Private Project

Autism and the Arts: Poetry with Peter Street (Dir. Brett Gregory, 2025)

Born in 1948, Peter Street struggled at school in Bolton, Lancashire, with epilepsy and illiteracy and, later in life, as a slaughterman, a gravedigger, and a war poet. At 66 years old he was then diagnosed with autism, and his world changed forever.

  • Brett Gregory
    Director
    Nobody Loves You and You Don't Deserve to Exist (2022). Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' (2025)
  • Brett Gregory
    Writer
    Nobody Loves You and You Don't Deserve to Exist (2022). Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' (2025)
  • Brett Gregory
    Producer
    Nobody Loves You and You Don't Deserve to Exist (2022). Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' (2025)
  • Gwyn Hemmings
    Producer
    Nobody Loves You and You Don't Deserve to Exist (2022). Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' (2025)
  • Peter Street
    Key Cast
    "Himself"
  • Peter D. Firth
    Key Cast
    "Narrator"
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    39 minutes 59 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 1, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 GBP
  • Country of Origin:
    United Kingdom
  • Country of Filming:
    United Kingdom
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Brett Gregory

Raised on a council estate situated in a former mining town in Nottinghamshire (UK) throughout the 1970s and 1980s, I'm a former lecturer in Film and Cultural Studies, Film and Media Production, as well as in English Literature, Creative Writing and Citizenship Studies.

I've also been writing, directing, editing and producing independent films in Greater Manchester (UK) since 2005.

As well as numerous music videos and commercial promos, my filmography includes the music documentaries 'Iceland: Beyond Sigur Rós' (short, 2010), 'Manchester: Beyond Oasis' (feature, 2012) and 'Liverpool: Beyond The Beatles' (feature, 2015), as well as my critically acclaimed, multi-award winning working-class feature film, 'Nobody Loves You and You Don't Deserve to Exist' (2022).

In 2024 I wrote, directed and produced a short film adaptation of Franz Kafka's 'Before the Law' (15 mins) - which won Best Director at the FICIMAD film festival in Madrid in 2025 - and now I've just completed producing 'Autism and the Arts: Poetry with Peter Street' (40 mins), a documentary which explores the 76 year old autistic poet's remarkable life in Bolton, Lancashire (UK).

Moreover, I've been working as a freelance journalist since 2022, writing about film, media, politics and culture, with my work published nationally and internationally by The Morning Star, Culture Matters, Prospect, Jacobin, Counterfire, and WBAI Radio in New York.

I'm also the founder and editor of Serious Feather Arts, an independent, non-profit podcast which features in-depth academic interviews and articles about global film, media, politics, and culture.

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Director Statement

Writing with light in the shadows.