Always on
This project successfully funded on 11th March 2026, you can still support them with a donation.
'Learning How to Feel' Short Film
Brighton, United Kingdom
Aim
We are fundraising for our graduate short film about a young woman who suddenly learns she will lose her sight in six months time.
Read below for more information about budget overview, the crew, vision and concept, and much more.
Logline
'Only a week into married life, wife Anna learns she will lose her sight in six months time. Husband Drew discovers the hardest part isn't the diagnosis, but navigating their opposing ways on how to prepare before this new chapter begins.'
Synopsis
Anna and Drew, newly married and still glowing from their wedding a week earlier, are suddenly confronted with devastating news. After experiencing bouts of blurred vision, Anna visits an eye specialist and learns she has a rare degenerative condition that will leave her completely blind within six months. The diagnosis shakes them both, but not in the same way.
Drew, terrified of losing the life they envisioned, immediately dives into research and planning, drawing up the next six months - desperately trying to prepare for the challenges ahead. Anna, an artist who has always approached the world through colour and intuition, refuses to let the prognosis define her final months of sight. She throws herself into painting and clings to a sense of normalcy, determined to live fully rather than surrender to fear.
Their opposing reactions become the first major conflict of their five-year relationship. Drew sees Anna’s denial as dangerous; Anna sees Drew’s pragmatism as suffocating and controlling. As pressure builds, they’re forced to confront not only the gravity of the diagnosis, but the fractures emerging between them. After their biggest fight ever, Anna leaves and ends up meeting someone who helps her to better see her situation and shifts her perspective.
In the end, they must learn to meet in the middle, balancing preparation with presence, fear with hope, and face this new chapter together.
What is 'Learning How to Feel'?
At its core, 'Learning How to Feel' is a story about two people navigating how to accept a life altering experience. It is a testimony for how much someone is willing to sacrifice to support the ones they love. As young adults, we have all begun to encounter stressful situations with loved ones where we have had to offer ourselves unconditionally.
Our story follows Anna, a painter, who's recently found out she is going to lose her vision in six months time, and her husband Drew, is willing to do whatever it takes to ensure her comfort and relief, even at the sacrifice of himself. Our story aims to reflect both sides of the narrative, not only those experiencing it first hand, but from their support systems. Ultimately, it's a story about learning how to accept help, and the importance of doing so in times of need.
Why our film?
We believe blindness is a disability that is underrepresented and rarely portrayed on screen. As young filmmakers, we understand the importance of sharing narratives that are rarely portrayed and we want to continue inviting these stories to be heard.
We have started reaching out to charities and organisations to ensure we are approaching the story in a way that is the most authentic and sensitive. We hope to work closely alongside an individual who has experienced visual impairment firsthand. As we appreciate the contribution from these charities for our story, we want to show our support and gratitude by donating a portion of our budget to a chosen charity.
Once we reach the production stage, we will provide a more detailed explanation. By choosing to contribute to our film, you will also be helping to support these individuals and the charities involved.
Vision and Concept
Directors Vision:
The house becomes a character of its own within 'Learning How to Feel'. My idea is to show how Anna and Drew project themselves into this space. Within the first sequence of the film, we are taken around the house into each room, observing boxes still unpacked and areas where the couple have started to unravel and place their personal belongings, the idea is to show that they have only been living in this house for a couple of weeks. We aim to use this to our advantage, exploring the use of negative space, highlighting parts of the house that are still empty and not yet touched. This becomes metaphorical to the stage of Anna and Drew's relationship, having started a new chapter, involving marriage and the beginning of the rest of their adult lives, this house is a reminder of the foundation they have set and the growth that is to come. The use of mirrors and shooting through doorways will be important framing used for the couples private moments when we as an audience are supposed to observe from a distance. The house will be both cold and warm within the film usually correlating with Anna's emotional state in that scene.
This moodboard highlights key elements of Anna's character. I want to highlight the bright colourful ways she portrays herself on the outside whilst also showing the loneliness that encapsulates her when processing the news of her approaching sight loss.
