PhotoMonth: Stephen + Q&A
15 108 mins
15 108 mins
PhotoMonth photography festival celebrates photography in all in forms throughout East London in the month of October. In addition to exhibitions, talks and workshops, photomonth will screen films by photographers who are working in both mediums and take their art to the big screen. Every screening will be followed by in conversations with the film directors and producers and Tom Hunter from PhotoMonth.
Visual artist Melanie Manchot works with a recovery group in Liverpool, who take up roles in a semi-fictional film-within-a-film that explores addiction and mental health from multiple perspectives. It is centred around Stephen, a character recovering from gambling and alcohol addictions. References to the first police crime reconstruction, filmed in Liverpool in 1901, are a reminder that addiction has long existed within the fabric of our culture. It’s a tough process and emotionally charged scenes reveal inner truths, which gain additional power when the people playing the roles are, in some sense, playing themselves. Visually striking, STEPHEN is a startling record of this form of treatment and a reminder of how dextrous the documentary form can be.