Jan. 15, 2026
Resilience in Creation: Edward Miskie's Journey from Cancer Survivor to Film Festival Founder
Send us a text In this powerful episode of Living the Dream with Curveball, we are joined by Edward Miskie, a remarkable author and 13-year survivor of a rare cancer. Edward shares his incredible journey, from his initial diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma to his triumph over adversity. He discusses how his experiences reshaped his identity and fueled his passion for creativity, leading to the creation of the Remission Film Festival, set to launch in April 2026. This unique festival aims to ...
In this powerful episode of Living the Dream with Curveball, we are joined by Edward Miskie, a remarkable author and 13-year survivor of a rare cancer. Edward shares his incredible journey, from his initial diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma to his triumph over adversity. He discusses how his experiences reshaped his identity and fueled his passion for creativity, leading to the creation of the Remission Film Festival, set to launch in April 2026. This unique festival aims to spotlight the stories of creatives impacted by cancer while raising funds for Blood Cancer United. Edward also delves into his book, *Cancer Musical Theater and Other Chronic Illnesses*, blending humor and honesty to address the often overlooked challenges faced by cancer survivors. Listeners will be inspired by Edward's resilience, the importance of vulnerability in the arts, and the message that it’s okay to redefine oneself after illness. Don’t miss this enlightening discussion that encourages everyone to embrace their journey and support one another. For more information about Edward and his work, visit www.remissionfilmfest.com
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Welcome, to the Living the Dream podcast with Curveball. if you believe you can achieve. Welcome to the Living the Dream with Curveball podcast, a show where I interview guests that teach, motivate and inspire. Today I am joined by Edward Miske, who is an author and a, 13 year survivor of a rare cancer. He is the founder of, first ever film festival called the Remission Film Festival, which is going to come out in April of 2026. And it's for, creatives who have been impacted by cancer.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>And it will go for the fundraiser blood Cancer you. So we're going to be talking to him about everything that he's up to about, you know, his experience with cancer and his books and the film festival and everything that he's gonna be up to.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>So, Edward, thank you for joining me.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Why don't you start off by telling everybody a little bit about yourself.
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> Edward Miske>Sure. so I am originally from central Pennsylvania. I currently live in New York City.
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> Edward Miske>I've been here for about 21 years, which is horrendous to think that it's been that long. but, in 2011 I was diagnosed with a rare non Hodgkin's lymphoma called rare enlarged B cell burkids, like non Hodgkin's lymphoma. And I did four rounds of chemo that didn't work. I did 30 days of radiation, that did kind of work. And then I did a stem cell transplant just to seal the deal to make sure we were okay. I was a full time actor at the time, doing mostly musical theater around the country. I continue to do that after cancer, even though it felt a lot different than I thought it would, I guess. And, also an author, as you mentioned. my book is, out anywhere you buy books called Cancer Musical Theater and Other Chronic Illnesses. which is, we're working on that being adapted for television. And of course you mentioned the film festival, which I've also just founded recently. And you know, I love cats, I love dogs, I love New York. And you know, beyond that, I just, you know, just like to have a good time.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, let's talk about, doing that journey dealing with cancer. What experience most reshaped how you see yourself in your life?
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> Edward Miske>I mean, I think in general, the whole thing. I, I think one of the things I talk about pretty frequently is how, once you've had something like cancer, and this is true for PTSD in general, but, cancer specifically to the experience I've had, you often find that it's the best thing that's ever happened to you because it has changed so much of you for the better. you know, before cancer, you know, I was, I was young and I was stupid and all those other things, but, when cancer was over, it took me quite a bit of time to kind of rediscover who I am and reshape who I wanted to be. And it gave me a lot of superpowers of like, not. Not tolerating other people's crap and like, keeping good people around me and really kind of being hyper focused on what I wanted and then, of course, discovering what I wanted through that whole process too. So, I mean, yes, cancer is a. Is a pretty, you know, not fun experience, if you will. but it is. I, you know, I wouldn't trade it. It really shaped all of. Of my life. You know, everything that I do now is basically centered around cancer. You know, again, the book, the film festival. And I do public speaking, and I do a lot of outreach and partnerships with other cancer organizations, you know, fundraising and stuff like that. And everything I do is centered around it. And without it, I honestly don't know where I would be.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, let's talk about your book. You know, you told your story in a unique way, you know, blending things like honesty and humor. So tell listeners about the book, what they can expect when they read it, and, you know, basically, what you expect them to take away from it.
