Hello, Kobi
I spent a large part of last week thinking about the tone of the video and have a few thoughts. I thought I'd share some notes with you, to see if you broadly agree on the approach I've been thinking of. Some of these thoughts are my own, but I really like the suggestions you made last Monday.
I was also thinking of the type of endorsement that would really be cool. I have absolutely no idea how practical this is, but I suddenly thought of Pamela Stephenson. She definitely bridges the gap between media celebrity and mental health professional. I know that autism is a neuro-developmental issue, rather than a mental health one, but it can have mental health consequences, so I believe she would be a great person to provide an endorsement.
Anyway, these are my thoughts -
Scenario - Could be anywhere. In my home, or in a studio, or anywhere. Talking to camera. Cut between close-ups of my face and some further back angles. Not rapid cuts, though - those can be distracting. Just something to make it all a bit less static. Perhaps intercut with bits of cartoon animation or stop-motion animation (Kobi's suggestion) to create a visual display of some events. Makes everything less solemn and more cheerful. I really don't want to dwell too much on the darker aspects.
Interview type setting? Someone asks questions, so I'm talking to a person rather than a camera. Feels more natural.
Describe how I first suspected I had autism. How I read about it and felt a real sense of vindication, when I realised that a lot of the things that had defined me and created challenges for me had been related to the condition. Describe the very inaccurate statements that gave me doubts -
"Autistic people have no sense of empathy."
"Autistic people have no sense of humour."
Describe first doctor's attitude, when I approached him for a diagnosis. His own preconceptions were completely inaccurate and as a result of his misunderstanding of the condition, he simply belittled and dismissed me.
Describe car accident. Leading to consequences that were initially very negative.
Loss of job and career
Loss of flat
Loss of property
Describe how I dealt with a massive increase in spare time. Too many hours with nothing to do, leads to discovery of Photoshop and digital editing.
Describe the impact of my loss of professional career. Transitory sense of worthlessness. How that led to me turning back to something I had done when I was younger - I returned to life modelling for something to do while I figured out my next step. Got my own business as a result.
Describe how PTSD made me approach a therapist (Paula Bell) who recommended I be referred to a specialist (Doctor Wheeldon of Ballenden House) who gave me my diagnosis.
Overview - 2009 started out as an absolute bitch of a year, but ended on a high note, with a fresh perspective, a new creative outlet and a new direction to move in.
Talk about Number 6. Their role in my understanding of autism. Leading to my looking for support in developing my business, but encountered dead ends. Talk about how most autistic people are unemployed. Talk about how the condition is misunderstood. Talk about how autistic people should be heard. How they could have valuable contributions to society, if they had support.
I'm very aware that they could do with being tidied up a bit, but this is just a rough, early draft. And I'm also aware that it might be a lot of information to impart in the very short time we have for the video. I hope it helps, though.
See you tomorrow.
Graham
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