NEXUS
Nexus is a short film about the impact of COVID-19 on young people’s mental health, eating-related coping strategies, and the power of connection.
EVCOM Clarion Film Awards 2023
WINNER: Film: Health and Wellbeing
Gold: Nexus by Inner Eye Productions for West London NHS Trust and Imperial College London.
NEXUS FULL FILM
The film was made as part of a collaboration between West London NHS Trust, Inner Eye Productions and Imperial College London, with funding from the Burdett Trust.
Here’s the premise of the film as written by its director Chris Godwin of Inner Eye Productions: “Just like every other 17-year-olds of his generation, Matt is looking forward to an exciting year filled with lots of opportunity and excitement – until lockdown hits. Shut away from his friends, the bulimia which he thought was under control returns. He fights it by trying to maintain contact with his friends – but this is thwarted by his family being on the wrong side of the digital divide. As the bulimia takes hold he pushes away his friends and family further away. His salvation comes in the form of a profound act of kindness.”
NEXUS TRAILER
My involvement with this project started back in 2021, I had the opportunity to become a young co-producer for a series of events about youth mental health called A New Tomorrow 2021.
“Colleagues at Newcastle and Imperial Universities are seeking young people aged 16-24 to join their youth group to co-produce several online events in March looking at the impact of COVID-19 on young people’s health, wellbeing & experiences of education.”
Together, we co-produced three online events:
- A New Tomorrow Episode 1 – Talking about mental health and getting support (March 11th)
- A New Tomorrow Episode 2 – Getting a good routine and sleep (March 18th)
- A New Tomorrow: Co-produced online symposium event. COVID-19’s impact on youth mental health. (25th March 2021)
These events were a great success, I was able to talk with other young people and vent and debate about all of the things that had been affecting us over the last year, lifting a huge weight off my shoulders, whilst also knowing that this research and these co-produced events could help other young people with their struggles. To learn more about the process of producing these online events, click here.
“Inner Eye Productions approached Dr Dewa in December 2020 to make a film based on her research. With our collaborators at the West London NHS Trust, we then selected young people with lived experience of the pandemic, some with experience of mental health difficulties, to be part of the project. From concept and idea generation, to filming, editing, completing the film, young people have been at the heart of this exciting and important project. This co-production process is innovative, engaging and has ensured the young people’s voice is central to the film. They decided that the central character, whose disordered eating is a response to the lockdown, should be a young man, and to have a diverse cast.” – Imperial College London Website.
Our short film premiered at the British Film Institute Stephen Street Cinema in London on Wednesday the 7th of December. Nexus has also been archived by the British Film Institute.
Photos provided by West London NHS Trust.
You can read more about Nexus and our journey in creating this film in the articles linked below:
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/242197/film-about-young-peoples-mental-health/
https://www.evcom.org.uk/blog/evcom-clarion-awards-in-pictures
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