The Secret of Me

19-year-old Kristi discovers a secret her doctor and parents have kept from her all her life. Her search for truth uncovers a radical psychology experiment on a pair of identical twins that led to a global medical scandal.

Director: Grace Hughes-Hallett 

Producer: James Rogan, Flora Stewart 

Executive Producer: Mark Hedgecoe, Nicholas Franklin, Soleta Rogan, Ben Coren, Sacha Mirzoeff, Ollie Madden, Mark Thomas 

Production Company: Rogan Scotland 

Commissioner: Film4 and Channel 4 Docs 

Sales Agent: Dogwoof 

Screen Scotland support: The film accessed £200,000 through Screen Scotland’s Film Development and Production Fund


Synopsis

Directed and produced Grace Hughes-Hallett (producer of Three Identical Strangers) the documentary lifts the lid on a medical scandal that started in America in the 1960s and exploded into the public eye in the 2000s.  The consequences for thousands of young children would be devastating. For one young student, it would change her life forever. This eye-opening film raises profound questions about secrecy, consent and identity. 

It’s 1995 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. During a feminist studies class, college student Kristi opens her textbook to discover something that turns her world upside down. 

For as long as she can remember, Kristi has felt different- now she knows why. Demanding her medical records, Kristi is finally confronted with the devastating truth: she has been lied to all her life by those she trusted the most.   

What follows is the unearthing of an extraordinary and disturbing secret that goes far beyond her own life, leading to the discovery of a psychology experiment on a pair of twins – once hailed as a revolutionary success but now revealed to be a terrible lie affecting thousands around the world. 


More information

Premiere: The Secret of Me will have its World Premiere at SXSW as part of the Documentary Feature Competition. 

Image credits: Courtesy of Rogan Scotland