Transformation on the Camino and in Prison with Lydia B. Smith
Week of December 14, 2024
Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago – Screening and Q&A
American’s fascination with the Camino is exploding; eight times more Americans walked it in 2019 than the previous decade. Walking the Camino journeys into the hearts and minds of six modern-day pilgrims, ages 3 to 73, as they each face and triumph over their doubts and fears while they attempt to cross an entire country on foot.
Camino 101
Why are a half a million people walking the Camino de Santiago each year? Lydia will give you a brief history and overview of the Camino giving you a better sense if it’s something you are called to do for your own personal transformation. After walking more than 2000 miles on Camino trails, Lydia has plenty of tips and techniques for a successful and fulfilling pilgrimage as well.
Cellblocks to Mountaintops
I have been presenting at the Ranch for quite a few years – showing my film Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago, doing a Camino 101 talk, video workshops, and presenting on Cellblocks to Mountaintops while it was still in production. It is now finally complete! The show is also about transformation, like the Camino (and the Ranch!) but instead of taking place in the beautiful Spanish countryside with lots of supportive people around you (or in the exquisite landscapes of Rancho La Puerta with it’s delicious food and amazing instructors) – it takes place in the most harsh, cold environment imaginable where violence is around every corner.
It has been almost eight years since the idea was born and almost five years since our first day of filming in 2020. The project has evolved over the years – from a documentary film to a podcast to a podcast with 14 mini-documentary companion videos. It has been a crazy, twisty, challenging road but we have finally made it! Cellblocks to Mountaintops. examines how America addresses violence, defines justice, and seeks accountability through one man’s journey. Years after committing a horrific crime, Sterling Cunio continues to confront the ripple effects of the harm he caused. Through the power of artistic expression and human connections and inspired by restorative justice principles, he forges a remarkable personal transformation while serving decades in prison. This story is a poignant reminder that hope, healing, and redemption are never beyond reach, even in the darkest of places.
You may think this issue doesn’t really apply to you or affect you or your loved ones directly, but it does! The US has the highest incarceration rate in the world and spends over 83 billion a year doing it. High rates of incarceration have no demonstrable effect on violent crime nor do they help victims heal or offenders rehabilitate; 7 out of 10 people released from prison come right back within five years. That’s a lot of your taxpayer money going to waste!! Instead, we could divert a lot of that money to stopping the cycle of crime/violence by supporting victims, addressing poverty, and helping neglected and abused children.
Come join me as I discuss the making of the project and show several of the mini-documentary videos.
Lydia B. Smith – Director/Producer of Walking the Camino: Six Ways to Santiago and Cellblocks to Mountaintops. Lydia began her filmmaking career over 30 years ago and has worked on all kinds of projects in a variety of departments and her true love is the documentary genre.
She directed, produced, and wrote They’re Just Kids, a 26-minute educational documentary showing how children with disabilities can positively affect our lives: A Legacy Revealed, a
40-minute historical documentary, and a 20-minute biography Bill Lansing: A Tribute. Additionally, she was the senior producer on CNN’s Soldiers of Peace: A Children’s Crusade; co-producer and 2nd unit DP on the CNN documentary The Mystery of the Arctic Rose; 2nd unit DP on the PBS show, Stand Up; American producer for Chilean TV’s The Route of the Beringia; DP for Anthony Hopkins Teaches and more. In addition to her producing and directing career, Lydia has worked as a camera assistant and operator commercials, top music videos, and on major motion pictures including Ed Wood with Johnny Depp, Dangerous Minds with Michelle Pheiffer and Matilda with Danny DeVito to name just a few.
Lydia felt like she was guided to make Walking the Camino as so much of her life aligned perfectly with the project. She lived in Barcelona for over six years and speaks flawless Spanish, in addition to Italian and Catalan. She is an avid outdoorswoman and a lover of hiking and nature, as well as a licensed spiritual practitioner, studying with Rev. Michael Beckwith from the Agape International Spiritual Center. Depending on how you count it, Lydia has walked between 9-11 Caminos.
Walking the Camino has been both a box-office hit as well as highly acclaimed by film critics. It was the #12 documentary in theaters in the US and Canada in 2014 and #5 in Australia and New Zealand in 2015. It aired nationally in nine different countries and had over 1.2 million viewers on PBS in 2018 and garnered a 90% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Lydia’s latest project, Cellblocks to Mountaintops. is an 8-episode podcast with 14 mini-documentary companion videos. It was released in the spring of 2024 and has touched thousands of people. It has a 4.9/5 rating on Apple Podcasts – some excerpts include:
“Stunning Storytelling. This podcast is gripping, enlightening and interesting” “Truly Inspiring: A rare and exceptional find.” “Spellbinding: Perfect for a road trip because you will want to binge listen.”
Two of the short videos are featured in the traveling film festival: Inthrive and Cellblocks to Mountaintops has been selected as a finalist in the Signal Awards, a leader in the podcast awards space