THE TRAILER

The Film

Fecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT) is the act of taking stool from a healthy donor and implanting it into the gut of a sick individual. In “Designer Shit”, Director Saffron Cassaday, who has suffered from ulcerative colitis for nearly a decade, sets off on a journey to determine if this form of treatment could potentially cure her of her disease. Her investigation leads her down a path she did not expect to travel and enlightens her on the power “poo” has to affect our health, happiness and possibly even our physical appearance.

FILMMAKERS

CAST

Dr. Paul Moayyedi

Professor, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine, McMaster Hospital, Hamilton

Lead investigator in clinical trial using Fecal Transplants to treat Ulcerative Colitis.
Emma Allen-Vercoe, PhD.

Professor, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Guelph, Ontario

Inventor of Robogut (a mechanical device that manufactures synthetic stool) and founder of NuBiyota a for-profit company developing stool products to potentially treat and/or cure a wide range of diseases.
Dr. Valerie Taylor

Scientist and Psychiatrist-in-Chief, Women’s College Hospital, Toronto

Lead investigator in clinical trial using Fecal Transplants to treat Bi-Polar Depression.
Mark Smith, PhD.

Co-founder of OpenBiome and CEO, Finch Therapeutics, Somerville, MA

OpenBiome is a non-profit stool bank supplying over 1,000 hospital and healthcare facilities throughout the U.S. with stool to carry out Fecal Transplants. Finch Therapeutics is a for-profit company developing stool products to potentially treat and/or cure a wide range of diseases.
Dr. Johane Allard

Professor and Clinical Investigator, Department of Gastroenterology, Toronto General Hospital

Lead investigator in clinical trial using Fecal Transplants to treat Obesity.
Carolyn Edelstein, MPA

Co-Founder and Executive Director, OpenBiome

OpenBiome is a non-profit stool bank supplying over 1,000 hospital and healthcare facilities with stool to carry out Fecal Transplants.
Dr. Majdi Osman

Clinical Program Director, OpenBiome, Somerville, MA

OpenBiome is a non-profit stool bank supplying over 1,000 hospital and healthcare facilities with stool to carry out Fecal Transplants.
Dr. Embriette Hyde

Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences, Freelance Science Writer and Research Consultant, Gilroy, CA
Dr. Thomas Borody

Gastroenterologist and founder of “Center for Digestive Diseases”, Australia

The undisputed world-renowned leader in Fecal Transplants who has overseen more than 16,000 procedures resulting in a wealth of proprietary data and ownership of over 160 patents.
Dr. Alexander Khoruts

Professor of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, University of Minnesota

A pioneer in Fecal Transplants who advocates for a new business model that will bring research dollars in and provide patients with access to treatment, without lining the pockets of Big Pharma.
Dr. Mark Davis, ND

Naturopathic doctor, Capital Integrative Health, Bethesda, MD

Treats C diff patients with FMT enemas and capsules, and counsels patients without C diff on home FMT.
Fecal Transplant Recipient

A mother of four who is receiving Fecal Transplants for Ulcerative Colitis as part of a McMaster University Hospital Study
Stool Donor

A Harvard Student who earns money donating his stool to Open Biome Stool Bank