We know that sexual abuse is an under reported serious crime that blights societies throughout the world. We also know that sexual abuse affects both women and men, particularly when they are children. We know that it is often hard to come forward to seek help. We believe that all children are vulnerable.
Men find it particularly difficult to come forward to ask for help and talk about how they feel and often men will keep this secret for years. Operation Emotion uses film to help men to share their views and opinions about the trauma of sexual abuse rather than suffer in silence.
We do this to inform and educate, in what is often a difficult subject for many people to discuss in an open healthy way. Only by shining a light into the penumbra world of sexual abuse can we begin to challenge the trauma of sexual abuse and the damage that it causes to so many women and men in society.
The creative arm of Operation Emotion is Blunt Edge Films. This film production unit creates educational short films for training purposes, feature length dramas, as part of our wider campaigning brief and short films for our mobile phone apps. This actively involves the beneficiaries of our service and helps to improve society’s understanding about the trauma of sexual abuse.
Feature Length films
Blunt Edge film’s ‘The Prison of Silence’ is a feature length film that focuses on the barriers and obstacles that men face in coming forward to seek help. It challenges myths, misinformation and societal prejudices. It is a film that is made for cinema and Operation Emotion uses it as a way of involving audiences in post screening discussions to stiimulate open, healthy, public debate about sexual abuse.
‘The Bite of the Vampire’ is our latest feature length drama that seeks to challenge the many damaging myths that exist around sexual abuse. It also promotes a greater understanding of the consequences of sexual abuse and focuses on reconcilation as well as positive suggestions about a way forward.
Educational short films
Our latest short film is 30 years or 30 minutes by Edward Drew-Bustamante.
With men taking, on average 30 years to reveal what has happened to them, this short film is testament to the benefits of coming forward to seek help if you have suffered the trauma of sexual abuse. As the victim of a serious crime there is no need to prolong feelings of shame guilt or silence, which will have a lasting detrimental consequence. This film demonstrates a truly compelling reason to come forward now.
‘The Futility of Revenge’ is a short film that looks at revenge – and all its shortcomings. As a way forward it focuses on healthy positive solutions for survivors of sexual abuse. It also promotes the thoughts of some of history’s greatest leaders as a powerful message of hope and reconciliation for us all.
Burying the Monster is a short film that focuses on one man’s experience of the criminal justice system as he faces his perpetratior over a five day trial. These thoughts and feelings were captured in a truly creative form that may well be of use to others.
‘Its your story’ explains about what to expect when joining one of Operation Emotion’s weekly support groups. It explains why no-one will ever be compelled to tell their story. If someone wishes to do so then it is entirely their decision. David explains how this all works …
Operation Emotion’s group work is a key aspect of its services. Our weekly support groups are a safe place for men to explore what has happened to them and begin a process towards a future where sexual abuse no longer dominates their lives. We practice a model of peer support that is both clinically safe and confidential.
The principal of self help is a time honoured model that exists in every country of the world and has transformed the lives of so many people. Our weekly support groups are non judgemental and are underpinned by a robust foundation of emprirical research. Our work focuses on the four traumagenic consequences of sexual abuse, which are issues around identity, powerlessness, isolation and trust and betrayal. The following short film looks at The ‘Pivotal role of Peer Support.’
