Filmpossible 2013

This year's Filmpossible contest seems to have been another huge success, helping to end the stigma of disability for the third year in a row. Contestants were challenged to "capture moments of possibility" and to creatively "dispel myths, showcase achievements, demonstrate inclusion or accessibility, or tell a story." The same overall theme remains: "Bringing visibility to disability".

There were so many wonderful entries (102 to be exact!) in both the photo and video categories, which were so beautiful and inspirational. Many of the videos moved me to tears. And I was especially moved by this years winning video, "For Abbey", which just happens to showcase the limitless abilities of Abbey, a fellow CHAMP!

"Abbey can never escape the stares and the question, "What's with the leg?". She wears a prosthesis ("buddy") because she was born with a shortened right leg requiring amputation above the knee at age two. Abbey will sweetly explain to you how "buddy" works but don't presume that this "visible disability" is somehow limiting to her. She will leave you behind in the whirl of her wake as she surges past on her way to new adventures.
Confident. Determined. Playful. Loving. Joyous. This is our Abbey."

Visit the Filmpossible website (filmpossible.ca) to view Abbey's video and be sure to check out the other amazing entries in the video and photo categories!

I just love this video and watching Abbey conquer so many momentous milestones! What an amazing little girl with an incredibly bright future ahead of her.

Congratulations to Abbey, her family, and all of the other Filmpossible winners and participants! We look forward to next year's contest!

Accessibility Toronto

We have another exciting announcement for all our friends in the GTA who happen to have Rogers Cable!

Last year Rogers aired the "filmpossible" documentary which featured many of last year's videos, as well as interviews with some of the participants and judges. It was really cool to see Gavin's video on TV and the episode has aired many times since then, each time bringing a little bit more VISIBILITY TO DISABILITY! It is incredibly inspiring to watch.

Now we are excited to see the airing of Holland Bloorview's episode of Accessibility Toronto on RogersTV tonight at 8pm! We are hoping to catch a glimpse of our little filmpossible stars in action! Holland Bloorview is an incredible facility, which I contribute mostly to the truly amazing staff team. It just has such a positive energy to it, which you can not fully understand unless you have been there and experienced the ongoing support and genuine interest in helping your child reach his or her full potential. So I am looking forward to seeing how it can be summed up in a half hour episode.

"Accessibility Toronto is a series of half hour television programs that focuses on people with disabilities. The goal of this series is to highlight their achievements and accomplishments and provide insightful and inspiring storylines for all viewers.

Community producer, Shannon Fitzpatrick pitched the initial idea and has worked diligently to bring viewers a wide range of compelling profiles and stories celebrating persons with disabilities from across Toronto."

The show appears only on RogersTV, so viewers need to have Rogers cable to receive the show. It will air on Channel 10 in Toronto and 63 in Scarborough - unfortunately subscribers outside the Toronto area will not be able to view the episode, as it only plays in the Toronto market.

They will be sending us a DVD copy of the episode so if you would really like to see it please let me know.

If you miss tonight's episode you can also cath it on Tuesday, December 13 at 1, 9 and 11:30 a.m.

Filmpossible Fever

Two entries about filmpossible and our little Super Stars in one day??? That's right!

Check out the BLOOM blog to see the post by Louise Kinross.

FILMPOSSIBLE FEVER.

"Left hands are so over-rated!"

I've said it before but I will just say it one more time... This has been such a wonderful experience for Gavin and our family and friends. I know that we really reached out to a lot of people. And it was overwhelming how much support everyone showed. Thank you again to Jen and Annya for sharing your talent with all of us!

Filmpossible Fete

Last Wednesday was the Filmpossible party at Holland Bloorview and it was a very memorable evening!

The first thing we saw as we entered the party was a table of Holland Bloorview's 2012 Desktop Calendars! It was pretty cool to see Annya's winning photo, "Lucky Fin Love" on the cover! We are sure proud of those adorable little arms wearing their lucky fin bracelets with pride!


It felt oh-so-fancy when we realized there was even a little red carpet and a photographer took Mr Gavin's picture as he entered! He didn't want to smile until he found out there was popcorn! It is such a rough life being a mini celebrity! Ha! He totally rocked his sweater vest that GG knit for him! Thanks GG!

