Remember

A moving story about Alzheimer’s, beautifully illustrated with charcoal drawings, set to a jazz song written and performed by a woman whose mother succumbed to the disease. An entry advocating brain research in the 2012 Neuro Film Festival sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, this video is an early favourite (watch all the entries in this playlist). But there’s still time to enter – submit until January 31.

Possible Worlds: Hearing Voices or Uninvited Guests

Art video featuring performance poetry and imagery about modern living and madness. Winner of the 2011 reTHiNK Possible Worlds award, with the theme “We are all human beings navigating the maze of life.” reTHiNK Possible Worlds was a series of multimedia performance art shows developed to reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with mental ‘illness’ in Auckland, New Zealand. It incorporated a video contest and the best submissions, including the above, were featured at the shows at Galatos during Mental Health Awareness Week.

Iain McGilchrist: The Divided Brain

Psychiatrist McGilchist debunks myths of split brain functioning and explains how the left and right hemispheres of the brain always work together, yet still have different specializations. He posits that their strengths (and physical size) have evolved with the demands of modern life, and that although the left hemisphere may be useful for more concrete tasks, the right brain is equally valuable, ending with this quote from Albert Einstein: “The intuitive mind is a sacred gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honours the servant but has forgotten the gift.” A cool illustrated RSA Animate video, created with an audio clip from a longer lecture on western civilization and the divided brain available here. Hat tip: an excellent blog post by Lapidarium notes.

Psychopia

A short student documentary about Vancouver author and artist Sandra Yuen MacKay. She has schizoaffective disorder and asserts, “Despite having a mental illness, I thrive on life.” In this video she and her family talk about her art, advocacy and public speaking, why she wrote a memoir, and the ultimate message that recovery is possible.

A Brief Introduction to the Default Mode Network

Good animation, narration, and music (by Ehma, available for free) in this short but comprehensive description of the brain’s default mode network. Made for the 2010 Society for Neuroscience People’s Choice Awards Contest, it’s an excellent entry and an enriching way to spend two minutes.

Child Psychologist

A cute, short, comedy skit portraying a five year old psychotherapist in a session with her frustrated middle-aged client.

If You’re Contemplating Suicide, This is for You

A YouTuber does a beautifully eloquent rap about how it feels to be suicidal, with encouragement to go on. A vividly poetic and compelling performance, so good it’s gone viral. Available for download on mp3 as well. If you’re in need of help now, here are international crisis hotlines.

Love Story

Winner of the University College London’s 2011 Brains on Film festival. Fun short film depicts love and neurotransmission as film noir romance.

Theatre and Cognitive Neuroscience – Science’s Impact on Ideas of the Actor

Something a little different: a theatre professor talks about the impact of cognitive science on acting. An ambitious and original interdisciplinary talk applying findings from neuroscience and metaphors to describe imagination, embodiment, perception, philosophy, and more, as relevant to the art of acting.

Oliver Sacks: Rage for Order

Famous neurologist Oliver Sacks meets artist Jessica Smith and discusses past perceptions of autism, creativity, fixations, and reconceptualizing the condition with better knowledge of how the brain works.