Breaking the Chains: film screening and DVD Launch followed by discussion with the director
Tuesday 23 May at 6.00pm
The practice of using shackles and chains (known in Bahasa Indonesian as ‘pasung’) to physically restrain people with mental illness is widespread in Indonesia (as in many other low-middle income countries) and almost universally ignored. This ethnographic documentary tells an original story about the process that leads to the freedom of victims of pasung such as Yayah, a young woman who has been chained inside a small room for 17 years. In particular, the film follows the activities run by a small group of people based in Cianjur (West Java) who has also experienced mental health problems.
This film researches an important topic (faith-based practices for mental suffering) that is under-researched in medical anthropology and is a rare example of applied visual ethnography in the field.
The screening will be followed by a conversation with the director Erminia Colucci, and it celebrates the launch of the DVD, distributed by the RAI ethnographic film distribution (https://www.therai.org.uk/film/film-sales)
This event is free, but tickets must be booked. To book tickets please go to https://colucci.eventbrite.co.uk
Breaking the Chains
Erminia Colucci
Indonesia/UK/Australia/Italy / 2015 / 64 mins
Languages: Bahasa Indonesian, Sundanese, English, Italian, Arabic
Location : Royal Anthropological Institute
50 Fitzroy Street
London
W1T 5BT
United Kingdom
http://www.therai.org.uk
