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The ICCM Journal | Summer 2020 | V88 No. 2
Question 8
A mother carrying twins experiences problems in her pregnancy, is told one of her twins has died at 22 weeks gestation. She goes on to deliver both her twins at 31 weeks gestation. The other twin lives for 2 hours but doesn’t survive. What paperwork would you expect in this case?
Question 9
Can you accept body parts from someone whose body was cremated elsewhere? Answer A – Yes B – No
Question 10
Can a pet be cremated with the deceased in the same coffin? Answer A – Yes B – No
under the radar It’s October 2017 and Disney have just launched their latest animated feature ‘Coco’. Its release is met with great fanfare and Director Lee Unkrich’s film, which is vibrant in its depiction of a Mexican child becoming aware of his family’s cultural heritage in its relationship with the Day of the Dead, is about to raise $800 million plus at the box office. Leap forward to March 2019 and Ricky Gervais has just premiered his new black comedy drama ‘After Life’ on Netflix to critical acclaim. After Life tells the narrative of Tony Johnson, a depressed and suicidal journalist who is trying to adapt following his life being turned upside down after losing his wife to breast cancer. We therefore have two completely separate attempts to bring grieving, loss and our relationship with death to the forefront of mainstream entertainment. There have been many films before that have highlighted grief such as ‘P.S I love You’, ‘The Lovely Bones’ and ‘We Bought A Zoo’, however for Disney to be taking this issue to a targeted, younger audience, and for an internationally successful comedian such as Gervais to choose to highlight the after effects of losing someone and the darkness that can follow, are both bold moves which could be suggested as commendable in their efforts.
It is noticeable however that despite their attempts, it can be quite difficult to note critical reviews that are in support of the content of these mediums. They have both been successful in their own genres with general reviews and financial performances backing this up. But it seems that we may have missed a perfect opportunity to promote the concepts of these particular examples of entertainment. It could be pondered how many grieving children that are currently struggling with the loss of a parent for example, may benefit from watching Coco and understanding a little more their own feelings, frustrations and fears. Whilst it is accepted that everyone is different and that these examples may not be the best fit for all, I am keen to use this platform to gently highlight how useful they may be in our day to day roles in seeing grief from a different perspective. In short, if you haven't seen them already, maybe give them a watch if you have some spare time; I would love to know our members' feedback or if you have your own examples of how understanding grief is being approached in different ways and means. Mathew Crawley, ICCM Technical and Member Services Officer
