INPUT / … / … / Protecting the Vulnerable: Examining Social Care Institutions. How can fiction shape debates about such public institutions?

One of the missions of public service media is to examine the work of other public institutions and stimulate a national conversation about them. How can fiction achieve this? This session presents three TV series that talk about care institutions from different angles and genres: a drama inspired by real-life cases of abuse in child welfare residences; a noir series about child protection services; and a show that mixes drama, dance and music to talk about mental illness. These programs dissect the functioning of these institutions, denounce their shortcomings and portray the demanding daily lives of care professionals and the emotional cost of their jobs. What was the research process behind the series? How to dramatize such complex issues and make them appealing to a mainstream audience? What do these productions achieve by ortraying the institutions and themes the way they do? Is that the right way to go? And what was the viewers’ response? How did the institutions react?