4TH ANNUAL

APA FILM FESTIVAL Sponsored by the APA Ad Hoc Committee on Films and Other Media

The APA Film Festival features films from around the globe. Films from Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom are highlighted this year. The most promising and cutting-edge works from professional, psychologist, and student filmmakers were selected for screening. All Film Festival screenings will take place at the Convention Center, Level 3, Mile High Ballroom 1A/1B.

THURSDAY, AUGUST 4 8:00–8:55 a.m.

Cyber-Seniors

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n Film Entry

CANA

DA

9:05–9:45 a.m.

I Approve This Message

(52 min.) Directed by Saffron Cassaday

(36 min.) Directed by Jesse Straus

In this light-hearted documentary, initially reluctant

Originally a capstone project for the director’s

seniors discover all that technology can offer with

master’s program at American University, this film

the help of their teenage mentors. Some seniors

considers famous, influential political advertise-

start a YouTube channel, others chat online, some

ments. It covers techniques used by ad developers

join Facebook, but all are learning new ways to

to persuade viewers to watch and then perhaps

connect as the generational gap is bridged.

change their opinions. The documentary is particularly timely given the impending election and will provide important insight into the creation of these disliked, yet highly prevalent, messages.

Disclaimer: Research, conclusions, viewpoints, and comments expressed by program participants in the annual convention of the American Psychological Association are those held expressly by the individual presenter and do not reflect the policy of the American Psychological Association. Likewise, the content of the films and other

APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM

media shown during the convention reflect the viewpoints of the filmmaker and producers and not those of the American Psychological Association. Note: Times listed are approximate within 5–10 minutes.

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 4

CONTINUED

11:55 a.m.–12:40 p.m. ALTERNATIVE MEDIA

Film Festival Shorts

CONTINUED

9:55–11:20 a.m.

A Woman Like Me

See Memory

(84 min.) Directed by Elizabeth Giamatti and Alex Sichel

(19 min.) Directed by Viviane Silvera

This documentary interweaves the real story of Alex

Inspired by Oliver Sacks’s article “Speak,

Sichel, diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2011, with the fictional story of Anna Seashell (played by Lili Taylor). By creating a fictional character based on herself, Alex learns to navigate gracefully through life while confronting an incurable disease and to explore what is foremost on her mind—parenting, marriage, faith, life, and death.

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C H IN A

Memory” and based on interviews with neuroscientists and psychiatrists, including Nobelist Eric Kandel, the film uses 15,000 painting stills to explain our “magical capability” called memory, the essence of what we call “self.” The narrator describes how memories interact and mingle with imagination, exploring it in

11:30–11:45 a.m.

“shifting layers of imagery with perception interacting

Remembering Trauma: Connecting the Dots Between Complex Trauma and Misdiagnosis in Youth

Static

(14 min.) Directed by Nathanael Matanick

A student filmmaker creatively shows a young man

When trauma history is not “remembered,” it can lead to misdiagnoses and inappropriate interventions, potentially resulting in detrimental outcomes, including the criminalization of youth. The film aims to educate professionals across disciplines and child-serving settings about the importance of using a “trauma lens” when working with the young. 11:55 a.m.–12:40 p.m.

Film Festival Shorts

ALTERNATIVE MEDIA

with dreams and imagination.”

(8 min.) Directed by Jordan Backman

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CANA

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named Jake who struggles with his anxiety and depression. Backman portrays depression and anxiety in the form of a small man, dressed in formal attire and made entirely out of television static. Desperate, Jake will try anything to rid himself of Static Man.

12:50–2:15 p.m.

Defiant Requiem (85 min.) Directed by Doug Schultz

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CZE R E P U BC H L IC

This film explores the life of Rafael

Painting Doors: The Art of Lucid Dreaming

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ANY

(14 min.) Directed by Oliver Kurrie Imagine in a dream, you realize you’re dreaming and suddenly you’re in complete control of what you’ll do next. It’s called lucid dreaming, and it means

Schachnter, a Czech opera-choral conductor who was imprisoned in Theresienstadt concentration camp. Rafael recruited 150 other prisoners and taught them Verdi’s Requiem, by rote, in a dank cellar after a day of brutal labor. Some of the survivors discuss the power of the music. The music was their dignity,

dreaming while knowing you are dreaming. You

their soul, their survival.

make use of all your senses: smell, sight, hearing—all

2:30–4:05 p.m.

attached to charged emotions. And anyone can learn

Inside Out

how to do it! Three experts in lucid dreaming tell their stories, and their dream adventures are visual-

(95 min.) Directed by Pete Docter A beautifully animated, Walt Disney Pictures film about

ized with stunning motion pictures.