This moodboard is how I envision Drew's character, he is a warm figure within the film. Whilst he is often shown to be stressed and focused with planning their new life after Anna loses her vision, I still want him at his core to be shown as a comfort blanket for Anna that she slowly begins to lean on. This will be approached by dressing him in warm colours at home, soft patterns that incorporate some of Anna's style.
I want to document Anna's vision loss in interesting ways that I have not yet seen done before. Texture will play a massive part in doing so, playing around with different opacities and screens. I want to create a point of view that is experimental and artistic whilst also building on what individuals with blindness actually describe to see. We want to move away from the idea that Blind = darkness as this feels inaccurate and negative.
Cinematography:
This is the daytime mood board. I'm drawn to working with natural sunlight. By playing with shadows, negative space and composition, I want the frame to feel observational and intimate allowing vulnerability to exist without being over stylised. My aim is to capture a sense of rawness.
This is the nighttime moodboard. I want to work with warm lighting by embracing shadows and low light. I aim to reflect the characters sense of longing and lostness through layered composition and frames within frames. I want the visuals to show emotional distance while still preserving a sense of intimacy.
Set Design and Costume:
I have incorporated my initial ideas of how I want to bring the set design, characters and space alive through a mood board. I’ve used Pinterest to gather images from all aspects, such as the characters costumes, props, décor, lighting and character personalities. For the set design I have gone for a clean yet messy space, to symbolise Anna - the chaotic painter and Drew the clean, corporate husband. Which leads me into the characters costumes. Based on their personalities, I want them to look young but grown up, Anna more free-spirited and a little less put together but in a sophisticated way, whereas Drew’s styles more posh, corporate and a little less fashionable. I want the feel of their home and space to feel lived in, even though they have just moved in. This will somewhat be done through the lighting which will mostly be done through natural lighting as well as warm toned mood lighting, which you can see in my inspiration photos.
Sound:
My sound inspirations heavily lie on the emotions portrayed throughout the film. The heavy narrative and themes need to be dealt with authenticity and attention to what the couple is experiencing. Attending to raw, gentle recording and foley to match their realities. Gentle, but effective music and composition to compliment the emotions and narrative without being too distracting from what's happening on the screen.
Editing:
A great deal of my research of colourgrade has gone into films that include a comparative grade before and after a significant event. As seen in these side-by-side images from Little Women (2019), the distinct contrast in tones from warm white and inviting, to cold, melancholy is centered around Beth March’s death, or – in an equal nature – the death of the sisters’ childhood.
Meet The Crew
Elia Gerolemou - Director
‘Learning how to feel’ is such an important project to me as it opens up so many new doors within filmmaking. Exploring how to accurately portray blindness onscreen has been so insightful and made all of us better filmmakers, and as a director I am constantly looking for ways to elevate and change cinema.
Leading a team is something that has always felt right to me, overlooking the whole vision and making sure we are working in synchronicity, whilst also allowing opinions and voices to be heard - elevating the production. I take pride in creating a safe space for all my filmmakers and actors, always making sure their needs are met. I believe my strongest skills apply to how closely I work with my actors, making sure we have space and time to build up relationships offscreen before bringing them into the world of Anna and Drew. Our honest storytelling is what really sets this film apart, what you will be seeing is raw emotions and experiences, adapted from real heartwarming important stories.
Amalia Farrow - Producer
Hi, I'm Amalia — a filmmaker with experience in directing and editing, with a strong sense of visual expression, narrative shaping, and a collaborative approach on set. I bring a thoughtful, detail oriented style to my work, ensuring that every creative choice supports the emotional heart of the story. I’m highly organised, communicative, and thrive in team environments, which makes stepping into this role a natural extension of the way I already work.
I’m excited to take on the logistical and creative responsibilities of producing, especially for a project that requires such care, research, and sensitivity. The film’s emotional depth and commitment to truthful representation align closely with my values as a storyteller, and I’m extremely excited to help bring it to life.
Rhiannon Hanlan - Cinematographer
Hi, I’m Rhiannon, the Director of Photography for Learning How to Feel. My work is driven by a long-standing passion for film photography and visual storytelling. Through the lens, I’ve found a way to express intimacy and vulnerability in a language that often speaks louder than dialogue.
