FRAMES OF MIND Mental Health Film Series | "The Hearing", Wednesday September 18 | The Cinematheque

A monthly film series promoting professional and community education on issues pertaining to mental health and illness. Presented by The Cinematheque and the Institute of Mental Health, UBC Department of Psychiatry. Screenings are generally held on the third Wednesday of each month at The Cinematheque, 1131 Howe St, Vancouver, BC.

The Hearing (Die Anhörung)

Switzerland 2023 (81 min. DCP)
Director: Lisa Gerig
Wednesday September 18th @ 7:00pm
The Cinematheque (1131 Howe St)

Film Description

The Hearing explores the hidden world of asylum hearings—the process that millions of refugees worldwide experience when applying for citizenship in a new country. Through carefully crafted reenactments by real-life asylum seekers and employees of the State Secretariat for Migration in Switzerland, director Lisa Gerig vividly portrays the emotional stakes of these life-changing encounters. Each asylum seeker shares deeply personal stories of fleeing their home country; their vulnerability is underscored in stark contrast to the bureaucratic office setting in which the meetings take place. In a powerful role reversal, those seeking refuge challenge State interrogators with questions of their own, poignantly exposing the unbalanced power dynamics at play. Gerig’s social experiment not only sheds light on the asylum process but also raises critical questions about how best to reduce mental health stigma and encourage trauma-informed practices when working with those who are seeking refuge.

In English, Dari, French, German, and Tamil with English subtitles

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“Some ideas can be surprisingly simple, and the perfect execution of such an idea can result in something brilliant. That happens in The Hearing.” — Nick Cunningham, Business Doc Europe

Post-screening Discussion:

Post-screening discussion with Dr. Kirby Huminuik, a registered psychologist who has worked with refugees for over 20 years and Lesley Stalker, staff lawyer at the Immigration and Refugee Legal Clinic in Vancouver.

Moderated by Dr. Harry Karlinsky, series director.

About the Panel:

Dr. Kirby Huminuik holds a PhD in Counselling Psychology from UBC and has completed the Global Mental Health: Trauma and Recovery Certificate Program from the Harvard Medical School Department of Continuing Education. Dr. Huminuik provides clinical and assessment services for refugees, and consults with organizations and the government on refugee mental health. She is active in the profession of psychology and has served on the APA Task Force on Human Rights and the executive committee of the Human Rights and Social Justice Committee at CPA.

Lesley Stalker works with people who are looking for a safe place to live. Early in her practice, Lesley realized there is a conundrum in refugee law: those who are most in need of protection are often the least able to articulate that need due to the effects of trauma. She took a gap in her practice to work as regional legal officer with the United Nations Refugee Agency in Vancouver and worked with local groups to establish the READY Tours, a project which helps claimants understand the refugee process. Lesley also served as a member (decision-maker) with the Immigration and Refugee Board.

Dr. Harry Karlinsky, the Series Director of Frames of Mind and a Clinical Professor in the UBC Department of Psychiatry, has a longstanding commitment to professional and public education. He has presented nationally and internationally on topics ranging from Alzheimer’s disease to information technology to narrative medicine to PTSD and to the use of films in health care education.

Want to be a regular at Frames of Mind screenings on the third Wednesday of every month? Subscribe to the email list and be the first in line for tickets!

Dear Department members,

As you are aware, our current Strategic Plan identifies the advancement of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism (EDIA) as a strategic priority for the Department, and furthermore, has also specified our aim to engage with Indigenous partners and advocates to address the need for enhanced Indigenous-focused mental health care, research and education.

Accordingly, I am pleased to announce that two new committees have been established to provide consultation to Department leadership and participate in the development of strategies to advance these two areas of priority:

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY EDIA COMMITTEE

The Department’s EDIA Committee, chaired by Dr. Andrea Tuka, unifies the previous faculty-level and resident REDI Committees, and now includes representation from the graduate student and staff groups. The Committee’s mandate is to advise the Department Head on the specific opportunities and challenges facing the Department with regard to EDIA, and to develop an action plan which will promote a culture that values and supports the principles of equity, diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism amongst Department faculty, staff and learners.

Our Committee members are listed on our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion webpage, which will be updated as the Department develops its initiatives in EDIA; the Committee’s Terms of Reference will also be shared on the webpage once it is finalized. In the meantime, please follow the UBC Psychiatry EDIA Committee updates included in our weekly Communications Bulletin.

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHIATRY INDIGENOUS STRATEGY COMMITTEE

The Indigenous Strategy Committee, Co-chaired by Dr. Eduardo Chachamovich and Dr. Nel Wieman, has been established to support the Department’s objectives to expand collaboration and cooperation with Indigenous partners and communities, advance reconciliation, and promote equitable treatment and representation in Indigenous mental health research, education and clinical care. The Committee will act as an advisory body to the Department Head on a range of tasks, including exploring and leveraging Indigenous partnerships for collaboration on strategy development,  aligning efforts with existing Indigenous strategies at UBC and across health authorities, navigating challenges around data governance and publication in Indigenous health research, and incorporating Indigenous mental health training into medical education and ensuring cultural competency in mental health care. A new Indigenous Initiatives webpage has been created, where you may view the membership of this Committee.

The individuals on these two committees were selected through a nomination/self-nomination process and in consideration of their personal experience, principles of EDIA, and relevant areas of expertise. On behalf of the Department, I wish to thank each member for their willingness to serve on these critically important committees and for their guidance and commitment to supporting the Department as it enhances its role in the advancement of EDIA and Indigenous mental health.

Sincerely,

Dr. Lakshmi N. Yatham, MBBS, FRCPC, MRCPsych (UK), MBA (Exec)                       
Professor and Head, UBC Department of Psychiatry
Director, Institute of Mental Health, UBC
Regional Head and Program Medical Director, VCH/PHC

The UBC Department of Psychiatry Administration Office respectfully acknowledges the land on which we live, work and play is the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Coast Salish Peoples, the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-waututh).