Television—Must See: Mental Health Gets Reel

August 25, 2003 - There is Hollywood’s too-perfect version of mental illness—”Ordinary People,” “Rain Man,” “A Beautiful Mind.” And then there’s the raw stuff of “West 47th Street,” a documentary airing this week and next on public-television stations nation-wide.

FILMING FOR THREE years, producers Bill Lichtenstein (who has battled manic depression himself) and June Peoples follow four residents of a New York City rehab house as they struggle with joblessness, anger, drugs—or the internal voices of schizophrenia.

Shot in the tradition of cinema verite (straight dialogue, no script), the film offers a powerful lens into the world of serious mental illness. Despite their obvious demons, the four subjects are on a quest for dignity and satisfaction in their lives. They shout, they cry, they laugh—you feel their suffering, but also their moments of joy.

The film debuts at a time when the country’s mental-health system is under fire. A recent presidential commission called it “fragmented, disconnected and often inadequate.” For those battling mental illness, better services are critical. So is respect. As the film’s Frances Olivero puts it: “I’m just trying to be accepted as one more person living on the planet.”

—Claudia Kalb

EDITORS' CHOICE FOR TUESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2003

West 47th Street 10:00 PM PBS P.O.V. 90 min.

“West 47th Street,” an affecting cinéma-vérité documentary, follows four people living with mental illnesses at the Manhattan rehabilitation center Fountain House for three years. Tex Gordon, who was first institutionalized as a teen, has recovered to the point that a judge deems him “competent.” “I'm my own boss,” he exults. Zeinab Wali is an excellent cook, and Frances Olivero takes an interest in politics. But Fitzroy Frederick still wrestles with demons and fights with others at Fountain House, Wali among them. Filmmaker Bill Lichtenstein, who has struggled with depression himself, also produces the public-radio series The Infinite Mind. (VCR Plus+ 41548)

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Tulsa World • Page D3 • Thursday, July 24, 2003ScreenSceneSceneScene

STORIES BY DENNIS KINGWorld Scene Writer

They’re just the sort ofdisheveled, twitchy,haunted people you seeon the streets of Tulsaor any other sizable cityin America. Seeminglyhomeless, uncomfort-able in their own skinsand dogged by demonsunseen by the rest of us.

They’re the people we rush past on theerrands of our busy lives; people we pretendnot to notice as we scurry by.

But as shown by “West 47th Street” — a grip-ping, compassionate documentary by Bill Licht-enstein and June Peoples — they’re humanbeings worthy of our attention, in need of ourunderstanding and capable of touching us withtheir unrealized hopes, dreams and potential.

The product of more than three years ofpainstaking journalism and dogged filmmaking,“West 47th Street” offers a sometimes frustrat-ing, frequently sad, often hopeful and ultimatelyinspiring look at serious mental illness in Ameri-ca and one innovative, practical and sympatheticprogram dedicated to helping those who suffer.

The documentary focuses on New YorkCity’s Fountain House, for 50 years a modelprogram in providing housing, counseling andjob placement services for those afflicted withserious mental illness.

More importantly, it focuses on four peoplewhom the filmmakers help us get to know inti-

mately as they struggle to get through eachday and cope with the mental anguish that hascrippled their lives.

Filmmakers Lichtenstein and Peoples spentmonths volunteering at the Fountain House,located in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neighbor-hood, and getting to know staff and residentsbefore they ever picked up their cameras. Afterwinning the trust of those around them, theyspent three years following daily events at thefacility and shooting more than 350 hours ofdigital video footage for the film.

The result is a truly dramatic and heart-wrenching glimpse into the lives of four Foun-tain House residents who put achingly honestand benevolent human faces on the abstractconcept of mental illness.

The four are:Zeinab Wali, whose husband abused her and

finally fled with their children to Egypt as herschizophrenia worsened. At Fountain House,she’s haunted by painful memories but findssolace and purpose in cooking delicious mealsfor fellow residents.

Tex Gordon, who was committed to mental insti-tutions as a child and spent his youth locked up.Even after being released, he’s lived for 20 yearsunder court-ordered restraints. His dream is tobe freed from court supervision and to set off onthe first vacation of his life — to Las Vegas.

Fitzroy Frederick, a homeless, dreadlockedRastafarian who suffers schizophrenia andbarely controlled bouts of rage. He has periodsof lucidity when his charm wins over everyonearound him, but his penchant for street drugsand crackpot home remedies causes him to suf-

fer setbacks that put him back among the ranksof the homeless.

Frances Olivero, whom we first meet wearinga flowered skirt and explaining that his givenname, Kenneth, is a terrible mistake. Despitehis gender issues and mental problems,Frances becomes an articulate, determinedadvocate for people with mental illness — ulti-mately helping pass important legislation andwinning honors for his work but finally facing aheart-breaking medical diagnosis that trulytests his will to live.

With amazing patience and perseverance, thefilmmakers piece together vivid portraits ofthese people’s struggles, creating a tapestry ofreal-life drama that few novelists or playwrightscould hope to imagine.

The film was shot in cinema verite style (astripped-down, candid approach without voice-over explanations, talking-head interviews orother narrative intrusions) and for that radical,throw-back tradition alone “West 47th Street”deserves high praise. Its craftsmanship, thor-oughness, smart editing and sensitive but clear-eyed handling of its delicate subject mattermake it a work of remarkable passion anduncommon decency.

