A comparison of addiction patterns and occurrence rates between European and United States Veterans will be the backdrop for introducing strategies for treatment and recovery models. Addiction therapists and Case Managers working within the context of the Department of Veterans Affairs in the United States have reported successful use of movies as motivational instruments and sources of heightened insight.

To introduce a catalog of movies that support motivational treatment strategies for addiction.

To explore the experiences of therapists working with movies as treatment adjuncts

To provide an analysis of the effect of the creative impact on therapy within current recovery models.

To encourage therapists and increase confidence in utilizing movies within treatment contexts.

A compendium of relevant movies will be presented. Special attention will be paid to legal issues in Europe/US with regard to when permission is needed to use movie material within the context of treatment. Material from large group of addiction therapists will be made available and analyzed within addiction treatment models.

The anonymous case examples and therapists’ experiences using movies as therapeutic adjuncts will increase awareness, confidence and ability to integrate this approach into approaches to addiction treatment.

Use of movies in addiction treatment increases awareness, creates insights and provides explicit emotional points of identification for patients and clients that facilitate understanding and engagement as treatment is introduced and progresses.