Documentary looks at the untold stories of mental health struggles

In an effort to raise awareness for the prevalence of mental health struggles in Ireland to go along with far too few resources to handle them, a team of seven individuals undertook the making of a documentary titled ‘In the Shadows’, reports Steven Reid.

After being approached and asked by the director to help tell this story, Sean Robinson and a small group of others, most of whom graduated from the same class at TUD, eagerly agreed to dive into the project despite receiving no compensation for their work.

“Our aim was to do two things: let people know it’s ok to have issues with your mental health, and that it’s not ok how we treat mental health in this country” Sean said.

The creation of ‘In the Shadows’ was a passion project for all involved from the onset, with the production team, the drone pilot, the camera crew, and venerated narrator Peter Warnock of BBC all offering their services for free.

Sean noted that statistics and data surrounding mental health in Ireland is often discussed and tossed around, but rarely do the people behind these numbers have the opportunity to share their story.

“That’s what this documentary does” Sean said: “It gives an insight into the people struggling and the lack of services available to them.”

TD Mark Ward, senator Lynn Ruane, and actor John Conners all make appearances to talk about their personal struggles with mental health. Their voices raise a powerful message in conjunction with many others who have lost loved ones to suicide that something needs to change.

“We believe the message resonates with all age groups due to the subject matter. We would also love for politicians to see this to see the impact an underfunded mental health service is having on communities and families” Sean added.

A private screening of ‘In the Shadows’ for those involved with the film will be shown at Rua Red on July 24, and the documentary will be available online for free on YouTube in the coming weeks.

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