Solstice

Director's Statement

This film is about survivors of suicide. It began as a story of one regional Australian family who had lost their daughter to suicide but quickly became a document bearing witness to the need for urgent and radical change in mental health support as more and more survivors of suicide added their voice. I knew Annette and Stuart Baker before filming began. We live in the same town and they are part of a well-known and respected local family. Annette and Stuart are the people in our town that others go to when they need help finding mental health services. They are the people others reach out to after losing someone to suicide. They listen to the heartbreaking accounts of grief and despair following policy and service failures. They know Mary’s story is just one part of a much bigger picture. There are so many elements that feed into the mental health crisis we are facing. The further I went the more I found myself enmeshed in multiple threads that needed to be untangled: The historical shame and stigma that accompanies mental illness and suicide; the resultant disparity in funding for mental health services compared to physical health services; the impact and cost of collective trauma across communities, cultures and nations; and the latest curve ball, a global pandemic. The challenge was to ensure the voices of survivors were clearly heard within the context of these myriad forces. And so I sat with Connie, Lisa, Joe, Fr Mitch and other survivors. They told their stories, they cried, I cried. We laughed at the absurd and despaired at the needless failings. They shared their memories, precious photos, videos shot on their phones. And I found each person was driven by the same thing - a deep need to not have others experience the grief they live with. This film would not have got beyond my first conversation with Annette if it had not been for the generosity of our local community. When we put the call out for financial support individuals, local businesses and community groups came on board to see it born. Some knew about the Winter Solstice, some knew the story of the Bakers. They all knew of the dire need for better mental health services, particularly in regional Australia. And so for two years we filmed, held fundraisers and pitched the project. Then the Black Summer fires swept across Australia, closely followed by a global pandemic. Mental health was being talked about everywhere and the urgency grew for the right voices to be in the room. With Executive Producer Lucy Maclaren on board ABC TV acquired a 27minute version of the film. It was the turning point for ‘Solstice’. We gained the support of Screen Australia, Screen Victoria and philanthropic organisations. The full length documentary was able to be completed. Thank you to every person who has trusted us to share their story, every individual and organisation who invested in the vision. We hope ‘Solstice’ helps to ignite the change so desperately needed.