How to become a poet - Post-Production
New York City, New York | Film Short
Experimental, Biography
'How to become a poet' tells the real life story of Chris, a severe traumatic brain injury survivor. Using Chris's personal archives, journals, and poetry, we depict his process of remembering who he is and recovering his own identity.
How to become a poet - Post-Production
New York City, New York | Film Short
Experimental, Biography
2 Campaigns | New Jersey, United States
Green Light
This campaign raised $5,830 for post-production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
81 supporters | followers
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'How to become a poet' tells the real life story of Chris, a severe traumatic brain injury survivor. Using Chris's personal archives, journals, and poetry, we depict his process of remembering who he is and recovering his own identity.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
How to become a poet is a narrative short following a man's recovery journey after a near-fatal accident that resulted in a severe traumatic brain injury. Throughout his recovery, he relies on his own records of his life, chronicled in the meticulous journals he has kept since his childhood in Brooklyn. He uses these journals to re-learn who he was and is, rebuilding his identity based on the memories he recorded. The story explores Chris's recovery process at the meeting point of memory, imagination, relationships, and the uncertainty of it all.
The film depicts Chris’s experiences with aphasia, memory loss, and other disorienting effects of traumatic brain injury. Through archival footage, voice over from his journal entries, and reenactments, we explore how his past, present, and future have been altered by the accident and how his own written words helped him rebuild his identity. It also features Chris’s poetry, showing the continuity of his ambitions and artistry.
So much has happened since our last campaign! Last August in New Jersey, 30 incredible collaborators came together to shoot How to become a poet. Over the course of 4 days and 10 locations, our production crew curated and captured the story on camera. Since then, we have been working closely with our editor, whose insight has been essential in shaping the raw footage into an authentic narrative that tells this story.
Our team has grown, too! An editor, composer, graphic designer, colorist, and sound designer have made post-production an incredible experience so far. They continue to bring perspective, refinement, and tone to the story thanks to their unique skills and talents!
We've shot additional footage and recorded new voice over to ensure depth and clarity. We're also working with trusted friends who are experts and artists in graphic design, music composition, sound, and coloring. All of their individual perspectives contribute beauty, meaning, and artfulness. We are in awe of everyone's talent, insight, and curation.
While Chris has made a miraculous recovery, his journey has been anything but easy. Like many others with disabilities, he continues to navigate a world that is not set up for him or anyone who’s experience doesn’t fit the mold. His story is powerful–revealing that when everything falls apart, we must rely on ourselves and others to pick up the pieces. He shows us that our identities, like our brains, are malleable, regenerative, and maybe even transcendent. He and his family teach us that devastation does not have to be the end and that our relationships with ourselves and others are what make our lives possible.
Chris continues to be a productive poet, a creative educator, and an advocate for people with disabilities. He embraces difference and diversity in the world, and sees the deepest value of how those around us can influence our lives. He is dedicated to showing others that their words have power, that their minds can change, and that their creativity can create change. We hope his story raises awareness about living with severe traumatic brain injury and that Chris’s words inspire others to approach the world more creatively.
Our entire production was made possible by YOU, our supporters, and it was so heartening to know that so many people believe in this story. Now, we need your support to help bring the final vision to life!
We’re in the final stretch of post-production and your support is the crucial final step we need to finish a film that will inspire and connect with others facing similar challenges.
Our funding goal will pay artists: the editors, composer, and designers who are making this project complete. It will also allow us contingency funds and festival fees to ensure our story reaches a broad audience.
Whether you donate or share our fundraiser—both help us finish this film, spreading the word is just as impactful as a contribution. We’re so thrilled that you’re joining us in sharing this story about traumatic brain injury, resilience, and the nature of identity.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Editing
Costs $800
Working with a trusted professional editor ensures the story is told with precision and clarity.
Color
Costs $600
Professional color grading ensures the footage really pops and connects with viewers through tone and mood.
