A documentary film that chronicles the daily tribulations of three families facing alcohol and drug addiction is the latest in psychiatrist Ken Rosenberg, M.D.’s repertoire of cinematic accomplishments. Directed and produced by Rosenberg, "Drinking Apart: Families Under the Influence" aired on HBO’s "America Undercover" series in August.

Viewers will meet Sam, a man who was once a bond manager on Wall Street, and his wife Toinette, who was once a police officer. Because of his drinking, Sam lost his job. Toinette was jailed for felonies related to substance abuse and entered a rehabilitative prison. When she was released, she had not seen her husband or children in a year. Said Toinette, "I fell in love with a man who was a drunk. Now I have a sober man as my husband."

The film also follows Eric and Jillian, a young couple who met and fell in love in a bar and quickly moved in together. Worried by their heavy drinking and arguing, Jillian suggests they enter therapy. Attempts at sobriety lead to intensified fighting, and the couple eventually drops out of therapy.

Then there is Patria, a one-time heroin addict who is fighting to keep her daughter, Erica, from following in her footsteps.

The idea was to make a film about family therapy and addiction, and as it turned out, Rosenberg had his work cut out for him. "Family therapy and addiction don’t necessarily go together," he told Psychiatric News, adding, "Fortunately, I was able to find a place where a dedicated group of family therapists were trying to change that." He filmed the therapy sessions at the Ackerman Institute for the Family and used the more salient sessions in the documentary, mixing them with the subjects’ life at home and on the street.

How did the film’s subjects feel about Rosenberg following them around with a camera through some of the most trying times of their lives? "Before filming, I met with the families extensively and built a trusting alliance. They know that this is not just a happy snapshot of the family, but that we are going to try and follow them through thick and thin," Rosenberg said. For example, at one point during the three-year filming period, Rosenberg called Toinette to find out how she was doing. She had relapsed. "Want to come over?," she asked. Rosenberg took her up on her offer, and the documentary captures her alone in her kitchen, drunk and disheveled, lamenting her latest drinking binge and what it does to her family.

Rosenberg became interested in filmmaking while in medical school at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. While there, he took some film courses, and with the help of professor David Preven, M.D., received money from the National Institute of Mental Health to make a film on Alzheimer’s disease, which became "An Alzheimer’s Story." The film drew national attention and received awards from several organizations.

Rosenberg took three years between his internship at Bellevue Hospital and his residency at Cornell University to work on films professionally. At Cornell, he met Alan Manevitz, M.D. Manevitz created the Foundation for Education for the Public and the Professional in Psychiatry, which helped to sponsor Rosenberg’s fellowship. It was during this time that he produced "Through Madness," a short film depicting the devastating effects of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder on three people’s lives. Rosenberg won an Emmy award for this work.

In addition, Richard Francis, M.D., medical director and CEO of Silver Hill Hospital in New Canaan, Conn., will present Rosenberg with the Silver Hill Hospital Media Award for his work on "Drinking Apart" and two other films, "Back from Madness: The Struggle for Sanity" and "Why Am I Gay?"

"Back from Madness" follows psychiatric patients’ care from the time they enter the emergency room doors at Massachusetts General Hospital. "Why Am I Gay?" is about individuals coming to terms with their homosexuality.

The award is to be presented for the first time this month in New York City and honors those whose achievements in the media have contributed to patient and family education about mental illness. Said Francis, former chair of the APA Council on Addiction Psychiatry, "One of the problems with psychiatry is that there are many inaccuracies in the way that mental illness and treatments are portrayed, and this award was developed to honor those who accurately portray psychiatric illnesses and treatment."

Remarking on how well Rosenberg achieves this portrayal, he added "It is rare to find someone who embodies both a talented filmmaker and a gifted and insightful psychiatrist."

Rosenberg describes his films as "cinema verité"—he spends a great deal of time with the people he is filming while life takes its course. Remarking on the similarities between filming a documentary and practicing psychiatry, he said that "Both require the same skills—knowing how to interview people, following their lives, and digging out the truth."

In creating "Drinking Apart," Rosenberg hoped to impress upon filmgoers the serious and chronic nature of addiction. "This condition requires above all else that people fight the good fight," he emphasized. In this film, as in life, "They hang in there. They do what Woody Allen suggests. They show up. They come to therapy, they argue, they think about getting divorced, they relapse, but they don’t give up."

This year Rosenberg has also been nominated for an Emmy award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for his role as an executive producer of the HBO program "Cancer: Evolution to Revolution."