Name: On the Top of the Descent
Director: Eyal Sivan
Released: 2001

On the Top of the Descent

2001 — 32 min — video — Eyal Sivan

Twenty-four hours in the life of a manic-depressive person during a manic episode.

Originally made at the request of psychiatrist Christian Gay — Hôpital Sainte-Anne —, this film was intended for people affected by manic-depressive illness, also known as bipolar disorder. While many documentaries and fictions have been devoted to the depressive phase, this film addresses the manic side (the phase of excitation). Jackie Berroyer plays a patient who has stopped his treatment, confronted with an episode of excitation in which the breakdown of his psychic faculties spills over into his social life.

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Credits

Featuring: Jackie Berroyer, Sophie-Hélène Château, Momo Azzouz, Abdel Belkhodja, Mathias Bahuon, Jérémie Korenfeld, Camille Gay, Nathalie Dival, Julia Gay, Michel Boudin, Gérard Salaberry, Marie-Odile Fanet, Nathalie Ganier-Raymond, Jean Gasnault, Dr Christian Gay
A film by: Eyal Sivan
Production: Armelle Laborie
Screenplay: Eyal Sivan and Armelle Laborie, with the collaboration of Dr Christian Gay
Cinematography: Denis Larrue
Sound: Nathalie Vidal
Script supervisor: Nadia Chettab
Gaffer / grip: Kamel Belaïd
Set decorator: Anne-Marie Faux
Editor: Audrey Maurion
Sound editor: Coline Beuvelet
Mixing: George Laffitte

Awards

Grand Prix for Medical Communication, Festival de la communication médicale, Deauville, 2001
Grand Prix for Medical Film, Paris, 2001