Sound
Costs $1,500
Expert sound design means amplifies the multi-sensory experience of the story, allowing the audience to really feel the story.
Score
Costs $800
An original score by Brooklyn composer, LeiOra Hughes, ties the story together through thematic consistency.
Graphics
Costs $300
A graphic designer will create a striking title card and credits.
Contingency
Costs $600
Contingency funds to handle the unpredictable nature and costs of post-production.
Festival Fees
Costs $400
Festival submission fees to ensure our film reaches a broad audience!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Amelia Parker was born and raised in New Jersey and is now a public school teacher in Brooklyn, NY. Her students might be shocked to learn that she has creative dreams, friends, and a life outside of work! She comes from a long line of storytellers and artists and is excited to continue this family legacy through her first film.
Aurora Baumbach is a screenwriter and filmmaker who graduated from the SUNY Purchase Film Conservatory in 2017. She loves dark comedies and dramas with a lot of dialogue and little plot. When she isn’t working on her current feature, she can be found at Metrograph putting her membership to good use or gentle parenting her naughty cat Ricotta.
Char O'Dair-Gadler is an artist and writer from New Jersey, now based in Queens, New York. Their sculpture and video art work has been exhibited in New York City, Philadelphia, and Berlin, Germany. They have contributed makeup and costume design to the 2021 webseries Morning, Stranger! Char is excited to step onto the new role of art director and creative producer on this film.
Caleb Weiss is a director of photography, camera operator, and lighting director. The projects he works on span genres, ranging from feature films, to commercials, branded content, documentaries, and more. He has worked with such notable brands as Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Adidas, Gucci, Puma, Wired, Etsy, Bon Appétit, Bloomberg, Eater, New York Times, Benjamin Moore, Epicurious, Sony, 7-Eleven, and Goop. His work has received Vimeo Staff Picks and accolades at various film festivals, and can be seen on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and other streaming platforms.
LeiOra Hughes is a multidisciplinary artist in composition, sound design, audio production and performance. She received her Bachelors in Music Business from the Crane School of Music. Recent work includes compositions for Mushroom Kingdom of Ezili (Ars Nova) Bodycount (JACK Theater), FATHER’S SIN (Playing on Air), and Saltlife (Brooklyn Art Haus). She is grateful to collaborate with the brilliant Amelia and the full team here with HBAP.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
How to become a poet is a narrative short following a man's recovery journey after a near-fatal accident that resulted in a severe traumatic brain injury. Throughout his recovery, he relies on his own records of his life, chronicled in the meticulous journals he has kept since his childhood in Brooklyn. He uses these journals to re-learn who he was and is, rebuilding his identity based on the memories he recorded. The story explores Chris's recovery process at the meeting point of memory, imagination, relationships, and the uncertainty of it all.
The film depicts Chris’s experiences with aphasia, memory loss, and other disorienting effects of traumatic brain injury. Through archival footage, voice over from his journal entries, and reenactments, we explore how his past, present, and future have been altered by the accident and how his own written words helped him rebuild his identity. It also features Chris’s poetry, showing the continuity of his ambitions and artistry.
So much has happened since our last campaign! Last August in New Jersey, 30 incredible collaborators came together to shoot How to become a poet. Over the course of 4 days and 10 locations, our production crew curated and captured the story on camera. Since then, we have been working closely with our editor, whose insight has been essential in shaping the raw footage into an authentic narrative that tells this story.
Our team has grown, too! An editor, composer, graphic designer, colorist, and sound designer have made post-production an incredible experience so far. They continue to bring perspective, refinement, and tone to the story thanks to their unique skills and talents!
We've shot additional footage and recorded new voice over to ensure depth and clarity. We're also working with trusted friends who are experts and artists in graphic design, music composition, sound, and coloring. All of their individual perspectives contribute beauty, meaning, and artfulness. We are in awe of everyone's talent, insight, and curation.
