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(I posted this link already, but we are just a few hundred pledges shy of reaching our goal, and the deadline is in a few hours. If you could please pledge your support I would appreciate it so much.)
Finally.
Finally.
About a year ago I wrote about a movie that really stirred up some really strong emotions. I was insulted because the name change Hollywood had used when taking the story from book to film shifted the focus away from life, and love, and infant death and shined it directly on infidelity instead. The media and general population followed suit, quite hurtfully.
Hurtfully, because the film slips infant loss into the back seat, when the truth is that losing a child takes a back seat to nothing. We know this, the heartbroken families struggling to create a new normal after the unnatural devastation of saying goodbye to a child. We understand that our losses become a part of us, even as so many people in our lives absolutely do not understand. So often when we talk about our children we are met with a quiet discomfort. Other times we are encouraged to stop dwelling on our loses, as if grief is something to be avoided, or at least done in secret.
So when I first learned about the movie Return To Zero I did what any survivor of stillbirth did: I cried. I cried my eyes out and I told my husband and I waited excitedly for more news on when I could expect the movie to be released. But there is no release date yet because Hollywood once again does not understand how important this topic is to so many people. They say that the movie shouldn't be released in theaters because people won't go and see it. They say it's a niche film with a limited audience.
They say it's not important.
That's just plain wrong. Not only is there audience, there is a need. We absolutely must document the human reality of grief and show that it's not only fit for private, limited consumption. With more than seven thousand babies stillborn worldwide every day this isn't a specialty market. This is a tragic, painful reality.
When the filmmakers behind Return To Zero asked people to be local leaders getting the word out in individual communities, they tapped into something. They hit the nerve of quiet grief that thousands of families are facing. I volunteered as the leader for Washington State and have found an amazing group of people working to end the silence and stigma of stillbirth and put healing and community in its place. There isn't more important work for art to do than to bring people together, and with their simple message of grief and humanity, Return to Zero is doing exactly that.
While it seems weird to be so happy about such a heartbreaking film, I can't help but feel like this is some sort of turning point. Return to Zero shouldn't be "the stillbirth movie." It should be one of many films handling the subject of pregnancy, infant, and child loss head on. If we show that there is an audience for powerful stories about loss and the lives we lead after it, more of them will emerge. The stories are already out there; we just need to break the silence so we can begin the healing.
thank you to Footprints on Our Hearts for this image
Please pledge your support for the film Return to Zero and tell Hollywood that there is an audience interested in seeing films like these in theaters. To find the local leader for your area, click here. I am a leader for Washington State; if I am your local leader, please use my name - Celeste McLean - in the local leader field.
To become a local leader for any area, fill out the loca leader form. To get involved with the Washington State movement, join the Facebook page, or Google + page, follow us on Twitter, or send us an email. To find the Facebook pages and Twiiter feeds for other areas, click here.
Finally.
Finally.
About a year ago I wrote about a movie that really stirred up some really strong emotions. I was insulted because the name change Hollywood had used when taking the story from book to film shifted the focus away from life, and love, and infant death and shined it directly on infidelity instead. The media and general population followed suit, quite hurtfully.
Hurtfully, because the film slips infant loss into the back seat, when the truth is that losing a child takes a back seat to nothing. We know this, the heartbroken families struggling to create a new normal after the unnatural devastation of saying goodbye to a child. We understand that our losses become a part of us, even as so many people in our lives absolutely do not understand. So often when we talk about our children we are met with a quiet discomfort. Other times we are encouraged to stop dwelling on our loses, as if grief is something to be avoided, or at least done in secret.
So when I first learned about the movie Return To Zero I did what any survivor of stillbirth did: I cried. I cried my eyes out and I told my husband and I waited excitedly for more news on when I could expect the movie to be released. But there is no release date yet because Hollywood once again does not understand how important this topic is to so many people. They say that the movie shouldn't be released in theaters because people won't go and see it. They say it's a niche film with a limited audience.
They say it's not important.
That's just plain wrong. Not only is there audience, there is a need. We absolutely must document the human reality of grief and show that it's not only fit for private, limited consumption. With more than seven thousand babies stillborn worldwide every day this isn't a specialty market. This is a tragic, painful reality.
When the filmmakers behind Return To Zero asked people to be local leaders getting the word out in individual communities, they tapped into something. They hit the nerve of quiet grief that thousands of families are facing. I volunteered as the leader for Washington State and have found an amazing group of people working to end the silence and stigma of stillbirth and put healing and community in its place. There isn't more important work for art to do than to bring people together, and with their simple message of grief and humanity, Return to Zero is doing exactly that.
While it seems weird to be so happy about such a heartbreaking film, I can't help but feel like this is some sort of turning point. Return to Zero shouldn't be "the stillbirth movie." It should be one of many films handling the subject of pregnancy, infant, and child loss head on. If we show that there is an audience for powerful stories about loss and the lives we lead after it, more of them will emerge. The stories are already out there; we just need to break the silence so we can begin the healing.
thank you to Footprints on Our Hearts for this image
Please pledge your support for the film Return to Zero and tell Hollywood that there is an audience interested in seeing films like these in theaters. To find the local leader for your area, click here. I am a leader for Washington State; if I am your local leader, please use my name - Celeste McLean - in the local leader field.
To become a local leader for any area, fill out the loca leader form. To get involved with the Washington State movement, join the Facebook page, or Google + page, follow us on Twitter, or send us an email. To find the Facebook pages and Twiiter feeds for other areas, click here.
