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This was a student film, birth from my own love/experiences of queerness and my relationship to the deaf community. My only mission was to make a happy queer film and to give deaf queer people a story that may represent their experience. There’s not many queer films (if any) that portray queerness, and disability in a good light with a happy ending. Actors portray all kinds of people and stories. In a perfect world, Niall would be played by a deaf character but unfortunately that was not the case and Niall was instead played by someone who’s deeply passionate about the character’s story . I will also add that your comment is actively taking away from the work of the deaf crew members who worked to help bring this small film to life. I hope this helps ❤️

@@LouderThanWordsFilm There were some positive things about this response, specifically when you admitted that it would be better for a Deaf person to be playing this role. Here's what doesn't work about that, "in a perfect world" is a statement mostly used by people of privilege as an excuse for why they should not be held to a standard of giving equity to minority and marginalized communities. So, quite frankly, do better than that answer being your excuse in your own mind. I'm glad this is just a student film, but you have to learn now before you get on any real projects exactly the kind of impact that your ignorance will have. What I see from this response, is audacity. You did not represent Deaf gay people in this project; you represented two gay white men, one of them happened to be deaf. You included zero ACTUAL Deaf community perspectives and struggles except for… (anyone want to guess what the hearing director chose as the “conflict” of his short film?)… the struggles of a hearing person communicating with a Deaf person. So even though you claim that your goal was to just “tell a positive story about gay, Deaf characters,” perspectives that you don’t know that you don’t know did not have the impact that you intended. The impact you had is hearing people, not fluent in sign, ignorant of Deaf culture, fawning over the cute “deaf” character in your comments (providing views and traffic for YOU). And ONCE AGAIN, the phenomenon of hearing people’s fawning over ASL is not used to educate hearing people on Deaf issues, but to bolster white, male, hearing-centered stories. Also, let’s mention your audacity to tokenize the “deaf crew” that you say contributed to this project. You had Deaf people on your team, and you DIDN’T ask them if their network could find a Deaf person who would bring layers of depth and authenticity to this role and script that your hearing-centric approach simply has no clue exists? It was easy for you to settle for a hearing person that YOU thought was, “close enough” to actual representation. The group you cared about representing was white gay males (statistically most likely the result of your own fantasies), and you used a token female Black friend and the world of Deafness to further your own goal. You want to be a film creator; learn this. Your good intentions do not have anything to do with the impact of your stories. You are held to a higher responsibility than that because of the amount of people who will consume your stories. What determines your impact is your understanding of how much you don’t even know that you don’t know yet. Do not think that because you are part of one or two oppressed communities, any of your experience translates to what representation means to another oppressed community.

Let's just quickly highlight again on the side how especially insane it is for you to insinuate that feedback about actual and appropriate Deaf representation "takes away from the deaf crew members you had on the project." "Sorry we didn't have any Black people in this whole movie in which we claim to represent the struggles of being a Black, gay person, but we had our white actors use slang words (speak in African American Vernacular English) that they typically say. And they knew what to say because our Black cameramen and consultants taught them what to say and how how act so that they appeared Black enough."

@@calet-ovoii Firstly, I want to say that I usually don’t respond to negative comments but your claims about how I went about this film and your tone policing - just feels misplaced. While I respect your passion for the Deaf community and your stance on quality/authentic storytelling - which I agree with. However, you’re being very presumptuous about how YOU think I went about creating this film. I never said your critiques weren’t valid, I just said your comment diminished the work that was put into it by our cast/crew. I never imagined this film reaching almost 3 million viewers. People have connected with this film in a way is truly remarkable and I will cherish. When I was writing this story, I had never experienced a deaf queer character on screen before. The first actor I reached out to be apart of this project was a talent deaf performer but due to our scheduling - fell through and Marcia Marcia Marcia stepped in as a saving grace. I did communicate that to my team of ASL instructors and they gave me the blessing to go ahead. We approached it with deep respect for the communities represented in this story. My goal was birth out of my love for the deaf community, my journey learning ASL, my discovery of my own queerness and I’m confident that came across on the screen. I’m just grateful to have been able to put a character on screen that many people have not yet seen. This was written many many years ago. One thing about when you’re making a film during a semester when you have 6 other classes and everyone working on it is doing it because they love the story - is that things will change due to limited time and accessibility. Allow grace for creatives to fall short of what perfection looks like to YOU. Be able to contextual the importance of a film by stepping outside yourself. I don’t think this film perfect by any means, but the letters I receive from all across the world saying how much this story means to them ( deaf and queer folks ). That’s what matters to me the most. My degree is in Film so all the points you stated I had already said to myself. If filmmakers listened to every critique that comes in their head, nothing will be made. I didn’t have access to a group of actors that looked like me. I was one of maybe 5 black people at my school. I didn’t have unlimited money- In fact I had no money. That fact there is even a film here for you to critique is a miracle, giving the time and access we had to make it. I understand your passion, I do. But there are many ways to look at, contextualize, and critique film/ media. This film is a proof of concept to show that stories like this are valuable. YOU do not determine the impact of this film or this story.❤️