While Chris has made a miraculous recovery, his journey has been anything but easy. Like many others with disabilities, he continues to navigate a world that is not set up for him or anyone who’s experience doesn’t fit the mold. His story is powerful–revealing that when everything falls apart, we must rely on ourselves and others to pick up the pieces. He shows us that our identities, like our brains, are malleable, regenerative, and maybe even transcendent. He and his family teach us that devastation does not have to be the end and that our relationships with ourselves and others are what make our lives possible.
Chris continues to be a productive poet, a creative educator, and an advocate for people with disabilities. He embraces difference and diversity in the world, and sees the deepest value of how those around us can influence our lives. He is dedicated to showing others that their words have power, that their minds can change, and that their creativity can create change. We hope his story raises awareness about living with severe traumatic brain injury and that Chris’s words inspire others to approach the world more creatively.
Our entire production was made possible by YOU, our supporters, and it was so heartening to know that so many people believe in this story. Now, we need your support to help bring the final vision to life!
We’re in the final stretch of post-production and your support is the crucial final step we need to finish a film that will inspire and connect with others facing similar challenges.
Our funding goal will pay artists: the editors, composer, and designers who are making this project complete. It will also allow us contingency funds and festival fees to ensure our story reaches a broad audience.
Whether you donate or share our fundraiser—both help us finish this film, spreading the word is just as impactful as a contribution. We’re so thrilled that you’re joining us in sharing this story about traumatic brain injury, resilience, and the nature of identity.
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Editing
Costs $800
Working with a trusted professional editor ensures the story is told with precision and clarity.
Color
Costs $600
Professional color grading ensures the footage really pops and connects with viewers through tone and mood.
Sound
Costs $1,500
Expert sound design means amplifies the multi-sensory experience of the story, allowing the audience to really feel the story.
Score
Costs $800
An original score by Brooklyn composer, LeiOra Hughes, ties the story together through thematic consistency.
Graphics
Costs $300
A graphic designer will create a striking title card and credits.
Contingency
Costs $600
Contingency funds to handle the unpredictable nature and costs of post-production.
Festival Fees
Costs $400
Festival submission fees to ensure our film reaches a broad audience!
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
Amelia Parker was born and raised in New Jersey and is now a public school teacher in Brooklyn, NY. Her students might be shocked to learn that she has creative dreams, friends, and a life outside of work! She comes from a long line of storytellers and artists and is excited to continue this family legacy through her first film.
Aurora Baumbach is a screenwriter and filmmaker who graduated from the SUNY Purchase Film Conservatory in 2017. She loves dark comedies and dramas with a lot of dialogue and little plot. When she isn’t working on her current feature, she can be found at Metrograph putting her membership to good use or gentle parenting her naughty cat Ricotta.
Char O'Dair-Gadler is an artist and writer from New Jersey, now based in Queens, New York. Their sculpture and video art work has been exhibited in New York City, Philadelphia, and Berlin, Germany. They have contributed makeup and costume design to the 2021 webseries Morning, Stranger! Char is excited to step onto the new role of art director and creative producer on this film.
Caleb Weiss is a director of photography, camera operator, and lighting director. The projects he works on span genres, ranging from feature films, to commercials, branded content, documentaries, and more. He has worked with such notable brands as Vogue, GQ, Vanity Fair, Adidas, Gucci, Puma, Wired, Etsy, Bon Appétit, Bloomberg, Eater, New York Times, Benjamin Moore, Epicurious, Sony, 7-Eleven, and Goop. His work has received Vimeo Staff Picks and accolades at various film festivals, and can be seen on Apple TV, Amazon Prime, and other streaming platforms.
LeiOra Hughes is a multidisciplinary artist in composition, sound design, audio production and performance. She received her Bachelors in Music Business from the Crane School of Music. Recent work includes compositions for Mushroom Kingdom of Ezili (Ars Nova) Bodycount (JACK Theater), FATHER’S SIN (Playing on Air), and Saltlife (Brooklyn Art Haus). She is grateful to collaborate with the brilliant Amelia and the full team here with HBAP.