 |  |  |  |
Submitted by Mike McGregor on March 11, 2007 - 10:01am.
The Interventionists is a documentry that follows a mental health crisis team operating in downtown Toronto.
The team is a partnership between St. Michale's Hospital and the Toronto Police and made up of is made up of Ellen, a mental health nurse and Brandon, a Toronto Police officer. The partnership came about as a result of a shooting of Edmond Yu, a mentally ill homeless man on a Toronto bus by police in 1997. The incident is the subject of the film 'Crisis Call'
The documentary follows Ellen and Brandon from call to call (presumably over the course of a shift) as they intervene in various mental health crisis', from threats of suicide, to more aggressive episodes, from their first contact to the ER and follows them in their downtime between calls as they discuss the job and attitudes towards the mentally ill. It's a short documentary, just over a half hour. I really thought the subject could benefited from a longer film, perhaps following the pair over a longer period of time and giving the film more opportunity to explore the subject matter in grater detail. I also would have liked to see the film explore attitudes towards mental health (especially the attitudes of police, paramedics, ER staff and the public) in more detail, but perhaps that was beyond the scope of the film project or the placement at St. Mike's. But all in all, I thought it was a damn good film.
The documentary is by filmmaker Katerina Cizek who is the National Film Board's "Filmmaker-in-Residence" at St. Michael's Hospital. The Filmmaker-In-Residence project is a pilot project that aims to place a video activist, in this case Cizek, into an environment of concern to social justice where they can immerse themselves in stories and act as a instrument of social change through their work. This film is one of two that are currently listed on the FIR site and I think there are more to come, all of which are the product of Cizek's placement at St. Mike's
I also found this link while I was looking for info on Cizek, and I thought it may be of intrest to the Indy-media types that frequent the 'Commons.
-30-
Mike.
"We only wear black, but that's just until something darker comes along..."
-Anonymous Black Bloc Member.
-=There is no Cabal, Long live the Cabal=-
My Photos
No votes yet
Trackback URL for this post:
http://londoncommons.net/trackback/2266
- Mike McGregor's blog
- Login or register to post comments
Search
Upcoming events
- PRIDE London(Event)(Now)
- Primaries, Miles, Books Elusive, Peace Leeches(Event)(2 days)
- Ghost Bees with special guest(Event)(2 days)
- Luncheon with Resisters(Event)(4 days)
- Pride London Festival Parade(Event)(4 days)
- URBAN GUERIALLA GAMES! Capture the flag in Old East London!(Event)(5 days)
- Revolutionary Hip-Hop(Event)(6 days)
User login
Recent Images
Recent Blogs
Who's online
There are currently 1 user and 142 guests online.
Online users
- Matti Paquiz
Recent comments
- interrobang‽
38 min 40 sec ago - lovely thoughts rachel
38 min 30 sec ago - hey dudes..
41 min 27 sec ago - thanks rachel
1 hour 20 min ago - a general question (off on a tangent..)
2 hours 25 min ago - Jeff
2 hours 52 min ago - "like i wish that i could
6 hours 40 min ago - Deflecting crits ain't no thinkable reason - word yo yo.
8 hours 37 min ago - here here...
15 hours 1 min ago - Always gettin spun!
15 hours 9 min ago
Random image
Poll
Is the zoning amendment desired by the developer a good investment of tax dollars for Old East if approved by City Council?
The design features negotiated by the city in exchange for waiving the per/unit development charges are a good value.
9%
The design features negotiated by the city in exchange for waiving the per/unit development charges are a poor value.
27%
The addition of 600 units of housing in Old East Village is a good trade-off for the loss of development charges.
9%
The addition of 600 units of housing in Old East Village is a poor trade-off for the loss of development charges.
0%
What on earth are you talking about?
55%
Total votes: 11
Ward of the Crown
Ward of the Crown is another documentary that may be of interest. It aired on CBC's The Lens a while back. This one explores the experiences of four young people who spent a substantial portion of their childhoods in foster care. I thought it was pretty insightful, and found that it helped to give some context to some of interactions I've had in my job with youth and people who have spent time in the system. this film is by Andrée Cazabon, who spent time in some time in the foster care system as a child.
-30-
Mike.
"We only wear black, but that's just until something darker comes along..."
-Anonymous Black Bloc Member.
-=There is no Cabal, Long live the Cabal=-
My Photos
doc
Do you own this movie Mike?
I would love to borrow it.
It's interesting that this partnership came about after the Edmund Yu shooting.
I think it's also interesting that the official inquest that occurred after that shooting concluded "Housing is a mental health issue and the absence of decent housing is a major determinant of health."
who woulda guessed?
....funny the things we need inquests to determine for us..
-r.
nope...
No, I don't own this... yet. I saw it on CBC newsworld today, they might be re-airing it tonight on CBC News: Sunday at 10pm.
On a related subject, the subject of the criminalisation of mental illness, you could check out the PBS Frontlines episode The New Asylum, which is available online.-30-
Mike.
"We only wear black, but that's just until something darker comes along..."
-Anonymous Black Bloc Member.
-=There is no Cabal, Long live the Cabal=-
My Photos
It just came in the mail today...
...Wards of the Crown too.
-30-
Mike.
"We only wear black, but that's just until something darker comes along..."
-Anonymous Black Bloc Member.
-=There is no Cabal, Long live the Cabal=-
My Photos