Week 10

In the student film Broken Tech, filmmaker Eva Tikhomirova makes the argument that Brooklyn Tech High School has a culture of high pressure and poor student mental health. Through student, teacher, and counselor interviews, she demonstrates the disconnect between definitions of mental health at the school and the ways students are or are not supported. Many students identify themselves as struggling with mental health, especially depression and anxiety, and they discuss the ways this reality impacts their experiences at school. It also explores the hypocrisy of the way the school presents itself as one of the best in the city while many of its students are struggling mentally and emotionally. Tikhomirova cleverly juxtaposes different snippets of conversation to create interesting narratives and also to provide contrast between different ideas. She also demonstrates how many adults at the school are ill-equipped to understand and support the students who are experiencing poor mental health. By making this a predominantly interview-based documentary, the filmmaker centers the perspectives and voices of the subjects, especially students. The argument is valid and well-argued, and it offers viewers the chance to understand what students at Brooklyn Tech are going through.