October 5-11, 2014 marks Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW), originally established in 1992 by the Canadian Psychiatric Association. The primary significance of the week however, is not just to raise awareness that there are people dealing with mental illness but to fight against the stigma of it. Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health (CAMIMH) states that “One of MIAW’s major initiatives is the Faces of Mental Illness campaign, a national outreach campaign featuring the stories of Canadians living in recovery from mental illness.

Thousands of pieces of MIAW posters, brochures, and bookmarks featuring the Faces are disseminated to hundreds of organizations across Canada in an effort to raise awareness and end the stigma associated with mental illness.”

Regardless of how informed we are, there are two documentaries, Not Criminally Responsible: NCR and the second, Out of Mind, Out of Sight this week that truly bring a few faces to mental illness while exploring the lives they lead and debunking myths and damaging stereotypes.

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Both films, screening at Bloor Hot Docs Cinema, are directed by John Kastner. He was able to gain access to the Brockville Mental Health Centre and through his films, tells the stories of forensic psychiatric patients. The main impetus for the films was a result of Dr. Lisa Ramshaw, a forensic psychiatrist from CAMH, who pushed Kastner to tell the other side of the story and to help destigmatize this group of people. Forensic psychiatric patients are a minority of people suffering from mental illness. Kastner elaborates further, “Forensic means having to do with the law, in that all of these people had committed offenses or crimes and then ruled not criminally responsible.” The way Kastner sees it is that “if you can start to feel sympathetic for the mentally ill who have committed an offense, then maybe you’d be that much more understanding of those who are also mentally ill but haven’t hurt anyone.”

The kind of access Kastner had not just to the facility but also to the patients and their records is unprecedented. He shot both films in eighteen months and was able to make human what the public’s stereotypes had demonized. It was not an easy process. Kastner was turned down by several hospitals. Brockville Mental Health Centre was open to the idea of such a film but had to run it by their hospital ethics committee. Next came the task of requiring consent from the patients to not just film but also look through their records. Before that could happen however, the patients’ capacity for consent had to be assessed. Kastner described that “there are various degrees of capacity. In our case, it was for disclosure. In some cases they would have capacity for file disclosure but not capacity for financial affairs, for example. Finally, there were 59 patients in the hospital and we thought we’d be lucky if we could get 3 or 4 but in the end in the two films we filmed simultaneously over 18 months, we filmed 46 patients.”

When talking about the process of filming, Kastner explains some of the roadblocks he faced, particularly when filming with Michael Stewart, the main character in Out of Mind, Out of Sight. Stewart killed a close family member while in a psychotic state and is now tormented by the guilt he feels for his actions. Kastner says, “I knew almost to the point of meeting him that this is the patient I wanted more than anyone else. Ironically, although he had committed a horrific act of violence, I felt that he had the capacity to soften people’s hearts more than the other patients there and so did the nurses, they said “you have to meet Michael, he breaks your heart” so it took me a year to get Michael and he dropped out a couple of times during the filming which is very much par for the course with people with schizophrenia, they’re very ambivalent. I had to wait for him for several months before he resumed.” Kastner mentions that he had to get an apartment in Brockville for a year and would not have been able to continue filming without support from his co-producers, the National Film Board and the CBC.

The primary goal of the films is to destigmatize the mentally ill and both films individually, I believe, are able to do that. Kastner’s storytelling however, is far from one-sided. In Not Criminally Responsible: NCR, the focus is on Sean Clifton, a patient who while at a crowded shopping mall, violently attacked a young woman with a knife. She survived and talks about her experience in the film and forgave him. Her fear of it recurring still remains however, and insists that people like Sean must be forced to take their medication and monitored to prevent another episode. Kastner presents a doctor’s perspective as well, who says that it’s possible that if Sean has shown remarkable improvement, in the future, he may not have to take any more medication. So while the audience can sympathize and may agree with the victim regarding safety, there’s also the question of individual choice, left for us to debate over. Kastner also makes sure to note that a recent study has been released which says that the chances of another equally violent attack happening are 7% whereas the chances of a convict committing a similar crime once released from prison is around 40%.

