ON THE BUS ON TV

ON THE BUS ON TV
I invite you to watch the last rerun of my Academy Award (Oscar®) qualifying short film, the noted award-winning psychological thriller, On the Bus. It plays live on prime time TV with me, for the first time this weekend! It is now live on Vimeo Pro as well. I am so proud! Wax showed twice that day and On the Bus aired 3 times, along with yet another television show I did, also on frequent reruns. If a schizophrenic can do it, anyone can! THANK YOU! —Jonathan Harnisch smile emoticon
‘Award-winning executive producer and screenwriter, Jonathan Harnisch's first viewing, reaction and commentary of his Academy Award (Oscar®) Qualifying psychological thriller, On the Bus on live on DIRECTV®.’
Distributed worldwide by Shorts International. In the vein of Christopher Nolan’s MEMENTO comes ON THE BUS (2015) Fat Man Media’s psychological thriller about the experiences of Larry (Mark Schrier), a mentally disturbed man, who rides a bus and bothers passengers based on recent circumstances in his life. The film’s surprise ending startles the audience and ties the fragmented story together to a dramatic conclusion. Harnisch's WAX & ON THE BUS TV channels available w/ AT&T HD PREMIER TIER PACKAGE and can be viewed on Channel 1789. Otherwise DIRECTV® HD EXTRA PACK and can be viewed on Channel 568.
About Jonathan Harnisch:
Initially diagnosed with depression in 1994 at the age of 18, I was prescribed antidepressants, including the newest of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Unfortunately, these triggered mania, and to combat this, I began to drink, which intensified my psychological instability and led to an addiction that I was finally able to overcome when I was 26.
However, as difficult as the disorders have been, in many ways, I have been blessed. Many call me a gifted artist, and I have frequently used my art to exorcise my own demons of isolation and loneliness. In 1998, I dramatized those issues in my award-winning film, Ten Years, which I produced, directed, and wrote while attending NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
In 2008, I once again dramatized those themes of isolation and loneliness in another award-winning film, On the Bus, which, in addition, explores the horrors and chaos of mental illness. Through the eyes of the main character Larry, we see the uncontrollable, tumultuous symptoms of schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as brought on by a random act of violence.
A single act of violence rarely causes severe mental illness. Current research indicates that such illness is generally a result of a genetic predisposition combined with environmental factors. My case would seem to validate that research, as there is a history of mental illness in my family, and I have suffered repeated trauma. Whatever the genesis, beginning in 2009 and culminating in the summer of 2010, I experienced a severe psychotic episode that manifested in inappropriate, violent outbursts and regnant destructive behavior. Ultimately, however, this episode brought me the help I needed, including a comprehensive psychological work-up that provided an accurate diagnosis and the right medication. Now, psychologically stable, I invite others to behold my candid daily encounters with the symptoms of schizophrenia.
In the past, I have been known to willingly and genuinely share my life. In the same vein as prolific figures such as Elyn R. Saks, Kay Redfield Jamison, and Oliver Sacks, I continue to illustrate my personal ongoing struggle with chronic mental illness nurturing truth, acceptance, fiction, transgression, and community.
My art, imagination, and various creative outlets are simply my own catalysts for continuous resiliency and recovery. With the launch of my now former and viral website (as of December 2013), I had turned another engaging and uplifting page of my story. I hoped to impact others in some way through my publicized journey of how one individual copes with the perpetual rollercoaster of the experiences living with schizophrenia and Tourette’s syndrome, some material stranger than fiction.
I consider myself a still-recovering schizophrenic, an accomplished writer, producer, and musician, who writes about mental illness and New Age ideas and treatments, and again a darker side, a much darker side, to which you will likely bear witness. Alas, my Alibiography.
— Jonathan Harnisch