Daruma
by Kelli McNeil
Kelli McNeil
Follow
Daruma
by Kelli McNeil
Kelli McNeil
Follow
Daruma is inspired by a true story about two unlikely friends: a paraplegic & a double amputee. We're authentically casting our amazing actors, Tobias Forrest & John Lawson. Disability inclusion is the last bastion of inequality in Hollywood: it's time for change. Video is closed captioned.
Daruma is inspired by a true story about two unlikely friends: a paraplegic & a double amputee. We're authentically casting our amazing actors, Tobias Forrest & John Lawson. Disability inclusion is the last bastion of inequality in Hollywood: it's time for change. Video is closed captioned.
In Partnership With
From the Heart Productions
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Story
Inclusion Statement
We're authentically casting the roles of Patrick & Robert to have the physical representations of the characters in the script but the film is NOT about disability, the leads just happen to be disabled. We're encouraging PWD to apply for crew & post positions. Apply at www.DarumaMovie.comAbout The Project
We are LIVE! Remember all contributions to Daruma are TAX DEDUCTIBLE via our fiscal sponsorship by From The Heart Productions
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Daruma follows PATRICK (30s, bitter paraplegic) who discovers he has a four-year-old daughter from a one-night stand years ago. He agrees to take her and becomes the beneficiary of her mother’s life insurance policy, but soon discovers that she would do better living with her maternal grandparents on the East Coast. Patrick enlists the help of his cantankerous neighbor ROBERT (60s, double-arm amputee) to drive them across America and to her grandparents. Along the way, the trio discovers the meaning of self-sacrifice, forgiveness and what it truly means to be a family.
We are conducting our fundraising efforts in stages: this stage of fundraising is to generate funds to pay our cast and crew.
All contributions to Daruma are tax deductible as we are fiscally sponsored via From the Heart Productions.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT DARUMA
“Daruma is exactly the kind of project RespectAbility advocates for. It embodies the values we’re pushing for in this industry— inclusiveness both in front of and behind the camera with a narrative that promotes a positive, accurate representation of disability.”
Lauren Appelbaum,
RespectAbility
“There are 61 million Americans with disabilities yet only a scant 2% of characters on TV are disabled. This is an historic disgrace. But change is coming and projects like Daruma are leading the way.”
Allen Rucker,
Chair of the Writers with
Disabilities Committee of the WGA
and co-chair of the Media Access Awards"We built Seed&Spark to be a place where people can connect through stories that matter, stories that give rise to voices that have been too long unheard, that not just entertain their viewers but help them see the world in a new way. Daruma is a family drama, but the way the team has chosen to craft and, more importantly, cast the story shows how the storytellers are trying to make an impact with their work. It's the sort of impact a creator really only gets to consider when they have profound creative independence, which is why crowdfunding is such a powerful tool for change."
Seed&Spark founder Emily Best
A WORD ABOUT DISABILITY INCLUSION
Though great strides have been made to bridge the gap for women and minorities in Hollywood, there's still much to do when it comes to creating roles and projects for disabled actors and filmmakers. We are also working to ensure our crew can also offer opportunities to those living with disabilities. The script also does not focus on the characters' disabilities as a central plot point -- this is a story about two people who happen to have disabilities, not a story about becoming disabled or what it's like to live with a disability.
WHAT IS A DARUMA?
NANAKOROBI YAOKI: 七転び八起き JAPANESE PROVERB
(Fall down seven times, get up eight.)
Though the characters in Daruma are fictional, screenwriter Kelli McNeil wrote the script as a way to help process her own grief after a member of her family suffered a spinal cord injury. She came up with the idea for DARUMA when she remembered a painting from her art history classes: Zen Master Painter Sesshu Toyo’s masterpiece, Eka Showing his Severed Arm to Daruma. The legend goes that the Daruma (the founder of Buddhism) meditated in a cave for so long that his limbs fell off, as he had no need for them anymore. A would-be pupil, Eka, eager to show his commitment, severed his own arm and presented it as a gift to Daruma, but the Daruma turned him away, as young Eka had missed the point of the Daruma's lessons. She started to research the Daruma and came across something called a Daruma doll, a Japanese symbol of determination, endurance and hope. The legend states that you are to color in one eye of the Daruma doll and make a wish. When the wish comes true, you are to color in the other eye. The story of the Daruma doll compelled her to write about it and thus, the foundation for Daruma, was born.
What are we fundrasing for?
We're fundraising October 15 until November 30, 2019 for a portion of our total goal of $215,000. Round One funding is to raise $65,000 for our cast and crew so we can pay them to be part of this film. We'll have several stretch goals to see if we can't get to our total goal of $215,000 but for this round, we're aiming for $65,000.
FAQ
How Else Can You Help?
Get involved! Below is a list of resources from Respectability, The Ford Foundation & more. Download them & see what you can put into practice in your daily life to see disability differently!
Respectability's Hollywood Inclusion Tool Kit
The Ford Foundation's Roadmap for Inclusion
Behind the Scenes Stills from Our Trailer
All images are credited to John Lawson who plays Robert in the movie.
Incentives
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Wishlist
Use the WishList to pledge cash and loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an incentive directly.
- Updates
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Current Team
About This Team
MEET THE FILMMAKERS & THEIR SUPPORTERS
Writer/Producer - Kelli McNeil
Kelli McNeil is an award-winning Los Angeles based writer, actor, and producer. As a graduate of the USC’s School of Drama, McNeil has performed in multiple film, TV and stage productions and wrapped production on three features in 2017.
