OCD and Anxiety Center of Minnesota is a mental health clinic in the Twin Cities that specializes in treating obsessive compulsive disorder using evidence based methods. Our mission is to decrease the amount of time it takes to be diagnosed with OCD and receive effective treatment, expand treatment accessibility, and spread awareness about what it means to have OCD.We are looking for films to help fulfill this mission, as well as:
- Help others understand the depth of OCD
- Fight OCD stereotypes
- Challenge mental health stigma
- Raise awareness on the more taboo forms of OCD
FWOAN will also be showing as part of OCD Film Fest Vol. 2, put on by the International OCD Foundation.
#1 - to create a series that mixes drama and humour in a way that feels unusual and entertaining, introducing the audience to characters that they will care about and enjoy spending time with ... and#2 - to finally represent Obsessive Compulsive Disorder on-screen as it has never been shown before... accurately and encompassing as many of the varied facets to the condition as possible.“The series will allow the audience to learn more about the condition and gain a new appreciation of what OCD is and how it affects the 1-2% of the population who suffer from it. Importantly, never ‘wagging a finger’ at the audience (I hate that approach)."For Want of a Nail" will be approachable, accessible, and entertaining - while never mocking the condition, or those (such as myself) who suffer from it..."
After its successful festival run, our short film, ‘For Want Of A Nail’ was released in February 2020. Behind the scenes, Director Lucy Barnes, Writer Nick Thomson and Producer Ali Causon, were already developing the idea of progressing the film to a series and started pitching the idea… Then the pandemic hit.Like many, it was a massive setback for us. With the world in chaos and no one really knowing how or when to move forward… we kept our creative minds busy. The 3 of us continued working on the series.... Almost a year and a half later, we are in a strong position to move to the next stage of production and get the green light.Now feels like the right time to tell you a bit more about the proposed series, to raise awareness for the subject matter. To give the OCD community a voice and a more honest representation of a misunderstood mental health condition.
Thanks for your support. - Ali Causon [Producer Oakhill Productions]
TV and films ongoing struggle to depict and represent OCD authentically is a subject that matters to me greatly. I've written about it extensively in the past, most recently for The Guardian. It's a subject I'm sure The OCD Chronicles will return to down the line.
But I'm always keen to get creative voices from The OCD Chronicles on this podcast. If we can see ourselves authentically in the media we consume, then we're one step closer to OCD not being so misunderstood. Filmmaker and sufferer Nick Thomson is the latest creative to attempt to capture the condition - his short film For Want of a Nail is available to watch now. We have an enjoyable conversation on this episode.
You can find more of James McMahon's interviews with creative people who have OCD here and find out more about him here.
A little while ago, we spoke to writer Nick about what inspired him to write the film; here's what he said:
"The simple answer is my own experiences with OCD, but it was because I recognised that my various compulsions and routines were affecting me more and more – becoming more elaborate, requiring more attempts to get them ‘perfect’, and generally causing me more and more frustration. I’d been aware of my OCD for several years but, probably like most people do when they suspect something is ‘wrong’ with them, I dodged the issue for a long time. People with OCD tend to be quite embarrassed by the condition, especially as so much of it is internal – rolling around inside your head – so I kept it to myself and, naturally, it began to spiral. So, for me, writing “For Want Of A Nail” was a cathartic experience.
It was partly an expression of my own OCD and partly a warning to myself. around about the same time, I had seen a few of these ‘quizzes’ on social media – ‘How OCD Are You?’ type junk (oftentimes just pictures of messy rooms with a ‘how uncomfortable does this make you feel?’ one-to-ten scale underneath). I saw that not only were the quizzes themselves drowning in utter ignorance of what OCD is, but I saw that people taking the quizzes were either coming away with the completely wrong idea about the condition, or were actually convinced they had it – some going as far as boasting about it like it was something ‘cool’ to differentiate themselves on Facebook or Twitter. Trust me, an idiotic social media quiz won’t tell you that you’ve got OCD, having OCD will tell you that you’ve got OCD – and everyone who has OCD wishes they didn’t have it."There were two core intensions for me when writing this film: 1) for the audience to come away with a better understanding of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and 2) for the audience to have also enjoyed the story, the characters, and the style of the film - to have been informed and entertained at the same time.
Oakhill Productions to release the critically acclaimed, award winning short film For Want Of A Nail in conjunction with OCD ACTION as part of the ‘Week Of Action’ campaign.We have said from the start, that we want our film to have purpose when it's released. Not for us as filmmakers to have a moment of appreciation but to really make a difference, highlight and raise awareness... so it is with great pleasure that I get to announce the Worldwide, Online Release Date of #FWOAN is happening on the 21st February 2020!!Keep your eyes open on our own and OCD Action's social media pages from the 17th of Feb for more info, behind the scenes interviews, our further visions for the future development... and of course the OFFICIAL RELEASE!!!
One of the first things I liked when watching this film was that the filmmakers have not romanticised OCD or mental illness in anyway. Instead the team deliver a quirky and relatable character and plot line that highlight the realities of living with OCD. Clark Alexander’s performance as Marty was both believable and engaging. Alexander’s performance is complimented by co-stars Lisa Opara and Thomasin Lockwood who inject a very human element to the story. Their performances definitely heightened the emotional tension of the film in a way that made me as a viewer feel much more connected to the overall story.
What motivated you to make this film?Lucy (director): The script and it’s message, it was not trying to “sugarcoat” what having OCD is really like.. it was showing how intense it can be for the person who suffers from it.Ali (producer): Although I was not looking for a script that specifically focused on mental health, after reading FWOAN just a couple of times, it felt like a natural follow up to my previous short about PTSD.From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this short?Lucy: I believe it was about a year…Ali: Writer Nick and I had been working together for a few months before mainly to find a director we wanted to work with. Lucy, Nick and I then ran a development workshop with volunteers from OCD Action and Actors to learn more about the condition.
London International Motion Pictures Awards ( L I M P A) is an annual event held in London, United kingdom. It aims to disseminate film culture and the progress achieved in various branches of film art and to strength the relations among filmmakers throughout the world in general.
The Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival will take place across Scotland from 3rd-26th May 2019. Led by the Mental Health Foundation. A significant event in Scotland’s cultural calendar, the festival takes a positive stance on mental health, celebrating artistic endeavour by those with experience of mental health issues and connecting audiences to creative and innovative work. Together with a wide range of mental health organisations, arts bodies, community groups and artists, we aim to challenge stigma and promote social change.
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