Riley, 12, who struggles to adjust to her family’s relocation.

Sea of Ink

We literally see inside her head through her emotions of

(2 min.) Directed by Chenxin Yang In this 2-D animated short, an artist struggles with his creative block and his journey under the sea. This visually beautiful film portrays his efforts and shows how he breaks through barriers.

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joy, fear, anger, disgust, and sadness voiced by such comedians as Amy Poehler and Lewis Black. Abstract thought, opinion, and fact are given just the right comedic touch. Cannes loved this smart, funny, sad interplay of emotional responses and memory formation. The 2016 Oscar winner for Best Animated Feature, Inside Out appeals to all ages.

APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM

FRIDAY, AUGUST 5

12:25–12:55 p.m.

Film Festival Shorts

CULTURAL UNDERSTANDING

8:00–9:30 a.m.

Borderline

The Talk

(88 min.) Directed by Rebbie Ratner

A father, a son, and a life-or-death con-

film follows one person with the borderline diagno-

Witty and self-aware, she makes observations that are uncomfortable but astute and remains dogged in her search for recovery. Through interviews with Regina and her mother, glimpses of sessions with her therapist, and commentary from worldrenowned experts John G. Gunderson and Marsha Linehan, we gain an intimate understanding of what it is like to live with this disorder. 9:40–10:55 a.m.

Healing a Soldier’s Heart (72 min.) Directed by Stephen Olsson This documentary follows four Vietnam veterans with severe symptoms of PTSD who go on a courageous journey back to Vietnam to face the emotional demons that have been haunting them for close to 40 years. This profound story addresses healing, loss, and the rediscovery of the human soul. It is about forgiveness and psychospiritual catharsis. As one soldier stated, “When the pain comes back, our hearts come back.” 11:00 a.m.–12:15 p.m.

Don’t Tell Anyone (75 min.) Directed by Mikaela Shwer Since the age of 4, Angy Rivera has lived in the United States with a secret that threatens to upend her life: She is undocumented. Angy arrived with her mother, fleeing violence, poverty, and civil war in their native Colombia. For 20 years they lived in the shadows, struggling financially and avoiding deportation while battling a complex and inequitable immigration system. Follow Angy’s remarkable journey as she becomes an activist for undocu-

CE

Directed by Justin Vaughn

experience of borderline personality disorder, the

is a 45-year-old woman—outta work and outta love.

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FRAN

(7 min.)

The first documentary film to capture the lived

sis who gives us access to her internal world. Regina

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versation. In this film, viewers travel the emotional journey through the minds of an African American father and son soon after the two witness policy brutality. Viewers see the struggle that both sides face—a father who wants to protect his son and the son who wants to fight back. The Talk approaches the difficult topic of race relations in the U.S. and how one teaches a child to face racism head on and emerge unscathed. APA Film Festival Award: Best Short Film

Raghead (12 min.) Directed by Sebastian Sdaigui Raghead tells the story of Omar, an 11-year-old Arab boy in New York 3 months after the 9/11 attacks. Living with his grandmother after the American military deployed his father overseas, Omar is bullied and discriminated against at school. He is conflicted about the value of his Arab heritage and isn’t sure whether he should wear his “thawb” for Heritage Day (a major school event). As the film unfolds, Omar finds a way to solve his internal conflict and take a stand against Islamophobia.

Penance (6 min.) Directed by Yeka Garcia

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(first-time student filmmaker) Penitencia (“Penance”) follows Jaasiel, a 6-year-old boy filled with guilt for having murdered God after accidentally breaking a porcelain religious figurine. At least that’s what he thought he did. The film shows the simple lifestyle and beliefs of a humble town in Oaxaca, Mexico, through the eyes of this child. Jaasiel thinks he killed God, and he’s struggling with that in his mind, keeping it a secret and trying to escape from the guilt. What will be his penance?

mented youth at pro-immigration rallies and through her popular blog and YouTube videos.

APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM

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FRIDAY, AUGUST 5

CONTINUED

1:00–1:55 p.m.

