Calling all Donor donors!!!!

Welcome (back) to the party!

As we were planning our initial crowdfunding campaign, we had to make a lot of tough choices with regards to budget; crew, equipment, shooting locations, etc. Thankfully we reached our initial goal very quickly and we even went over our asking amount.

That money is still largely intact, some of it was quickly applied to securing affordable travel for our crew, securing digital media storage, and arranging various logistics for the principal photography in Florida and Georgia. As we went over our initial amount, those funds have allowed us to jump into the siblings' planned reunion in Pennsylvania with both feet in order to shoot that weekend with the right gear and personnel.

I recently 'hired' an extremely gifted and talented Producer. By hired I mean I badgered her into doing something that doesn't really pay (right away anyway). Since she has been on board, the project has truly started to flourish. We have been dividing and conquering different aspects of the story and our research and discussions have bloomed and blossomed and we've found some very important voices that will be integral to the story of the film.

We've always known that we wanted to get to the west coast to talk to some of the siblings in the Pacific Northwest, but it was (budget-wise) a bridge too far. Now, our research has yielded some key subject matter experts in fertility in that region and we are very fortunate that they have agreed to participate in the film.

Who would be speaking with?

• Family Law Attorney - He has litigated on behalf of sperm donors and families against entities in the fertility industry and is able to provide deep context about the regulations (or lack thereof) serving as guardrails for the industry
• Fertility Donor Counselor - Has worked with clinics on improving their 'best practices' and help reform some aspects of the industry
• Fertility MD's - These MDs will give us even more context about the journey of the families through the fertility process
• Donor Siblings - We've spoken to several of our group's donor siblings in the PNW and, with the right resources, we can sit down with them
• Nate's friend - Steve is an old friend of Nate and I's living in Oregon and he has more than one story in him. He even stabbed a Dorn once... Bayonetted is probably the proper term... More on that later

Same as always; We just need the means to get our crew to where the story is, a vehicle, funds for renting local gear that we won't be able to fly affordably, and crew meals on the ground. We have friends and family working on donating SkyMiles, car rental points, and AirBnB's for us, but in case those don't pan out we will need to get them the old fashioned way; financially.

What would donations be used for?

• Airfare to Oregon
• Local production vehicle rental
• Local lighting / grip rental
• Meals
• Lodging

This shoot is something we were hoping to do originally, but other priorities gave way. Now, with the research we've done and the other interviews we have scheduled, the trip is a must have.

I know that many of you have already dug deep to help the cause, but can you pass the word and let folks know about this project?

We will need every voice out there to be hollering about this project. Every little bit helps and no shout-out or donation amount is too small.

Follow along with the story as we capture it on Instagram; @Donor.Doc

And, if you're feeling social, here's a pitch for your friends...

At nineteen years old Nate Dorn walked into a fertility clinic and donated. Now, at age fifty, he has eighty-five donor conceived offspring. With no kids of his own, Nate has the unique opportunity to embrace this offbeat family or silently keep his distance. This is the story of that choice.

For more about the project's larger story; here's a link to our original Seed&Spark campaign from the spring;

https://seedandspark.com/fund/donordoc#story

- Jason Piccolo