On the Adamant

Known for his humanistic interest in marginalized societies, 72 years old French documentarist Nicholas Philbert's latest film, On the Adamant (2023 Palm D'Or winner), masterfully portrays a    

patient-centered Parisian mental day care center on board a large,

wooden, floating house-like structure, permanently moored on the banks of the Seine river. 

The unique architecture of the Adamant Day Center  was designed in consultation 

with its patients as well as caregivers and opened in 2010.

The film covers Adamant Day Center's novel approach to psychiatry. In addition to psychosocial rehabilitation and medications, a warm, culturally enriched environment is provided. 

Patients engage in different forms of therapeutic workshops focusing on verbal, physical, artistic and cultural expressions such as photography, crafts, literature, dance, 

painting, music, acting and cinema among others. Patients also organize their own film festival every year and have impromptu concerts.

Philbert, best known for his documentary To Be and To Have (2002) along with his co-director, and previous collaborator, Psychiatrist Linda de Zitter (Every Little Thing, 1997), stayed on board the Adamant for several months filming. 

The result, is a gentle, compelling, non-narrative documentary in which patients freely and spontaneously express their thoughts, feelings and portray their daily lives.

With On the Adamant, Philbert creates a refreshingly original art-form, devoid of labels. People are not categorized as filmmakers, staff, caregivers or patients.

This captivating documentary about the unique structure, location, and approach to care of the Adamant, destigmatizes psychiatry while promoting an improved model of practice.