Rebecca Day is a BACP registered psychotherapist & clinical supervisor and, previously, a documentary producer. She created Film In Mind in 2018 when she saw a very real need to address the collective mental health of the documentary world she was working in. For her, being able to combine her two passions in this way feels like such a privilege. Her filmmaking career began with the Scottish Documentary Institute (SDI) in 2008, where she developed and produced several shorts and feature docs and worked on innovative impact and audience engagement campaigns. She was drawn to the challenging and emotive subject matter and became curious about what psychological support could look like for documentary teams and participants. Training as a person-centred therapist was a life-changing journey. She learnt to prioritise her own mental health so that she could offer the strength and support that her clients needed. It quickly became clear that the tools she was given as a therapist could be invaluable resources for the documentary community and so Film In Mind was born. Since establishing Film In Mind, she has seen many filmmaking clients for personal therapy, she has developed a model of supervision to support filmmakers professional work, she has spoken at dozens of film festivals and during film labs on the issue of mental health in filmmaking, developed several training initiatives for filmmakers around this issue and launched a research project called DocuMentality with her partners, Malikkah Rollins & the D-Word. When working with clients, either through training, individual therapy or consultation, she draws on her insight from both industries to create a safe and open environment that enables us to look at new ways of working – one that accepts the vulnerable spaces we find ourselves in.

As the new Director of Industry and Education at DOC/NYC, Malikkah will oversee a portfolio of projects including DOC NYC PRO, the festival’s line-up of educational courses and industry networking opportunities; Only In New York industry meetings for filmmakers with works-in-progress; and the 40 Under 40 list. Malikkah brings 15 years of experience in education, counseling, and professional development to the role. As a freelance doc producer, WIFV/DC board member, Sundance Collab Community Leader and D Word Ambassador, Malikkah’s passion is rooted in connecting people and building stronger, more collaborative film communities.