Helen (2009)

Director:

Sandra Nettelbeck

Writer:

Sandra Nettelbeck (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 November 2009 (Germany)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Sanity comes when you least expect it.

Plot:

A talented professor is forced to come to terms with her clinical depression.

Plot Keywords:

Professor | Clinical Depression | Nervous Breakdown | Bra Less | Female Teacher

Awards:

1 win & 5 nominations

Cast

Ashley Judd	...	Helen Leonard
Goran Visnjic	...	David Leonard
Lauren Lee Smith	...	Mathilda
Alexia Fast	...	Julie
Alberta Watson	...	Dr. Sherman
Leah Cairns	...	Susanna
David Hewlett	...	Frank
David Nykl	...	John
Chelah Horsdal	...	Kara
Ali Liebert	...	Donna
Conrad Coates	...	Stephen
Alex Stevens	...	Woman
Rob Heschl	...	Maire'd
Robin Nielsen	...	Stranger
Adrian Hough	...	ER Doctor
Julia Keilty	...	Psych Nurse #1
Mylène Dinh-Robic	...	Psych Nurse #2
Sunita Prasad	...	Psych Nurse #3
BJ Harrison	...	Head Nurse
Hyuma Frankowski	...	Male Student
David Quinlan	...	Dan
Veena Sood	...	Defense Attorney
John Shaw	...	Prosecutor
Malcolm Stewart	...	Judge Wilkens
Ken Kramer	...	Dr. Donahue
Chaz Chamberlain	...	Man on pier
Carlo Fanella	...	Police Officer
Terence Lewis	...	Father
Rhonda Onstad	...	Mother
Leigh Bourke	...	Daughter
Daisy Lippa	...	Young Julie
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
David Lewis	...	Dr. Barnes
Grace Bauer	...	Store Employee (uncredited)
Vanessa Burns	...	Mother (uncredited)
Jonathan Holmes	...	Thief (uncredited)
Ian Thompson	...	Bus Driver (uncredited)

Directed by
Sandra Nettelbeck

Writing credits
Sandra Nettelbeck		(screenplay)

Produced by
Kim Arnott	....	associate producer
Chris Curling	....	executive producer
Oliver De Caigny	....	associate producer
Simon Fawcett	....	executive producer
Christine Haebler	....	producer
Frank Lehmann	....	associate producer
Robert Little	....	executive producer
Doug Mankoff	....	executive producer
Jens Meurer	....	executive producer
Kirk Shaw	....	executive producer
Andrew Spaulding	....	executive producer
Larry Sugar	....	executive producer
Judy Tossell	....	producer
Marc Wächter	....	line producer

Original Music by
James Edward Barker		(supervising composer)
Tim Despic

Cinematography by
Michael Bertl

Film Editing by
Barry Egan

Casting by
Pam Dixon
Jennifer Page

Production Design by
Linda Del Rosario

Art Direction by
Brian Kane

Set Decoration by
Brian Kane

Costume Design by
Bettina Helmi

Makeup Department
Gitte Axen	....	makeup artist: Ashley Judd
Sarah Bergeest	....	makeup artist
Leeann Charette	....	first assistant makeup artist
Susanne Woerle-Jiritano	....	key makeup artist

Production Management
Tia Buhl	....	production manager
Todd Giroux	....	post-production manager
Crawford Hawkins	....	post-production supervisor: Canada
Tina Mersmann	....	post-production supervisor

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Steven A. Adelson	....	second unit director (as S.A. Adelson)
Karin Behrenz	....	third assistant director
Bonnie Benwick	....	first assistant director
Gabriel Correa	....	third assistant director
Gabriel Correa	....	trainee assistant director
Debra Herst	....	second assistant director
Haylee Hubscher	....	trainee assistant director
Rachel Leiterman	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Peter Bien	....	art department coordinator
Jean Brophey	....	on-set dresser
Dylan Dowd	....	lead greens person
Moni El Batrik	....	on-set dresser
Margo Kaczynska McKenzie	....	paint coordinator
Maxx McKenzie	....	painter
Dominika Nasilowski	....	art department assistant
Megan Poss	....	set designer
Patricia Schwaertzel	....	first assistant props
Elizabeth Shelton	....	assistant art director
John Wilcox	....	co-paint coordinator
Miho Yamamoto	....	set dresser

