So What's It All About?
A short Film by multi-award-winning Seahorse Films Ltd and Lost Eye Entertainment Ltd
On the bleak Lincolnshire fens, a young woman struggling to process her recent Aspergers diagnosis discovers an artistic talent that unleashes the true, magical individuality of her identity in a story of folklore, fantasy and self-fulfilment brought to life through a unique blend of live action and animation.
The film is a moving, entertaining and empowering story about Aspergers sprinkled with magical realism and animation.
Pennywort is the name of a marsh plant native to the Lincolnshire fens: a small diminutive plant that gets swamped by other plants but doesn't give up and flourishes even in the smallest and darkest of places. Perhaps Freya herself is the pennywort flower, or perhaps it is just representative of her and so many other young women like her, but their shared stories are a testament to the resilience, tenacity and courage of women who are often misdiagnosed, ignored or just considered weird.
We have received funding but need to raise additional funds (animation is expensive) before this money is released to us. The film is supported by Project Aspie and Action for Aspergers.
Our Team!
Rebekah Fortune: Director
Multi Award winning Director Rebekah, set up production company Seahorse Films in 2011 with longtime collaborator and writer Peter Machen to develop a slate of films that combine creativity with commerciality and that actively encourage more opportunities for women both in front and behind the camera. Rebekah’s micro-budget feature “Just Charlie” has received many awards including The Audience Award at Edinburgh International Film Festival, it has appeared in festivals worldwide and was nominated for 2 BIFA’s
Just Charlie has secured international distribution in The USA, Canada, China, Taiwan, and Theatrical Release extensively in Europe. Just Charlie is currently ***** rated on Sky Cinema. The film has received exceptional reviews around the world.
Rebekah has an ASD and has a daughter with Aspergers Syndrome. She is passionate about being a voice for those that struggle to be heard.
Laura Turner: Writer
Laura is a writer for stage and screen. She has written more than thirty original plays and adaptations of classic novels, being commissioned by theatres including the Almeida, Customs House South Shields and Hull Truck. Her plays have been performed across China, the UK and Europe. Laura is Associate Playwright at Chapterhouse Theatre Company as well as at Petersfield Shakespeare Festival. She is currently developing new musicals with YouTuber Alex Day and ELO’s Dave Scott-Morgan. Laura has worked on EastEnders and EastEnders: E20 as well as completing Holby City and Casualty shadow-writing schemes. Laura has a personal connection with Aspergers Syndrome.
Clare Pearce: Producer
An experienced award-winning producer with a keen eye for spotting great stories and a talent for turning those stories into award-winning films and successful TV content.
Clare started working in TV where she directed and produced for events such as HBO World Championship Boxing, The Premier League, Uefa Champions League, Eurovision Song Contest and the Commonwealth Games.
Seeking a more creative approach she went on to form Lost Eye Films Ltd and Lost Eye Entertainment Ltd with the agenda of making films and TV content that people watch more than once and to promote female talent within the film and television industry.
Her work has been premiered and screened at Sci-Fi-London, BAFTA and Raindance Film Festivals & won awards including London Independent Film Festival for "Best Film". In her TV career, Clare has made work for ITV, Channel 5, Sky, BBC and at MTV.
Clare has a niece with Aspergers.
Karl Clarke DOP
So why do we need your help?
In order to receive the funding promised to us and all the associated support that goes with that, we need to raise an additional 10k. This sounds a lot for a short but animation is expensive for a start and we really need to pay all our cast and crew albeit minimally for their incredible skill. We could list individually every item we need to pay for but we are sure you know how expensive making a high-quality film can be. Our aim is to have cast and crew who are on the spectrum employed on the film giving opportunities to those who can struggle to find work in this industry or are afraid there will be a lack of awareness and understanding on set.
This is an important film in terms of starting a discussion and raising awareness about Aspergers, particularly in girls, and in order to get our message out, we will need to invest in Marketing as well as entry to High-End film festivals. The Team all have a personal connection with females on the spectrum and are super passionate about getting this story out into the world.
if you don't know much about Aspergers take a look at some of the links below:
http://projectaspie.org.uk
https://www.actionforaspergers.org
https://youtu.be/dxJwH74o1Ck
https://www.autism.org.uk