October 9, 2007 - Fountain House joined forces with The Creative Coalition and No Kidding, Me Too to sponsor the New York premiere and benefit screening of Canvas at The French Institute.
Canvas, a film written and directed by Joseph Greco, is the story of a family coping with the mother’s schizophrenia; it is loosely based on Mr. Greco’s childhood experience. Canvas won numerous awards on the film festival circuit and has been hailed for its authentic performances and its honest and balanced portrayal of a family in crisis – the heartbreak and the humor. The film puts a very human face on mental illness, a condition still widely misunderstood and stigmatized in society and in the media.
Canvas stars Academy Award winner Marcia Gay Harden, Emmy Award winner Joe Pantoliano and newcomer Devon Gearhart, all of whom were in attendance at the premiere. Also walking the red carpet at The French Institute were Eli Wallach, Kerry Washington, and Giancarlo Esposito. The film played to an enthusiastic audience of 230; the screening was followed by a question and answer session with the director and principal actors and a cocktail reception.
Kenn Dudek, President of Fountain House, opened the evening and spoke of the organization, “Fountain House helps people get a life.” An acknowledged leader in the recovery of men and women with mental illness, Ms. Harden and Mr. Pantaliano spent a day at there while they were researching their roles for the film. “When Marcia and I left that day,” he recalls, “I turned to her and said, ‘I can identify with these folks more than I dis-identify with them.’”
Mr. Pantaliano created the co-sponsoring organization No Kidding, Me Too to enlist celebrities as mental health advocacy spokespersons.
In her speech Robin Bronk, Executive Director of The Creative Coalition, underscored the organization’s commitment to the issue of destigmatizing mental illness.