Most amazing of all, “West 47th Street” hasthe power to be a life-altering cinema experi-ence. Watch it and you’ll no longer be able topass those troubled souls on the street withoutnoticing, without caring, without understandingthat attention must be paid.

Dennis King 581-8479dennis.king@tulsaworld.com

Aside from his painstaking journal-istic research into the subject, film-maker Bill Lichtenstein has first-hand understanding of the dark cor-ridors of mental illness.

The one-time producer at ABCNews, who with his wife and partnerJune Peoples has made the celebrat-ed documentary “West 47th Street,”has himself suffered from manic-depressive illness that he said costhim his job, his friends and his self-esteem.

“I know how devastating that canbe, and how crippling the disease is,”Lichtenstein said by telephone thisweek from his Manhattan office.

On Thursday, the two filmmakerswill be in Tulsa to accompany theirfilm on a short theatrical run at theWestby Cinema, before it debuts aspart of “P.O.V.,” PBS’s long-runningdocumentary series, on Aug. 19.

Lichtenstein enjoyed a successfulcareer in broadcasting and journal-ism before his bout with mental ill-ness. A graduate of Brown Universityand the Columbia University Schoolof Journalism, he worked in thenews divisions of several major net-works, including CBS, CNN andABC, and won many awards.

It was after his own illness, hesaid, “that I became acutely aware of

how little people really understoodabout mental illness itself, and aboutprograms of treatment and the peo-ple who’ve overcome and recoveredand are living productive lives.”

It was that knowledge that led himto produce his public radio series onmental illness, “Voices of an Illness,”which garnered a George FosterPeabody Award, broadcasting’s high-est honor. And since then he and

Peoples have produced a weeklypublic radio program called “TheInfinite Mind,” which explores theart and science of the human mind.

Lichtenstein said the idea for“West 47th Street” was a logicalextension of his interest in the sub-ject and his desire to inform peopleabout mental illness and the possibil-ities for effective treatment, care andrehabilitation.

That naturally led him to FountainHouse, a half-century-old program inNew York City that has become amodel for similar programs through-out the country, including Tulsa’sCrossroads Clubhouse.

The filmmaker said he made con-tacts at Fountain House and he andPeoples spent three months volun-teering there, “peeling potatoes, lick-ing stamps, doing odd jobs, just toget to know the place and to win peo-ple’s trust.”

He said he knew going in that hisstory had to be told on a humanscale and that he would need to pro-file individual residents to capturethe larger picture.

“It was clear that the film wouldhave to be driven by people’s sto-ries, as opposed to being topic driv-en,” Lichtenstein said. “Our modelwas the movie ‘Rain Man.’ You

know, people did not go to thatmovie because they wanted to see afilm about autism. They wentbecause they wanted to see a com-pelling story about a guy and hisbrother overcoming obstacles andbonding. It just happened to offer alot of valuable information aboutautism.”

As Lichtenstein and Peoples hungaround and became familiar figuresat Fountain House, they were drawnto certain residents, people they feltoffered particularly compelling possi-bilities for drama.

They narrowed the candidatesdown to about a dozen, then furtherfocused on the film’s four principleswhen they finally showed up at theHouse with cameras and soundequipment.

“By then, we were familiar figuresto everyone,” he said. “They trustedus. They let down their guardsaround us. And so when we showedup and started shooting regularly, wewere just Bill and June with cam-eras.”

Originally, Lichtenstein said hethought the project could bewrapped up in six months. “Butthat was naive,” he said. “We endedup shooting for three years beforewe felt we’d captured enough

footage to really do justice to thestories.”

“It was grueling at times, and itdemanded a huge amount ofpatience on our part,” he said. “Butas we went along, we could see thatit was worth it, that these storieswere growing and taking surprisingturns right before our eyes.”

Even after the shooting was con-cluded, the filmmakers spent 16months in the editing room with vet-eran editor Spiro C. Lampros andstory consultant Charlotte Zwerin,two old pros in cinema verite circles,to trim 350 hours down to a crisp 98minutes.

“It was worth it, I think,” Lichten-stein said, “if people come away fromthe film looking at those with mentalillness with more understanding andwith a willingness to help rather thanturn away. You know, the nicest thingthat’s been said was by MichaelFaenza, president of the NationalMental Health Association. He saidthe movie has the potential tochange the way Americans look atpeople with mental illness. If that’strue, we’re happy. We couldn’t askfor more.”

Dennis King 581-8479dennis.king@tulsaworld.com

Director drew from firsthand experience in chronicling burdens of mental illness

[ F o u r r o o m s ]

These individualsfound their

way to ahome for

mentally illhomeless.

This documentary

tells theirstories with

dignity

Special screeningA special screening of the acclaimed docu-

mentary “West 47th Street” will be hostedThursday evening by The Crossroads Club-house, featuring an appearance by filmmakersBill Lichtenstein and June Peoples.

Thursday’s event — a “friend-raising” pro-gram that will offer information on the Tulsa-based Clubhouse, a social and vocational reha-bilitation program for adults with serious men-tal illness — is completely booked and no moretickets are available.

