WHAT IS FOSTER CARE?

Foster care is when people, other than a child's parents, provide a safe place for a child to be cared for. Foster parents take kids into their homes and let them stay for a day, a week, a month, a few years, or even a lifetime.

A child may enter foster care for many reasons including abuse, neglect and abandonment. Children may also enter care if their parents are unable to take care of them due to medical incapacities, incarceration or death.

Children in foster care are preferably placed with kinship families such as grandparents or other relatives. When this is not an option children may be placed in the homes of non-kinship families. Alternatively, children may be moved to a group home which houses numerous unrelated children under the care of a single set of house parents or rotating staff of trained caregivers

WHAT IS AN ANIMATED DOCUMENTARY?

An animated documentary is a relatively new genre of filmmaking which combines the audio of documentary interviews with animated visuals. Examples include Waltz with Bashir, Repetition Compulsion, Animated Minds, and The Moon and The Sun: An Imagined Conversation. For more information check out Animated Realism: A Behind the Scenes Look at the Animated Documentary Genre.

WHY MAKE THIS FILM?

Youth need to be given a voice, not just for their own benefit, but because adults need to hear them.
-Susan Rodgerson, Artists for Humanity

The purpose of this film is not to give an outsider perspective of a troubling situation but to open up a discussion and hear real stories from real people. This film allows youth in foster care to have an opportunity to tell their stories first hand, both verbally and visually.

WHY USE ANIMATION?

Animation brings a unique perspective by allowing the filmmaker to tell a story on two different levels. It allows the filmmaker to illustrate disjointed thoughts and feelings on a level that can't be done through live action. For example, in Animated Minds, animation was very successfully used to narrate the discontiguous thoughts and feelings of violence and mental illness from the point of view of a sufferer.

Also, animation allows us to recreate memories for youth who may otherwise have no documentation of their past. For many youth their time in foster care is like a blank slate with few photos, home videos, or records of their experiences.

WHAT ROLE ARE FOSTER YOUTH PLAYING IN THIS PROJECT?

Youth currently in foster care, or who have aged out, are playing a vital role in shaping this film. They are telling their stories through music, writing and verbal story telling. They are also working behind the scenes as production assistants, camera operators, developers and more. Please reach out to us at info@fostercarefilm.com if you or someone you know is interested in being a part of this film.