Dementia Doesn't Care

Aim: We are aiming to produce a short film from the perspective of a child with a parent with young onset dementia.

Imagine being a child and slowly watching your parent slip away. Not physically, but piece by piece, in memory, in recognition, in presence. Imagine having to become the adult before you've even finished being a child. That’s the silent reality for thousands of young people in the UK living with a parent who has Young Onset Dementia. It's confusing, frightening, and heartbreakingly isolating - and yet their stories are rarely told.

A well told story is the greatest delivery system ever invented. 

Young Onset Dementia is diagnosed in individuals under the age of 65, when people are expected to be working, have financial responsibilities and be raising children. It is well established that having a parent with any illness or disability can have an adverse effect on a child's experience of education and on their educational progress. The impact for a child living with a parent with young onset dementia is an area that has not received a great deal of attention, but from what we have seen, nationally there are significant emotional, psychological and practical needs not being addressed or met.

Having run some support services for children in this area, our charity, Younger People with Dementia, are keen to raise the profile of the impact of this diagnosis on the child, thereby raising awareness and improving the support infrastructure. One of these initiatives is to produce a short film depicting the impact of the disease on a child. Nick Tree (https://www.nicktreefilm.com/), writer of the script says "I wrote this script because I was so incredibly moved by reading multiple accounts of real teenagers' stories, all of whom were currently living with, and caring for a parent with Young Onset Dementia. As a father myself, but also as a son, I found them completely heart breaking. For me, the age of the parent and what that could mean in terms of physical violence and forgotten love, really informed the way that I approached Lana and her father’s story.

We will make this film with absolute integrity and keep Younger People With Dementia’s ethos at the core of the story, with invaluable support from the charity to ensure that we maintain honesty and accurate details throughout. We will also endeavour to get the film seen by as wide an audience as possible and offer training opportunities too, just as we did with our last collaboration with the charity with our award winning short film, called ‘If Not Now, When?’ starring BAFTA winner Kate Dickie."

Synopsis - Dementia doesn't care

Lana is having to grow up a lot faster than many of her friends as she adopts the role of joint carer for her 55 year old father. Her dad has begun to develop symptoms of Young Onset Dementia and we see the impact that this has on the family through a very short narrative with a heart-breaking twist. This is a creative and visceral way of reaching a wider audience and promoting the needs of those youngsters living with and caring for a parent/relative diagnosed with Young Onset Dementia.

We meet Lana sat at the piano, learning a melody for the first time. As weeks pass she gets better and more accomplished, until she is finally ready to show her dad the beautiful piece of music that she has so diligently learned to play. From here we begin to learn that this is not just a practical endeavour and that the song has meaning, far beyond the music, for both Lana and her dad.

A story can make people feel less alone, like they're being seen.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 10th October 2025 at 4:37pm