However, “West 47th Street” will be showntwo more times at the Westby Cinema — at6:15 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday. Admis-sion to those shows is $7 for adults; $5 for sen-iors and students.

movie review“ W E S T 4 7 T H S T R E E T ”

Theatersthe Westby Cinema, 309 E. Second St. (call 583-3977 forshow times)

StudioP.O.V./Lichtenstein Creative Media

Running Time:98 minutes

RatedNot rated (language, adult themes)

Quality: ★★★ 1/2

(on a scale of zero to four stars)

Lichtenstein Creative Media/Courtesy

Filmmakers Bill Lichtenstein andJune Peoples at work on their docu-mentary “West 47th Street.”

Lichtenstein Creative Media/Courtesy

These are the four subjects of the film “West 47th Street,” clockwise from top left: Fitzroy Frederick, a formerly homeless Rastafarian withschizophrenia; Zeinab Wali, a talented cook; Frances Olivero, who evolves into an effective advocate for the mentally ill; and Nathaniel “Tex” Gor-don, a former rodeo star.

Here’s what the press is saying about the West 47th Street and the Community Engagement and Educational Outreach Campaign

“There is Hollywood’s too-perfect version of mental illness—‘Ordinary People,’ ‘Rain Man,’ ‘A Beautiful Mind.’ And then there’s the raw stuff of ‘West 47th Street,’ a documentary airing this week and next on public-television stations nation-wide (check local listings at pbs.org/pov/pov2003/west47thstreet) . . . The film debuts at a time when the country’s mental-health system is under fire. A recent presidential commission called it “fragmented, disconnected and often inadequate.” For those battling mental illness, better services are critical. So is respect.” - Newsweek

“Editors’ Choice – Pick of the Night” – TV Guide

“Its craftsmanship, thoroughness, smart editing and sensitive but clear-eyed handling of its delicate subject matter make it a work of remarkable passion and uncommon decency. Most amazing of all, West 47th Street has the power to be a life-altering cinema experience. Watch it and you'll no longer be able to pass those troubled souls on the street without noticing, without caring, without understanding that attention must be paid." -- Dennis King, Tulsa World

“With its four memorable characters, West 47th Street gives emotional oomph to Lichtenstein’s multimedia campaign for understanding mental illness, plowing like an icebreaker through frozen assumptions about homeless people.” - Current, the newspaper of public broadcasting

“The most wrenching moments in the Cleveland International Film Festival belonged not to any scripted plot, but to a special preview of this vérité documentary masterpiece.” - Cleveland International Film Festival

“You feel as a viewer as if you're right in there with these people … the filmmakers wrestled with 350 hours of footage to tell, in less than two hours, the stories.”- Lisa Simeone, host, NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered

"Filmed in the manner of strict cinéma vérité style, the film borrows from documentary giants like Frederick Wiseman the ability of film to observe from a distance ... fiction could never invent such beautiful characters." - FilmFestivals.com

“Involving, insightful documentary”- Variety

“Told entirely without interviews or narration, this is radical, engaged filmmaking in the finest cinéma vérité tradition: it observes its subjects from a distance, without judging them, without framing them in a message, without telling us how to respond. This restraint makes our experience, as spectators, all the more powerful and unforgettable..- Vancouver Film Festival

Medicine The Souls That Drugs Saved By JAMES WILLWERTH/LOS ANGELES

Monday, Oct. 10, 1994

Anyone who believes that drugs can't help the mentally ill should listen to Dr. Murray Frances. The

44-year-old physician recovered from 20 years of severe schizophrenia after taking the drug

Clozapine. As Frances explains in Schizophrenia: Voices of an Illness, a remarkable documentary

that will air on National Public Radio stations this week, even her hallucinatory inner voices

somehow understood that medicine was their enemy. "You're not going to take that!" they screamed

years earlier when doctors urged her to take the medication Haldol. "Do you want us to go away?"

Frightened, Frances resisted that drug and others; she remained ill for another 17 years.

Psychiatric patients are generally insulted by contentions that their trouble was brought on by bad parenting, childhood trauma or weak

character -- that they don't actually have a disease. While experts agree that family problems and other external factors can exacerbate

mental illness, most have long ago concluded that the underlying causes are often biological and genetic. None of the recovered patients in

the NPR documentary blame family woes. In fact, the illness caught many without warning. "I was looking up at the sky, and suddenly it

cracked like a mirror, in a thousand pieces," recalls Laura Young, 31. "I don't know why I didn't realize it was an incredibly strong signal that

something was wrong with my mind."

The schizophrenia program is the second documentary in a series on mental illness developed by Bill Lichtenstein, a former producer

for the ABC-TV show 20/20. His choice of subject matter had personal meaning: he came down with manic-depressive disease in 1986

and spent four years "struggling with the illness to get it under control medically." After getting better -- Lichtenstein is on the drug Tegretol -

- he founded Lichtenstein Creative Media in New York City. Fittingly, his first project was a 1992 Voices program for NPR on manic

depression. It was narrated by Patty Duke, who also suffered from the disease. Jason Robards offered to narrate the current schizophrenia

program, volunteering that his first wife had been institutionalized for that illness.

The series offers a unique window on the interplay of sophisticated new medicines and patients' agonizing struggles to recover. Though

sufferers appear withdrawn and disoriented, they are often painfully aware of themselves. "The person with schizophrenia has literally no

emotional strength," explains Brandon Fitch, 21, a recovered patient who adds happily that medication has "liberated me from quite a few

of my symptoms." Psychiatrist Wayne Fenton, who treated Murray Frances, laments that people who see a schizophrenic behaving

strangely often assume that the patient "is someone who doesn't have feelings, who doesn't have a memory, who doesn't experience pain."

