INTRO
Personality disorders are not easy. If you know our YouTube channel BORDERLINERNOTES – you know we don't shy away from discomfort and difficult subject matter in the mental health field.
This documentary film attempts to show what it feels like to have Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) through the lived experience of one woman with the diagnosis. It also features top experts in the field, such as Marsha Linehan (creator of Dialectical Behavior Therapy) and John Gunderson (original author of the BPD diagnosis).
The film is available both by itself and in combo packs with the expert interviews (SUPER EDITION, anyone?) You can of course also buy/rent the interviews individually. Head to the shop to check it out -- or find out more about the movie and the expert interviewees below.
Or jump straight into the trailer here:
TRAILER
MORE INFO
This film is about a woman who has a Borderline Personality Disorder diagnosis. The first time she tried to kill herself, she was five years old. Now she is 45 and hell-bent on trying to live – most of the time.
She reacts on impulse, attacks, distracts, meditates, offers social commentary, trips over herself, laughs, judges, burns bridges, makes social gaffes, apologizes, loses her cool, philosophizes and remains dogged in her search for recovery.
The film – directed by someone with the BDP diagnosis – was shot over the course of several years in New York City, and played at festivals (BIG SKY, DOC NYC, etc.) when it came out in 2016. It is now available for purchase/rental directly from us, as we think it continues to have great value for people with mental health diagnoses, their family and friends or people who are supporting or treating them, as well as audiences interested in character studies and/or psychology in general.
The film received some fancy laurels:
CREDITS
It took several years to produce this film, and many people were involved in the work. Some of them are:
director: Rebbie Ratner
editors: Pascal Troemel, Sara Zandieh, Anita Gabrosek, Rebbie Ratner
producers: Rebbie Ratner, Suzanne Mitchell
executive producer: Barbara Kopple
music: Timo Ellis, Roger Greenawalt
PRESS
"A feel-good movie true to its feel-bad subject."
–BOSTON GLOBE
"[An] alternately piercing, maddening and riotously funny portrait..."
–VILLAGE VOICE
"[Regina's] sharp, acid-tongued humor makes her a charismatic, if troubling presence..."
–HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
"...an important, humanizing portrait of a woman living with challenges that are rarely part of public discussion. The film is effective in drawing attention to what can be a seriously disabling problem. It's also entertaining, incisive and highly watchable."
–EYE FOR FILM
EXPERTS
While producing the film, we interviewed a number of experts in the field of personality disorders and Borderline Personality Disorder in particular. A lot of amazing footage ended up on the cutting room floor, so we decided to make the full, minimally-edited interviews available to rent/buy in the shop along with the film.
The film itself is very experiential, from the viewpoint of someone struggling with a serious mental health diagnosis. These interviews are the opposite: straight-ahead information from top-level clinicians and researchers in the field. There is a wealth of information in these interviews about BPD and its treatment, from experts who created the original diagnosis criteria as well as some of the most effective treatments for the disorder -- DBT and MBT.
The expert interviews are available individually or in a combo pack at reduced cost.
DR. MARSHA LINEHAN
Creator of Dialectical Behavior Therapy
Marsha Linehan developed DBT, one of the leading treatments for BPD in the world. It incorporates Zen Buddhism and a large amount of validation. Hear her take on BPD and the mental health treatment world, along with a description of her treatment, in the interview.
Available in the following packs:
Marsha Linehan | Expert Interview
BORDERLINE the Film | Super Edition
Expert Interviews | Complete Pack
DR. JOHN GUNDERSON
Creator of the BPD Diagnosis
John Gunderson was instrumental in defining Borderline Personality Disorder and adding it to the diagnostic system in the 80s, and subsequently devoted himself to improving treatment for the BPD population, influencing many younger treaters and leaving a treatment program bearing his name, the Gunderson Residence, at McLean Hospital, Harvard.
Available in the following packs:
John Gunderson | Expert Interview
DR. OTTO KERNBERG
Creator of Transference-Focused Psychotherapy
Otto Kernberg is a pioneer in the field of personality disorders, with an emphasis on BPD and NPD (Narcissistic Personality Disorder). He developed the highly specialized treatment Transference-Focused Psychotherapy.
Available in the following packs:
Otto Kernberg | Expert Interview
DR. PETER FONAGY
Co-creator of Mentalization-Based Treatment
A veteran of the BPD treatment field, Peter Fonagy worked with Anthony Bateman to develop Mentalization-Based Treatment (MBT), which has a deceptively simple approach to treating personality disorders through building a person's ability to "mentalize."
Available in the following packs:
Peter Fonagy | Expert Interview
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