxicity & long term effects.

hence shrooms are my favourite by far - would never touch synthetic drugs!

but it's really really tough to find decent study's & research on the toxicity & long term health effects of Psilocybe spp.

So if I were making the doco, i would include a decent segement on this topic, listings the good & the bad, & how bad the bad really is!

I guess a lot of it comes down to the individual & how often they use them - but in a doco I would expect a better conclusion than that! lol

Being a Naturopathic student, when ever I take shrooms (or any drug), I also take a heavy dose of herbal tinctures - Gingko Biloba + Gotu Kola (stimulates brain, & should also protect to some degree)

3-4 hours after, I take a dose of St Mary's Thistle + Andropgraphis + St Mary's thistle (these 3x upregulate the performance of the liver - the organ that has to deal with detoxifying the psilocybin & other alkaloids) & also another hit in the morning.

So by using appropriate herbs to protect the body, enhance the removal of toxins, one can hope than any long term health affects are reduced (not eliminated).

but obviously this is not an excuse to abuse them, and the effect is better appreciated (and anticipated) when done less regulary.

Any local Naturopath can suggest dosages for the herbs mentioned above - a $25 (200ml) of pure tincture /extract) will last you quite some time - definatley worth it for anyone who values their health!

for the earth

Paul

Edited March 9, 2008 by Chlorophylliac

[mu!]

but my biggest criterea in choice of drugs is there toxicity & long term effects.

hence shrooms are my favourite by far - would never touch synthetic drugs!

You do know that a drug is still a drug and you gotta evaluate toxicity of both natural & synthetic drugs yeeah?

I thought that old chestnut had been done to death...