Film exploring grief to be shown at Stroud Film Festival

Jane Harris and her partner Jimmy Edmonds made the film to share creative ways of dealing with grief

We need to talk about grief now more than ever, a therapist has said speaking about the pandemic.

Coronavirus has devastated many people's lives. The UK death toll stands at about 128,000, according to the government.

In her film Beyond The Mask therapist Jane Harris and her partner share stories from grieving people who said they felt "unheard" in the pandemic.

She said she hoped the film showing at Stroud Film Festival would help others.

Behind The Mask, is the second film about grief Ms Harris and her partner Jimmy Edmond have made as part of their charity, The Good Grief Project, set up in 2018 to help others open up about their grieving.

Josh died very suddenly on holiday in 2011

The project was inspired by the couple's journey navigating their grief when their son Josh died in 2011.

Ms Harris said the project was about "active and creative ways of grieving".

"I'm a therapist, my husband's a filmmaker and we met at film school years ago.

"Our own son josh died very suddenly on holiday and we didn't get to say goodbye, and we had to find a way of saying goodbye, and that experience is what inspired The Good Grief Project," she said.

The film was made during the pandemic using Zoom

Bereaved parents Deirdre and Liam Nolan from Gloucestershire shared their experiences in the film, reflecting on their feelings of grief during the pandemic, after their child Laoise died in 2016 following treatment for leukaemia.

"Having the time, that quiet space for a few months to just sit with how we felt about life in general as well as Laoise's loss, I think it gave us the opportunity to do that when we hadn't done that before," Mrs Nolan said.

Ms Harris said all of the contributors who had shared their stories were "very brave".

"It's dedicated to everyone isolated and unheard who are grieving, which is everyone right now.

"If people have lost a loved one they may not have been able to say goodbye to them."