Pioneering researcher Dr. John Kane points out that new drugs have helped patients whose families and doctors "had kind of given up."

Lichtenstein's work and own experience have made him a staunch defender of drug therapy. "Mental illness is not something you can take

or leave," he concludes. "Medication was at the heart of my treatment." Without such help, many people with mental diseases try suicide,

according to the documentary. "I don't know anyone," says recovered schizophrenia patient Cathy Roemke, 41, "who hasn't felt like it." The

attempts often occur, therapists say, after patients decide they no longer need their "meds."

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Tulsa World • Page D3 • Thursday, July 24, 2003ScreenSceneSceneScene

STORIES BY DENNIS KINGWorld Scene Writer

They’re just the sort ofdisheveled, twitchy,haunted people you seeon the streets of Tulsaor any other sizable cityin America. Seeminglyhomeless, uncomfort-able in their own skinsand dogged by demonsunseen by the rest of us.

They’re the people we rush past on theerrands of our busy lives; people we pretendnot to notice as we scurry by.

But as shown by “West 47th Street” — a grip-ping, compassionate documentary by Bill Licht-enstein and June Peoples — they’re humanbeings worthy of our attention, in need of ourunderstanding and capable of touching us withtheir unrealized hopes, dreams and potential.

The product of more than three years ofpainstaking journalism and dogged filmmaking,“West 47th Street” offers a sometimes frustrat-ing, frequently sad, often hopeful and ultimatelyinspiring look at serious mental illness in Ameri-ca and one innovative, practical and sympatheticprogram dedicated to helping those who suffer.

The documentary focuses on New YorkCity’s Fountain House, for 50 years a modelprogram in providing housing, counseling andjob placement services for those afflicted withserious mental illness.

More importantly, it focuses on four peoplewhom the filmmakers help us get to know inti-

mately as they struggle to get through eachday and cope with the mental anguish that hascrippled their lives.

Filmmakers Lichtenstein and Peoples spentmonths volunteering at the Fountain House,located in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen neighbor-hood, and getting to know staff and residentsbefore they ever picked up their cameras. Afterwinning the trust of those around them, theyspent three years following daily events at thefacility and shooting more than 350 hours ofdigital video footage for the film.

The result is a truly dramatic and heart-wrenching glimpse into the lives of four Foun-tain House residents who put achingly honestand benevolent human faces on the abstractconcept of mental illness.

The four are:Zeinab Wali, whose husband abused her and

finally fled with their children to Egypt as herschizophrenia worsened. At Fountain House,she’s haunted by painful memories but findssolace and purpose in cooking delicious mealsfor fellow residents.

Tex Gordon, who was committed to mental insti-tutions as a child and spent his youth locked up.Even after being released, he’s lived for 20 yearsunder court-ordered restraints. His dream is tobe freed from court supervision and to set off onthe first vacation of his life — to Las Vegas.

Fitzroy Frederick, a homeless, dreadlockedRastafarian who suffers schizophrenia andbarely controlled bouts of rage. He has periodsof lucidity when his charm wins over everyonearound him, but his penchant for street drugsand crackpot home remedies causes him to suf-

fer setbacks that put him back among the ranksof the homeless.

Frances Olivero, whom we first meet wearinga flowered skirt and explaining that his givenname, Kenneth, is a terrible mistake. Despitehis gender issues and mental problems,Frances becomes an articulate, determinedadvocate for people with mental illness — ulti-mately helping pass important legislation andwinning honors for his work but finally facing aheart-breaking medical diagnosis that trulytests his will to live.

With amazing patience and perseverance, thefilmmakers piece together vivid portraits ofthese people’s struggles, creating a tapestry ofreal-life drama that few novelists or playwrightscould hope to imagine.

The film was shot in cinema verite style (astripped-down, candid approach without voice-over explanations, talking-head interviews orother narrative intrusions) and for that radical,throw-back tradition alone “West 47th Street”deserves high praise. Its craftsmanship, thor-oughness, smart editing and sensitive but clear-eyed handling of its delicate subject mattermake it a work of remarkable passion anduncommon decency.

Most amazing of all, “West 47th Street” hasthe power to be a life-altering cinema experi-ence. Watch it and you’ll no longer be able topass those troubled souls on the street withoutnoticing, without caring, without understandingthat attention must be paid.

Dennis King 581-8479dennis.king@tulsaworld.com

Aside from his painstaking journal-istic research into the subject, film-maker Bill Lichtenstein has first-hand understanding of the dark cor-ridors of mental illness.

The one-time producer at ABCNews, who with his wife and partnerJune Peoples has made the celebrat-ed documentary “West 47th Street,”has himself suffered from manic-depressive illness that he said costhim his job, his friends and his self-esteem.

“I know how devastating that canbe, and how crippling the disease is,”Lichtenstein said by telephone thisweek from his Manhattan office.

On Thursday, the two filmmakerswill be in Tulsa to accompany theirfilm on a short theatrical run at theWestby Cinema, before it debuts aspart of “P.O.V.,” PBS’s long-runningdocumentary series, on Aug. 19.

Lichtenstein enjoyed a successfulcareer in broadcasting and journal-ism before his bout with mental ill-ness. A graduate of Brown Universityand the Columbia University Schoolof Journalism, he worked in thenews divisions of several major net-works, including CBS, CNN andABC, and won many awards.

