Share This Campaign:
Our Story
Hi! I'm Sandra Salas (writer/director). Me and and my producer Stephanie Watanabe embarked on an adventure together in June 2009 to make an important feature documentary film, Recovering Irma.
Recovering Irma is a personal story about my familys journey to stop the cycle in the aftermath of domestic violence homicide.
On June 5th1995, my dad killed my mom and killed himself. My mom, Irma, was the heart and soul of our family and it was devastating when my dad killed her.
Last year when my nephew Lorenzo called me and told me he had to attend anger management class because of a domestic dispute between him and his wife, my stomach sank and I thought to myself, just when does the cycle end? and I realized I didnt have the answer. At that moment, I made a decision to do something about it.
As a result, my nephew and I are taking a road trip from San Francisco to my parents hometown of El Paso. Along the way, were interviewing the people my mom loved and visiting her favorite places. Since, my mom truly loved my dad; were going to get to know him better too.
Were also meeting with perpetrators, survivors, & domestic violence experts and as the road trip unfolds my nephew will quickly discover this journey is a chance to see what he could become if he doesnt change. My hope is by going back to where it all began; well have a chance to be set free.
The Impact
Domestic violence is a worldwide pandemic. The most recent numbers suggest that 1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. 1 in 4! It's hard to even comprehend...
This problem crosses all racial, socio-economic, and gender barriers. And it affects not just those who experience it first hand, but entire neighborhoods, communities and towns. We ALL need to come together, take a stand, and begin to openly talk about how we can stop the violence.
Our film has the potential to ignite a huge conversation around domestic violence. The positive impact in communities around the country could be incredible and unprecedented. Our message is one of hope, healing and change. And we're bringing a young, male voice to the conversation, which we believe is an important step in helping men to become part of the solution (and not just "the problem").
By bringing a level of positivity, awareness and attention to a topic that is often shrouded in shame and silence, we hope to engage audiences around the country to stop the cycle and start a movement towards lasting change.
Failure is not an option here. We WILL make this film. We owe it to not only Irma Salas, but all of the other women, men, children and communities who have and continue to be affected by domestic violence.
What We Need & What You Get
To get into the next phase of shooting interviews with family, friends and experts in the field of "DV", and to keep this well-oiled machine going...we need to raise A MINIMUM $3,000 in February.
Our last four campaigns have helped us keep the momentum going, but we need to keep the funding coming if we want to begin shooting additional interviews next month.
Here's how your donation helps us:
$1 to $99 ~ We can buy gas for our cars & production vehicles, data cards for the cameras, tape stock, and meals for our hardworking crew (never underestimate the power of a good meal)!
$100 - $499 ~ We can pay for lodging, rental equipment (including lighting, sound & all the other cool gadgets that filmmakers use), we can pay our cinematographer to shoot (kinda important ya know) and we can buy hard drives to store all of the HD image files we shoot.
$500 + ~ The skies the limit! We can pay for production insurance, interview location fees, filming permits, a great sound person, a new Mac computer so that we can review footage in our office and begin editing...
This is just a short list of what your donation helps us achieve. There's lots more where this came from!
We're giving away some excellent perks at various donation levels - check out the boxes to the right for more info!
Other Ways You Can Help
We completely understand that not everyone is in a position to help us with funding. But there are SO many other ways you can help us!
Spread the word ~ if you are on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media sites - mention our project and ask your friends & family to join us and support our project!
We are also trying to meet like-minded NGO's, non-profits, corporate brands and investors who might be interested in our film. If you think you know someone who might be a good fit, send us an email: info@recoveringirma.com
Thank you for your support of not only our film, but of indie filmmakers across the board! Your help means the world to us and keeps us going everyday. Thanks for believing in us!
Our Story
Hi! I'm Sandra Salas (writer/director). Me and and my producer Stephanie Watanabe embarked on an adventure together in June 2009 to make an important feature documentary film, Recovering Irma.
Recovering Irma is a personal story about my familys journey to stop the cycle in the aftermath of domestic violence homicide.
On June 5th1995, my dad killed my mom and killed himself. My mom, Irma, was the heart and soul of our family and it was devastating when my dad killed her.
Last year when my nephew Lorenzo called me and told me he had to attend anger management class because of a domestic dispute between him and his wife, my stomach sank and I thought to myself, just when does the cycle end? and I realized I didnt have the answer. At that moment, I made a decision to do something about it.
As a result, my nephew and I are taking a road trip from San Francisco to my parents hometown of El Paso. Along the way, were interviewing the people my mom loved and visiting her favorite places. Since, my mom truly loved my dad; were going to get to know him better too.
Were also meeting with perpetrators, survivors, & domestic violence experts and as the road trip unfolds my nephew will quickly discover this journey is a chance to see what he could become if he doesnt change. My hope is by going back to where it all began; well have a chance to be set free.
The Impact
Domestic violence is a worldwide pandemic. The most recent numbers suggest that 1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence in her lifetime. 1 in 4! It's hard to even comprehend...
This problem crosses all racial, socio-economic, and gender barriers. And it affects not just those who experience it first hand, but entire neighborhoods, communities and towns. We ALL need to come together, take a stand, and begin to openly talk about how we can stop the violence.
Our film has the potential to ignite a huge conversation around domestic violence. The positive impact in communities around the country could be incredible and unprecedented. Our message is one of hope, healing and change. And we're bringing a young, male voice to the conversation, which we believe is an important step in helping men to become part of the solution (and not just "the problem").
By bringing a level of positivity, awareness and attention to a topic that is often shrouded in shame and silence, we hope to engage audiences around the country to stop the cycle and start a movement towards lasting change.
Failure is not an option here. We WILL make this film. We owe it to not only Irma Salas, but all of the other women, men, children and communities who have and continue to be affected by domestic violence.
What We Need & What You Get
To get into the next phase of shooting interviews with family, friends and experts in the field of "DV", and to keep this well-oiled machine going...we need to raise A MINIMUM $3,000 in February.
Our last four campaigns have helped us keep the momentum going, but we need to keep the funding coming if we want to begin shooting additional interviews next month.
Here's how your donation helps us:
$1 to $99 ~ We can buy gas for our cars & production vehicles, data cards for the cameras, tape stock, and meals for our hardworking crew (never underestimate the power of a good meal)!
$100 - $499 ~ We can pay for lodging, rental equipment (including lighting, sound & all the other cool gadgets that filmmakers use), we can pay our cinematographer to shoot (kinda important ya know) and we can buy hard drives to store all of the HD image files we shoot.
$500 + ~ The skies the limit! We can pay for production insurance, interview location fees, filming permits, a great sound person, a new Mac computer so that we can review footage in our office and begin editing...
This is just a short list of what your donation helps us achieve. There's lots more where this came from!
We're giving away some excellent perks at various donation levels - check out the boxes to the right for more info!
Other Ways You Can Help
We completely understand that not everyone is in a position to help us with funding. But there are SO many other ways you can help us!
Spread the word ~ if you are on Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media sites - mention our project and ask your friends & family to join us and support our project!
We are also trying to meet like-minded NGO's, non-profits, corporate brands and investors who might be interested in our film. If you think you know someone who might be a good fit, send us an email: info@recoveringirma.com
Thank you for your support of not only our film, but of indie filmmakers across the board! Your help means the world to us and keeps us going everyday. Thanks for believing in us!
Team on This Campaign:
-
Stephanie WatanabeProducer
-
Sandra SalasWriter/Director