Vince Vilan introduced me to filmmaker Ken Paul Rosenthal, a San Francisco filmmaker/artist who recently completed a film on "madness". I had a nice chat with Ken over the phone, and he invited me to attend his premiere.
April 17, 2010 was the world premiere of Ken Rosenthal's wonderful 30-minute documentary, "Crooked Beauty" at the SF Cinematheque. When I arrived at Victoria Theater, it quickly filled up with eager audiences as we watched Rosenthal's film which is a beautifully shot "poetic documentary" that features Ashley McNamara--co-founder of the Icarus Project.
Although we never get to see her talking on screen, Ashley's intelligent, eloquent voice set to evocative visual images left a deep, powerful impression as she talked about her bout with "bipolar disorder". Ashley was at the screening, and it was a real treat to see her in person during Q/A.
While her views of psychiatric disorders may differ somewhat from the conventional medical model, I was deeply inspired by her fighting spirit and her ability to utilize her "madness" for creative output (she's an accomplished artist as well) and empowerment of others. She sees her "madness" as a creative force, not as an illness.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