It was after his own illness, hesaid, “that I became acutely aware of

how little people really understoodabout mental illness itself, and aboutprograms of treatment and the peo-ple who’ve overcome and recoveredand are living productive lives.”

It was that knowledge that led himto produce his public radio series onmental illness, “Voices of an Illness,”which garnered a George FosterPeabody Award, broadcasting’s high-est honor. And since then he and

Peoples have produced a weeklypublic radio program called “TheInfinite Mind,” which explores theart and science of the human mind.

Lichtenstein said the idea for“West 47th Street” was a logicalextension of his interest in the sub-ject and his desire to inform peopleabout mental illness and the possibil-ities for effective treatment, care andrehabilitation.

That naturally led him to FountainHouse, a half-century-old program inNew York City that has become amodel for similar programs through-out the country, including Tulsa’sCrossroads Clubhouse.

The filmmaker said he made con-tacts at Fountain House and he andPeoples spent three months volun-teering there, “peeling potatoes, lick-ing stamps, doing odd jobs, just toget to know the place and to win peo-ple’s trust.”

He said he knew going in that hisstory had to be told on a humanscale and that he would need to pro-file individual residents to capturethe larger picture.

“It was clear that the film wouldhave to be driven by people’s sto-ries, as opposed to being topic driv-en,” Lichtenstein said. “Our modelwas the movie ‘Rain Man.’ You

know, people did not go to thatmovie because they wanted to see afilm about autism. They wentbecause they wanted to see a com-pelling story about a guy and hisbrother overcoming obstacles andbonding. It just happened to offer alot of valuable information aboutautism.”

As Lichtenstein and Peoples hungaround and became familiar figuresat Fountain House, they were drawnto certain residents, people they feltoffered particularly compelling possi-bilities for drama.

They narrowed the candidatesdown to about a dozen, then furtherfocused on the film’s four principleswhen they finally showed up at theHouse with cameras and soundequipment.

“By then, we were familiar figuresto everyone,” he said. “They trustedus. They let down their guardsaround us. And so when we showedup and started shooting regularly, wewere just Bill and June with cam-eras.”

Originally, Lichtenstein said hethought the project could bewrapped up in six months. “Butthat was naive,” he said. “We endedup shooting for three years beforewe felt we’d captured enough

footage to really do justice to thestories.”

“It was grueling at times, and itdemanded a huge amount ofpatience on our part,” he said. “Butas we went along, we could see thatit was worth it, that these storieswere growing and taking surprisingturns right before our eyes.”

Even after the shooting was con-cluded, the filmmakers spent 16months in the editing room with vet-eran editor Spiro C. Lampros andstory consultant Charlotte Zwerin,two old pros in cinema verite circles,to trim 350 hours down to a crisp 98minutes.

“It was worth it, I think,” Lichten-stein said, “if people come away fromthe film looking at those with mentalillness with more understanding andwith a willingness to help rather thanturn away. You know, the nicest thingthat’s been said was by MichaelFaenza, president of the NationalMental Health Association. He saidthe movie has the potential tochange the way Americans look atpeople with mental illness. If that’strue, we’re happy. We couldn’t askfor more.”

Dennis King 581-8479dennis.king@tulsaworld.com

Director drew from firsthand experience in chronicling burdens of mental illness

[ F o u r r o o m s ]

These individualsfound their

way to ahome for

mentally illhomeless.

This documentary

tells theirstories with

dignity

Special screeningA special screening of the acclaimed docu-

mentary “West 47th Street” will be hostedThursday evening by The Crossroads Club-house, featuring an appearance by filmmakersBill Lichtenstein and June Peoples.

Thursday’s event — a “friend-raising” pro-gram that will offer information on the Tulsa-based Clubhouse, a social and vocational reha-bilitation program for adults with serious men-tal illness — is completely booked and no moretickets are available.

However, “West 47th Street” will be showntwo more times at the Westby Cinema — at6:15 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Saturday. Admis-sion to those shows is $7 for adults; $5 for sen-iors and students.

movie review“ W E S T 4 7 T H S T R E E T ”

Theatersthe Westby Cinema, 309 E. Second St. (call 583-3977 forshow times)

StudioP.O.V./Lichtenstein Creative Media

Running Time:98 minutes

RatedNot rated (language, adult themes)

Quality: ★★★ 1/2

(on a scale of zero to four stars)

Lichtenstein Creative Media/Courtesy

Filmmakers Bill Lichtenstein andJune Peoples at work on their docu-mentary “West 47th Street.”

Lichtenstein Creative Media/Courtesy

These are the four subjects of the film “West 47th Street,” clockwise from top left: Fitzroy Frederick, a formerly homeless Rastafarian withschizophrenia; Zeinab Wali, a talented cook; Frances Olivero, who evolves into an effective advocate for the mentally ill; and Nathaniel “Tex” Gor-don, a former rodeo star.

“I saw tears in the eyes of more than one person during the discussion. Thank you for this great opportunity … Our society needs as many opportunities as possible to raise consciousness about the poor and disabled among us.” – Response following community screening in Billings, Montana

sponsored by the Billing Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill. West 47th Street Educational and Community Engagement Campaign

West 47th Street is an intimate cinéma vérité portrait of four people struggling to recover from serious mental illness. The feature length film offers an unprecedented window onto the lives of people who are often feared and ignored, but seldom understood. The film is produced by the Peabody Award-winning Lichtenstein Creative Media (LCM), creators of public radio's "The Infinite Mind."

