Dr Mike Poltorak is an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Anthropology and Conservation at the University of Kent.  Inspired by two years of  integrating video with medical anthropological research on traditional healing and strongly influenced by the vernacular use of video in Tonga, he celebrates the transformative relationship between filmmaker and subjects to creating films with integrity and community value. He led the visual anthropology programme at the University of Kent for ten years. His filmography includes ethnographic documentaries on Tongan comedy, volunteers in an intentional community in Sweden, and the dance form of contact improvisation. His most recent documentary- The Healer and Psychiatrist – has screened at international documentary film festivals and won the best feature film at the Society for Visual Anthropology Film and Media Festival 2020.