Jodie Foster Talks About Beaver Movie and Depression

Author: National Alliance on Mental Illness
Published: 2011/02/09 - Updated: 2022/06/09
Category Topic: Films, Radio and TV - Academic Publications

Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main

Synopsis: Exclusive cover story interview with actress Jodie Foster about depression and her movie The Beaver. Foster directed and starred in The Beaver. The movie deals with major depression and a family striving for recovery. In the moving comedy-drama, a man with mental illness becomes disconnected from his family and needs help.

Defining Jodie Foster

Jodie Foster

Alicia Christian "Jodie Foster" was born November 19, 1962, in Los Angeles, California. Foster, an American actress, director, and producer, began her professional career as a child model at age three and made her acting debut in 1968 in the television sitcom Mayberry R.F.D. She has three older full siblings: Lucinda (born 1954), Constance (born 1955), and Lucius, nicknamed "Buddy" (born 1957), as well as three half-brothers from her father's earlier marriage.

Introduction

In the new issue of the Advocate, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) presents an exclusive cover story interview with actress Jodie Foster about her upcoming new movie.

Main Content

Foster directed and stars in The Beaver. The movie deals with major depression and a family striving for recovery. In the moving comedy-drama, a man living with mental illness becomes disconnected from his family and needs help.

He begins to communicate through a beaver puppet. Foster acknowledges that "depression is a serious thing and there is nothing romantic about it," but "we are born with comedy and tragedy and that is in some ways the human condition."

"Depression is a part of all our lives. Everyone has experience with it either in their own families or with friends. I had a lot of personal connections," Foster said.

"When you are acting and you squeeze everything out of the sponge, you learn much more about it. I took this very personal topic that I have a lot of feelings about and I say everything that there is possible to say about it," she continued.

In the interview, Foster discussed a "ruminating spirit" often connected to depression.

"There is the type of person who sees a problem, tragedy or complicated situation and instead of running from it, they ask questions...Why did this happen? Let me think about this in 500 ways."

"Some depressed people show that they have the propensity to ruminate," she said. "There is a line of course when it is very dangerous with depression, and that is part of what the movie addresses as well."

In the movie, healing begins, but there are no easy answers.

"We can't give up on one another," Foster said. If there is any lesson to be learned that's the one.

Attribution/Source(s): This quality-reviewed publication was selected for publishing by the editors of Disabled World (DW) due to its relevance to the disability community. Originally authored by National Alliance on Mental Illness and published on 2011/02/09, this content may have been edited for style, clarity, or brevity.