I was drawn to the film’s naturalistic tone and the delicate way it portrays a couple navigating a life-changing shift. Influenced by films such as Marriage Story and Past Lives, I’m inspired by their soft realism, rooted in natural lighting, grounded compositions, and observational long takes. I’m particularly interested in exploring space and framing to communicate emotional distance and internal conflict within the characters’ relationship.
As authenticity is essential to our portrayal of the protagonist’s gradual sight loss, I have conducted two test shoots exploring visual strategies to expound this experience. We are currently in the process of speaking with an individual who has experienced gradual sight loss, and working closely with them will allow us to ensure what we represent on screen is truthful, rather than an assumption.
Izzie Golunska - Editor
Hello, I’m Izzie – working as the editor for our film. I’m passionate about storytelling and the process of editing in creating linear/non-linear narratives that shape a story as impactful as this one. I am confident in my abilities to work well under pressure and balance the constraints of a post-production time limit, following working with the team during production.
DaVinci Resolve has been my primary software for the past three years, with which I’ve edited many a personal project and worked hard in improving my understanding of the software to the best of my abilities. With experience from working in this role in both college and first year, I’m enthusiastic to exemplify the improvement and strength of my abilities in a tangible way.
Because of our film’s subject matter, sound design is going to be really key in making the final edit come together, so I’m excited to be working closely with Ruby in creating a soundscape that emphasises the other senses; such as, amplifying textures like fingertips on surfaces, or subtle atmosphere changes as vision is decreased.
Additionally, I’m very keen to play around with colour grades, and how they can evolve in reflection of the vision loss; or in the same weight, through the evolution of their relationship. Taking inspiration from Moonlight (Barry Jenkins, 2016), Her (Spike Jonze, 2013), and Little Women (Greta Gerwig, 2019).
Martha Bailey - Production Designer
Hey, I'm Martha - I have worked on previous short films with experience in cinematography, which I have loved learning and growing my skills in. However, in this project I am the Set Designer, I have a passion in visual design, whether that is through lighting, set design and or camera operation and appreciate a carefully planned and detailed creative journey and representation on screen.
Working with this amazing story allows me to have so much creative freedom, and to express both these different characters through their personal belongings around their house as well as through their clothing styles. I am very excited to be trying a new role that I have never done before. The support from my team will help me bring this story to life and create a world for our characters.
Ruby Meredith - Sound Designer
Sound is an essential and powerful tool for filmmaking. I am thrilled to be taking on this project as the sound recordist, designer and editor. The films' emotional depth and authenticity drew me to its narrative, encouraging me to immediately envision a world of impactful sound and scoring. I’m new to the production of sound design, however, I am excited to challenge myself and piece the image to the sound.
During pre-production, I have been developing and touching up on technical skills, as we approach production. Including experimenting with different mics, exploring atoms, and researching composers and designers. I want to encapsulate the heavy emotions explored in an authentic and moving manner.
Budget Overview
Our budget has been carefully planned to bring our short film to life with accuracy and care. Most of our funding will support production needs such as actors, food, travel, and hair and makeup. A significant portion also goes toward pre-production costs like rehearsals, props, set design, costumes, and location permits. Finally, we’ve allocated funds for film festivals, which are essential for gaining exposure, reaching audiences who can connect with the film’s message, and amplifying the important voices at the heart of this story.
As part of this project, we’ve also committed to giving back. We’re setting aside a small portion of our £4,000 budget to donate to a visual impairment charity connected to the story. It’s important to us that this film gives back in a meaningful way and honors the real experiences that inspired it. Here is a pie chart that shows how our funding is distributed.
Production Timeline:
Script Outline: Completed
First Draft: Completed
Pre-Production: October 2025 – February 2026
Filming: March 2026
Post-Production: March - May 2026
Thank you!
Thank you for your support and for taking the time to read about our project. We’re incredibly excited and confident in this film, and we can’t wait to bring it to life!
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made