During the awards ceremony they played the clip of Gavin and Gabi's "I Can Be Me!" video and I almost teared up. I just love that little video! Its so awesome :) Jen did a great job and it was so fun being a part of the contest this year!

Here is the "I Can Be Me!" team: Gabi, Jen & Gavin


It was really too bad that Annya wasn't able to make it though, as the first place photography winner! I really wish she could have been there and I know she did too!

They called Gavin & Gabi on stage to accept her award (which meant that Janelle & I had to go up as well because the kids were being all shy). They were both presented with an incredibly soft and cute stuffed animal. They were both being so shy though and didn't even want to take them.

One of the highlights of the evening was when Gavin held out his hand for the microphone when I was asked to say a few words on behalf of Annya. I was not really prepared to say anything so I was glad to hand the mic to Gavin and give him a chance to say something, thus taking the spotlight off of me! At first he just wanted to stand there and hold it but I told him he had to say something. Then he started singing his ABCs in a quiet little voice into the microphone!!!! Ha! I should have known! Of course everyone was just eating it up. I was just glad I didn't have to talk anymore! It was pretty priceless though!



It was such a beautiful feeling to watch the awards and see some of the other winners and participants in person! There were so many wonderful entries and so much VISIBILITY was brought to disability! :)

Soon it was time to wrap up the evening. But it wouldn't be a party without CAKE!!!


Thanks so much to the awesome team at Holland Bloorview for allowing us to have this wonderful experience! It was so nice to finally meet Louise and Kathy and everyone else!

And thanks to all our supportive friends & family who took the time to vote all summer for "I Can Be Me!" and "Lucky Fin Love"!! We love you!

Filmpossible Finalists!!

We want to send a huge THANK YOU to everyone who has been supporting Gavin & Gabby's filmpossible entries! Thank you to everyone who took the time out of your busy or even lazy day to vote over the summer! Cisco Canada donated $1 per vote up to $10,000 in round one so you guys helped raise a lot of money for Holland Bloorview and help bring a lot of visibility to disability :)

We have some pretty exciting news....the finalists were announced today and their video "I CAN BE ME!" by Jen Warman and photo "LUCKY FIN LOVE" by Annya Miller both made it to the finals!!!!

Now there is only ONE WEEK of public voting to determine the winners. You can vote for both entries once a day (open August 24 - August 31, 2011). Winners are determined based on the highest number of public votes in Round Two. Now we need your support more than ever! So please spread the word and show your support.

Thanks again! Lucky fin love to all!

Please vote for "I CAN BE ME! by GAVINandGABBY
Gavin and Gabby are two friends who were born with congenital limb differences, but despite what many other kids might think at first, they can do EVERYTHING other 3 year olds can do..and more!!

Please vote for LUCKY FIN LOVE!
Gavin and Gabby showing off their little fingers (Gabby calls them "pinky fingers" and Gavin calls them "baby fingers") and Lucky Fin bracelets! Left hands are SO overrated ;) © Annya Miller Photography 2011 annyamillerphotography.com

filmpossible Video and Photo Contest
Source: bloorview.votigo.com

When you smile, the whole world smiles with you

The filmpossible contest is in full swing and there have been lots of new entries submitted in the past few days! If you are going to submit a photo or video, make sure you do it before August 12!

Last year Gavin's video was the only submission of a child with a limb difference. This year there are several and I couldn't be happier about it. When we all come together like this, our message is so much louder and more powerful. We can reach out and educate so many people who may have never met a child with a limb difference before. We are also helping to empower our kids and advocate for them in a really fun way!

I just have to share these awesome photos with you! Remember you can vote on as many entries per day as you want :)

I absolutely LOVE this photo of Jaclyn! She clearly has a great sense of humour :)
When you're smiling...

I also LOVE this beautiful picture of Claire and her new dragonfly friend!
Claire and dragonfly on the beach

Please take a minute to check out these pictures and some of the other inspiring entries. It always makes me smile :)

Shifting focus from disability to possibility

Check out this article by Ann Douglas in today's Toronto Star! She interviewed several parents (including me!!) about bringing visibility to disability, tying in to the theme of the filmpossible contest.

