We’ve built a culture where exhaustion is worn as a badge of honour, where vulnerability is punished, and where “I’m fine” has become our most rehearsed lie.

For filmmaker Tom Haramis, this story begins not as an observer, but as someone who has lived it — confronting the very system that once broke him. After decades of success in the creative industry, Tom sought new purpose and found himself face to face with workplace toxicity and manipulation that reawakened old scars of silence and self-doubt.

His journey becomes the emotional thread connecting five deeply human stories — from athletes and executives to students, parents, and creators — revealing the hidden architecture of burnout and the quiet conspiracy of silence that sustains it. Through intimate interviews, raw testimony, and unexpected humour, The Mental Affect uncovers how technology, comparison, and performance culture have reshaped our sense of worth.

Yet beneath the chaos lies something deeply hopeful. As people begin to speak openly, private pain becomes collective strength. The act of truth-telling — of saying “I’m not okay” — becomes a radical act of courage.

With warmth and wit, comedian Sam McCool brings levity to these conversations, transforming heaviness into connection. His exchanges with Tom create emotional bridges — letting audiences laugh, reflect, and breathe between moments of intensity.

The Mental Affect is not a passive documentary — it’s an intervention. It confronts uncomfortable truths with warmth, humour, and humanity, offering genuine pathways toward healing. Beyond the screen, the film extends its impact through guided screenings, open conversations, and partnerships with workplaces, schools, and mental health organisations — transforming viewing into participation.

By its final frame, we understand that mental health isn’t something to “fix” or “achieve,” but a constant negotiation between what the world demands and what our humanity requires. In an age obsessed with productivity, The Mental Affect dares to suggest that our greatest strength may be our willingness to say, clearly and without shame: “I am not okay. And that’s where my healing begins.”