Glad you're here

This paper is written in support of the ten-minute film Glad You’re Here, a visually stunning personal film, told through the eyes of an artist. Engaging themes of love and betrayal, hope, belonging and place, Glad You’re Here documents my nineteen-year journey through building a family life, seeing it suffer the damage of mental illness, grief and separation, and then rebuilding with empathy. A story about an extreme moment of crisis has turned into a documentary that deals not just with the subjective but with the important issue of spousal abuse. The story is summarized, and context is provided. Ethical issues in autobiographical film are discussed with regard to motive, consent, and disclosure. Issues specific to filming family, treatment of archival material, and use of place and landscape are considered. The film’s social relevance is contextually set in reference to autoethnography and an existing body of work concerning trauma.