Wigan mental health worker wins award for short film about suicide

Justin Walker, who works as a community support worker for the Early Intervention Team in Wigan and Leigh, produced Now We Are Two for a suicide prevention event at Atherleigh hospital.

Now We Are Two focuses on the perspective of a 12-year-old girl and how she attempts to make sense of the loss of her dad.

The film was shot and edited on a smartphone with no budget and stars Justin’s daughter Islien.

Justin said: “I was asked by the community mental health matron Lisa Sandiford asked me to do some filming for the suicide prevention event which she organises every year.

"I thought about making a film from a young person’s perspective and asked my 12-year-old daughter for her input.

"We shot most of the footage in a day or two and then it took another few days to edit, it was finished in around four to five days from start to finish.

"Everything was done on a mobile phone.”

Justin decided to enter the short film into the New Jersey Film Awards Festival in America where it won Best Micro Short Film.

It is not the first time Justin has been recognised in the US for his films.

Last summer he won the best Experimental Film Award at the WILDsound Film Festival with his film Auditory which is about a young girl who is studying for exams, is incredibly stressed and anxious and is experiencing her first episode of psychosis.

Justin plans to create more films on the topic of mental health.

He added: “It was a bit of a shock when I found out it had won.

"It’s nice to get some validation.

"I’ve always got something in the pipeline, I’m currently cutting things together for suicide prevention.

"My daughter also won a short story competition a few years ago so I want to turn that into a film.

"There’s a few other projects on the subject of mental health too.

"I think it’s such a positive and therapeutic hobby, hobbies in general help take away any stress.

"I would encourage people to do things that they enjoy.”