In the film, co-directed by Michael Landsberg and son Corey, the singer-songwriter, who won the final season of Canadian Idol back in 2008 and has released several albums, including last year's Trilogy 1, discusses his own journey with mental health.
The trailer is a clip of Tams talking about feeling "terrified that the bombshell of me being gay was going to come out," after he inadvertently used the "he" pronoun live on national television when talking about a relationship.
The doc airs at 7:30 p.m. EST but both the film and panel can be streamed from Jan. 21 to 26. Sign up for free tickets by clicking the "watch online" button.
The synopsis for Theo Tams: One Last Chance says “the uber-talented singer-songwriter opens up about his mental health journey—from growing up gay in small-town Alberta, to navigating the psychological impacts of trauma, depression and addiction, and his path to recovery.”
The screening is part of Hot Docs at Home, presented in partnership with Bell Let’s Talk, SickNotWeak Charitable Foundation and Workman Arts.
The panel includes Tams, veteran sportscaster and mental health advocate Michael Landsberg, and Rainbow Resource Centre counsellor Chrystal Neault Lount. Amanda Lederle will also be on hand as a supportive listener to monitor the online chat and help connect people to supports if needed.
Bell Let’s Talk Day is an annual national campaign held on Jan. 26 which encourages Canadian to talk openly about mental health and help break stigmas. In doing so, Bell will contribute 5 cents for every applicable text, call, tweet or TikTok video using #BellLetsTalk, social media video view and use of our Facebook frame or Snapchat lens. The intiative began in 2010. In March 2020, it extended the initiative another five years, bringing its total funding commitment for Canadian mental health to at least $155 million.
Workman Arts is a multidisciplinary arts organization that promotes a greater understanding of mental health and addiction issues through creation and presentation.
Sick Not Weak is the charitable foundation Michael Landsberg started in 2016 with a “mandate is to change the way people view mental illness…We try to reduce the stigma by cutting through the sanitized, often formal, often corporate, talk to deliver a fresh, personal, often emotional message.”