Picture Touches Critics

The award-winning film “Canvas” is based on a true story by writer/director Joe Greco, whose mother suffered from schizophrenia. He decided to make the film after a former screenwriting professor suggested that he look “to the well of personal experience for inspiration,” according to Greco in a statement on the film's Web site.

“I wanted to make a film about mental illness that was not only true to my experience, but also universal,” Greco continued. “Not everyone grows up with a parent suffering from schizophrenia. But everyone knows what it's like to be embarrassed, angry, and frustrated by a family member. For the theme, I looked to one happy memory from my childhood for inspiration. While my mother was in the state hospital, my father took me out on his sailboat. Mom never came sailing with us, but we always hoped she would. That hope was my story. I decided that a sailboat could be a simple yet powerful metaphor.”

That he achieved his goal of infusing his film with authenticity of emotion and experience is evidenced by the number of awards it has won. Among them: the Nantucket Film Festival Audience Award, Sarasota Film Festival Audience Award, Sedona Film Festival Best Feature Award, Fort Lauderdale Film Festival Audience Award, and Hamptons International Film Festival Spotlight Film. Actor Joe Pantoliano received the Outstanding Acting Award and the Best Dramatic Performance Award from the Sedona and Fort Lauderdale film festivals, respectively. Of special note are awards made by those who live with or have firsthand knowledge of the devastation of schizophrenia: The Outstanding Depiction of a Mental Illness Award of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and Distinctive Voices Award of the National Council on Behavioral Healthcare. Greco and Pantoliano also were recognized by the council.