Written and Directed by
Hideyuki Tokigawa
Narated by
Michael Bublé
Length
85 Minutes
Languages
English & Japanese
what can we do when our memories are fading?
For patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, no memories are safe — from the recollections of daily responsibilities to our most cherished moments. And despite having invested billions of dollars over the last 30 years into Alzheimer’s research, the pharmaceutical industry has approved few drugs, all of which are very expensive, and only slow the rate of decline.
However, some Alzheimer’s patients, refusing to accept this prognosis, are turning to a new method, spearheaded by American neurologist Dr Dale Bredesen. This precision medicine approach uses the expanded health data of each patient to find the root cause of their illness, and generate personalized protocols.
Yet Dr. Bredesen, best-selling author of The End of Alzheimer’s, faces constant skepticism from the mainstream medical community for his method, and his research was repeatedly denied approval for clinical trials until 2019. Even so, many patients following the protocol show signs of reversing their cognitive decline.
Narrated by Michael Bublé, Memories for Life – Reversing Alzheimer’s shows the eye-opening results of this life-changing treatment and questions why something with the potential to reverse such a devastating disease is not being embraced by medical researchers. What if this is the best chance we have to hold on to the most precious of things – our memories?
the director
Hideyuki Tokigawa began his career in Singapore working for the Discovery Channel Asia, before returning to Tokyo to work for Walt Disney Television International, where he led the TV Production Unit as a Senior Producer.
In 2009, Hideyuki started his film company Time River Pictures Inc where he directs feature films, documentaries, TV commercials and music videos.
He has written and directed four feature films, which has been released theatrically in Japan and won awards at film festivals around the world. He has produced and directed five feature-length documentary films.
director statement
I Was Always Curious About How Memory Works
In my own life, I saw my grandfather lose his memory before he passed away at age 95. I was happy to see him and communicate with him for so long, but that loss made me realize that our memory is the most important thing.
After I became a film director and made feature films, I realized that I am always writing stories that involve memories, because it’s hard for me to let go of things I love.
The idea for Memories for Life came to me when I met the author who translated Dr. Dale Bredesen’s book, The End of Alzheimer’s, into Japanese. The book details several Alzheimer’s patients who are trying a new method to keep their memories alive. I traveled to meet those patients, and discovered a story I wanted to share with the world — a story that might help each of us keep the things we love.
