Cannabis films from New & Unique Videos®
NECTARBALL®
The story of cannabis, seven years in the making. What began with a few plants in the 1970s became an award-winning documentary, a family of short films, the CANNAMINUTES® series and a half-century collection of rare buds, from Mark Schulze and Patty Mooney.
“We weren’t just telling the story of cannabis—we were telling the story of life, freedom, and wellness.”Patty Mooney
Where the name comes from
Honey on the flower
In the 1970s Mark Schulze grew a few cannabis plants of his own and named his buds “Nectarball,” for the honey-like resin that beads on mature flowers.
He also started keeping samples. The first was a bud of Acapulco Gold in 1972. Half a century later, that habit is The Nectarball Collection, and the name he gave his harvest became the name of everything that followed.
The journey
From the Emerald Cup to the world stage
- 1970s
The first Nectarball
Mark grows his first plants and names the buds. His collection begins with a bud of Acapulco Gold in 1972.
- 1985
New & Unique Videos®
Mark and Patty found their company and spend the next decades making adventure, health and social-justice films. That reputation for ethical filmmaking later opened doors that had stayed closed to others.
- 2016
The Emerald Cup
Mark and a few buddies fly to Santa Rosa for the Emerald Cup, and Mark feels emboldened to come out of the “green closet.” This is where it all starts.
- 2017
The first interviews
Mark and Patty drive up to the Emerald Cup together and film formal interviews in a little room tucked away behind the main exhibit hall.
- 2018
The show goes on
The night before the shoot, thieves break into our car and take our camera and sound gear. We rent a camera and film anyway.
- 2019
The nurses’ conference
Nurse Heather Sobel, RN hires us to film the CNNC Cannabis Nurses National Conference. Filming and listening to every speaker, we learn so much.
- 2016 to 2023
On the road with a camera
More than 170 interviews with doctors, nurses, scientists, growers, veterans, patients, activists and legends of the plant, filmed in:
HollywoodSanta RosaHumboldt CountyAmsterdamBuenos AiresUshuaiaUruguaySouth Africa
- The edit
Years in the cutting room
Patty shaped the story while Mark went back through the footage again and again for the threads that tied it together. Laws, science and public attitudes kept changing, so they kept filming.
- October 2023
World premiere
A live online premiere and cast party, followed by a Q&A with former NBA star John Salley.
- December 2023
Documentary of the Year
NECTARBALL®: The Story of Cannabis is named Documentary of the Year at the CelebStoner Awards, followed in 2024 by Best Feature Documentary at the New York Movie Awards, a Gold Award at the Paris Film Awards and a FilmHaus finalist spot.
- 2024 and on
Streaming around the world
A streaming premiere on Red Coral Universe, then Amazon Prime and more. The story keeps growing through CANNAMINUTES® and new short films.
Stories from the road
What seven years taught us
“Tell them everything”
Cannabis culture runs on secrecy, and many of the people we filmed had never spoken on the record. Word spread anyway:
If Patty and Mark are filming, tell them everything.
The night before the shoot
In 2018, on the eve of our Emerald Cup interviews, someone broke into our car and stole more than $25,000 worth of gear: the camera, Patty’s sound gear, her still camera, a laptop and lenses. The thieves left the heavier C-stands and lighting kit behind. We were deflated but not finished. We rounded up a rental camera, the show went on, and the theft became part of the story.
Relief in my shoulder
At the nurses’ conference I learned that a topical cream with cannabis in it gave me instant relief from the degenerative arthritic pain in my shoulder. Ever since, I’ve taken cannabis tinctures, cannabis infused in olive oil that Mark makes, and I’ve staved off a shoulder replacement. Looking at my x-rays, my orthopedic surgeon said my range of motion was far better than anyone else’s he had ever seen with that kind of x-ray.
— Patty MooneyHemp on the money
Dan Herer, holding an old ten-dollar bill with a hemp farm on the back: a reminder of how ordinary the plant once was in America.
Behind the scenes
Mark behind the lens
More photos from the seven-year shoot are on the way.
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NECTARBALL® and CANNAMINUTES® are registered trademarks. These films share the experiences and views of the people in them and aren’t medical advice.