Shot over the course of 18 months in New York City's Lower East Side, METHADONIA sheds light on the inherent flaws of legal methadone treatments for heroin addiction by profiling eight addicts, in various stages of recovery and relapse, who attend the New York Center for Addiction Treatment Services (NYCATS).
Direction
18 months of intimate access, zero narration, pure vérité.
Editing
Patient observation that trusts viewers to connect the dots.
Director
Michel Negroponte
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Released during peak 'War on Drugs' era, it directly challenged the Clinton-era expansion of methadone clinics as progressive policy.
NYCATS still operates; several locations have faced lawsuits for patient deaths and fraudulent billing since filming.