The Star of Therapy | Comedy Drama | Vancouver, BC

Star of Therapy Poster 1
The Star of Therapy | Comedy Drama | Vancouver, BC 2

This film is about Kendra, a young woman with anxiety and depression, who is admitted into group therapy much to her chagrin. There she meets several colourful characters, some with whom she clashes, including Janet -the overbearing and judgmental therapist leading the sessions, and the perfectionist of the lot – Leanette, who struggles with OCD.

Other members of the group include Gordon – a middle aged man struggling with depression and chronic back pain, and who Kendra deems insufferable, Bev – a Mrs. Doubtfire style grandmother trying to take care of her grandkids despite her mental health issues, and Joseph – a fun loving middle aged man doing his best to overcome his ADD.

Kendra even meets someone her own age, Timothy, who is dealing with her same issues, and who quickly becomes an object of desire when she realizes that he is the only viable romantic option.

The entire story is told from the perspective of Kendra and shows how she becomes competitive with Leanette over completing her weekly goals to receive praise from Janet. It is soon clear that Kendra is losing sight of what the point of the goals really is and is slipping into a self-made anxiety trap.

Director Bryce Iwaschuk, writer Ana Pacheco, and producer Andy Wong wanted to make this film to shed light on some of the issues that lie within the mental healthcare system, while also adding comedic elements and examining the many characters one comes across in these types of situations.

Ana has attended two separate group therapies, one for OCD, and one for GAD, so she was inspired to write this based loosely on the dynamics she encountered while in therapy.

Though this is a self-funded project, we received huge community support in Vancouver while making this film, and were lucky enough to have a totally volunteer crew from connections we’ve built in the film industry.

Website: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8409520/

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