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> Edward Miske>Sure. The book, the book kind of came from a place of. Like I had mentioned, when you, survive something like cancer, you kind of feel a little out of place, a little displaced in your own life.
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> Edward Miske>And I thought that I was crazy and I thought I was losing it. I felt really kind of depressed and disconnected from myself and my friends and my family and the life that I was living before I had cancer. I was really angry about that. I had a lot of anger about it because it just felt so unfair that I was living this life that had so much promise and potential. And then, you, know, the universe decided to pull the rug out from under me. And in that time, I had met someone, m. Who became a friend and, at the time had just recently been told that they were cancer free. And we had a conversation about it that very much echoed how I felt about the aftercare portion of it, where he also felt displaced and depressed and confused and didn't want to go to work and didn't want to talk to family and friends. Because everything was annoying him and you know, and just very on edge in a very similar way that I was. And I had this aha moment where it was just like, I'm not the only one. I'm not the only person who's been impacted in this way by having survived cancer. So I started reaching out to other people who had cancer as well in the past who had survived and asked them similar questions. Like, you know, when, when you were told you were cancer free, what was it like? What was that transition back into your life? What did that look like? How did it feel? Did you ever get back to normal? Do you ever feel normal again? And all of them said no.
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> Edward Miske>All of them had something to say about the weird disconnect that you experience after cancer. And it was in that moment that I was like, oh, I want to write about this. I always knew I wanted to do something with having survived cancer. I wasn't sure what it was going to be. And after having talked to these people, I was like, oh my goodness, I need, I need to write about this. I need to get this down and get this out of my brain onto a page. And I want to write a book and I want to make it fun, but I also want to talk about the aspects of having cancer and surviving cancer that are often not addressed. and for me that means like, you know, body dysmorphia and the, the aftercare, like I just mentioned, feeling displaced and disconnected. And then of course, substance abuse. I drank a lot during chemo and after chemo and even more the, ah, further away I got from it, you know, coping mechanisms and stuff like that. and dating, sex, relationships, you know, stuff that you don't really think of when you hear cancer survivor or cancer patient. And my biggest takeaway and learning firsthand myself at the time as well was you don't stop being a person when you're a cancer patient or a survivor. You're very much still a human. And oftentimes you're not treated like that. You're treated like a patient, you're treated like a chart, you're treated like a case study or a prognosis. And, and none of that's necessarily bad per se, because how else are people supposed to treat you? But, it was, it was a big wake up call. And, and so I, I wanted to turn it into a book. And I only hoped that the book would reach the right people and help a lot of people and help the people that it reached.
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> Edward Miske>And, I, I did that. And you know, I Incorporated musical theater, because that's what I was doing at the time. so we talk about cancer under the guise of musical theater and of course, chronic illnesses being things like depression and body dysmorphia and, and substance, dependency and etc, you know, and that, and that's kind of where it came from. And it's been a really interesting journey to, you know, to have it going from writing it to having it published to, you know, having a billboard in Times Square with the book In My Face on it, and then, you know, having it carried in Barnes and Noble. Like it's been a really wild journey. just from that one moment of talking to someone and realizing that we're all kind of going through the same thing. And there is very little resources and very few conversations around it. around the aftercare, around survivorship. It's gotten a lot better. There are certainly like content creators and influencers who address this, who talk about it online a lot more than there were ten plus years ago. there's an organization called Stupid Cancer, which specifically focuses on younger people who have gone through cancer. I'm currently working with them on some stuff behind the scenes as well. So it's, you know, I have somehow managed to accidentally fit right in.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, talk to the listeners about the Remission Film Festival. Tell us about how the idea came to you and you know, just give, give us the info about it.
