(Los Angeles, California) September 21, 2000-On September 22, 2000 www.morestoriesoflupus.com will launch and open the doors to a new method of fundraising for a documentary-it's "e-philanthropy." Documentary producer Marcia Urbin Raymond has created the first ever Docu-Thon™ to raise funds for her next documentary, For Life: More Stories of Lupus. Like a WALK-A-THON or BIKE-A-THON, the Docu-Thon™, produced by IXL, raises money by pledges, but does it online thus eliminating the need for participants to pedal 200 miles, train for months in advance or cross a finish line to get involved. All that's needed is a computer, a mouse, and the will to make a difference for the nearly 2 million Americans that are living with Lupus-an elusive and life-threatening auto-immune disease.

For Life: More Stories of Lupus is a sequel to the award-winning Stories of Lupus that is airing nationally on PBS. Three years later, Ms. Raymond will chronicle the lives of the same people in Stories of Lupus to explore the unpredictable nature of chronic illness, and the different ways people manage their health. Ms. Raymond, who currently lives in New York, will travel on October 2 with a production crew to Tucson, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and San Diego for twenty-seven days in October 2000, Lupus Awareness Month. When pledges are made for specific cities visited, 50% of the net revenue is earmarked to benefit those local Lupus Foundation of America [LFA] chapters. Donors may pledge $45.00 or more on the secure site, using VISA, MasterCard, American Express or a debit card. Film/Video Arts, a premiere media arts center in New York since 1968, is the fiscal agent to provide the project with 501(c)(3) status making gifts tax-deductible. Donors can also pledge for a crew member which will help support the making of the documentary, which includes: production, website maintenance and post-production.

Ms. Raymond was diagnosed with lupus 5 years ago, and has made a commitment to increasing the public's awareness about this "chronic" illness. According to Ms. Raymond, "Fundraising for a documentary has always been a challenge-rather than an investment with a return, it's pure philanthropy. I wanted to not only make giving easy and accessible, but to involve a national community in the project's creation," she says. "Like individuals running in a marathon or cycling in a Bike-A-Thon who celebrate the triumphs of the human spirit, individuals living with Lupus must face the challenges associated with the disease daily. They must overcome obstacles, test their own physical, mental, and spiritual stamina, and reach inside of themselves to find the courage to travel on their personal journeys of coping and healing."

IXL, New York, developed the site with Raymond. "AIDS and Breast Cancer inspire people to give and participate together within a vast network of supporters," says Peter D'Amato, Senior Producer/Broadband, iXL [New York]. "The Docu-Thon™ puts a twist on fundraising, and its intention is to inspire a zeitgeist of community coming together, like AIDS and Breast Cancer, to create positive change." Pledges for the Docu-Thon™ will list the donor's name on a national map on the website highlighting the names and cities of supporters; thus, visually illustrating the community coming together to support this project. A gift of $255.00 or more will receive a VHS copy of the final documentary.

Also, on the website, the public is invited to pose a question to each of the interviewees. One question will be selected per interviewee and answered online using video streaming during production [October 2-27, 2000 and 6 days of pick-up interviews in January 2001].

Lupus, a chronic autoimmune disease, affects approximately 2 million Americans, and its symptoms and challenges are paralleled in the tens-of-millions affected by Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and other chronic illnesses. For Life: More Stories of Lupus will witness the unpredictability of a chronic illness, how people cope and heal with those unknowns, and how western medicine and complementary medicine can work together to empower a person with a chronic illness.
Checks should be made to Film/Video Arts and sent to: For Life: More Stories of Lupus, 331 West 57th Street, No. 531, New York, NY 10019.
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