When the national TV broadcast premiered on Tuesday, August 19th at 10 pm on PBS's P.O.V., the national community and educational engagement campaign was also launched to coincide with the national television broadcast and continue beyond. This effort has successfully channeled the powerful, emotional response viewers have had to the film into a targeted effort impacting public policy and attitudes about issues surrounding mental illness. This campaign involved mental health groups, grassroots advocacy and educational groups and local public television stations and was funded and coordinated by LCM and P.O.V.

Some of the events that have occurred or are currently scheduled include:

June 22, 2005 Corporation for Supportive Housing national conference Minneapolis, MN Screening and keynote address by Bill Lichtenstein May 2005 Bristol Bay Counseling Center Dillingham, AK Screening event and community discussion Thursday, November 4, 2004 Anthology Theatre 32 Second Avenue (corner of Second Street), New York, NY Screening of West 47th Street with filmmaker Bill Lichtenstein for Q&A following film.

- 2 -

Thursday, August 26, 7pm. Global Visions Documentary Series Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Metro Cinema, 9828 101 Avenue, 780-425-9212 Wednesday, August 4, 2004 Hot Springs, Arkansas 32nd Annual Arkansas Mental Health Institute, Arlington Resort Hotel, Hot Springs, Arkansas, 3:30pm - 5pm August 3 (Filmmakers in attendance) Wednesday, February 11, 2004 The Austin Film Society Austin, Texas The Austin Film Society will screen West 47th Street as part of their Texas Documentary Tour. Bill Lichtenstein and June Peoples will be in attendance. The Austin Film Society promotes the appreciation of film and supports creative filmmaking. The screening will take place at 7:00PM, at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in downtown Austin. For further information, please check the Austin Film Society website: www.austinfilm.org Thursday, February 5, 2004 Southcentral Counseling Center Anchorage, Alaska In conjunction with the Southcentral Counseling Center, public TV stations KSKA/KAKM, and the UAA Human Services Club will present at the University of Alaska. A panel of mental health experts will follow the film. Wednesday and Thursday, December 17th and 18th, 2003 Cinema Arts Centre Huntington, New York The Clubhouse of Suffolk in conjunction with Lichtenstein Creative Media held two screenings of West 47th Street at Cinema Arts Centre for the community of Huntington, Long Island. A Q&A followed the Wednesday night screening with Filmmakers, June Peoples and Bill Lichtenstein and Thursday evening, Michael Stoltz, Executive Director, Clubhouse of Suffolk spoke following the screening.

Friday, November 21, 2003 Scottsdale, Arizona West 47th Street was screened as part of the Beautiful Minds & Creative People: Erasing the Stigma of Mental Illness conference sponsored by the University of Arizona Health Science Center and Institute for Mental Health Research. Producer Bill Lichtenstein spoke and answered questions about the film and its impact on public attitudes about people with mental illness. Also speaking at the conference were Miss Arizona 2002, Laura Lawless, who has clinical depression, and Texas Representative Garnet F. Coleman, who has manic depression.

- 3 -

Friday, October 10, 2003 Honolulu, Hawaii A community psychiatrist at Kalihi-Palama Health Care for the Homeless Project sponsored an event for consumers, family members, advocacy groups, key members of the state mental health system including the commissioner, service providers, legislators, media, and the general public during National Mental Illness Awareness Week highlighting the film West 47th Street, followed by a panel discussion.

Friday, October 3, 2003 Jackson, Mississippi The Jackson Mental Health Center in conjunction with the Mississippi Department of Mental Health, National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) & MS Mental Health Association (MSMHA) hosted an all day conference including a screening of West 47th Street and lunch speakers from the state Department of Mental Health, NAMI and MSMHA at The Jackson House, a clubhouse modeled after Fountain House in Jackson, Mississippi. Events included breakout sessions appropriate for consumers and providers to educate and increase familiarity with local treatment options.

Tuesday, September 16, 2003 Long Beach, CA The Long Beach Community Health Council hosted a community forum with the Long Beach Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill at the Long Beach Community Hospital. The forum featured West 47th Street followed by a panel discussion. This group also hosted another event on August 22nd.

Wednesday, August 28, 2003 Minneapolis, Minnesota Twin Cities Public Television, Minnesota Alliance for the Mentally Ill, Vail Place, Blake School, Mount Olivet Lutheran Church and the Hopkins School District will have a special screening of West 47th Street and community dialogue on August 28th. The screening was held at Hopkins Center for the Arts, Hopkins, MN. The public participated in this evening of dialogue with the medical community, state and local legislators and NAMI members. For further information contact Ann Sunwall: asunwall@tpt.org

Friday, August 22, 2003 Sacramento, CA West 47th Street was screened at a meeting of regional coordinators for a proposed statewide assembly bill which if passed funds 26 programs throughout California to provide a comprehensive system of care for adults with serious mental illness who are homeless or at risk of being homeless, hospitalized or incarcerated. Representatives from the California Department of Mental Health, California Institute for Mental Health, Corporation for Supportive Housing and county mental health agencies attended the screening.