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> Edward Miske>Sure. So I, The Remission Film Festival was just kind of like, you know, you know, one of those things where like, you're talking to someone or you're just kind of sitting around and all of a sudden an idea just like pops in to your head and then you can't shake it and it just all makes sense and it's kind of easy to assemble and put together. It was kind of like that. I don't even remember where I was or what I was doing, but I have been to a lot of film festivals. I love a good film festival. And I was noticing that there are shows out there, like TV shows that do talk about cancer, but they don't necessarily talk about the whole picture. As I was just talking about with the after, the after care experience and, and whatnot. And and so I decided that I wanted to create a festival that we could invite people who have written something about cancer, who had, have experienced it, who have survived it, who have been impacted by it in some way, to create things and tell their, tell their stories and put it into a film festival that is centered solely around that Subject matter. And it kind of also came from, you know, again, all of this kind of, like, melded together into. Into a pretty little bow. But when I was first. When it first kind of crossed my mind, I was talking to the people at Blood Cancer United. I was nominated as a Visionary of the Year for their fundraising cycle in the second quarter of the year, into the second quarter of the year. And they were just like, oh, you know, you can do fundraising and in lots of different ways. You can do events, you can do parties, you can do whatever. And I just thought, like, oh, the film festival, I could use that as a fundraiser. And now it has become this thing where this year being our first year, Blood Cancer United is, of course, the first beneficiary, to the. To the festival. But, you know, I hope to do this every year and have a different organization every year, be a benefactor or a beneficiary from the fundraising we do through the film festival. it's going to be in New York City on April 17th at Symphony Space at the Leonard Nimoy, Nimoy Theater in the Upper west side on, like, I think 97th and Broadway, 95th and Broadway. I can't remember. I should probably learn those cross streets. But, I'm really excited about. We have a great jury. We have a bunch of tv, up and coming TV people and film people who are going to be on the jury, looking at all the submissions of all the different things that people have seen, will have sent to us and will have sent to us. we'll be choosing our selections and we'll be having winners, and it'll be really fun. I'm very, very excited about it.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, speaking of those submissions, are there any, particular submissions or stories that particularly, move you that, that you could think of?
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> Edward Miske>I haven't watched them yet. Our deadline is, our final deadline is mid February. So once we hit that deadline, then I will be watching them, but I don't want to watch them because I don't want to pick favorites, just yet. Once we get closer and we'll convene with the jury and we'll all sit down and watch, and we'll be announcing the selections in mid March.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, what do you wish more people understood about living beyond cancer and surviving. Ah, beyond cancer.
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> Edward Miske>I think the best part about having, and surviving cancer, other than the fact that you get to live, is that you get to kind of start over in a way.
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> Edward Miske>And I wish this is something that I would have learned or at least figured out earlier than I did. but it. It really kind of is impossible to get your life back. It. Because, you know, you think that the whole time, like while you're in treatment, when you're being pumped full of drugs and everything else, you're. You're all you can think about is how much you just want to get back to your life. You know, how much you just want to get back to normal, how much you just want to, like, you know, be. Be your old self. And that doesn't happen and it can't happen, and it shouldn't happen and you shouldn't want it to happen, because you know too much now. So I, I really want to impress upon anyone who either has cancer and who has survived it, or someone who knows someone who has or. Or whatnot, that is, it's okay to just scrap your old life. I kind of think of it in terms of death, you know, like the.
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> Edward Miske>The old you is dead. the old you has died. They are no longer in existence. And the new you is now, like, kind of birthed out on the other side of having had cancer. And you kind of get to figure out who that person is, and you get to shape a future that is centered around this new person versus the person that you used to be.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, talk to us about Blood Cancer United. Tell us about that organization, what they do and why you chose that, for your first, film festival to fundraise for.