When asked about what he perceives to be the state of health care for the mentally ill in Canada, Kastner says that the help these patients get is very good however, it’s hard for people to get this help before the crime is committed even though the signs are present.

Both films delve into issues surrounding mental illness and challenge the viewer to consider it differently. It’s not a matter of locking a patient up in a padded room and forgetting about them. It’s a matter of getting over our “what if…?” fears and approach mental illness with an open mind and with empathy.

NCR will be screened on Wednesday, October 8^th with Sean Clifton in attendance to answer questions along with John Kastner and Dr. Sandy Simpson, Chief of Forensic Psychiatry at CAMH and the University of Toronto. The following night, October 9, there will be a screening for Out of Mind, Out of Sight. In attendance will be Michael Stewart’s brother, John, Kastner as well as Dr. Simpson. Both nights will be moderated by Silva Basmajian, co-producer and executive producer of the films. Screenings begin at 6:30 p.m.

The post Director John Kastner Exposes the Lives of the Mentally Ill appeared first on Toronto Guardian.

Chad Connell is a Toronto-based actor who has most recently appeared in the movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. Having appeared in various other Canadian television shows, such as Murdoch Mysteries, Connell is experiencing much success lately as a result of The Mortal Instruments. I had a chance to chat with him and talk about being an actor living in Toronto.

What’s the Toronto film community like?

Generally, there’s that six degrees of separation rule but in Toronto, it boils down to one degree of separation. It feels like a real network of support. Right now, I’m on my way to audition where I’m going to meet someone who I’m in direct competition with and we’re going to run our lines together and see how much we can help each other. So I think it’s that well of support that’s really apparent in Canadians in general but you definitely see it in the Toronto film community.

So is it not as cutthroat of an industry in this city as it is in others?

It’s a cutthroat industry no matter where you are but I think the moment you can recognize that and then let go of the control and realize that all you can do, for your own psyche, is be supportive of one another, otherwise it’ll just beat you. If you see people booking roles you wanted, it makes it a lot easier if it’s someone from whom you felt a real well of support. It is cutthroat but that comes internally, it comes from your own hard work and your own dedication and your own internal drive.

You enjoy your work but does it ever feel like a job? What do you do to unwind ?

Unfortunately, if I’m being realistic, it can start to feel like a job from time to time, primarily if you’ve gone a long stretch of auditions where nothing is landed, it can start to feel a bit like a job. I’m really lucky, I’ve got good family in the city, a really great group of friends. It can be something as simple as going out for dinner. I’m hesitant to call myself a foodie because of the negative connotations of that word right now but I’ll just say I’m a big fan of restaurants and going out. I love to sail. The harbourfront is a spectacular place to go sailing and to take in the city and just try to take your mind off other things.

Toronto is often compared to LA and New York when it comes to the film industry. Do you as an actor feel that pressure to move elsewhere or that the industry here is limited?

I’ve spent a bit of time in NY and LA. And I think every actor feels a bit of a pull to LA specifically if you’re doing film and television. It’s the film and television Mecca of the world so you’ll meet actors there from every corner of the world, English-speaking or not so there’s definitely a pull to be down there. But in the 10/11 yrs I’ve been living in TO, I’ve seen a real nurturing of our industry. There seems to be a lot more homegrown shows that the public are actually watching now. For me, Toronto, will always be home.

 What do you in between gigs, in order to make ends meet?

Since I graduated from university, I set a goal for myself that my income would come of acting. It’s meant some pretty Spartan times but my parents, are also really supportive of the arts so they get what I do. My fate has been such that whenever I’ve really needed it, that job has come through. I understand that not every actor is able to say that and that there are a lot of bartenders and waiters out there doing the same thing but it doesn’t mean they’re not working as hard.

Chad Connell’s Top 5 places to hang out in Toronto:

1. St. Lawrence Market: I recently moved there and I love that neighbourhood. It has a vibrancy and a culture, a sort of old world feel.

2. The rooftop bar at the Park Hyatt in Yorkville: It sort of feels like a bit of a secret gem. You can always get a seat on the patio and get a breathtaking view of the city.

