Director Stephen Gray’s interest in near-death experiences was born out of loss when his 36-year-old brother-in-law was killed by a drunk driver. “He was here one moment and gone the next. For us, we had no goodbye. There was no closure. I can’t hear his laugh. All that disappeared in a moment.” Less than two years later, Gray lost his father-in-law. “I grew up in the church. Grew up as a Christian all my life, and suddenly I just found myself asking really difficult questions.”

Recently, The Stream’s Nancy Flory talked with Gray about the Angel Studios (The Chosen, Sound of Freedom) feature-length film he directed called After Death. The documentary, which releases to theaters nationwide October 27, discusses near-death experiences and features interviews of the survivors as well as prominent scientists and doctors. “For me it was, I guess, it was cathartic. I’m able to kind of think about, ‘What did my brother-in-law experience?’”

Pastor Don Piper (90 Minutes in Heaven) tells the story of his car crash and how he was pronounced dead at the scene. Captain Dale Black (Flight to Heaven), a pilot, describes what he experienced after his plane crashed into a tower. Pam Reynolds talks about her surgery, during which she was clinically dead, and how she watched the doctors working on her body. The survivors describe their experiences as “more real” than their experiences on earth. Some talk about hearing heavenly music and seeing indescribable colors.

“That’s the home where we belong,” said Gray. “That’s what we’re made for. Once you go there, sin doesn’t exist. Pain doesn’t exist. Loss … all that stuff doesn’t exist. There’s no more pain, there’s no more sorrow.”

Watch the full interview with Stephen Gray:

Watch the trailer:

Nancy Flory, Ph.D., is a senior editor at The Stream. You can follow her @NancyFlory3, and follow The Stream @Streamdotorg.