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> Edward Miske>Well, Blood Cancer United is actually the former Leukemia Lymphoma Society. They went through a rebrand this year. so if you've heard of the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, that is who we are working with. They are now just called Blood Cancer Cancer United. and they. Their specific focus up until this point was blood cancer. And I think a lot of people just kind of assumed because they were called the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, that those were the only two cancers that they really focused on. But they changed their name to Blood Cancer United because they wanted to be more all encompassing of all blood cancers, not just leukemia lymphoma. And, you know, they do really, really great work. I had actually benefited from that organization when I was in Treat Blood Cancer United. Then Leukemia Lymphoma Society gave me vouchers, for car service to go from my apartment to the hospital because I was immunocompromised and I was not able to get on a bus or a train. so they would send cars that had been cleaned by the hospital staff, so that they were sterile for me to be able to go from my apartment to the hospital and back safely. and that was because of funding from Leukemia Lymphoma Society now Blood Cancer United, that that was possible. And, I had a friend who had done fundraising for them in the past and thought that I would be a great fit and a great match for this organization. And, you know, kind of presented me to their fundraising wing and you know, they, they loved me and I loved them and we kind of signed me on board to be part of their visionary of the year campaign for 2026. And here we are. So I kind of, I kind of didn't choose them. I was sort of plucked and plucked out of nowhere and put in front of them. but we have effectively chosen each other at this point. I'm very excited to be helping them out.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, you work in vulnerability. You work in, arts as well as advocacy. So talk about, vulnerability and performance, are those two of the same or how do you both balance them if they're not?
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> Edward Miske>I think that in a lot of ways they are the same.
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> Edward Miske>You know, for you to be, for you to give back in any way, whether that is fundraising, whether that is filmmaking, whether that's writing, whether that's performance, you have to be able to be vulnerable. You know, you are showing a lot of yourself in those, in those circumstances. you know, whether subliminally, subliminally or metaphorically or very literally, you're, you're being vulnerable just by the very nature of, let's say, a live performance. You're on a stage and you are being watched by hundreds, maybe thousands of people. and that is a very vulnerable place to be in. And so you just, you know, over time it's very scary in the beginning and it doesn't, it does get easier and it always will be scary and nerve wracking. But, you do get used to it. You get used to being exposed like that in, in vulnerable circumstances. And certainly, you know, as far as on screen stuff, for the film festival, I actually shot a documentary called Back to Normal, which is a survivor's documentary, which is basically all that we've talked about so far about how you're not able to get back to your normal life after the fact. And that is very vulnerable. Vulnerable for me because it's the first time I, I'm really on camera on a big screen talking about all of this.
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> Edward Miske>You know, it's very easy to do in person or on a podcast or, or on a YouTube show or situation, but. But, you know, on a big, big movie screen, it's a little different. So, you know, having a vulnerable moment with that as well. But the. The thing that kind of keeps me comfortable in being vulnerable with people is that I know that my being vulnerable and talking about the unpleasant things or kind of the funnier things, or maybe not funny things, but things that I make light of to make them more digestible for everyone, is that by being vulnerable, you are helping other people and you are accessing their, you know, their hearts and minds about what they've gone through and what they're experiencing. And hopefully in the end, that helps them and makes their lives better, even if just in a small way.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, what advice would you give the creators who are navigating illness? But. But they still, you know, feel the calling to still do what they do and create.
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> Edward Miske>I think it's important never to stop. and I. And by that, I. I don't mean do it all day, every day, all the time. I just mean, you know, it is part of who you are, and you should always continue to do it. I know that when I was in chemo and radiation, I had created an online magazine that I was writing for. I'd created it, I was writing for it, I was doing everything. I was organizing photo shoots and kind of creative directing it from afar, very literally from a hospital room in some instances. But, you know, that, that fueled me, that kept me going and gave, me a reason to get up in the morning when I was having bad days. I was like, well, I have to do the magazine well. I have to. I have to get this going and I have to get this done. And it kind of allowed me to not focus on what was happening to me and give me an external focus and a project to do. you know, and that. That magazine is, sadly, no longer. I was very proud of the work I did with that.
