About The Film

Turning Point: Ending Suicide in Wyoming is a thirty-minute short documentary directed by Casper, Wyoming native Brooke Schmill. As most Wyoming natives know, the state has historically had one of the highest suicide rates in the United States. Unfortunately, as many young people in Wyoming have experienced, at age 16, Brooke lost a classmate to suicide. After losing two more classmates over the next few years, at the age of 21, she made her first short documentary investigating the problem. 

In 2021, Brooke learned Wyoming’s suicide rates were still historically high. Believing that change is possible, she decided to make another documentary. In the summer of 2022, she interviewed a broad sample of people affected by suicide around Wyoming. Turning Point features suicide survivors, mental health providers, first responders, city officials, and parents who have lost their child to suicide.

Brooke hopes the film will raise awareness for suicide prevention, encourage open conversations about mental health, and secure resources for crucially needed services such as the new 988 hotline. A Q&A session with participants in the film will follow each screening.