Children of Darkness

For the silent German film, see Children of Darkness (1921 film).

Children of Darkness
Produced byAra Chekmayan
Richard Kotuk
Narrated byPeter Thomas
CinematographyChuck Levey
Edited byAra Chekmayan
Release date
  • 1983 (1983)
Running time
57 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Children of Darkness is a 1983 American documentary film on PBS produced by Ara Chekmayan and Richard Kotuk. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.[1]

It is about mentally ill 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 in Poland, Maine, Sagamore Children's Center, a Long Island (state run) institution and South Beach in New York psychiatric hospital. 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One of the drugs that caused patient deaths in the South Beach hospital is mesoridazine, which was withdrawn from the United States market in 2004 due to dangerous heart side effects.[2] The Élan School closed in 2011 due to criticism of its alleged treatment of patients.[3]

  1. ^ "NY Times: Children of Darkness". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Baseline & All Movie Guide. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved November 16, 2008.
  2. ^ "Mesoridazine Oral: MedlinePlus Drug Information". www.nlm.nih.gov. Retrieved May 7, 2017.
  3. ^ Meyer, Judith. Elan School closing due to low numbers, negative Web campaign, Sun Journal, March 23, 2011. Retrieved on March 24, 2011.