This intimate exploration of mental health removes any stigma or taboo, as the comedians, led by Harris (acting as the resident moderator/therapist), share their emotional journeys.  From thoughts of suicide, dealing with parents with mental illness, anxieties, sleepwalking, fertility issues, and a cancer diagnosis, among many other issues, these comedians shed some light on their internal struggles, while keeping the audience laughing.

“I was so uncomfortable being honest, talking and not trying to think of something funny to say,” Hughes shares.  “And then Tig would say something fucking funny and I’d be like I should’ve said that!”  Harris; however, applauded Hughes openness in the film saying that it was so tender to which Hughes interjects, “I’m not tender, I’m funny.”

Harris explains that he wasn’t quite sure why he was chosen to moderate the discussion and play therapist, wondering if it was all a joke.  Okatsuka responds, “Neil Patrick Harris felt that he was being punked, imagine how we felt and who’s our therapist? Neil!”

The segway from hurting to healing and even joking, can be a tricky one to master though.  “I didn’t start talking about my mom and her schizophrenia until the pandemic hit and everyone was stuck inside, and everyone was sad.  I felt an even bigger need to connect to everyone,” Okatsuka shares, while explaining that the time to turn something dark or sad into part of a comedic act needs to be natural.  Many people in the cast also share how they kept their struggles a secret for many years before sharing them publicly.  

Mental health is a serious issue and director Neil Berkley along with Producers Bryan Smiley, Kevin Healey and Luke Kelly-Clyne wanted to shed light on it with comedians known for sharing their personal struggles onstage.   In fact, struggling with mental health is so common, according to Johns Hopkins, 26% of Americans over the age of 18 suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder each year.

“Group Therapy” takes these serious topics, divulges how traumatic they can be, while also sharing how these comedians turned them into career boosting material.  Many confessed that the idea of sharing these experiences was to de-stigmatize them and help others not feel so alone in their own struggles.   Birbiglia explains the importance of “finding the joke that opens it;” the one that takes a sad story and finds the humor in it. 

However, sharing their struggles on camera without performing was a tricky task for this cast used to making everyone laugh.  “So that was the most uncomfortable you will ever see  me in my life. And I felt it… and watching it back made me cringe…” Hughes shares before jesting that “no one should see this film!”  We thankfully disagree and highly recommend checking out “Group Therapy” for an intimate look at mental health in a light and enjoyable format, which will have you healing and laughing right along with them.

The post Tribeca Festival: Group Therapy appeared first on POP STYLE TV.

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

The centerpiece film this year by Laura Poitras (CitizenFour) was especially interesting. In her essential, urgent, and arrestingly structured new documentary, Academy Award–winning filmmaker Laura Poitras weaves two narratives: the fabled life and career of era-defining artist Nan Goldin and the downfall of the Sackler family, the pharmaceutical dynasty. Pop Style TV spoke with Laura and Nan Goldin about the making of the film. When asked what the government could be doing better with the healthcare system and opioid crisis, Poitras cooly responded, ‘What couldn’t they be doing better?’ Nan Golden was simply excited for the film to hit the big screen.

NYFF – Pop Style TV

NYC Showtimes below:

November 23

1:00 PM

November 26

1:00 PM

3:45 PM

6:15 PM

9:15 PM

New York Film Festival

November 27

1:00 PM

3:45 PM

6:15 PM

8:45 PM

November 28

1:00 PM

3:45 PM

6:15 PM

8:45 PM

‘Women Talking’

For more information on the film festival, you can visit www.filmlinc.org.

Kate Hudson About Mona Lisa and the Blood Moon

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