3. The Woodlot: My uncle is the baker and the wine guy there so I head there as often as I can and get a glass of wine if he happens to be working there.

4. Buca: It’s pretty hard to beat.

5. Queen East: It’s a really up and coming place and I’m kind of falling in love with the Leslieville area.

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Today is not only the beginning of the weekend, it’s also the start of the TIFF Next Wave Film Festival: A film festival for young movie lovers. The festival contains programming aimed at youth aged 14-18 and features films from all over the world. But you don’t really have to be within that age group to enjoy a good teen movie. The festival starts off with a “Battle of the Scores” featuring six high school bands that have been given the opportunity to compose a score for a short film in three weeks and they will be performing live on stage tonight. On Saturday, TIFF Next Wave features Cult Classics: Teen Rebels Movie Marathon which include Mean Girls, Rushmore and Donnie Darko.

Prior to the marathon, the first film premiering at the festival is the comedy, Camp Takota. It features Grace Helbig, Mamrie Hart and Hannah Hart who have previously achieved YouTube fame with a combined following of over 3.5 million.I had a chance to speak with the film’s producer, Michael Goldfine. He will be hosting the premier while some of the cast will Skype in.

Where did the idea of Camp Takota come from?

Well the original idea came from the idea that ever since I left camp, I wanted to get back to camp. I went to camp for many years as a camper, then as a counselor. I think maybe in the back of my mind, it was my way of finally getting back to camp. My idea was that if everything kind of went to hell in my life, if I lost my job, I could always end up going back to camp as a counselor no matter how old I was. So that was really the impetus to write this story. Then when I ended up meeting Mamrie, she was working on a camp movie on her own so the two of us sort of hit it off and we decided to write the actual story ourselves together.There’s a lot of both us in there, that’s the combining of the stories.The original story was going to be a guy but then I met these three amazing women and then I found this amazing writer to help write this and it kind of morphed into something a little different.

Why the decision to use three YouTube stars specifically?

What happened is that I had this story that I wanted to tell. The rough outline and then we wrote the story together. I didn’t think I’d get it out to the masses going the traditional route. And so I was trying to figure out how I would get this out there and we decided the best way was maybe to partner with talent who had a connected audience. Then it just so happened that we also needed to find a great group of talent, tremendous actors also so if we didn’t find that, there wouldn’t have been a movie. It just so happened that I found three who not only had a tremendous audience but who also happened to be phenomenal actresses.

What were some challenges you encountered during production?

I think one of the biggest challenges, self-imposed, was timing. I wanted to do this very quickly and the one thing that I was lucky enough to do was I surrounded myself with three very very sharp, smart, executive producers. What they lacked in experience, they made up for in intelligence. So it was great. I had the three of them as my partners and they helped make everything run smoothly and they helped fill in any gaps. So it was time and with any small budget, that’s always going to be the challenge. We didn’t have a ton of money to make this movie.

How long did filming take?

I think we ended up shooting for seventeen days. That wasn’t really ever an issue. We wanted to get this movie out quickly to the fans because they were with us during production so it wasn’t the actual shooting of it. I compressed the post-production schedule such that we wanted to be done in post-production very quickly.

How did you get involved with the TIFF Next Wave Film Festival?

We were very fortunate. They heard about us, they heard about the movie and they asked to see an earlier cut of it. So we were happy to show them because, you know, they have an amazing reputation so we were honoured and let them see an earlier cut of it and they seemed to really like it, saying that it would be perfect for the film festival. So we said we’d love to show it to the folks up there, we have a bunch of fans up there so we’re honoured to be invited and bring it up.

Have you guys already submitted the film to other festivals as well? What’s next?

No, we haven’t done any submitting to festivals. You know, it’s interesting, we made this movie 100% for the fans so much so that the consideration of a festival…well, we never even considered festivals. We just thought, we know this group we’re making it for, and we know there’s a much wider audience. The original idea for this was the passion for camp and all the great things that come out of camp, friendship, life lessons and all these amazing things you appreciate even when you get older. But when we started making this, we grew this thing we’ve come to call “Takota Nation” and we’ve become very close with them and they’ve become like a family to us.  As we started making it, shooting it and posting this movie, we just felt like we’re making it for our family. We never even thought that we should start taking this to festivals. That’s why we were so surprised and honoured when someone outside our family, our core fans, was like, “Oh, we want to see this movie too.”

