Raw Opium is a 2011 documentary film produced by Robert Lang of Kensington Communications, directed by Peter Findlay and written by Peter Findlay and Robert Lang. The documentary examines the worldwide opium trade, and the vast criminal and public health issues that have arisen alongside. Raw Opium is a journey around the world and through time, where conflicting forces do battle over the narcotic sap of the opium poppy. From an opium master in southeast Asia to a UN drug enforcement officer on the border of Afghanistan hunting down the smugglers of Central Asia; from a former Indian government Drug Czar and opium farmer to a crusading Vancouver doctor and Portuguese street worker who daily confront the realities of drug addiction. Shown is the pivotal role that has been played by the opium poppy, not just in the lives of people who grow, manufacture and use it but also in the increasingly-tense sphere of international relations. In the process, assumptions about addiction and the War on Drugs are challenged.
Filming locations
;Canada ;India ;Tajikistan ;Afghanistan ;Portugal
People in the documentary
Christer Brannerud: Project lead, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Tajikistan Dr. Gabor Maté: Physician, Author, Public Speaker, Vancouver, Canada Peter Dale Scott: Author and Commentator, Berkeley, USA Larry Mendosa: Special Agent, Drug Enforcement Administration, USA Gwynne Dyer: Author, Historian, Journalist, London, UK Misha Glenny: Journalist, Author, UK Darwin Fisher: Intake manager, Insite, Vancouver, Canada Derek Thomas: Client at Insite, Vancouver, Canada Eugene Oscapella: Barrister and Solicitor, Ottawa, Canada Pam Squire, MD.: Doctor, Pain Management Specialist, Vancouver, Canada Daniel Reid: Author and Historian, Australia Peresia and Danglesia Kathak: Opium farmers, Arunachal Pradesh, India Romesh Bhattacharji: Former Narcotics Commissioner, India Rui Reis: Outreach worker, Institute on Drugs and Drug Addiction, Lisbon, Portugal
Broadcasts
The film was adapted into a 2-part TV documentary, which has been shown in several countries:
