Faces that tell a story

D’Haeze documentary takes passionate look at mental illness

By Cliff Newell

The Lake Oswego Review, Aug 31, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009

CLIFF NEWELL / lake oswego review

Coming to a theater right in Lake Oswego is subCITY, the new documentary film by Kevin and Dawn D’Haeze. It premiers in Lake Oswego at the Lake Theater on Saturday and Sunday at noon.

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Kevin and Dawn D’Haeze’s new documentary is truly a work of passion and commitment.

Called subCITY: Out of Sight, Out of Mind, the film uses Kevin’s technical wizardry as a maker of commercial films and Dawn’s expertise as an addictions counselor. And $100,000 of their own money.

That is because the Lake Oswego couple so much wants something done to help Americans suffering from mental illness.

“Right now, people with mental health problems are just moved along,” Dawn said. “People have their treatment cut off, and all that is left is prison or the emergency room. The same people are seen over and over and over.”

As for technique and visual effects, subCITY is superb, presenting a history lesson and a call to action in a crisp 43 minutes and 15 seconds.

But what viewers will remember most about subCITY are the faces. The faces of persons afflicted by mental illness and their struggle to be healed in a society that just is not handling this challenge in the right way.

“There are so many stories,” said Dawn, who interviewed every person featured in the film. “This film could have been 10 times as long.”

The greatest impact comes when patients talk about the closing of the “J” building at the Oregon State Hospital. The problem then becomes highly personalized. The viewer is confronted not by a faintly disturbing statistic, but by a real human being with heartbreaking problems.

“So often a person with a mental health breakdown is only admitted to a hospital if they are a danger to others,” Kevin said. “If there is not a bed available, the police are called.

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