So will you consider submitting it now?

Yeah, I guess. We’re so wrapped up in getting this out tomorrow. I guess it’s something we need to now consider.

Tickets can be pre-ordered at CampTakota.com. For all other festival info, click here

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Chatting with Canadian actors is always a lot of fun for me. They’re quirky and just generally excited to be part of the television and film industry, especially in Toronto.  In many ways, actor Steve Lund is similar to this crowd but in many more ways, also really different from it. He loves movies but also has a huge interest in music, talking about his favourite musicians and concerts.  While dedicated to his craft, he has a wicked sense of humour doused with a little mischief. It was recommended by Lund himself that I mention the fact that this interview took place at North of Brooklyn Pizzeria, which is run by old friends of his. There’s also a nude photograph of him in said establishment. I was encouraged to mention that as well.

When asked about what drove him to pursue acting, he immediately responds, “Indiana Jones. He was the sole person responsible for this whole thing. When I was three years old I was running around telling people that I was going to be an actor. I was a performer. I’m my father’s son and my father was a kind of a larger than life kind of guy. His job was to entertain people, he was a salesman so he was always there with a joke. I’ve always been the class clown. In grade three, we had this great music teacher and she just encouraged us to let our freak flag fly. She was the coolest chick ever. She ran a production of the Lion King and she cast me as Bonzai the hyena and that was the most fun I’d ever had, it was like my shining moment. Until I grew about two feet overnight and learned how to take a slap shot and my dad was like, “You’re going to be a hockey player.” Because if the American dream is freedom, the Canadian dream is to have a son in the NHL.”

What eventually got Lund off the hockey track was several concussions in one year and realizing that it just wasn’t for him. “I was just going through the motions living someone else’s dream and truly, I was saying to myself that I was born to be an actor.”

Lund’s latest role is as Nick Sorrentino in the new Space werewolf drama, “Bitten,” based on Kelley Armstrong’s popular series.  He mentions that having the book to draw his character from really helped him. “As an actor, it’s like catnip. There’s such a lineage, there’s a backstory for everybody, there’s an answer for any question you might have as an actor so that’s really cool to sink your teeth into.”

But what about the pressure that comes with a pre-existing fan base?

“Yeah, we’re definitely considerate of people’s notions of these characters. But because the books are there, I have so much to draw from that I think I’ve done the character justice. There’s a lot of things to consider when you’re dealing with a loyalty as people have for a book series because they’ve invested so much, hours and hours of their lives, which we’re really thankful for, to have that fan base.”

Having visited FanExpo for the first time in 2013, Lund does admit that he’s a bit of a geek himself and has definitely dabbled in the sci-fi/fantasy genre. “There’s Indiana Jones and Star Wars. I’m a huge Star Wars guy. Lots of toys. I claim that I can recite every word to every Indiana Jones movie including the words that aren’t in English. Yeah. That’s pretty geeky, right? So yeah, I’ve always had a soft spot for that genre.”

Of course, with the flood of vampire/werewolf television shows and movies, it’s hard to distinguish which ones you would actually be into. So how exactly does Bitten differ from the rest?

“Bitten is different from all those other crappy shows because it’s much more family driven. We have a lot more elements in the show, which will pertain to a wide array of audiences. There’s a lot of sex, there’s a lot of violence, with some humour sprinkled in there. People watching the show will find something that they relate to, guaranteed. We rely on each other for survival, which is how I think a family works. That was communicated through the scripts from day one. No matter what your family history is, what you’ll see is a family just struggling to cope with adversity.  It’s a unique scenario, because they’re werewolves after all, but it’s just the same as any family.”

