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Accepted Paper:

Possessed  
Martin Hampton

Paper short abstract:

'POSSESSED' enters the complicated worlds of four hoarders. It questions whether hoarding is a symptom of mental illness or a revolt against the material recklessness of consumerism. When does collecting become hoarding and why do possessions exert such an influence on our lives?

Paper long abstract:

'POSSESSED' enters the complicated worlds of four hoarders; people whose lives are dominated by their relationship to possessions. The film's structure follows four separate monologues, starting with a collector of books who is losing control of his hobby, followed by a compulsive ebay shopper who spent £15,000 of credit on mobile phones. Thirdly we encounter a woman who can't throw anything away and whose house is a time capsule of everything that's ever entered the door. The final chapter features a gentleman whose small apartment has fallen into a state of total abandon, piled high with mounds of torn paper and records, while he mourns the death of his beloved mother. The film asks indirectly whether hoarding is a symptom of mental illness or a revolt against the material recklessness of consumerism. It looks for the moment when 'collecting' become 'hoarding', and ultimately asks why possessions exert such an influence on our lives.

Panel P45
Living with and through profusion: narrating selves and shaping futures
  Session 1