Experiencing Interruptions?

A Story of Courage

Ariana Feiner shares her story with her rare metabolic condition, Hypoparathyroidism. She spreads her message of hope through her work with her children’s book for kids with chronic health conditions, Ariana Rose: A Story of Courage. Ariana exemplifies that it is not our obstacles that define us; it's the way we face them.

  • Ariana Feiner
    Director
  • Go North Films
    Producer
  • Ariana Feiner
    Writer
  • Ariana Feiner
    Key Cast
  • Phillip Beebe
    Cinematographer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    5 minutes 24 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 17, 2018
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • International Conference on Hypoparathyroidism
    Chicago
    United States
    October 19, 2018
    World Premiere
  • Georgia Documentary Film Festival
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    June 1, 2019
    East Coast Premiere
    Best Director Award
  • Georgia Shorts Film Festival
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    June 15, 2019
    Best Micro Documentary Short Film Award
  • Docs Without Borders Film Festival

    Award of Exceptional Merit
  • Oregon Documentary Film Festival
    Portland, Oregon
    United States
    August 11, 2019
    West Coast Premiere
    Best Micro Documentary Short Film Award
  • PBS Guam/GIFF Select Showcase

    Guam
    June 13, 2020
    Official Selection
  • Indie Short Fest
    Los Angeles, California
    United States
    September 4, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Best Shorts Competition
    La Jolla, California
    United States
    September 17, 2019
    Award of Merit: Disability Issues & Award of Merit: Women Filmmakers
  • WRPN Women’s International Film Festival
    Nassau, Delaware
    United States
    Award of Excellence
  • AmsterdamLift-Off Online Film Festival
    Amsterdam, Netherlands
    Netherlands
    October 6, 2019
    Official Selection
  • The European Independent Film Awards

    November 5, 2019
    Best Documentary: Platinum Award
  • CineX Independent Film Festival

    United States
    October 4, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Paris Lift-Off Film Festival Online
    Paris, France
    France
    October 28, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Atlanta Docufest
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    November 9, 2019
    Best Young Director Award
  • Davis International Film Festival
    Davis, California
    United States
    October 25, 2019
    Official Selection
  • Canada Shorts Film Festival (IMDB Qualifying)
    Saint John, New Brunswick
    Canada
    December 14, 2019
    Award of Commendation
  • London International Film Festival
    London, England
    United Kingdom
    February 8, 2020
    UK Premiere
    Best Documentary Short Film
  • Spotlight Short Film Awards
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    January 11, 2020
    Spotlight Gold Award
  • Spotlight Documentary Film Awards
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    January 11, 2020
    Spotlight Gold Award
  • Roma Cinema DOC
    Roma, Lazio
    Italy
    March 14, 2020
    Official Selection
  • Golden State Film Festival at TCL Chinese Theatre
    Los Angeles, California
    United States
    February 21, 2020
    Best Documentary Short Film
  • North Beach American Film Festival
    North Beach, Maryland
    United States
    June 26, 2020
  • Maracay International Film & Video Festival
    Maracay, Aragua
    Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
    June 21, 2020
    Official Selection
  • Summer in the South Film Festival
    Atlanta, Georgia
    United States
    September 4, 2020
    Best Documentary
  • Nice International Film Festival
    Nice, France
    France
    June 25, 2020
    Science & Education Award
  • World Cinema Antwerp Belgium
    Antwerp, Belgium
    Belgium
    October 3, 2020
    Belgium Premiere
    Best Short Documentary
Director Biography - Ariana Feiner

Ariana Feiner is an author, filmmaker, and educator living in Atlanta, Georgia. Her children's book, Ariana Rose: A Story of Courage, is an uplifting, rhyming story for children with chronic health conditions. Ariana is an advocate for her rare metabolic condition, Hypoparathyroidism, and works to spread awareness through her book donations and fundraising campaigns for research. Ariana uses her platform to impart her message of hope and advocacy through speaking engagements and book readings. Ariana’s children’s book and film are powerful resources for educators, counselors, pediatricians, parents, and nonprofits.

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Director Statement

My name is Ariana, and my journey with Hypoparathyroidism began when I was 16 years old. The summer before my junior year of high school, I had a common thyroid surgery that resulted in a rare complication—the inadvertent removal of all 4 of my parathyroid glands. It turned my life upside down, and I spent years receiving life-saving treatments in the hospital.

In the process of re-inventing myself with a new identity as a young person with a serious medical condition, I wrote my children’s book, Ariana Rose: A Story of Courage. This book is an uplifting, rhyming story for children facing health conditions. The story gives kids easy mantras to say when people ask them about having a medical condition. It emphasizes that a health condition is a part of you, but it does not define you or the wonderful person you always have been.

It has become my life’s mission to add a voice of representation into the world for people with both visible and invisible disabilities. I have worked to weave everything I have learned in this journey so far into my documentary short film, A Story of Courage. I dedicate this film to everyone fighting an illness or a challenge in their life. It is not our obstacles that define us; it’s the way we face them.

With Love,
Ariana Feiner