KJ Apa as Kane Jenkins.
Opinion
Shortland Street you did it well. The writers, crew and cast - especially 15-year-old actor KJ Apa - and the advisers from the Mental Health Foundation all deserve enormous bouquets. The soap handled the recent storyline around youth suicide with great sensitivity.
I'm sure many families would have gained helpful
insight into the difficult area of depression (and sadly, often suicide) among our young people. According to provisional data from the chief coroner, in the year to June 30, 104 New Zealanders aged between 15 and 25 have taken their own lives.
The Mental Health Foundation advised on scripts for the story of Kane Jenkins (played by Apa) and his decline into depression. Their expert advice meant the removal of specific information around his attempt at suicide to discourage any copycat scenario.
As a bipolar sufferer, I have struggled with depression and my first bewildering experience was when I was about the same age as our on-screen Kane. I remember the lethargy and the anxiety and not knowing what was happening to me. I also remember when I couldn't concentrate enough to do a casual school holiday job, telling my friends I had glandular fever, and the difficult transition back into ordinary school life.
This young actor managed perfectly to depict that decline into a serious depression. His body language was faultless. He even seemed to have the "dead eyes" I associate with depression.
