''Children of Darkness'' is a 1983 American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

produced by Ara Chekmayan and Richard Kotuk. It was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for Best Documentary Feature. It is about

mentally ill A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness or psychiatric disorder, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. Such features may be persistent, relapsing and remitt ...

and emotionally troubled children and young adults living in various private and public residences, state institutions, such as the Eastern State School in Pennsylvania, the

Elan School Elan or Élan may refer to: People * Elan Atias (born 1975), American singer-songwriter * Elán (musician) (born 1983), Mexican singer * Poets of Elan, a group of Ecuadorian poets Fictional characters * Elan (Order of the Stick), a character in ...

Poland, Maine Poland is a town in Androscoggin County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,906 at the 2020 census. Set among rolling hills and numerous lakes, the town is home to Range Ponds State Park, which includes hiking trails and a pristine fresh ...

, Sagamore Children's Center, a Long Island ( state run ) institution and South Beach in New York

psychiatric hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociat ...

. It had interviews with various parents, including ones whose children died under suspicious circumstances while in custody as well as with various staff members who work with people who will carry their disabilities and illnesses all their lives, and the staff's awareness of their inability to cure them. One of the drugs that caused patient deaths in the South Beach hospital is

mesoridazine Mesoridazine (Serentil) is a piperidine neuroleptic drug belonging to the class of drugs called phenothiazines, used in the treatment of schizophrenia. It is a metabolite of thioridazine. The drug's name is derived from the methylsulfoxy and pipe ...

, which was withdrawn from the United States market in 2004 due to dangerous heart side effects. The Élan School closed in 2011 due to criticism of its alleged treatment of patients.Meyer, Judith
Elan School closing due to low numbers, negative Web campaign
''Sun Journal'', March 23, 2011. Retrieved on March 24, 2011.

References

External links

* *, posted by Richard Kotuk Archives 1983 films 1983 documentary films American documentary films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films {{US-documentary-film-stub