Kelli’s script The Baltimore School of Charm, won 1st place in the UCLA Extension’s screenwriting competition in 2017 as well as 1st place at the inaugural Bechdel Film Festival in Texas. It was a semi-finalist in the Screencraft Fellowship program in 2016 and a top 15% finisher in the Academy's Nichol’s Fellowship in 2017 before the script’s current rewrite.
DARUMA was a finalist in the Writers for Writers Fellowship, We Screenplay Diverse Voices and Cinequest 2018. In 2017, her original two-act play about Mexican-American immigrants, Borderline, was a finalist at Austin Film Festival’s playwriting competition and will be staged at THE TANK theatre in Manhattan in 2020.
Kelli is also a published children’s book author: her first book, Sleepy Toes, was released in the spring of 2017 by Scholastic. She is currently developing additional materials for a wide-range of age groups. 2017 had her giving multiple book readings and signings around the country. A native of Texas, McNeil has called Los Angeles home for most of her life. McNeil is currently obtaining her private pilot’s license.
She is repped by The Gersh Agency.
Interview with Kelli McNeil on Voyage LA
Director/Cinematographer - Alexander Yellen
Alexander Yellen is an experienced director and cinematographer, a veteran of 45 feature films and 60 episodes of television. He has won two Telly Awards for his photography and been a festival finalist for his short film "miles to go." Traveling extensively with his scientist parents, Alexander was exposed from an early age to a wide-range of people and environments. He developed a passion for visual storytelling and has always sought to make those stories accessible through meaningful and unique perspectives. Alexander was born in Washington DC, earned a degree in film studies from Wesleyan University in Connecticut, and has lived in Los Angeles for the last 15 years.
Interview with Alexander Yellen on Thrive Global
Tobias Forrest - Patrick
After a spinal cord injury, Tobias Forrest bounced back with a positive attitude and passion to perform. He recently co-starred on “Good Trouble” and can currently be seen playing ”Mac" in the action/comedy “Special Unit”. He has starred onstage in the Pulitzer Prize winning play "Cost of Living” as well as “Colossal”, “Pyretown” and others. Tobias also had a recurring role on CBS’s “Wisdom of the Crowd” and his other credits include ”Queen Sugar", “The Sessions”, “Weeds” and more. In addition, he sings for the band Cityzen and also does audio description for shows including “Modern Family”, “The Rookie”, “The Real O’Neals” and “Bless This Mess”. As an entertainer, Tobias hopes to encourage others to pursue their dreams despite any differences, difficulties or disabilities they may have.
Interview with Tobias Forrest on AbleThrive
John Lawson - Robert
At age 30, John was injured in an electrical accident working a ‘real job’ in between acting and singing jobs painting an above ground water storage tank. He had studied piano for 17 years and left the Burn Center with hooks in the place of his hands. After leaving the hospital, John became the First double hand amputee to be trained and certified as a private pilot in the US and the First and only double hand amputee to be a certified SCUBA Instructor in the world. John has continued working as a director and actor with over 42 credits in Film and television, including past roles in Law and Order: SVU, MTV-Awkward, HBO West World and American Horror Story: FREAK SHOW. John recently did a TED Talk on disability in the media and currently serves on the SAG-AFTRA Performers with Disabilities National Committee. He is an advocate for accurate and authentic representation of disability in the media and speaks on numerous industry panels on disability in Film and media across the US.
Interview with John on Thrive Global
From the Heart Productions (Fiscal Sponsor)
Our mission at From the Heart Productions Inc, a 501(c) non-profit, is help indie filmmakers get film funding. We do that through our Roy W. Dean Grant, our Fiscal Sponsorship Program, and the Intentional Filmmaking Class. Since 1993, we’ve assisted hundreds of documentary, feature, short films, and web series in getting funded.
We believe that independent filmmakers, who devote most of their time to the creative process, need help when it comes to raising money. Our mission has been to help filmmakers get the film funding they need to get their film in front of the cameras and an audience. We’re proud to have been awarded this Badge by GreatNonProfits.org for being a 2019 Top-Rated Non-Profit!
Our personal attention and experience can make the difference for you when you need film funding. We can give you advice on creating trailers, fine tuning your pitch, and creating a community around your film.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT DARUMA
“Daruma is exactly the kind of project RespectAbility advocates for. It embodies the values we’re pushing for in this industry— inclusiveness both in front of and behind the camera with a narrative that promotes a positive, accurate representation of disability.”
Lauren Appelbaum,
RespectAbility
“There are 61 million Americans with disabilities yet only a scant 2% of characters on TV are disabled. This is an historic disgrace. But change is coming and projects like Daruma are leading the way.”
Allen Rucker,
Chair of the Writers with
Disabilities Committee of the WGA
and co-chair of the Media Access Awards"We built Seed&Spark to be a place where people can connect through stories that matter, stories that give rise to voices that have been too long unheard, that not just entertain their viewers but help them see the world in a new way. Daruma is a family drama, but the way the team has chosen to craft and, more importantly, cast the story shows how the storytellers are trying to make an impact with their work. It's the sort of impact a creator really only gets to consider when they have profound creative independence, which is why crowdfunding is such a powerful tool for change."
Seed&Spark founder Emily Best
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