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Speechless: an autobiography of child murder and rape

Robert Ben Mitchell’s illustrated, docu-horror, bio-pic still film of growing up in a family where extreme physical and sexual abuse were the norm: starting from when he was a toddler, until a police officer found him 17 years later nearly beaten to death on Christmas Eve.

https://filmfreeway.com/robertbenmitchell

https://speechless.film

info@speechless.film

  • Robert Ben Mitchell
    Producer
  • Robert Ben Mitchell
    Director
  • Aven Shore-Kind
    Director
  • Tyshay Thomas
    Director
  • Robert Ben Mitchell
    Screenwriter
  • Robert Ben Mitchell
    Editor
  • Aven Shore
    Narrator
  • Tyshay Thomas
    Illustrator
  • Robert Ben Mitchell
    Music
  • Pam Newstreet
    Music
  • Lance Perry
    Music
  • Vinnie Fontana
    Music
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Documentary, Feature, Other
  • Genres:
    Illustrated, Docu-Horror, Bio-Pic, Still Film
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 7 minutes 39 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 23, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    8,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Full HD 1920 x 1080 at 24 fps
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
Director Biography - Robert Ben Mitchell, Aven Shore-Kind, Tyshay Thomas

Due the deceptive, secretive nature and hidden lives of child abusers, Robert Ben Mitchell's parents left little documentation of his early years. This is the only known picture from Robert's childhood. It was taken several months before his final beating on Christmas Eve.

A survivor of 17 years of extreme physical and sexual abuse by his family, Robert went on to become an activist in Florida's Miami LGBTQ+ community. This is a video of him giving a speech before the Dade County Commissioners in 1990:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvYwELG1VGI

Robert then went on to become a physician who helps people suffering from opioid addiction. Most of his patients are also survivors of childhood abuse. His medical practice website is at:

https://trafn.com

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Director Statement

"Speechess: an autobiography of child murder and rape" is Robert Ben Mitchell’s story of growing up in the 1960's and 1970's as part of a family where extreme physical and sexual abuse were the norm: from being raped as a toddler until a police officer found him at age 17 nearly beaten to death on Christmas Eve.

An illustrated, docu-horror, bio-pic still film, it depicts the first 17 years of Robert's life. The film's production was a collaboration between Robert Ben Mitchell (producer, screenwriter, editor), Aven Shore-Kind (narrator), and Tyshay Thomas (illustrator), with each independently directing their own work.

Prior to making the film, and after completing decades of therapeutic healing, Robert first published a book by the same name in 2018. That year, Aven recorded the vocal tracks for an audio-book.

Though Robert had always considered a movie version, due to the age of the children involved, he realized it would be unethical and illegal to make a motion picture of the book. That all changed when he saw the 2019 movie REWIND about Sasha Joseph Neulinger and the abuse he survived. In it, a therapist had Sasha draw stick figures to depict what he endured. That is when Robert realized he could tell his story as a narrated still film using the same kind of illustrated figures.

With that epiphany, Robert began working with Tyshay in late 2023 creating stick figure pictures to illustrate Aven’s 2018 vocals. The movie was completed in August of 2024.

Speechless seeks a wide audience to increase public awareness of childhood abuse. Though the movie narration discusses acts of physical and sexual abuse, there are no visual depictions of nudity, sex acts, or pornography in this film.