Looks like PBS will be rebroadcasting The Forgetting this summer.
I have mixed feelings.
On the one hand, the film certainly has been a powerful tool for raising awareness. The local feeds afterward, which feature more nuanced discussions of the experience of dementia, are very informative and moving.
But the film itself is pure tragic narrative. I almost felt like I was suffocating while I watched it (several times) as research for the book. What is missing from The Forgetting (television version) is any sort of sense of the resiliency of people with dementia. There is no meaning in their lives. There is no humor. No joy. This film chooses to tell the story of the tragedy of dementia and the exciting scientific race for answers.
The book (by David Shenk) is a skillful and inviting weaving of the complexities of Alzheimer’s. The website is equally complex and inviting. But the film scares me. And I fear it scares others more than it inspires them to respect and engage people with dementia – and in so doing, to be part of the social cure.
The Forgetting Rebroadcast and Panel Discussion on PBS
The critically acclaimed documentary, The Forgetting: A portrait of Alzheimer’s, will be rebroadcast this summer on PBS stations nationwide. Immediately after the 90-minute documentary, stations will air a 30-minute panel discussion about the disease moderated by David Hyde Pierce featuring a number of researchers with whom the Alzheimer’s Association works closely. The Association is working with the producers of the program to provide Chapters with tools you can use if you would like to leverage this opportunity to generate awareness of the disease and the Association. This will likely be ready the week of June 23. The program will air in most markets on Sunday, August 3 at 9PM ET. Check your local listings for exact airing times and dates in your market.
