Cody Shea won Best Documentary Feature Film for The Call We Carry: Confronting PTSD In The Fire Service.
Visit: https://www.thecallwecarry.com/
In a profession that few ever see, and even fewer understand, a crisis is brewing amongst today’s first responders. Over 37% meet clinical diagnosis for PTSD, and most go untreated and even unrecognized. In a culture where showing vulnerability means showing weakness, this ground-breaking documentary attempts to break down these barriers and smash the stigma of mental health in the fire service.
Follow the journeys of 4 Tacoma Firefighters as they share their stories of pain, sacrifice, and resiliency in the midst of an unprecedented call volume increase. The film provides an intimate glimpse into lives of those who put it all on the line everyday, in an effort to prove once and for all that NO ONE FIGHTS ALONE…
Cody Shea is a Firefighter Paramedic at Medic 5 on Tacoma’s Eastside and joined the Tacoma Fire Department in 2018. Cody also contributes photos and videos for the department’s social media and has a previous photo and film background prior to becoming a Tacoma Firefighter. He comes from a firefighting family with both parents currently retired from the Seattle Fire Department. Cody also works as an independent contractor under his company C. Ray Shea Media.
This film is beyond personal to me. In many ways, the making of this film changed my life and allowed me to confront my own demons of serving within a municipal fire department. The scars left behind from this job are life lasting and often go unrecognized until it is too late. My hope is that this film can create a dialogue within professions that deal with traumatic events. I hope that this film can shed light on a subject most refuse to confront, and break the stigma that asking for help makes you weak.