Thursday August 21, 2003 Wentworth, NC The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill--Rockingham County, in partnership with UNC-TV, hosted a screening and discussion event at Calvary Baptist Church. For more information email namirockcounty@yahoo.com

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Tuesday, August 19, 2003 Billings, Montana The NAMI-Billings affiliate screened West 47th Street at Deaconess Billings Clinic, Mary Alice Fortin Health Conference Center, Billings, Montana. The screening was followed by a discussion with area legislators, school district members, churches, law enforcement officials and the general public.

Tuesday August 19, 2003 Green Bay, WI Villa Hope Community Service Program held a special screening to coincide with the national broadcast of West 47th Street, followed by a panel of local mental health professionals and an educational program targeted at local law professionals. Villa Hope organized this special screening and community discussion on a shoestring budget with space donated by a local theater.

Tuesday August 19, 2003 New York, NY Lichtenstein Creative Media, Thirteen/WNET New York, and P.O.V. held a special screening of West 47th Street, followed by a discussion and Q&A with the filmmakers Bill Lichtenstein and June Peoples, and Tex Gordon and Zeinab Ali, stars of film. A reception and “informational salon” followed the screening. The event was held at New School University's Tishman Auditorium, located at 66 West 12th Street, between 5th & 6th Avenues, in New York City.

Sunday August 18 San Francisco, CA Crisis Prevention Institute sponsored a screening of West 47th Street during their annual symposium. Attendees consisted of mental health facility administrators, mental health advocates, state legislators and the general public. The screening and follow-up discussion was held at The Ramada Plaza Hotel, San Francisco, CA.

Sunday August 17, 2003 Los Angeles, CA The Museum of Tolerance, located at 1399 South Roxbury Drive, hosted a standing room only screening of the film followed by a discussion moderated by Rabbi Ari Hier. The event took place in the museum's Simon Weisenthal Center. For more information email lsais@wiesenthal.net

Thursday August 14, 2003 Eliot, ME William Fogg Public Library, located at One Old Road, Eliot, ME, screened the film to promote further understanding of a misunderstood population living within their towns and neighborhoods. A local mental health worker led the follow-up discussion.

Wednesday, August 13, 2003 Milwaukee, WI The Grand Avenue Club, NAMI of Greater Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Psychiatric Association held a very well-received screening and follow-up reception and panel discussion for doctors-in training, family members and service providers at The Grand Avenue Club, 210 E. Michigan, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For further information contact Grand Avenue Club Executive Director Rachel Forman by email: rzforman@yahoo.com

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Wednesday August 13, 2003 Carrboro, North Carolina Club Nova hosted a screening of donors, legislators, friends and members at a special event at the Carrboro Arts Center. Club Nova and community members followed the screening with a discussion of the film over coffee and dessert. For further information email Tfarrell@opc-mhc.org

Tuesday August 12, 2003 Elk Grove Village, IL The Kenneth Young Center, a community mental health agency, hosted a screening followed by a panel discussion and Q&A moderated by a community mental health provider, family members, consumers, and NAMI members. The event took place at the Center, located at 1001 Rohlwing Road, Elk Grove Village, IL. For more information email virginiag@kennethyoung.org Tuesday August 12, 2003 Salt Lake City, UT KUED held an extremely successful screening at the city library, in partnership with the Salt Lake City Film Center. The follow-up discussion was led by multiple panel members from the Utah Psychiatric Association, Utah Rehabilitation Clinics, United Way, and the University of Utah Neuropsychiatric Institute. For more information email jvoland@media.utah.edu Tuesday August 12, 2003 Atlanta, GA WABE/WPBA 30, NAMI Atlanta and NMHA Atlanta hosted a joint event at The Woodruff Center on Tuesday, August 12th. The event consisted of a screening of the film, meeting the filmmakers, a panel with local and national mental health advocates including the Carter Center and reception for more than 500 people. Bill Lichtenstein and June Peoples, producers and directors of the film, along with other notable members of the local mental health professional community, were in attendance. For more information go to http://www.wabe.org/

Thursday August 7, 2003 Madison, WI Wisconsin Public Television and the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and the Wisconsin Psychiatric Association held a screening followed by a panel discussion at Vilas Hall on the University of Wisconsin campus. For more information email lblinkenberg@wpt.org

Tuesday August 5, 2003 Toledo, OH WGTE in Toledo, Ohio, hosted a screening and follow-up discussion at their studios. Their major partner was the Alliance of the Mentally Ill for Greater Toledo. For more information email kathy_smith@wgte.pbs.org Tuesday August 5, 2003 Watertown, NY WPBS hosted a screening of West 47th Street and panel discussion event at Jefferson Community College (in the Jules Center, Amphitheatre, room 6-002). The screening was conducted in partnership with the Mental Health Association in Jefferson County. For more information email crystal_butler@wpbs.pbs.org

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Tuesday August 5, 2003 Ephrata, PA The Ephrata Public Library hosted a screening of West 47th Street as part of their Reality @ Your Library series, a documentary series that has been running since October 2002. Their mission is to offer the widest variety of educational and informational items to their patrons. The library is located at 550 South Reading Road. For more information contact Penny Talbert at 717-738-9291 or ptalbert@ephratapubliclibrary.org

Tuesday August 5, 2003 Boone, NC Carolina Friendship House, located at 347 Oak Street, hosted a screening and discussion event in partnership with UNC-TV. For more information email barrm@newriver.org Sunday August 3, 2003 San Diego, CA The library, located at 820 E Street, San Diego, CA, hosted a screening and discussion event in partnership with St Vincent de Paul's. For more information email lwhitehouse@sandiego.gov

