THE RECOVERY CHANNEL
Ellen Ugelstad
Norway 2023
100 min
Hybrid
Part drama, part first person narrative, part documentary and part satire, The Recovery Channel is centered around a TV channel solely devoted to presenting news bout mental health. It ́s anchored by, Randi and Omar, and presents reports, guests in studio, sports and cultural features. We follow the editorial meetings and Randi’s life outside the broadcast, trying to help her little sister Ylva. Her storyline reflect the many families face in their efforts to help their loved ones. The media is seldom nuanced enough in the presentation of mental illness. The Recovery Channel is thus a film that scrutinizes and comment the news format.
The Recovery Channel is both a personal and a political film. The film is based on the directors own experiences with a younger brother who has been in and out of psychiatric hospitals for 25 years. Recovery Channel explores what it is like to be deprived of freedom and while calling for a more humanistic view on mental illness. THE RECOVERY CHANNEL takes an extreme and unflinching look at mental health as a human right. A human right often violated by lack of resources and training, and outdated medical treatments designed to coerce a patient, not rehabilitate them.
Director Ellen Ugelstad
Script Einar Sverdrup, Ellen Ugelstad
Cinematography Kristoffer Archetti Stølen
Editing Trude Lirhus
Producer Ellen Ugelstad, Tonje Alice Madsen
Production Twentyone Pictures AS
Besøksadresse Akersveien 21, 0177 Oslo - post@jackfilmbyra.no