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Raising Faith — Stories About Dyslexia

Raising Faith — Stories About Dyslexia shares real talk with nine families with dyslexic children. The film, set in each families' home, shares poignant stories, advice, strategies and struggles from experiencing the learning difference called dyslexia. This film provides hope, inspiration, and a feeling of camaraderie for families of unique learners, and those who wish to open themselves to learning something new about neurodiverse individuals. The film also discusses the genetic component of this learning difference through the experiences of Faith, a young dyslexic, her father, and others. Ability advocates, unique learners, and those who know and love them, will feel "heard" by the end of this film. The film raises faith about dyslexic life, as Faith's parents experience raising her. This current under thirty minute cut of the film was completed in 2020.

  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Genres:
    inspirational, Social Commentaries, Youth Culture
  • Runtime:
    29 minutes 37 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 1, 2020
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Helsinki Education Film Festival International
    Helsinki
    Finland
    September 29, 2020
    Best Educational Film Finalist and Official Selection
  • Peak City Film Festival
    Apex, NC
    United States
    October 16, 2020
    Semi Finalist and Official Selection
  • National Broadcasting Society Annual Professional/Faculty Competition
    Hollywood, CA
    United States
    April 11, 2020
    Winner
  • Demistifying Dyslexia Conference 2020
    Millersville
    United States
    February 8, 2020
    Screening and Talk Back
  • Children's Dyslexia Center of Lancaster
    Lancaster
    United States
    October 27, 2019
    North American Premiere
    Official Screening
  • Disability Film Festival
    Millersville
    United States
    September 17, 2019
    Official Selection and talk back
Director Biography

Stacey Irwin has been creating all kinds of video and audio content since she was a little girl. She entered her first audio documentary contest when she was eleven.

She has been a media production professor for twenty-nine years, teaching television, radio, and film production, and media producing, writing, and editing, first at Towson University near Baltimore, Maryland, and now at Millersville University, near Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Stacey feels that producing her own work allows her to be the best production educator she can be. "When you are practicing your craft with passion, it inspires students to use their voices to tell their stories in a more authentic and passionate way."
This is what drive's Stacey's work.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Raising Faith is a passionate and inspirational story about how nine young people and their families conquer the reading difference called dyslexia.

When my husband and I first learned that our daughter was dyslexic, we scoured the world for resources. We found photos of what part of the brain dyslexia “comes from,” learned all of the “fixes,” and found the names of organizations and professionals who might “diagnose” and “help” her. This was in 2003-2004. All of the content we found was clinical and cold when we wanted hope and advice. And then we compared my daughter’s results to my husband’s results from the early 1970s, and learned he was dyslexic too. This was the beginning of making the connections that would become so important to this passion project as we "raised" Faith.

This early experience propelled our film called "Raising Faith" and our journey as a family. The other families we met along the way provided comfort and care. We wanted to create that same experience for others who seek help on their dyslexic journey. As Faith’s mother and a producing partner with her in the film project, I had the opportunity to explore the uniqueness that made my daughter and husband tick, while becoming a better mother, partner, filmmaker and educator. In addition, Faith's participation as a young media producer and interviewer created a comfortable, authentic and safe environment for honest discussion and portrayal of this experience. We grew authentically closer through the filmmaking experience and this exploration has helped me understand this learning difference much more clearly. I hope you too learn from these stories.

The team is honored by the positive reception our film has received in the indie and festival community. We are always inspired when someone reaches out to us to say "this is me." Naming the dyslexic experience, giving voice to dyslexics, dyslexic awareness and dyslexic advocacy is central to our mission when we share this film. Thank you.