Parents shift focus from disability to possibility

I will copy and paste the article just in case the link gets removed eventually.

THE MOTHER OF ALL BABY COLUMNS
Douglas: Parents shift focus from disability to possibility
August 3, 2011

Ann Douglas

When Andrea McDowell was seven months pregnant, the baby she was carrying was diagnosed with dwarfism.

“Initially, I was more or less terrified because no one could explain to me what the diagnosis meant,” the Hamilton mother of one recalls. “And, at this stage, the only thing you know about your kid is what is potentially wrong with them. You don’t yet know who they are as a person.”

Sharon Aschaiek, a Toronto mother of one and disability advocate (autismresolutionontario.com) whose 5-year-old son Jaden was diagnosed with autism at the age of two-and-a-half, remembers the sense of urgency she felt at the time: how her worry about his future made it difficult for her to relax and enjoy her son.

“You can get too caught up in the future. I had to learn to relate to Jaden in the moment — to really be there in the moment, too. Instead of worrying about the future, I had to realize that I was shaping that future right now.”

Once she made that shift in perspective, she experienced less anxiety and more joy. “What you see is what you get with Jaden. His love is unfiltered. I feel lucky to be raising him. He is a really special child.”

Aschaiek was wise to let go of the need to control a situation that is often out of the parent’s control, says Amy Baskin, mother of two, a volunteer and advocate in the special-needs world, and co-author of More Than A Mom: Living a Full and Balanced Life When Your Child Has Special Needs (amybaskin.com).

Advocate, yes, she advises, but don’t let your child’s disability become the focus of your relationship. “Hang out and do the fun kid stuff. Tune into your child and recognize your child’s unique personality, strengths and talents. Create a village around your child. And connect with other parents who are in the same boat.” According to Baskin, you shouldn’t have much difficulty finding other families in a similar situation: One in five families has a child who has special needs.

Tapping into support from others who truly understand can change everything. Peterborough mother of two Linda Viscardis remembers hearing Northwestern University communications professor John McKnight speak 22 years ago about the value that people with disabilities bring to the world. “That speech changed my life,” she recalls.

At the time, Viscardis was hungry for inspiration. Her eldest child, Laura, then 5, had been diagnosed with a chromosomal abnormality during her first year of life — and had almost died on a couple of occasions. The combined pressures of taking Laura to speech, physio and occupational therapy and caring for a new baby had taken a toll on her. She had experienced a major depression the previous year.

What McKnight said changed everything for Linda and for Laura.

“He talked about the importance of creating strong, healthy communities — how every single person in the community has strengths and gifts and the capacity to contribute. We changed the expectations we placed on Laura and that in turn changed the expectations she placed on herself. Today, at age 27, she lives in her own apartment, works part-time and volunteers at a seniors’ residence. She’s more computer literate than I am and she has a large circle of friends. She has surpassed every single expectation we have ever had for her.”

Toronto mother Megan Daley feels that making disabilities more visible is a crucial first step to changing attitudes and expectations. (Her son Gavin’s left arm didn’t fully develop in utero, so his arm ends at the elbow.) To encourage people to focus on what Gavin, now 3, can do rather than what he can’t, Daley is participating in filmpossible (a contest organized by Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital in Toronto in an effort to “bring visibility to disability”) for the second year in a row. (Note: For information about this year’s filmpossible contest, which now features photography, please visit www.filmpossible.ca.)

Last year’s video — titled His Abilities — focused on a day in the life of Gavin, who was then 2. “We like to show people what he is capable of,” explains Daley. This year’s entry — titled I Can Be Me — features Gavin and his friend Gabby, who has the same type of amputation as Gavin. (The aim of this year’s entry, according to Daley, is to show other young children that kids with amputations are just kids.)

The first few years after a child’s disability is diagnosed are really difficult, say parents who have been there. As time goes on, you are able to focus less on the disability and more on the child.

As Andrea McDowell, whose daughter, Frances, is now 7-1/2 puts it: “Now she’s just Frances and she’s fabulous and we have a wonderful life together.”

