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"Truth
is truth, no matter if only one person speaks it"
(One of the three 'Christs' studied by Dr. Rokeech, 1968)
| THOSE WHO ARE JESUS | |
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a paradogs film
(63 mins. Digi Beta/Beta SP. 2001)
Produced and Directed
by Steven Eastwood
Funded by the University of Plymouth, the Peabody Trust and paradogs
ltd
Available priced £19.99 plus £1.50 p&p from Paradogs, 1st floor, 17-25 Cremer St, London, E2 8HD.
A documentary which presents four compelling individuals who have each had profoundly religious or revalatory experiences and have extraordinary stories to tell.
With a tolerant and inclusive approach, the film offers different positions of explanation of such experience by featuring such experts as Dr. Peter Fenwick (Institute of Psychiatry), The Very Reverend Colin Slee (Southwark Cathedral), Prof. Eileen Barker (Sociologist at LSE), Dr Trevor Turner (Homerton Hospital) and the Hearing Voices Network, alongside of the points of view of the subjects.
The result is an examination of conflicting and convergent discourses surrounding what psychiatrists term "delusions of grandeur".
The film was first screened at the Lux centre in February 2001 and has since been shown as a part of an experimental documentary festival at Catalyst Arts in Belfast. The film recently has been nominated for best documentary newcomer in the Grierson Awards.
The appeal of the film and feedback in response to the preview screening.
The film has both a broad and specific appeal. With an open hypothesis and strong feature stories it is highly accessable. The specific appeal of the film has meant that charities such as MIND and SANE have already taken an interest in the project. With their support we would hope to organise targetted screenings with the intention of increasing the debate around mental health issues.
At the preview of the rough cut at the Lux Centre in February of this year, various representatives from mental health bodies and action groups were present, together with the subjects, and a lay audience. The feedback was extremely positive - the film was regarded to be serious, inclusive, tolerant and respectful. The subjects felt that it was very close in its description of their experience.
It was also felt that the film has strong relevance in the debate around diagnosis and treatment, which is a very current one, and that the film adeptly conveys how attitudes are shifting towards subjective belief systems.
There was an intensive discussion afterwards, which was indicative of how engaging the film is to a general audience.