Morrow Valley
The Great Teacher

[Short Brand Documentary] Raising a son with autism, Rob and Maureen navigate the challenges of finding a long-term home for Justin as they both age. Currently there are no long-term care facilities for people with autism, or special needs.

Morrow Valley will be the first.

Our mission: create an intimate, emotionally-driven short documentary that illustrates the importance of Morrow Valley from the perspective of a family.

CLIENT: GHA Autism Supports

Other Films in this Series:

• Without Words - Brand Documentary

• Morrow Valley - Case Study

Marketing + Story

We needed to not only create a film that resonated emotionally, but could also be used to approach larger organizations for funding like Blue Cross Blue Shield - so instead of trying to create one catch-all film, we created three.

Two short documentaries featuring families to capture the emotional sell, and one case study from the perspective of a physician.

All filmed over the course of 4 days, on location in North Carolina.

Preparation

Collaborating with GHA Autism Supports, we conducted detailed pre-interviews with over a dozen families - ultimately selecting two that fit the story objectives the best.

From here, we crafted a set of interview questions, coordinated key “scenes” that would match with expected storylines, and prepared a number of failsafes that would cover the large range of unpredictability in filming a documentary about autism.

Director’s Statement

In talking with Maureen, she noted that when a parent brings their child into the world, they also bring with them the hopes that the child will blend the best of both of them into one being. And that everyone realizes over time that the child is their own unique person - but when you have a child with a disability, that dream shatters right away.

And it was around that time that my heart broke for them as well.

As Rob and Maureen shared their story raising Justin, who has severe autism, I wondered how they did it. And the short answer lay in the hope, courage, and spirit we are capable of giving each other.

I believe we can do so much more to care for each other on this earth - and I hope this film can give hope to not just families affected by Autism, but shine a light on those actually making that hope possible. GHA Autism Supports makes sure those who cannot speak for themselves are heard - and have a place they feel is home.

-Karl Stelter