One quirk that Lund has is that he actually doesn’t like referring to himself as an actor. “ I’ve been reluctant to accept that I’m an actor for so long. I’ve never wanted to be known as an actor. I just always want to be that regular dude that’s approachable and not fear that I’m going to be dishonest. In every relationship that I’ve ever embarked on I’ve heard “Oh I know about actors.” And I just want to be like “No, I’m not like that. I’m different.” I’ve tried to stick to my roots. I’m a very patriotic Nova Scotian but I’m displaced and I’m living here. But you know, at the end of the day, I am an actor. I’m an artist. That’s my livelihood.  That’s the focus of every breath I take. I don’t have a single conversation that I’m not banking as experience or something to draw from in whatever script I may have to dissect.”

Lund says that he’s not always been able to live solely off his art. He jokes about the time that he actually chose to be homeless in this city without it sounding contrived.

“When I first got here, I didn’t have an agent. I was working at a bar. I’ve never been at a bar for longer than five months. I’d book a couple of jobs in a row and that would keep me afloat. I’ve been fortunate enough to not live a very luxurious life in this city. I’ve been here for three years, two and a half of which I’ve not had my own apartment. So I had been homeless, either sleeping on friends’ couches or sleeping in Bellwoods Park or sleeping in my car. I was sleeping in McDonald’s. I realized that a lot of things had come very easy to me in my life and even in my career. I haven’t been acting for very long but considering the amount of work that I’ve done, I’ve had it pretty easy, I think. It’s been tough for me to accept a lot of the time, so what I wanted to do is introduce a little more variation, to shake things up a little bit. So I decided that I would not get my own place and see how long I could go for. I just wanted different experiences, to thrust myself in those positions and see how I would react. I have some amazing stories of people I’ve met, being stranded at four in the morning on Queen Street with nowhere to go and then meet somebody and after an hour of talking to them, telling them my story, convincing them to let me stay on their couch.  Now I have an apartment. What Bitten has given me is an apartment.”

Lund also gushes about how much he loves living in Toronto but also about the music he’s into and the shows he’s been checking out. That being said, to conclude, I asked for a list of five bands he’s listening to right now. To which he responded by laughing and asking, “Lists? What is it with girls and lists, man?”

But of course, he was still ready to name his current favourites.

Top 5 bands/artists Steve Lund is listening to now:

1. The Kills
2. Charles Bradley
3. Hanni El Khatib: “I’ve been a Black Keys fan for about 7 or 8 years. Magic Potion is probably my favourite album. Anyway, I’m a huge Dan Auerbach fan and he’s been taking various artists under his wing. Hanni el Khatib, really cool rocker. His sophomore album, “Head in the dirt” is something I’ve been listening to quite a bit. It’s produced by Dan Auerbach.”
4. Dr. John: “The revival of Dr. John’s career. I took my mom to see him at the Montreal Jazz Festival.”
5. Man Man: “This really complex sounding band who’ve gotten a little bit more serious lately. They were really comedic at one point. I saw them at the Horseshoe and I’ve been obsessed with their newest album, On Oni Pond. Check it out.

You can catch Steve Lund in Space’s latest series, Bitten on Saturday 9e/6p.

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The film line-up is completely under wraps and will be until you’re seated and actually watching the selection chosen for the festival. As you can probably tell from the trailer, it’s all kinds of vague and that’s what makes it really interesting. The aim is to create buzz over independent films and filmmakers. So secret is it that even yours truly and other members of the press aren’t allowed to screen it beforehand. Their reason? “Inviting press takes away the eligibility of a film to premiere at a larger festival, instead we want to generate buzz so that films can get into those festivals and have strong public awareness to assist their Premiere in being an event, not just a screening.” Cool idea, right? Their way of promoting the festival is through conversations online via various social media platforms. Before and after the screening, audience members are also given the opportunity to take part in the conversation by taking to these platforms to express their thoughts on the festival and the films.

The festival takes place every weekend during the month of July in a different city. So far, the films have premiered in London, Dublin and Paris with Toronto as the last and only non-European stop.

The first Toronto screening will take place tonight at 8 p.m. at the Winchester in Cabbagetown which will be followed by an after party. The second screening will be held at Humber Cinemas tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. Both screenings will be comprised of completely new films, so those who want to attend both won’t find themselves at the same screenings twice.

You can click here to get your tickets online or visit www.hiddenfilmfestivals.com

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