Aria Starlight, a short film

Aim

Fund a beautiful fairytale following a young child and her magical doll as they navigate the overwhelming reality of childhood bereavement.

Aria Starlight: Help Us Bring Light to Grieving Children 

Aria Starlight is a beautiful fairytale following a six-year-old girl and her magical doll as they navigate the overwhelming reality of childhood bereavement. 

Every single day in the UK, 127 children face the devastating news that a parent isn't coming home, according to Child Bereavement UK. How do young minds process a loss that massive? What stories do they tell themselves just to survive? 

We explore these questions in our upcoming film, Aria Starlight, which follows little Melody and her magical doll, Aria, as they gather starlight to send Melody’s mother to the stars before grief overcomes them. 

We have the support of Jeremiah’s Journey, a Plymouth-based charity that helps young people through the grieving process, in bringing this film to life as a visual tool for conversations between children and their guardians.

THE NARRATIVE JOURNEY: 

Our story opens as a star falls from the sky into the quiet woodlands of the South West. Here, six-year-old Melody and magical doll, Aria, encounter The Murmurer – a dark character, despair personified - who sucks the very starlight they are gathering right out of the doll. 

Seeking guidance from a mystical guardian named Hester, Melody embarks on a quest into the city's concrete maze to find light in human kindness. Yet what Melody finds is a city clouded by sadness, bitter arguments and intense disappointment. And with each disappointing encounter, the Murmurer draws more light from Aria.

Following Hester’s advice, Melody gives kindness rather than try to receive it. Aria’s starlight begins to increase, just as Hester had promised, until a chance comment jolts Melody back into the magnitude of her loss. At that moment, The Murmurer envelops her in grief, and Aria's light dies. 

Melody, trapped in the darkness of despair, hears a distant, beautiful song - the collective warmth of the small acts of goodwill she offered to the strangers she met along the way. This reignites Aria’s light and summons Hester once more. Hester casts a brilliant bolt of light towards the Murmurer, shattering his grip on Melody. The Murmurer evaporates - for now. 

Melody emerges into the real world right next to her grieving father who, she now realises, has been with her every step of the way. With Aria’s light restored, Melody can safely send her mother into the stars. 

WHY NOW? 

Aria Starlight is being developed not just as a piece of cinema, but as a vital, highly accessible visual tool designed to encourage compassionate, age-appropriate conversations about loss between children and guardians. By using the lens of a fairytale, we can address a deeply sensitive topic with grace, cinematic beauty, and – crucially - hope, arriving at a cultural moment when open conversations about mental health and childhood trauma have never been more vital. 

WHY HELP? 

To do justice to a story of this importance, we are building a production network that champions regional UK talent. We are shooting entirely on location across Plymouth and Dartmoor, keeping high-end creative jobs in the region and providing crucial professional credits to our home-grown West Country crew. 

When you back Aria Starlight, you aren't just buying a reward tier or securing an IMDb credit. You actively invest in the South West's creative ecosystem. 

WHAT’S THE MONEY FOR? 

Moving a magical production from the page to physical reality requires transparent, practical resources. Our cameras are locked to roll at the beginning of August, and every single pound pledged directly funds our production departments: 

* 10% equipment hire 

* 20% costume, fabrication and craft services: Hand-crafting Aria the doll, creating the distinct costumes that bridge the gap between stylised fantasy and the concrete city. Feeding the cast and crew. 

* 60% cast and crew reimbursement 

*10% Festival Fees: The submission pipeline required to take this film to major BAFTA and Oscar-qualifying UK festivals (BFI London Film Festival, Encounters, LSFF). These festivals help us keep conversations going and maintain momentum. 

MEET THE TEAM 

DIRECTOR, SCREENWRITER AND PRODUCER: SIMON ELVIN  

MA (Distinction) qualified screenwriter, director and composer, with over three decades of writing for theatre and film. A recording and performing singer-songwriter in his youth, Simon progressed from telling stories in song to creating worlds and characters for the stage and screen. 

PRODUCER: ALEX GAUMOND 

Acclaimed West End actor, writer, composer, singer and producer. Alex has a track record for producing award-winning short films and brings that expertise to Aria Starlight. As an actor, he is currently starring as Jean Valjean in the 2026 French Canadian production of Les Misérables in Montreal. 

PRODUCER: RACHEL ADAMS 

Co-founder of Aria Starlight Pictures Ltd. Having spent many years in the NHS as a healthcare professional, Rachel turned to film producing and brings a great deal of experience in leadership and organisational skills to her role as producer. 

The producers are superbly supported by a talented cast and crew across all the disciplines needed to bring this film to life. 

WHERE WILL WE BE? 

* Now: pre-production. Casting, location scouting, production design, costume and prop design and fabrication, script editing, pre-visualisation, rehearsals. 

* August 2026: Principal photography begins on location in Plymouth. 

* Autumn/Winter 2026: Postproduction: film editing, sound design, VFX rendering, musical scoring and exclusive backer private screenings. 

* Spring 2027: Festival submission run, e.g., BFI London, Encounters, and international shorts circuits, with a focus on BAFTA and Oscar - qualifying festivals. 

TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP CHILDREN FIND THEIR STARLIGHT. 

Pledge today. And know you’re making a massive difference.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 5th August 2026 at 11:37pm