Voices Apart looks at a trio of individuals, all from Lithuanians, who hear voices. The film asks the question which is, is the ability to hear voices a blessing or a curse? Interesting all three individuals who the film follows have experienced a trauma, one leaving home with her mom after her father’s death, another finding himself in a mental crisis after the breakup of his family, another juggling four jobs and dealing with the pressure of having a father imprisoned from murder. The three see these situations as the trigger from them beginning to hear voices and the director seeks to take the audience into the minds of these individuals.
Voices Apart was made by David Heinemann and Elvina Nevardauskaitė as part of David’s doctoral thesis and it is a cinematic representation of psychosis, specifically in relation to the role of the voice. Using actors, this short documentary, filmed in Lithuania, explores voice-hearing using first person testimony from three contributors: Agnė, Laurynas and Mantas, who all have very different relationships with the voices they hear. The film employs the technique of verbatim theatre where recorded interviews with Agne, Laurynas and Mantas is then lip synch by actors so the audience can in fact go on the personal journey with these individuals. In many ways this film allows you to empathize with what these three very different individuals are going through and we see both the positive as well as the destructive consequences. It’s interesting to note that in some tribal societies (as well as many religious communities) hearing voices is seen as a blessing from god and a way in which they can connect to our own spirituality. Laurynas, suggestions that “From the inside psychosis is a spiritual journey. But when you see it from the outside its mental illness.”
A Short Film About Ice | ©Adam Laity
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