Judge Me, I Walk on Glass – A Documentary About Addiction

The film, which is part of Thora Karlsdottir's final project as a master's student in the Department of Art Education at the Icelandic Institute of Technology, is an auto-ethnography where the artistic process revolves around communicating one's own experiences and life experiences as a mother. The goal of making this documentary film is that personal experiences can be used as educational material, learning material, teaching material and prevention education for young people and others.

"The subject of the film is addiction and my son's life over the past 20 years and his struggle with the disease, and the film describes my experience as the mother of a boy who developed an addiction from the age of 15. The sequence of events takes over his life and to a large extent the lives of all of us around him. The film provides insight into the journey of a mother, artist, teacher and person who recalls difficult memories of serious events and difficult decisions."

The film reflects the experience of our time, both in the students I teach at the junior high school level as well as in our society. The serious consequences of addiction are described, and since this is a true story, it is my sincere hope that it will increase credibility and make it easier for viewers to put themselves in the shoes of the narrator. A true story that no one could imagine experiencing for themselves or with their family. But addiction knows no class or status and can in fact happen to anyone. It is a choice to start tinkering with mind-altering substances, whether it is alcohol or something else. Not everyone ends up with an addiction, but no one knows where tinkering ends when it begins. The film examines the cold reality of a child who becomes addicted to drugs, stagnates in development as an adult and does not recover, despite repeated attempts at treatment.

The work is a personal exposure and is being done with the consent of my son and other family members.”

Thora Karlsdottir will graduate with a master's degree and teaching qualifications from the Faculty of Art Education in the spring of 2025.

Further information about the final project and the graduation presentation schedule can be found here.