From the Film Festival Web site. This is the 16th annual Rendezvous with Madness Film Festival. The Film Festival runs from Nov. 6-15 and you can see the program here.Organizers say the festival was founded because:
Mental illness and addiction are fundamental parts of our human experience and they have always been difficult to present and discuss in the public arena. Fear and stigma routinely make accurate representations and presentations next to impossible.
The vehicle through which mental illness and addiction are most often presented publicly is mainstream film. Through these films the public can, in most instances, sit back and watch from a safe distance. Audiences are secure in the belief that they are watching the experiences of others and remain divorced from the realities of society.
Film can also enable new and established artists to visually explore ideas and express stories of mental illness and addiction in ways that are nearly impossible in other artistic media. The technical freedom of film allows for these artists to challenge perceptions of reality and to express the truth of mental illness and addiction.
RWM explores these cinematic representations and hosts panel discussions after each screening. The films are the art, the discussion gives them perspective.
