FILMS
FEATURE
Nise: The Heart of Madness
Roberto Berliner|Brazil|Portuguese|108 MIN|2017
Lorena Bondarovsky|Flávia Castro, Mauricio Lissovsk
Mental Health|Schizophrenia
Disability Rights
Therapy
Arts
After leaving prison, Dr. Nise da Silveira returns to work in a psychiatric hospital on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, where she refuses to employ the new and violent electroshock therapy used to treat individuals with schizophrenia. Ridiculed by doctors, she takes up work in the abandoned Sector for Occupational Therapy, where she initiates a revolution, using art therapy, pets, and love to treat her patients. Nise is based on the true story of an indomitable woman who confronted Brazil’s mental health establishment.