Get to Know Sasha
Sasha Joseph Neulinger is a husband, father, hockey player, backcountry adventurer, motivational speaker, and an Emmy Nominated filmmaker - he also happens to be a survivor of multi-generational child sexual abuse:
“ I believe that a person doesn’t have to know how they are going to climb their ‘mountain,’ they just need to know that they are committed to climbing it. With one foot in front of the other, and with each step taken, more of the path is revealed. Each step is something to build on. There is nothing easy about facing severe trauma, but the reclamation of one’s life in the face of adversity makes reaching the summit of that personal mountain that much more meaningful and empowering.
The view of the world from within the thick timber is very different than the view from the top of that mountain. Through the steps we take, we earn that shift in perspective: to see the scale of our lives independent of the trauma we experienced. I can recognize and accept that the mountain I climbed, while massive on its own, is just one piece of an expansive world. I can recognize that the trauma I experienced is just one piece of an expansive, multifaceted life.
I did not choose my trauma, nor have I chosen to be defined by it. But I did choose how I responded to it: how it would contribute to the shaping of who I am today. Through embracing my fear and confronting what scared me the most, I rediscovered my beauty and learned to harness my power. I built a loving and respectful relationship with myself and reclaimed ownership of my life… and it feels absolutely amazing!”
- Sasha Joseph Neulinger
Leaving Ground Zero
After a decade of battling to reclaim his voice in court as a child in Pennsylvania, Sasha moved to Montana in 2008 to study film production at Montana State University. For the first time in more than fourteen years, he could experience life without abuse being the primary focus of his existence. Outside of classes he fly fished blue-ribbon trout streams, hiked countless peaks, and began to explore what brought him joy in life. He started to see that despite his tumultuous childhood, he still had an entire lifetime waiting to be lived.
But there was still more work to be done.
In many facets of his life, Sasha was thriving. He was a straight-A student, physically fit, and enjoying his social life. Despite his best efforts to truly move forward, there were still lingering symptoms from his childhood trauma that continued to tug at him, and there was still a voice within Sasha that worked to pull him from the present moment, into a place of self-doubt, fear, and insecurity. He realized that this tug-of-war that was happening inside of him was an indication of lingering, unhealed wounds and unanswered questions from his childhood. He knew that in order to truly move forward with his life, he’d have to revisit his past, search for the source of his cognitive disconnect, and confront his demons head on.
Revisiting the past
Shortly after graduating college in 2013, Sasha asked his dad to send him all of the home videos that had been filmed during his childhood. In watching the 200 hours of home videos:
“I got to observe my childhood with a certain level of objectivity. It was the first time that I could cognitively accept that I was beautiful and lovable. In watching myself grow up, I got to re-experience and reclaim some of the most beautiful moments of my life… moments that I had completely forgotten about because they had been overshadowed by the painful ones.”
As Sasha watched himself as a child, in proximity to his abusers, he saw his own innocence and helplessness with newfound clarity. Re-watching his childhood provided Sasha some validation, a reminder that he had nothing to do with what his abusers chose to do to him—but that he had everything to do with the strength and resilience it required to hold his abusers accountable.
Watching the footage answered many of his questions while sparking a whole list of new ones. In response to his experience, Sasha decided to direct REWIND, an autobiographical documentary following his journey to confront, unpack and understand the multi-generational child sexual abuse that haunted him and his family. REWIND had its world premiere at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival.
On May 11, 2020, REWIND had its U.S Television Premiere on PBS’s Independent Lens, bringing the film to millions of households nationwide. Critics Choice and Emmy Nominated (Outstanding Social Issue Documentary, Outstanding Direction, and Outstanding Editing), and now streaming on multiple platforms including Peacock, Amazon Prime, iTunes, and Google Play, REWIND continues the fight against child abuse every day.
A new path forward
“Healing is not a destination—it’s a journey.”
With his speeches and with REWIND, Sasha is providing important education and inspiration in the fight against child abuse. He provides hope and validation for his audiences that no matter how severe the trauma may have been, a beautiful, self-empowered life is not only possible, but very much attainable: the effort we put forth is worth it.
Sasha looks forward to working with you and your organization to help make your next event unforgettable.