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> Edward Miske>But, you know, I think I had a great conversation the other day about what keeps you going in those circumstances. And I think it's very related to your question in that, you know, as a creative, you always want more and you always want to create more, because that's just what's in you to do. And I used and harnessed, the anger I felt and the pain that I. And grief that I felt having had this happen to me. And again, feeling like I was robbed of, a life, of a timeline that I'll never know and I'll never see. And I used that anger as Fuel to kind of be like, well, if I'm not going to be able to have that life, then I'm going to create the one that I want. And I'm going to do X, Y and Z and I'm going to bust my ass and work really hard to make this happen. and I'm going to use the anger I feel to kind of propel myself along to make that happen. So for creatives who are experiencing something that has interrupted your life or, you know, has got you down, you know, use that. What it was, it was right after Carrie Fisher died where Meryl Streep reminded us that she had said, take that broken heart and turn it into art. Very similar kind of sentiment. You know, take the anger or the, the frustration you feel from your current circumstances and do something with it and turn it into something, or just use it as oxygen. You know what, whatever you need to flip the script for yourself, do it.
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> Edward Miske>Because it, it is going to help you more so than hurt you in the long run.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Well, besides your film festival, talk about any other upcoming projects that you're working on that listeners need to be aware of?
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> Edward Miske>Unfortunately, I can't really talk about a lot of, them because they're all still in the works. But, you know, we do have the book, we do have the film festival and we do. Have I mentioned the documentary Back to Normal that will be premiering at the film festival, in the spring. I tend to work in ecosystems when I create, so all of the things are, are connected. You know, we have the book which is related to the documentary, which is going to be featured in the film festival, which is a fundraiser for a cancer organization, which I, of course, then have spoken with. so, you know, it's, it's all connected and, and that's pretty much my main focus for the next, at least the next six months.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>With the watch of contact info. So listeners can keep up with everything that you're up to.
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> Edward Miske>Yeah, you can find me on Instagram and Tick Tock at edwardmisky. You can find the film festival on Instagram at Remission Film fest. There's also remissionfilmfest.com if, if you, if this is before February 19th and you have something that you would like to submit for the film festival, you can do that@filmfreeway.com the Remission Film Festival. and if you miss us this year, you know, come and find us next year. Come and find me on Instagram or, or, Tick Tock and you know, let me know that you have something you would like to. To work on, and if I can help you, I will. And if not, I will point you into a direction that would hopefully be helpful to you. And, we hope to see you guys there. If you're in New York City, it's at Symphony Space in the Upper west side.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>Close us out with some final thoughts. Maybe if, that was something I forgot to talk about that you would like to touch on or any final thoughts you may have for the listeners.
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> Edward Miske>Final thoughts. I think regardless of whether you're going through something personally or you're kind of affected existentially by things that are going on in the world right now, the best thing that we can all do for each other is support each other and keep on keeping on. And again, I think it's important to recognize and acknowledge the feelings that you feel and use them as fuel.
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> Edward Miske>you know, back to what I was talking about with using my anger as fuel to, like, create things very similarly. Use the feelings you're feeling to create things, to get involved, to do something.
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> Edward Miske>because doing something is always better than doing nothing.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>All right, ladies and gentlemen, so if you're in the NYC area April 17th, please check out that film festival. You know, if you want to submit anything, do it. And, check out Edwards books and everything that he's up to. You know, please be sure to follow, rate, review, share this episode to as many people as possible. And Please go to www.craveball337.com Follow the show, leave a review and sign up for the Living the Dream with Curveball email list. Thank you for listening and supporting the show. And Edward, thank you for all that you do. And thank you for joining me.
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> Edward Miske>Thank you for having me.
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> Curtis Jackson (also known as DJ Curveball)>For more information on the Living the Dream with Curveball Podcast, visit www.craveball337.com until next time, keep Living the Dream.
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