To commemorate the annual World Suicide Prevention Day on 10 September, four award -winning, critically-acclaimed international films that examine life, death and one’s constant worry of doom, will stream online for free every Wednesday for the whole of September.
The films — curated by the Museum of Contemporary Art and Design of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde — explore love, choices, and kindness to people struggling with various issues.
American fantasy drama What Dreams May Come (1998) follows the after-life adventure of a man to reunite with his beloved wife, who took her life out of grief. Directed by New Zealand filmmaker, screenwriter and artist Vincent Ward, it is an adaptation of the 1978 novel by Richard Matheson. It screens on 7 September.
Alfonso Gomez -Rejon’s comedy -drama Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015), based on American author Jesse Andrews’ novel of the same name, explores how an awkward high school senior and a gravely ill classmate found lasting friendship with each other. The film received a standing ovation at its 2015 Sundance Film Festival premiere. It screens on 14 September.
American psychological drama The Hours (2002) by British film, theater and television producer and director Stephen Daldry, introduces three women from different generations who are all passionate about Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel Mrs. Dalloway. They evaluate the weight of suicide as the only escape from their problems. It screens on 21 September.
Minimalist drama The Taste of Cherry (1997), directed by Iranian filmmaker, screenwriter, poet, photographer and film producer Abbas Kiraostami, is about the journey of a middle -aged Tehran resident who drives around the city and suburbs to find someone willing to quietly bury him after he takes his own life. The Palme d’Or-winning piece seeks to answer one question: Is life worth living? It screens on 28 September.
The free online screenings are via Zoom every 12 noon of the scheduled dates.
To register, email mcad@benilde.edu.ph. For more information, visit the official Facebook page of MCAD (https://www.facebook.com/MCADManila).