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Isabelle Carré Centers Youth Mental Health in Directorial Debut ‘Les Rêveurs’

Drawing on her own adolescent hospitalization, the actor-director argues France is failing young people in distress.

Overview

  • Carré releases her first feature film adapted from her 2018 novel, revisiting teenage psychiatric care through a story set around Paris’s Necker hospital.
  • She says the film aims to open dialogue and give adolescents practical ways to cope, using a gentle approach without graphic scenes to remain accessible to younger viewers.
  • Cited studies indicate 13% of children aged 6–11 present psychological disorders and that hospitalizations for suicide attempts or self-harm among girls 10–14 have risen 246% over a decade.
  • Carré criticizes the lack of concrete support, pointing to the absence of a dedicated childhood ministry, regional gaps in care structures, and insufficient training for educators confronting self-harm in classrooms.
  • She links rising distress to social-media pressure, hypersexualization, harassment and sexual violence, and promotes art therapy, theatre or sport as constructive outlets.