Ann Douglas is the author of The Mother of All Pregnancy Books (Wiley Canada, 2nd Canadian Edition, June 2011) www.having-a-baby.com. You can find all of her columns on the Star’s parenting website, parentcentral.ca.

Lucky Fin Love

I just came across one of many adorable pictures of the two of them together. Gabby and Gavin, that is. They have grown so much in 1 year!! Thanks Annya, for all the awesome pictures we have thanks to your photoshoots!

Which reminded me to spread the word that we entered another entry into Holland Bloorview's filmpossible contest for bringing visibility to disability! It is a really striking photo of their little arms wearing their lucky fin bracelets with pride. Its a close-up that shows their baby or pinky fingers, as they call them. So cute. Love this picture! :)

LUCKY FIN LOVE

We hope you will vote every day because Cisco is donating $1 for every vote (and also we wouldn't complain if we won either.)

You can vote for as many entries per day as you like and there are lots of other great entries too! :)

I CAN BE ME!

Last year we participated in Holland Bloorview's first filmpossible contest. It was a huge success! Gavin's video, "His Abilities" made it to the finals and was even featured in a 1 hour documentary about the contest on Rogers TV.

The theme of the contest is "bringing visability to disability" and it definiately achieved that goal!

The second filmpossible contest is starting today and we are so excited about it! This year my awesome friend Jen put together this super cute video of Gavin and Gabby, the adorable duo!

Please show your support! You can register your email and then log in every day to vote. Cisco will donate $1 for every vote!

Contest details

His Abilities

Filmpossible 2012

I just got this email today about the upcoming Filmpossible contest! Just wanted to pass along all the info for people who are interested in submitting a video!

Hello!



Filmpossible 2011 is right around the corner and we hope that you are just as excited as we are! With just a few short weeks until the contest launches on June 20th, now is great time to start taking pictures or getting started on your video entry this year. Get your photos and videos in early to increase your chances of winning a Cisco Visibility Award (awarded to the three entries that receive the most public votes in round one).



You can also find more contest information by clicking HERE to visit the filmpossible page on the Holland Bloorview website. Looking for inspiration? Check out the filmpossible playlist on the Holland Bloorview YouTube channel HERE to watch some of last year’s entries. Regrettably, not all of the filmpossible 2010 videos could be transferred to YouTube due to differences in file formats. If you don’t see your entry here but would like to have it added, please let me know by email and we can try to fix that!



We are excited to see the creative new ways that you will bring visibility to disability in 2011 and we encourage you to spread the word about filmpossible via Twitter, Facebook, blogs, email and conversations with family and friends.



Don’t forget to visit filmpossible.ca on June 20th to upload your photo or video and vote for your favourites!

Filmpossible Documentary

I keep meaning to write about this but life has been keeping me so busy!

It is pretty exciting...Rogers TV is airing a one hour documentary about "Filmpossible", the contest we participated in during the summer. The theme was "Bringing visability to disability" and it was a great success! Gavin's 2 minute video, "His Abilities" will be featured in the documentary and we are so proud of him!

If you have Rogers TV be sure to tune in! It debuted last night at 10pm but don't worry, there are still two more chances to catch it!

THIS Wednesday at 10pm and Saturday at 10pm.

*CH 10 in Toronto
*CH. 63 in Scarborough
*CH 510 in high-definition (HD)

You can go here to watch the promo.

Last year Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital held their first ever on-line competition for short videos with the theme of “bringing visibility to disability”. This one-hour original Rogers TV documentary profiles the world renowned Toronto facility, introduces us to some of the filmmakers and judges, and includes many of the extraordinary videos that just might make people rethink their preconceptions about disability.

Thank you from Holland Bloorview‏

I received this nice email today that I thought I would share :)

Dear Megan,

On behalf of Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and its Foundation, I offer our congratulations to you for your achievement in our filmpossible contest.

Holland Bloorview set out to create a contest that would bring visibility to disability. Our hope was to change the way the world views childhood disability in order to help create a better world for children with disabilities.

We challenged people to bring us their own creative twist on this theme. Holland Bloorview, our sponsors, judges and supporters alike were overwhelmed by range of entries and the courage, creativity and passion that was so evident in the entries we received.