Friday July 25, 2003 Binghamton, NY WSKG hosted a screening of the film, followed by a discussion which was facilitated by the Executive Director of The Broome County Recipient Affairs Office, Mr. Anthony Palmitier. Interstitials were created from this community screening to be shown on television to promote the August 19th broadcast of West 47th Street. At the end of the discussion, a network of resources was created by attending agencies and participants and posted on their website for community use. For more information email Carolyn_Weston@WSKG.pbs.org Thursday July 24, 2003 Eliot, ME The William Fogg Public Library, located at 1 Old Road, screened the film to promote further understanding of a misunderstood population living within their towns and neighborhoods. Discussion was led by a local mental health worker. For more information email cmarvin@william-fogg.lib.me.us Thursday July 24, 2003 Tulsa, OK The Crossroads Clubhouse hosted a screening at Westby Cinema, located at 309 E. 2nd Street, Tulsa, OK. The event served as a "Friend-Raising" event for the Crossroads Clubhouse, a social and vocational rehabilitation program for adults with serious mental illness. Patrons also met co-producer/director Bill Lichtenstein prior to the film during a reception. The showing was free and open to the public, with donations to The Clubhouse accepted. The event was co-sponsored by Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) - Oklahoma.

Television—Must See: Mental Health Gets Reel

August 25, 2003 - There is Hollywood’s too-perfect version of mental illness—”Ordinary People,” “Rain Man,” “A Beautiful Mind.” And then there’s the raw stuff of “West 47th Street,” a documentary airing this week and next on public-television stations nation-wide.

FILMING FOR THREE years, producers Bill Lichtenstein (who has battled manic depression himself) and June Peoples follow four residents of a New York City rehab house as they struggle with joblessness, anger, drugs—or the internal voices of schizophrenia.

Shot in the tradition of cinema verite (straight dialogue, no script), the film offers a powerful lens into the world of serious mental illness. Despite their obvious demons, the four subjects are on a quest for dignity and satisfaction in their lives. They shout, they cry, they laugh—you feel their suffering, but also their moments of joy.

The film debuts at a time when the country’s mental-health system is under fire. A recent presidential commission called it “fragmented, disconnected and often inadequate.” For those battling mental illness, better services are critical. So is respect. As the film’s Frances Olivero puts it: “I’m just trying to be accepted as one more person living on the planet.”

—Claudia Kalb

EDITORS' CHOICE FOR TUESDAY, AUGUST 19, 2003

West 47th Street 10:00 PM PBS P.O.V. 90 min.

“West 47th Street,” an affecting cinéma-vérité documentary, follows four people living with mental illnesses at the Manhattan rehabilitation center Fountain House for three years. Tex Gordon, who was first institutionalized as a teen, has recovered to the point that a judge deems him “competent.” “I'm my own boss,” he exults. Zeinab Wali is an excellent cook, and Frances Olivero takes an interest in politics. But Fitzroy Frederick still wrestles with demons and fights with others at Fountain House, Wali among them. Filmmaker Bill Lichtenstein, who has struggled with depression himself, also produces the public-radio series The Infinite Mind. (VCR Plus+ 41548)

Here’s what the press is saying about the West 47th Street and the Community Engagement and Educational Outreach Campaign

“There is Hollywood’s too-perfect version of mental illness—‘Ordinary People,’ ‘Rain Man,’ ‘A Beautiful Mind.’ And then there’s the raw stuff of ‘West 47th Street,’ a documentary airing this week and next on public-television stations nation-wide (check local listings at pbs.org/pov/pov2003/west47thstreet) . . . The film debuts at a time when the country’s mental-health system is under fire. A recent presidential commission called it ‘fragmented, disconnected and often inadequate.’ For those battling mental illness, better services are critical. So is respect.” - Newsweek

“Editors’ Choice – Pick of the Night” – TV Guide

“Its craftsmanship, thoroughness, smart editing and sensitive but clear-eyed handling of its delicate subject matter make it a work of remarkable passion and uncommon decency. Most amazing of all, West 47th Street has the power to be a life-altering cinema experience. Watch it and you'll no longer be able to pass those troubled souls on the street without noticing, without caring, without understanding that attention must be paid." -- Dennis King, Tulsa World

“With its four memorable characters, West 47th Street gives emotional oomph to Lichtenstein’s multimedia campaign for understanding mental illness, plowing like an icebreaker through frozen assumptions about homeless people.” - Current, the newspaper of public broadcasting

“The most wrenching moments in the Cleveland International Film Festival belonged not to any scripted plot, but to a special preview of this vérité documentary masterpiece.” - Cleveland International Film Festival

“You feel as a viewer as if you're right in there with these people … the filmmakers wrestled with 350 hours of footage to tell, in less than two hours, the stories.”- Lisa Simeone, host, NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered

"Filmed in the manner of strict cinéma vérité style, the film borrows from documentary giants like Frederick Wiseman the ability of film to observe from a distance ... fiction could never invent such beautiful characters." - FilmFestivals.com

“Involving, insightful documentary”- Variety

“Told entirely without interviews or narration, this is radical, engaged filmmaking in the finest cinéma vérité tradition: it observes its subjects from a distance, without judging them, without framing them in a message, without telling us how to respond. This restraint makes our experience, as spectators, all the more powerful and unforgettable..- Vancouver Film Festival