Witness Underground: Scott Homan on Music & The XJW Movement
A Little Bit Culty
Sarah Edmondson & Anthony “Nippy” Ames
4.6 • 2.7K Ratings
🗓️ 19 August 2024
⏱️ 76 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This episode is sponsored by Better Help.
Is rock and roll an untapped conduit for healing after shunning? Filmmaker Scott Homan’s debut documentary feature “'Witness Underground”, sheds light on the experiences, creative expressions, and defection of ex-members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses community. The film delves into the journey of notable underground bands within the culty, culty JW organization, and chronicles their musical legacy comprising over 30 albums across multiple decades. Scott joins us today to talk about his experience coming of age as a second generation JW, and how he and other ex-JWs have harnessed the power of art for awakening and therapeutic purposes after escaping high-control religion.
Shownotes:
Filmmaker Scott Homan, was raised as a second generation Jehovah’s Witness in Wisconsin where his teenage music community recorded albums while being influenced by the cult. He studied photography and digital media in Minneapolis and now runs Banana Island Films, which was born in a music community during his years in Hanoi, Vietnam. His present projects focus on artists escaping cults, demonstrating that self-expression through art shortens the path to healing from shunning. “Witness Underground” is his debut feature documentary, and as a wider project, includes the Witness Underground YouTube channel and the series “XJW Coming Out.”
“Witness Underground” was just released on major streaming platforms, TUBI for free with ads, and on Amazon to rent or buy. Learn more at:
WitnessUnderground.com
TUBI: tubitv.com/movies/100018684/witness-underground
Amazon Prime Video: amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B0CVGPPFZ
To Rate and Review on IMDB: imdb.com/title/tt15215562
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CREDITS:
Executive Producers: Sarah Edmondson & Anthony Ames
Production Partner: Citizens of Sound
Producer: Will Retherford
Writer & Co-Creator: Jess Tardy
Theme Song: “Cultivated” by Jon Bryant co-written with Nygel Asselin
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | When you're in Winter's favorite town, the snow-covered mountains surround you. |
| 0:07.0 | A historic Main Street charms you. |
| 0:17.0 | And every day brings a new adventure. |
| 0:22.0 | Welcome to Park City, Utah. Naturally, Winter's favorite town. |
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| 0:30.0 | This podcast is for informational purposes only |
| 0:32.0 | and should not be considered legal, medical, or mental health advice. |
| 0:35.2 | The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the podcast |
| 0:40.0 | and are not intended to malign any religion group club organization business individual anyone or anything I'm Sarah Edmondson and I'm Anthony air quotes nippy aims and this is a little bit |
| 1:00.6 | guilty a podcast about what happens when things that seem like a great thing at first go bad. |
| 1:05.8 | Every week we chat with survivors, experts, and whistleblowers for real cult stories told directly by the people who live through them. |
| 1:13.0 | Because we want you to learn a few things, we've had to learn the hard way. |
| 1:16.0 | Like if you think you're too smart to get sucked into something culty, |
| 1:20.0 | you're already prime recruitment material. |
| 1:22.0 | You might even already be in a cold. |
| 1:24.0 | Oops, you better keep listening to find out. |
| 1:26.7 | Welcome to season depths of the ocean |
| 1:35.0 | hanging on to win my love. |
| 1:39.0 | I let go of it all that I could leave but I know |
| 1:46.8 | welcome back everybody to a little bit culty as you know we've already done an episode with an ex |
| 1:52.2 | member of the Jehovah Witness |
| 1:53.8 | community but people keep reaching out and we realize that there is a vast range of |
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