I have been involved with the Calgary Society of Independent Filmmaker’s (CSIF) Older Filmmakers Club for a few years now. (https://csif.org/clubs/) We have been talking about the issues we would like to address in our films. Of course, we do not want to focus exclusively on issues that older people face, but we do want to emphasis elder issues.
This blog post is a preliminary list of issues that could form the spark for story ideas. You will notice that I have a dearth of upbeat issues. The essence of drama is conflict, so that tends to focus more on downbeat issues. If you have any suggestions for upbeat ideas, please comment.
Many of these issues could become cautionary tales for people as they age.
Social Isolation and loneliness
It is a sad fact that as we grow older, we lose friends and family to death and distance. Live changes, such as retirement, cut us off from other people. This topic does have the potential for an upbeat story about how someone overcomes the isolation in their life.
I have tried to write a short script based on this sense of loss and isolation. I was not happy with how it turned out.
Reconnecting with old friends and family
When you are younger, and life is busy with work, many people tend to neglect friends and family. Sometimes, you will even lose touch with them. Later in life, though, people find the time to reconnect with old friends.
In my own life, it was joining Facebook that allowed me to reconnect with people I had not talked to since high school. This is the opposite of the problem of social isolation.
Ageism and Discrimination
As we grow older, we become more confident in our abilities. But there comes a time when younger people no longer appreciate what we can do. It comes as a shock when other people do not value our contributions as much as when we were younger.
Elder Abuse
This is an incredibly sad situation for the people who face it. It is something that many people fear as they grow older and become more reliant on others. Stories about people facing abuse can be like a horror movie. It can truly be a life-or-death situation that people can find themselves in.
Financial Insecurity
Some older people have built up the savings and assets they need to live comfortably. Many have not. With a fixed income and an inability to earn more money through taking on new jobs, they worry about their finances. Often older people stop working because they are no longer able to work.
Facing Retirement
Retirement is a major life changing event. It can be either an escape to freedom or the end of an important part of someone’s life.
I have heard personal stories of people who had a plan for their retirement during their working years. It gave them a goal to work toward. But it sometimes turns into a sad story. After years of looking forward, the reality of their plan is a disappointment. After only a few months of retirement, their experiences and disappointments force them to rethink their life goals.
Someone wise told me several years before I retired, suggested I take a leave of absence from work and do a practice retirement. This experience was valuable and helped me focus better on planning my retirement.
Lost Sense of Purpose
Another effect of retirement and growing old is losing your sense of purpose. When you were younger, you had things you had to do every day and things you wanted to do every day. In old age, many people no longer have the same needs and desires.
Declining health
As we age, we face many heath issues: arthritis, cognitive decline, dementia, diabetes, hearing loss, vision loss, heart disease, mental health problems, and osteoporosis are common problems. These can be disheartening and prevent us from doing the things we want to do.
Relationships with Medical Staff
There is a point when you start to see a doctor that is younger than you. Growing up you see doctors as someone to look up to. When the time comes, as it will eventually, when you are seeing someone younger than you for your medical needs, it can be a difficult experience to work through.
I worked on a story about an active older man who, because of a life-threatening issue, becomes confined to his bed. His family hire a younger woman to be his care giver. At first, he resents her as just some kid telling him what to do, but as time goes on, they develop a respect and a deep bond for each other. I gave up on it because it was beyond my skill as a writer to write with such emotional depth. I still feel the idea still has potential, but I don’t feel I could pull it off.
Difficulty with Everyday Tasks and Mobility
Problems with balance, coordination, frailty, and loss of strength can lead to a greater risk of falls and impose limits on what a person can do in life.
I had an experience when I was younger, where I saw an older woman fall on the street and hurt herself. I stayed with her. Someone said they would call an ambulance, but none ever came. At first, she was confused, but eventually became quite lucid. Despite my concerns she insisted she was OK. She wanted to go to a nearby church, so I helped her over there and left her at the entry. It has been over 40 years, and I still feel that I let her down.
That personal story is still too raw for me to explore in a story, but I am sure that others can create stories that deal with the same issues.
Loss of Independence
I felt that the woman who fell was worried about losing her independence if her family learned of her fall. This is a fear that haunts all of us as we age.
Housing
In the later parts of life, people frequently must leave their homes to move into more supportive housing. These can be normal apartments that focus on retired people but can range through more intensive types of nursing homes, and eventually hospice care. The transition to these other types of housing can be a challenge. The transition may include the stress of downsizing and letting go of cherished keepsakes. It may include adjusting to a new lifestyle with new limitations on what people can do.
When I was young, in the early 1960s, one of my father’s responsibilities was to inspect what people then called Old Folks Homes. He wrote a couple of papers about what he learned from that experience. Things have changed since then, but the transitions people go through can still be fraught with conflict.
· https://dynamiclethargy.ca/jm09.htm
· https://dynamiclethargy.ca/Color_and_Warmth.pdf
Adjusting to Changes in Society
Society does change over time. Things
that were acceptable in our youth are no longer acceptable and things that were
not acceptable, are now acceptable. People react to these changes in diverse
ways. Some people accept change. Some people reject change. Some people embrace
change. Others understand the need for change, but struggle to accept it. Some
changes are serious and important, while others are trivial.
Adjusting to New Technology
Like society in general, technology
changes as we grow older. One example is the Internet. It has created many
opportunities, for both good and evil. The changes have been hard for some
people to adapt to.
Loss of Loved Ones and Dealing with Grief
As we age, so do our friends and
family. Most, if not all, of us will experience the death of someone important
in our lives. Going through these events can be difficult. Stories of how
people deal with death and grief can be valuable for others who face those same
challenges.
End-of-Life Planning
We all know that someday we will
die, but most people find it hard to think about. It is wise to discuss our
plans for our death long before the time is imminent. It is much harder to talk
these things over when the end is approaching.
I wrote a short movie script based on conversations with my wife leading up to her death. While it was cathartic for me to work through those emotions, I was not comfortable going forward with the project.
Since it is something that people
need to think about, many people would appreciate a story that explores the
challenges of end-of-life planning.
This is a preliminary list that I hope will spark some film projects. If you have any suggestions for other relevant issues, please comment.
If you are interested in the CSIF’s Older Filmmaker’s Club, you can e-mail them at theolderfilmmakersclub@gmail.com.
This post is a mirror from my main blog http://www.dynamiclethargyfilms.ca/blog
