“Bintana”, or Window, is a short film produced by the first-year medical students from University of St. La Salle, Bacolod City. It is one of the four Cinemedicine 2015 entry to be graded by their professor. Part of its grading system is taken from the vote of viewers who expressed their appreciation of the film by voting the best entry. (In order to vote, simply click this LINK, you will be redirected to the page where you can cast your vote and see the ranking of its official entry.

“Bintana”, or Window, is a short film that presents the harsh reality of how depression can harm the family. It focuses on reeling people into the reality of how depression is something that should not be taken lightly. However, the message of the film is that it is destructive; hence, we should all take action to save those who may have the symptoms.

Through the Depression-laden Glass, life is just like a home, with more windows than doors. Each time a door shuts, a window is always there to provide light to the darkness and ventilation to the breath- constricted. Clarisse is a woman who has seen more doors shut and more windows locked as she descends from rationality through her depression. She fails to see the many escapes that her figurative windows had presented her with, and thus she is buried deep within her frustations. This is a story of a girl whose life shatters, with each second offering dwindling breath and each moment blinding her from the light of a hopeful tomorrow.

People need to be directed toward the appropriate solution, which is never suicide. Depression is a silent killer, that affects the person inside and out and the family as a whole and it is the responsibility of physicians to promote its awareness. As future physicians, we should strip society of the belief that only the mentally unstable see a psychiatrist. The aforementioned statistics is alarming. Being coupled with depression and all other mental health problems is the social stigma. Having a mental problem is like a taboo in a society.

We are 1st year medical students from University of St. La Salle, Bacolod City. This short film is our Family and Community Medicine subject and it also turned out to be an advocacy to raise awareness about depression and suicide. Together we will change the world one step at a time and live up to our country’s slogan, “It’s more fun in the Philippines.”

Are you sad? Hopeless? Depressed? You are not alone, God is greater than depression. He can fix your broken life. You can come to Him boldly, let him fix you. He is the hope like no other. His love for you is unconditional.

Watch Video Here:

Note: Article credit to Ms. Krisel Ybañez Gonzaga