Birkbeck’s Derek Jarman Lab premieres documentary film at Mental Health Rights Film Festival
The film, ‘Rites Undone’, is a short documentary tracing the journey of Nigerian victims of sex-trafficking in Italy.
A documentary film, ‘Rites Undone’, produced by Birkbeck’s Derek Jarman Lab and directed by Naomi Richman, premiered at the Mental Health Rights Film Festival in Lisbon last week, from Friday 25 to Saturday 26 February.
‘Rites Undone’ is a short documentary about Nigerian sex workers in Italy. The film investigates the psychological methods of control used by sex traffickers, and explores the epistemic challenges faced by European mental health workers seeking to offer therapy across cultural and religious divides.
The Mental Health Rights Film Festival, fostered by the Lisbon Institute of Global Mental Health, is a short film festival and international competition that focuses on showcasing cinematographic works that deal with mental health issues, in order to raise awareness of the rights of people with mental disorders and to fight the stigma associated with mental disorders.
Bartek Dziadosz, Executive Producer of ‘Rites Undone’ and Director at the Derek Jarman Lab, said: “Naomi Richman and Eddie Bolger’s film is an important contribution to the discourse on a challenging topic of interrelation between belief systems and economic conditions. It does not shy away from tackling our cultural preconceptions and puts into sharp relief an intersection of issues related to the migrant routes between West Africa and Europe. I am incredibly proud that we produced the film and that it is getting a wider recognition.”
The film was made possible through a collaboration between the Hidden Persuaders research project and the Derek Jarman Lab. Hidden Persuaders (2014 to 2021) was a Wellcome Trust funded project, based at the Department of History, Classics and Archaeology at Birkbeck. It investigated cultural debates and fears about ‘brainwashing’ and mind control through academic research, filmmaking, public engagement and outreach work. Naomi Richman, now a Junior Research Fellow in Anthropology at Trinity College, Cambridge, led the collaboration and directed the film whilst a Postdoctoral researcher on the Hidden Persuaders project.
The Derek Jarman Lab is based at Birkbeck’s School of Arts. It specialises in using filmmaking as a tool for exploring and communicating research.
Further Information
- Find out more about the ‘Rites Undone’ film
- Watch the ‘Rites Undone’ trailer
- Book your place onto screenings of the film