Your video, His Abilities, was among the top 20 and was reviewed by our celebrity judges. I am pleased to share their comments:

From Karen Shopsowicz: "Gavin is a wonderful inspiration."

From Allen Braude: "Message well conveyed. Great to see Gavin always finding a way."

From Tania B. Reilly: "Great opening! Enjoyed the focus - day in the life of Gavin."

From Justin Hines: "Abilities indeed! Gavin looks like he blurs the line between able bodied/disabled."

Your contribution to filmpossible has touched people far beyond the scope of the contest. You and your fellow entrants have inspired our staff, our volunteers, helped attract new volunteers, inspired the media to cover these issues, opened dialogues among parents and children and in schools and workplaces across Canada, and brought hope and inspiration to children with disabilities and their families.

We salute you, we congratulate you, and we thank you.

Jean Geary

HERE is the link to Gavin's video if you would like to see it again!

Better luck next time

Some people have been asking me about the results of the FilmPossible contest so I thought I should let people know.

Unfortunately Gavin did not make it to the finals of the contest. But I really want to thank everyone for their support! There were so many of you who took the time out of their busy lives to vote for Gavin every single day. It means a lot to us and it was a great experience. I hope we spread a lot of awareness about what children with limb differences are capable of.

No matter what, I think this will always be my favourite video :)

THANK YOU!

I want to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who was involved in supporting Gavin's FilmPossible entry! The contest is now closed for votes and we have to stay tuned until October 8th, when they announce the six finalists.

Thank you again to everyone who took the time to vote! It really meant a lot to our family and we appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts!

Thank You!

I want to extend a HUGE thank you to everyone who has been voting daily for Gavin's video! In less than a week his video is currently up to 158 votes!

This morning his video even made a little cameo appearance on Toronto's Breakfast Television show! They did a little feature on Bloorview's "FilmPossible" contest and there was a clip from "His Abilities" playing in the background!

Unfortunately we missed it but my mom called us this morning to tell us and I have never heard her so excited!! I emailed CP24 and asked them to please send me a clip from the show. I hear they are pretty good about that so hopefully we will get it!

In the mean time there are still 25 days left to vote so lets keep it up!

http://filmpossible.ca/entries#73779

We need your votes!

OK we did it! We finally got Gavin's video approved for the FilmPossible contest after changing the song due to copyright laws. (Thanks to Jeff for all your help and to Oriana for letting us use her music!)

Please show your support and vote for "His Abilities"! You can vote once per day until September 15.

http://filmpossible.ca/entries/73779#73779

The theme of the contest is "Bringing Visibility to Disability". Our goal was to focus on some of Gavin's ABILITIES. It was really hard to try to squeeze everything into a two minute video but thanks to Jeff's editing skills, I think it turned out GREAT! I can't watch it without smiling :)

Thanks everyone for your support!

His Abilities

I could watch this video over and over. It makes me so incredibly proud to have such an amazing son. And these are only such a small FEW of his abilities. He has so many more! But you can only squeeze so much into a 2 minutes clip!

Hopefully we get it submitted ASAP because we will need everyone's help to vote for it! We are submitting it near the end of the contest so a lot of videos have already had lots of time to get hundreds of votes. We have a lot of catching up to do!

FilmPossible

Check out Bloorview's online video contest focused on "Bringing visibility to disability"!

Holland Bloorview believes in a world of possibility for kids with disability. We are calling on Canadians across a spectrum of ages and abilities to create short videos – under two minutes long -- with the theme “bringing visibility to disability”. Six great prizes will be given away, including a first prize of $5000 cash.

The public will vote for their favourite videos. Videos will also be reviewed by a panel of celebrity judges. Six finalists will be selected -- three by the jury and three by the public. Winners will be determined by a final round of online public voting.

We're looking for your creative twist on bringing visibility to disability! Your videos could:

•Shatter myths
•Demonstrate inclusion
•Tell a story
•Show changes we can make

Visit filmpossible.ca for more info!

I love a challenge! Now to find someone with a video camera...
Anyone? Anyone? Jeff?? LOL