Wilhemina’s War (53 min.) Directed by June Cross In much of the United States, progress in HIV/AIDS treatment suggests the worst is behind us. This intimate documentary exemplifies one of the new faces of the modern HIV epidemic—African American women living in the rural South. The film follows one family, and the community in which they live, over 5 years, as mother Wilhemina tries to care for her daughter and granddaughter, both living with HIV. 2:00–2:10 p.m.

Saturday Night Bingo With Miss Rosie (8 min.) Directed by Lena Nozizwe The tender, true tale about a Saturday night bingo game in Hollywood, CA, called by Miss Rosie, a transgender woman. Miss Rosie was looking for a cure to the Saturday night doldrums at the senior housing complex where she lives. Players come to the games with the assistance of canes, walkers, and scooters.

4:00–6:30 p.m.

Discussion: Love and Mercy (121 min.) Directed by Bill Pohlad This feature film details the life of Beach Boys leader Brian Wilson. It focuses on Wilson’s struggles with emerging psychosis as he creates his avant-garde pop masterpiece in the 1960s as well as Wilson’s life in the 1980s, when he is under the coercive control of his psychotherapist, Dr. Eugene Landy. The movie explores themes of creativity and mental illness, generational cycles of child abuse and neglect, and the power of love to overcome adversity.

SATURDAY, AUGUST 6 8:00–9:00 a.m.

Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement (60 min.) Directed by Regan Brashear This documentary won the Best Feature Award from the Picture This . . . Film Festival in Calgary. It reviews the pros and cons of human enhancement,

They leave with much more, including tolerance.

with incisive commentary from experts interspersed

2:20–2:55 p.m.

world’s leading integrated dance companies. The

Care Until Cure: A Second Chance at Alzheimer’s (31 min.) Directed by Jacqueline Lobel This documentary follows Kenn Voegele as he redefines his high-powered career in Chicago to become his mother’s primary caregiver when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. In the process, Kenn soon realizes the lack of resources available to families and patients alike and becomes an Alzheimer’s advocate. Along with his advocacy is the fear that he, too, might

with excerpts of performances from some of the film raises questions about our conceptions of living with disability, as well as about the use of human enhancement to gain an edge over competitors. 9:10–9:50 a.m.

Unslut: A Documentary Film (40 min.) Directed by Emily Lindin This powerful documentary features conversations with those who have experienced sexual shaming, including the family and friends of Rehtaeh Parsons.

develop Alzheimer’s.

In 2013, 17-year-old Rehtaeh took her own life. The

3:05–3:40 p.m.

half earlier by her classmates and labeled a “slut” as

Shallow Waters: The Public Death of Raymond Zack (34 min.) Directed Jaime Longhi This film documents the tragic sequence of events that led to the preventable death of Raymond Zack, a mentally ill man who drowned in the shallow

Halifax teenager had been gang raped a year-and-aa result. Through interviews with sexuality experts, advocates, and media figures, the film explores the causes and manifestations of sexual shaming in North America and offers immediate and long-term goals for personal, local, and institutional solutions.

waters off a public beach in San Francisco Bay. Witnesses and first-line responders waited on the beach until it was too late to help. Why did they not help? Why was a boat never deployed?

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APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM

10:00–11:05 a.m.

2:20–2:45 p.m.

Film Festival Shorts

My Love Affair With the Brain: The Life and Science of Dr. Marian Diamond

The Perfect Selfie

(61 min.) Directed by Catherine Ryan and

(7 min.) Directed by Katherine Dudley

Gary Weimberg

This film explores safety concerns—including emo-

SOCIAL MEDIA

Dr. Marian Diamond is a founder of modern neuro-

tional, physical, and legal issues—that arise while

science whose research demonstrated that the brain

getting the perfect selfie. The purpose of this docu-

is plastic, challenging prevailing notions that the

mentary is to educate people about being aware of

brain did not change after birth. This film covers a

their surroundings when taking and sharing selfies.

range of topics, from the environmental factors that improve our brains to the challenges facing women in science. Thought provoking and charming, the documentary gives viewers a deeper appreciation for Dr. Diamond’s groundbreaking work. APA Film Festival Award: Best Feature Film

Typing

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(16 min.) Directed by Mirthe Venbrux

NETH

LOL, OMG, Btw, good mrning; pfff, fiest,

n Film Entry ERLAN

DS

Noo, Soz, OKaaay!!! Is texting replacing conversation? Should we be calling more often than texting?

11:10 a.m.–12:45 p.m.

Can we be happy without face-to-face interactions?

