2020 Has seen a
41% Rise in Alcohol Consumption by Women
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The Film
The FASD project is a film seeking to rapidly increase awareness of the risks of alcohol consumption in pregnancy within a short period of time, given the significant increase in alcohol consumption since the onset of the global pandemic. This film aims to bring awareness about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) and provide detailed scientific information on prevention, while aiming to start discussions about solutions to current problems facing the community. Through the course of our film journey, we will be interviewing top scientists, clinicians, psychologists, lawyers, directors of Public Health offices and health institutes, and most importantly, parents and family members of individuals with a FASD. We will follow ‘a day in the life’ of those living with and impacted by a FASD to present to the viewers how living with an FASD shows up in day-to-day life. We will focus on impacted individuals who are doing well in addition to individuals who are not faring as well due to incarceration, homelessness or major mental health challenges exacerbated by FASD.
The Journey
Join us as we travel the US following the lives of individuals impacted by prenatal alcohol exposure. This project will have a dual purpose. It will serve as the flagship video in a campaign to raise awareness for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, or FASD, through a professional grade, quality film production. Secondly, we are using this film project as a pilot for a larger several part docu-series. This docu-series intended for major streaming distribution, would attempt to encompass the enormous magnitude and scope of the epidemic of FASD that simply would not fit into a standard 90 minute film format.
Road Trip
in the time of covid-19
On November 2nd, 2020, we begin traveling across the midwestern United States ultimately ending on the east coast to film this project. To mitigate our exposure to COVID-19, and to make this as safe as possible for everyone we are filming, the crew will be traveling and staying in an RV, lovingly dubbed “the Rust Bucket”. During filming, the film crew will be masked, and the interviewees will be asked to unmask only for the actual interview. Keep watching this site for our progress.
Impact
The FASD project is a societal wake-up call - a film in the making to increase awareness of the risks of alcohol consumption since the onset of the global pandemic. This film aims to bring awareness and validation to the silent epidemic that intellectually, developmentally and physically impacts more than two times the number of individuals with Autism and is highly preventable. The goal of this film is to provide evidence of this huge public health issue through interviews with scientists, clinicians, psychologists, educators, social workers, representatives of the judicial system and most importantly, parents and family members of individuals with FASD. The film will introduce you to individuals on this spectrum who, with supports which are not readily available for most, are able to live life to their potential. In addition, you will meet those who, due in large part to organic brain damage from prenatal alcohol exposure, have faced incarceration, homelessness and addiction.