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Festival coverage

Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival

1 October – 19 September 2014

Iboga Nights
Iboga Nights

There's a fantastic line-up at this year's Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival, in which features, documentaries and short films take on the theme of power and mental health. Making use of venues across the country, it will include a special focus on the psychological impact of the First World War, and it will launch its first International Writing Awards, looking at how writing can help people to cope with or recover from mental health problems and can help to educate others. There will also be an art exhibition and numerous music events, from pop to blues.

The festival runs from 1 to 19 October.

Other years (4)

Box office and information

Latest reviews

  • Red Dust
    Review preview for Red Dust

    On the one hand, this is a picture of despair; on the other, it shows people who are frequently dismissed proving themselves to be forceful and resilient in the face of adversity.

    Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
    An investigation into a mysterious cluster of illnesses in Lanarkshire, near the site of the Ravenscraig Steelworks.
  • Tell Tale Signs
    Review preview for Tell Tale Signs

    It's impressive to see the participants in this film not only talking directly to camera but allowing the camera inside their homes, giving us a picture of who they are in their private lives.

    Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
    Five survivors of childhood sexual abuse talk about how their experiences have affected their adult lives.
  • Images Of Bedlam
    Review preview for Images Of Bedlam

    A clear-sighted, realistic look at a phenomenon long swathed in myth.

    Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
    An exploration of the way in which creating art can help residents of the world's oldest psychiatric institution to cope with their problems.
  • Unravelling Eve
    Review preview for Unravelling Eve

    Having been there and returned, these women are ambassadors of psychosis, reminding us that it's a problem which can afflict ordinary human beings in the course of their day to day lives.

    Jennie Kermode · 3.5 out of 5
    Nine women talk about their experiences of postpartum psychosis.
  • Iboga Nights
    Review preview for Iboga Nights

    Scott's voice brings a welcome authenticity to the subject and gets at social and cultural issues that outsiders routinely miss.

    Jennie Kermode · 2.5 out of 5
    A former drug user investigates the use of the hallucinogen ibogaine to cure addiction.
  • Beneath The Blindfold
    Review preview for Beneath The Blindfold

    It's a testament to the bravery of the participants in this film that they have been willing to face their suffering again in order to communicate the scale of the problem.

    Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
    A documentary focusing on the enduring physical and psychological effects of torture.
  • Everybody's Child
    Review preview for Everybody's Child

    In taking us on a tour of Muirhouse. Fraser doesn't try to cover anything up.

    Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
    A documentary about growing up in Muirhouse and the challenges faced by people living in housing schemes.
  • Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors
    Review preview for Stand Clear Of The Closing Doors

    Few portrayals of autism spectrum disorders in film have ever had the authenticity of this.

    Jennie Kermode · 4 out of 5
    A boy with Asperger's syndrome goes riding on the New York subway for days as his distraught mother searches for him.
  • Gabrielle
    Review preview for Gabrielle

    Archambault has succeeded in making a film with her subjects and not simply about them – imperfections and all, while the musical element serves her purpose perfectly.

    Richard Mowe · 3 out of 5
    Young love comes up against prejudice.
  • Regeneration
    Review preview for Regeneration

    Jonathan Pryce conveys the burden of inner conflict with exceptional subtlety, as James Wilby carries Sassoon's intellectual fury with fortitude.

    Angus Wolfe Murray · 4 out of 5
    War poets meet in a military hospital for shell shocked soldiers.

A–Z of Scottish Mental Health Arts and Film Festival 2014 reviews

Features

  • After torture
    Kathy Berger talks about working with torture survivors to make Beneath The Blindfold.
  • Chronicling Eve
    Joan Molloy on exploring postpartum psychosis in Unravelling Eve.

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