@@LouderThanWordsFilm I believe what you have said here to be in good faith, so here’s a “step back” if you will. You’ve mentioned that this project was deeply personal to you and your story. That’s fair. You told your story the way that you knew how, but for the future, it cannot be this way. Here’s why. You need to know that your experience of ASL is not unique or special in any way. The other side, the unrepresented side, is the Deaf experience, every single day, relationships, career, access, education, etc. It needs to be made clear that true experiences of Deafness and ASL when put on a screen, rarely inspires the engagement from the world that a hearing creator can garner from their telling of their “journey into the ASL universe.” Your “interaction with ASL put on a screen” will ALWAYS gain the fawning of 1) hearing people who have an inappropriately-founded fascination with ASL and the Deaf experience, and 2) Deaf people who have not had the appropriate access to education to develop a vision of actual inclusion. So your excuse as a hearing creator who claims to be an ally of the Deaf community, cannot be “this is just my personal experience of ASL.” Why? Because you have power and influence and interest that Deaf creators currently do not have. Every story you tell of ASL, affects to public’s (mis)understanding of Deaf people. I have been surrounded my whole life by adults who have this mentality much like I theorize pre-1940’s parents of Black activists did: happy for the bare minimum, “keep your head down and chin up,” and traumatized into being unwilling to upset the people in power to create more equitable experiences. The disempowerment that the Deaf community has faced combined with the barriers in language acquisition and education that Deaf people have been subjected to, has created the perfect recipe for anyone who simply mentions or acknowledges the presence of Deaf people in their stories to be praised and given a badge of allyship. To be blunt, that should be the absolute bare minimum. I very much do dictate the impact of your film; one of the impacts. This is why being a creator of content and also an “ally” can be tricky. As Deaf people become more empowered, educated, and hopefully audacious, you should hope that you receive more feedback like mine, because that means the standards of equality amongst the community are being upped. You created a “stepping stone film,” increasing awareness, but that hopefully will be condemned in the future, much like Viola Davis’ commentary on “The Help.” It’s a dissonant goal, like ASL interpreters; all good interpreters should hope that one day they do not have jobs because actual, direct, and full inclusion has become possible for Deaf people. As content creators, there is no guarantee that time will preserve our intentions in our work as we fight for our respective goals. But if you try to white-knuckle your good intentions in this film as Deaf people gain more voice, than your “allyship/inclusivity of Deaf characters” was all about you. Allow the impact to be what it is, and use the changing feedback to expose even more hearing people to Deaf community in a more inclusive way. Your film’s critiques, CANNOT be held in your mind as more important than the elevation of Deaf voices, because if it is, then Deaf voices have been used to further your film career goals. You made people happy with your story, thus the feedback, and as much as I don’t want to be a “yucker” of their “yum,” please understand that their “yum” means almost nothing when viewed through a lens of generational oppression. Allyship does not mean you can just rest on the past praises of people who have undeveloped or traumatized standards of representational equity for themselves or our community. My goal isn’t to “make you tear down your video,” no. I leave these “openers” all over the internet in my spare time, doomscrolling late at night. The only kinds of conversations that change minds are the tough ones that include a level of incredulity that the brain remembers. One day, maybe, in a future project, you’ll remember a weird conversation with a person on the internet who possibly showed you another angle of how culture-wide hearing-centrism creeps into the content that you and every hearing person creates and maybe exasperated you enough to consult an empowered Deaf community in your next film opportunity. Remember, “powerful activism will always, infuriatingly, look like simple ungratefulness to those who think they know your struggle.” Whether your intention was to defend your intentions or to learn more, I think valuable things have been said. Thank you for having this conversation with me. 🙏🏼

@LouderThanWordsFilm Let's just quickly specially highlight on the side how insane it is for you to insinuate that feedback about actual and appropriate Deaf representation "takes away from the deaf crew members I had on the project." "Sorry we didn't have any Black people in this whole movie in which we claim to represent the struggles of being a Black, gay person, but we had our white actors use slang words (speak in African American Vernacular English) that they typically say. And they knew what to say because our Black cameramen and consultants taught them what to say and how how act so that they appeared Black enough."

Er, maybe because no deaf actor auditioned for the project? Or he knew these actors? Or perhaps they were easier to work with -- as in not having to repeat directions or needing an interpreter to communicate with the actor? There are many possible reasons, and frankly, unless your a funder, it's none of your business. This may surprise you but this movie was not aimed at the deaf community. It's made for all gays, and most gays found the portrayal convincing. Most viewers don't care that the ASL wasn't perfect. Instead of whining, what don't YOU make a film for deaf actors? Think about it.