Scaling a Documentary for Global Change: Nivi Jaswal’s Path from Self-Funding to 1,000 Screens

Send us Fan MailAlternative ideas for Outreach distribution for the documentary,  Third Degree Burnout – A Survivor’s Guide.In 2020, Nivi Jaswal-Wirtjes lost her father to COVID-19 while struggling through her own burnout after 15 years in high-pressure global marketing and strategy roles across consumer packaged goods, life sciences, and media. That dual reckoning — grief and exhaustion — became the catalyst for her life’s new direction: uncovering the connections between personal well-being, food systems, and planetary health.She founded The Virsa Foundation Inc., and. the JIVINITI Research and Advocacy Program, a Boston-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit uniting experts in anthropology, psychology, lifestyle medicine, and creative advocacy to design plant-powered, climate-conscious initiatives that prevent chronic illness and foster resilience. Nivi also led The GAIA Study, the largest U.S. nonprofit study on burnout, lifestyle, and nutrition, conducted with Ipsos Public Affairs.Her research inspired the award-winning feature documentary “Third Degree Burnout – A Survivor’s Guide”, which won Best Documentary Feature awards at the 2025 Greenpoint Film Festival, 2025 Seatte Film Festival, 2025 Show Low Arizona Film Festival, and several others, and continues to screen internationally. As a speaker, she has shared her work at King’s College Hospital, Harvard Kennedy School, University of California Berkeley, University of California Santa Barbara and the University of the Arts London.Through research, filmmaking, and advocacy, Nivi transforms personal loss into a mission to heal both people and planet.Join our new educational platform From the Heart THRIVE and get free classes on film funding: https://fromtheheartproductions.thrivecart.com/from-the-heart-thrive/