GOING TO THE SOURCE – THE MAHARISHI CHRONICLES
This project began as a quiet-yet-persistent thought that filmmaker Michael W. Barnard couldn’t ignore. In January of 2018, Michael was in Los Angeles and had lunch with his longtime friend (and his teacher of TM) Jerry Jarvis, and he confided the idea for this film to him. For those who may not be familiar with the role Jerry and Debbie Jarvis played in the introduction of Maharishi and TM to students and young people across the U.S., it would be hard to overstate their importance. Jerry became the head of the U.S. TM organization “Student’s International Meditation Society” and, working closely with Maharishi, played a large role in popularizing and guiding developments in the U.S. and around the world.
After I described my idea to Jerry, he said he thought it was probably a good idea to make it happen, and he agreed that he and his wife Debbie would be happy to be interviewed for the film. At the time, I imagined that I would have to first organize significant production funding and put together a staff to make this happen. But, unexpectedly, Jerry passed away two weeks later, and Debbie followed a few weeks after that. With this rather abrupt and painful cosmic slap upside the head, Michael realized that he would simply have to begin filming interviews as soon as possible. There was simply no time to waste. Organization and fundraising would have to happen alongside production.
And so, two years passed with Michael filming numerous interviews in Fairifield, Iowa and then traveling around the U.S.A. to film many others. He had the generous help of many people along the way, with a number of generous individuals stepping-up to donate funds to help make this project possible. Now, with nearly 100 interviews “in the can”, it is clear that much more significant funding will be now be needed to complete the filming and editorial processes. Shoots in India and Europe are required to capture the experiences of the many amazing individuals who spent time with Maharishi, and in some rare cases Maharishi’s teacher, Guru Dev.
Following the completion of the filming process, the editorial, finishing and marketing process will likely take almost a year to complete.
And, preparing the footage to be properly archived will be another significant task to be completed after the film has been released to the public.