Sound Department
Alexander Buck	....	dialogue editor
Amy Giammarco	....	post audio coordinator
Tilman Hahn	....	sound editor
Chris Howland	....	additional boom operator
Robert Hunter	....	walla mixer
Stefan Korte	....	sound re-recording mixer
David Livingstone	....	adr boom operator
Brent Morrison	....	boom operator
Christoph Oertel	....	foley mixer
Elda Pinckney	....	post audio administrative assistant
Laura Plock	....	foley editor
Carsten Richter	....	foley artist
Gordon Sproule	....	adr mixer
Alexander Vitt	....	adr editor
Guido Zettier	....	sound designer
Guido Zettier	....	supervising sound editor

Special Effects by
Brant McIlroy	....	special effects coordinator
Scott McKay	....	special effects assistant
Martin Testa	....	special effects first assistant

Visual Effects by
Matthias Albrecht	....	digital film editor
Christoph Benden	....	digital compositor: RISE Visual Effects Berlin
Markus Bäuerle	....	digital lab supervisor
Markus Degen	....	visual effects supervisor: RISE Visual Effects Berlin
Andreas Helm	....	film scanning
Andrea Jacob	....	film scanning
Claudia Lechen	....	digital compositor: RISE Visual Effects Berlin
Thomas Lehmann	....	flame artist
Krista Lomax	....	digital effects artist
Brian Moylan	....	visual effects supervisor
Sandor Nagy	....	digital colourist
Sven Pannicke	....	visual effects producer: RISE Visual Effects Berlin
Maik Strauch	....	color timer
Robert Tucker	....	digital compositor: RISE Visual Effects Berlin
Niklaas Warda	....	title designer
Jonathan Weber	....	digital compositor: RISE Visual Effects Berlin

Stunts
Janene Carleton	....	stunt double: Ashley Judd
Owen Walstrom	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Ed Araquel	....	still photographer
Adam Bunz	....	best boy grip
Damon J. Evans	....	lighting technician
Andre Gheorghiu	....	loader
Liane Hentscher	....	still photographer
Joe Klymkiw	....	remote head technician
David-Wesley Kyle	....	second assistant camera: "a" camera (as David Wesley Kyle)
Trevor Leyenhorst	....	grip
Marty McInally	....	steadicam operator (as Martin McInally)
Harald Mellwig	....	assistant camera
Emmanuelle Rousseau	....	assistant camera
Greg Simmonds	....	"b" camera first assistant
Gary Stamford	....	set electrician
Robert Wedemeyer	....	dolly grip

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Nancy Duggan	....	assistant costume designer
Chrissie Vides Alvarado	....	costumer: preparation (as Chrissie S. Armstrong)

Editorial Department
Ivar Beer	....	head of digital film lab
Renate Leisering	....	film lab coordinator
Ute Lingner	....	film lab manager
Adam Locke-Norton	....	additional editor
Christian Lonk	....	assembly editor
Ursina Merkt	....	post-production assistant
Stefan Müller	....	managing director film lab
Ismael Ribeiro	....	director of engineering
Gabriela Schultze	....	sales manager film lab
Adam Voghell	....	post-production coordinator: Canada

Music Department
James Edward Barker	....	musician: piano, percussion
James Edward Barker	....	score producer
Natasha Duprey	....	music clearances
Manfred Eicher	....	music producer
Markus Glunz	....	music editor
Natalie Ann Holt	....	additional composer
James Loughrey	....	music mixer
Ian Neil	....	music supervisor