Discussion: Not Just Pictures

Mira, consumed by her imagination, pictures her

(72 min.) Directed by Pat Wright and Jan Johnson

friends she texts with. When the young man she

An important film about protecting young people

kissed the night before stops typing, she can’t help

from Internet predators. The production and distri-

thinking: what could be distracting him? :) Xxxxxx :(

bution of child sexual abuse images are fast-growing

(Adult Images)

Internet industries today. More than 140 million images of children being abused are online and being traded by perpetrators. Hear from survivors,

2:50–3:20 p.m.

parents, and professionals in child protection in an effort to help parents, other adults, and child-serving

Split: A Film for Kids of Divorce (and Their Parents)

agencies learn how to protect young people from

(30 min.) Directed by Ellen Bruno

falling victim to these predators.

This film gives us the children’s perspective on

12:55–2:15 p.m.

A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velasquez Story (78 min.) Directed by Sara Borde This documentary follows the life of 26-year old Lizzie Velasquez, a 58-pound woman born with a chromosomal abnormality. She was teased relentlessly in school and as a teen came across a YouTube video about her titled “The World’s Ugliest Woman.”

divorce—no adults, no experts, just kids speaking the powerful truth of what is on their minds and in their hearts. The film features 12 children, ages 6–12, who explore the often frightening and always lifealtering separation of their parents. The children’s wisdom, candor, and humor will give courage to other children and encourage parents to make better choices as they move through divorce.

She fought back by creating her own YouTube video, which helped propel her into a global social media sensation. Join Lizzie on this physical and emotional journey from elementary school to Capitol Hill.

APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM

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SATURDAY, AUGUST 6

CONTINUED

3:25–3:40 p.m.

Jack and Paul (14 min.) Directed by Jayce Bartok This film is about a therapist and his patient, who are both trying to make a phone call that will save their relationships. This multiple award-winning comedic short is excerpted from “Talk Therapy,” which chronicles the sessions of psychotherapist Jack Smith who, like Paul, the patient, struggles with his girlfriend. It addresses the frustrations and challenges in therapy with humor and compassion. Most therapists will recognize “their patients”/”themselves” in this perhaps

9:15–10:35 a.m.

Free the Mind

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DENM

(80 min.) Directed by Phie Ambo

ARK

Can your rewire the brain through contemplative neuroscience? An extraordinary film featuring the pioneering work of Richard Davidson, PhD, University of Wisconsin–Madison, about the potential of mindfulness meditation in treating preschool children and war veterans in overcoming effects of trauma. 10:40 a.m.–12:35 p.m.

In the Name of the Gene

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familiar interchange.

(114 min.) Directed by

4:00–6:50 p.m.

A provocative film that reveals how scientists and pol-

Discussion: Straight Outta Compton (147 min.) Directed by F. Gary Gray This film chronicles the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame group N.W.A. in the 1980s and 1990s on the streets of Compton, CA, where police brutality, drugs, and violence ravished the streets. This bio-pic tells the true story of how the group—one of the most polarizing in hip hop music and one of the seminal groups of the genre—and their lyrics exposed life in the hood and ignited a social revolution that is still reverberating today.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 7 8:00–9:10 a.m.

Foster Shock (67 min.) Directed by Mari Frankel This film is intended to educate the public about how Florida’s “privatization” of child welfare led to massive expenditure of taxpayer dollars with little oversight and no accountability. Powerful stories are

Stephanie Welch icymakers, based on their mistaken belief that genes make us who we are, conspired to roll back gains on race, class, and gender equality. Pseudoscientific arguments were advanced to restrict immigration, slash funding for Head Start programs, and justify a 75-year eugenics program that robbed thousands of Americans of their right to bear children. Is there continued danger from such arguments? 12:40–2:00 p.m.

Look at Us Now, Mother! (84 min.) Directed and produced by Emmy-award winner Gayle Kirschenbaum This transformational mother–daughter film examines the effects of an overly critical mother on her family, in particular her daughter, who directed and produced the film. This journey of self-discovery is told from a place of love and humor. Themes include guilt, the role of physical perfection, generational and cultural differences, complex bonds, and ultimately, forgiveness and love.

told through the eyes of former foster youth, most of whom had no other choice and suffered even more abuse, neglect, and pain as part of this system. This film reveals some of the worst systematic abuses and failures in Florida’s history by state and federally funded companies that were created to help—not harm—children.

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APA ANNUAL CONVENTION PROGRAM