ÇA VA?
(Are You Okay?)
Editor/Colorist
A film about the hardships of autism and mental illness based on an awarded script by Matt Sanders.
Directed by Lebanese director Ellie Sassine starring Marc Henri and Damien Trident.
The film speaks about the hardships that affect the friends and family of mentally unstable patients who can not control who they are and also how their own mental state starts to deteriorate over the course of time.
Antoine is an autistic child who with no fault of his own is oblivious to the sacrifices made by his father towards him. He is highly irritable to even the slightest sounds that trigger his anger. Even the sound of a lady bug walking is enough stimuli for him to react.
His father Pierre however, dealing with the multitude of problems being a single parent, tries his level best to keep Antoine safe at the cost of his own mental well being.
At his lowest point with nowhere left to go, Pierre decides to end his life but is interrupted by Antoine choking heavily on food and needs to be taken to the hospital.
He is left to question his choices and sees how much Antoine needs him. When asked how is everything going, his reply is Ça Va (Everything is good)
The film reflects upon the gravity of mental health issues and how severely they affect not just the diagnosed person, but everyone around them. It brings to light the unseen side of mental illness where people who genuinely care themselves are left baffled and shaken up by the instability of the ones they care for.
The full film is available here to watch curtesy of Elie Sassine.
