MTV is opening up the conversation about mental health for young people amid the COVID-19 pandemic with a new documentary, Each and Every Day, premiering Tuesday, Feb. 16 at 9 p.m. ET, directly following Teen Mom OG. The documentary, aired without commercials, hopes to present a hopeful conversation as it follows nine young people from diverse backgrounds who have had suicidal ideations or attempted suicide as they share their experiences getting help. Get a first look at the documentary with PopCulture.com’s sneak peek trailer.
In August 2020, the Centers for Disease Control reported that a quarter of young adults have seriously contemplated suicide during the pandemic. As the U.S. approaches the one-year mark since COVID-19 shut down life as we know it, Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Alexandra Shiva and producer Lindsey Megrue start a dialogue with young people who have felt the effects of the mental health crisis firsthand. Created in a partnership with The Jed Foundation and executive produced by Sheila Nevins, the film will follow intimate conversations about depression and anxiety as well as hope, recovery and treatment.
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“Making this film I saw firsthand the way young people are dealing with their mental health challenges, including talking openly about suicide,” said Shiva in a statement. “It inspires me and gives me hope that young people don’t shy away from this issue, because talking about it saves lives.” Added Donna Satow, co-founder of The Jed Foundation, “I am inspired by the film’s compelling and honest stories directly from young people that send a powerful message: anyone who is hurting is not alone and that there is hope and help available.”
Shiva and Nevins previously worked together on the Peabody Award-winning documentary How to Dance in Ohio, which followed teenagers with autism as they prepared for their spring formal. Shiva’s most recent film, This is Home, follows four Syrian refugee families as they arrive in Baltimore, Maryland and struggle to find their new way of life in a new home. The film premiered at The Sundance Film Festival in 2018 and won the Audience Award for World Cinema Documentary. Each and Every Day premieres commercial-free on MTV on Tuesday, February 16 at 9 p.m. ET.
If you or someone you know are in crisis, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741-741.
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