Hidden Pictures Film Review

November 18th, 2013   Growing up in the shadow of her father’s illness had a profound effect on a young Delany Ruston.  A loving father at one time was now struggling to hold down a job while frequently off his meds. Richard Ruston suffered mightily under the condition known as Schizophrenia.  This condition ignited a flurry of questions in Delaney that became the catalyst for a career in medicine long before her father took his life at the end of a pier. This family tragedy was captured in Delaney’s award winning documentary, Unlisted: A Story of Schizophrenia.  Till now, most documentaries share personal stories within a national context targeting those maladies most apparent. Director, Delaney Ruston, expands on that narrative by investigating the global mental health crisis by highlighting not only the subtle differences between countries but the frustrating patch work of standards or lack thereof within each. Hidden Pictures: A Personal Journey into Global Mental Health investigates the complicated issues surrounding mental illness around the world by connecting the dots.

According to the World Health Organisation, 450 million people suffer from mental illness and each one is a personal journey into darkness.  One of the overarching themes that are so tightly woven throughout this narrative transcending both international borders and gender is the shame and stigma attached to mental illness.  Dr. Ruston’s investigation starts in India before moving on to South Africa, China and France before ending with the United States.  Even with consent, getting family to share their stories proved just as difficult in India as it was in South Africa.  Thirty million adults have severe mental illness in India – so why is it so difficult to find cases? Societal stigmas dictate that mental illness remains in the shadows.  With a community mental health system virtually non-existent the proliferation of untreated cases becomes rampant.

With only one percent of all healthcare funding being spent on mental health in lower income countries, the cache, celebrity status and funding that elevates the profile of other media friendly illnesses gets short shrift within these countries.  From Sonal in New Delhi, whose diagnosis of Schizophrenia is causing great consternation for her mother who sees the uphill battle in finding her daughter a husband?   To Buyiswa, a mother in South Africa who suffers with a Bipolar disorder while trying to make a future for her daughter.  In Buyiswa case, western medicines took a back seat to Sangomas, traditional African healers using herbs and medication resulting in very little success. The myriad of short falls within both countries and the shroud of secrecy that is so pervasive will insure that these systems will remain broken for years to come.

Even with the many contacts Delaney made in the run up to Beijing, China, no one was willing to share their story, not even advocacy groups. It wasn’t until Yvonne Gerig, the founder of the ill-titled, Crazy Bake, a bakery that gives patients at Chaoyang Mental Health Service Center a chance to improve their lives through meaningful work, did Delaney meet a thoroughly unique case in Jeff.  Jeff’s case highlights the tragic consequences of misdiagnosing mental illness after being committed and the difficulties around changing that label after it’s applied.