25 Women: short film released
The Women and Mental Health Special Interest Group (WMHSIG) has released a short film as part of their 25th anniversary that celebrates 25 unsung women psychiatrists.
The WMHSIG's 25 Women project was officially launched at an online event held on 8 March to coincide with International Women’s Day. The launch event heard from many people involved in the project and featured a video message of support from Jo Brand (who had worked as a nurse psychiatrist for over a decade before becoming a well-known comedian and presenter).
The event culminated in the showing of a specially commissioned short film (included above). The film, directed by Inshra Russell, features the voices of the 25 women who had been selected to showcase the variety and depth of achievements of women psychiatrists.
Dr Beena Rajkumar and Dr Ruth Reed, co-chairs of WMHSIG, commented on the launch of the project:
"25 women heroes is more than a project about women psychiatrists who have made an amazing, and often hidden, contribution to psychiatry and women’s mental health; it is about every woman whose immense achievements and influence have not been seen. The incredibly rich and diverse stories of the 25 women heroes have brightened these dark days and shone a light on these inspirational women. It has been an honour for us to be able to celebrate them."
Throughout March, the WMHSIG is publishing narratives from five of the women every week, ten of which are currently available. In addition, there are also weekly blog posts as well as a special podcast episode where members of the 25 Women steering group discuss the origins of the project and their own experiences.