Creative Vision weekend tackles stigma of mental illness

Starting today and running until Sunday, October 21, Orkney is hosting a “Creative Vision” weekend, with four evenings of creative writing, music, and short films all exploring mental wellbeing.

As part of the weekend, a new anthology, To The World, will be launched at Orkney Library and Archive today, Thursday, and at the Upper Library, Stromness Academy, tomorrow.

The anthology, edited by Rosie Alexander, includes a wide range of work from local writers and artists in the community dealing with exploration of the mind and self in all moods and states of health.

In addition, film nights at the Stromness Town Hall, on Saturday,  and at the Cromarty Hall, on Sunday,  are showing eight short, but powerful, documentaries that aim to change the way people think about mental health and wellbeing. The programme includes BAFTA award-winning, Ma Bar and Caring for Calum, and is curated by Orkney Moving Image Society, and supported by the Scottish Documentary Institute.

Suzie Vestri, ‘see me’ campaign director said: “One in four Scots will be affected by mental ill-health at some point in their lives, and the Creative Vision weekend is a great opportunity for people across Orkney to engage with, and gain a better understanding of, mental health issues.”