Mental illness interrupted Bud Clayman's dream of a filmmaking career. Thirty years later, he’s making the movie of his life. Bud Clayman is one of films’ most unlikely heroes. This is a personal story with universal relevance—a wildly original documentary of pain and vulnerability, empowerment, and Bud’s quest for belonging.
Subtitled "The Obsessive Compulsive Major Depression Bipolar Asperger's Movie" it tells Bud's story, going from aspiring film student to isolation, depression, and severe mental illness, and back through recovery.
WATCH the film: OCD TEXAS gathered viewers when the film debuted in Austin, TX at the Regal Arbor at Great Hills in September. See the OC 87 website's listing of upcoming showings elsewhere in the country. (The film is not yet out on DVD.)
DISCUSS the film: After you watch the film, return here to join in the discussion at the bottom of this page.
REVIEW by Irene Tobis: Watching this movie was painful as well as exhilarating for me. We share in Bud's anxieties, his confusions, and his awkwardness. We also share in his moments of growth, connection and fulfillment. He shows us his OCD -- not hand washing but brutally intense, gripping fears of harming others or behaving inappropriately -- as well as a rare glimpse into what expert therapy for OCD actually looks like. (I actually sometimes do the knife-on-the-wrist exposure exercise, not too differently from how Dr Grayson did the ERP with Buddy in the film, and I was pleased to see how well it showed the benefit.) I was struck by how real the movie was. I found myself grateful to Buddy for being so open, for letting us see inside his head. A can't-miss film for anyone with harming OCD.
DISCUSS the film (in comments section below):
- With so many diagnoses, how can we sort out which of Bud's struggles come from his OCD?
- What message about OCD does the viewer come away with about OCD? About Bud as a unique individual with OCD?
I just watched oc87 by default and connected with it completely. I suffer from intrusive thoughts that I try to control/get rid of and know what it feels like to think I'm the worst person in the world on the inside when seeming so normal and cool on the outside. I constantly try to suppress my thoughts even though I know that they will always come back. It's a roller coaster that I can't get off of.
ReplyDelete