Transportation Department
Geoff Obadia	....	driver: cast

Other crew
Silas Allan	....	production assistant
Dorothe Beinemeier	....	production coordinator/assistant: Judy Tossell
Glen Brkich	....	stand-in
Michelle Clarke	....	office coordinator: Insight Film Studios
Amanda Coletsis	....	production assistant
Ian Doig	....	animal coordinator
Annette Drees	....	script supervisor
Karyn Edwards	....	legal services
Undine Filter	....	business affairs staff
Chris Garbasauskas	....	key production assistant
Renate Graichen	....	accountant: Egoli Tossell Film
Marc Hansell	....	head of legal and business affairs
Berit Harksen	....	accounting clerk: Egoli Tosssell Film AG
Helen	....	production assistant
Udo Herke	....	v.p. of finances: Insight Film Studios
Danny Ho	....	video & computer playback supervisor
Yvonne Hüttig	....	office coordinator
Anja Karg	....	production intern
Doug Kerr	....	production assistant
Jana Kohlmann	....	public relations assistant: Egoli Tosssell Film AG
Mark Lindquist	....	script consultant
Grace MacLeod	....	animal trainer
Claudia Morgado Escanilla	....	additional script supervisor
Barbara Parisi	....	payroll accountant
Alison Rasberry	....	assistant accountant (as Alison Low)
Crystal Remmey	....	production coordinator
Tracey Renyard	....	location manager
Grigorij Richters	....	production assistant (as Greg Richters)
Michael Schmetz	....	financial consultant
Linda Sims	....	controller: Insight Film Studios
Devi Singh	....	assistant: producer
Marie-Louise Stares	....	personal assistant: Director
John T.L. Tang	....	key production assistant
Anah Teele	....	personal assistant: Ashley Judd
Lilian Umurungi	....	business affairs assistant: Insight Film Studios
Haydn Wazelle	....	assistant to producers
Daniella Wells	....	personal assistant: Ashley Judd
Julie Adams	....	dialect coach (uncredited)
Gero Brugmann	....	legal advisor: financing (uncredited)

Thanks
Michael Schmid-Ospach	....	thanks

Production Companies

• Egoli Tossell Film
• Filmstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen
• Helen Productions
• Insight Film Studios

Distributors

• E1 Entertainment (2010) (USA) (theatrical)
• Warner Bros. (2009) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm (2010) (Canada) (all media) (Quebec)
• Aventi (2011) (France) (DVD)
• Beyond Home Entertainment (2010) (Australia) (DVD)
• Front Row Filmed Entertainment (2010) (United Arab Emirates) (all media) (Middle East)
• Home Box Office (HBO) (2012) (Netherlands) (TV) (HBO2) (limited)
• IPA Asia Pacific (2012) (Taiwan) (all media)
• Warner Home Video (2010) (Germany) (DVD)

Special Effects

• RISE Visual Effects Studios

Other Companies

• Aramid Capital Partners  funding
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera cranes
• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera dollies
• CinePostproduction  post-production
• DBC Sound  adr
• DBC Sound  walla
• Dolby Laboratories  sound mix
• Echo Lake Entertainment  co-development
• Post Modern Sound  ADR recording facility
• Ruhr Sound Studios  post-production sound services
• Tonstudio Hanse Warns  foley stage
• Veneration Music  music publishing
• Veneration Music  score coordination
• Zettier Sound Design  sound design & editorial

MPAA:

Rated R for language and brief sexuality

Runtime:

USA:120 min (Sundance Film Festival)

Country:

USA | UK | Germany | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Germany:12 (f) (bw) | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Canada:13+ (Québec) | USA:R (certificate #46218) | Australia:MA (2010) | Singapore:M18 | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Egoli Tossell Film

Trivia:

Gillian Anderson originally was set to play "Helen" but dropped out of the film due to a scheduling conflict.

Beautiful and painful at the same time

I saw this film yesterday evening on TV and I must say it is very beautiful and painful at the same time. You must be in the mood for this kind of film. Acting is excellent by all of the actors, but Ashley is simply brilliant – she could easily be nominated for Oscar. It is not an everyday story and topic is very hard and demanding, but directing and the tempo of the film is perfect, so you can easily follow the story and feel the pain of all the participants in the story. Goran Visnjic and Lauren Lee Smith both gave one of there best performances by my standards. I recommend this film to all the real movie fans who can appreciate the story and acting without a bunch of special effects.