FOR LOVE OF JULIAN

SYNOPSIS:

"FOR LOVE OF JULIAN" is a unique, personal documentary about multiply handicapped, medically fragile children. This film which is inspired by and features the director's son, dispels the fears and mysteries surrounding these children. Using candid, in depth interviews with parents and professionals along with striking visual documentation of the children's lives, a window is opened into this hushed world.   The film captures the overwhelming circumstances involved with the birth of a multiply handicapped child and explores the determination of parents to find a place in the world for their child and for themselves..

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"Federal regulations mandate that you save a child's life,
not that you give that child a quality of life.
Once the child is released from the hospital, you're on your own."
                                                                -Laurent Rejto, Julian's dad

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Part I presents the overwhelming circumstances involved with the birth of a multiply handicapped, medically fragile child. Often, these children are saved through doctor's heroics and eventually sent home with bewildered parents. Through interviews with different mothers, we bring into focus the difficult situation families find themselves in when they are left to care for their children.

"I see people looking and I don't mind that but then I see them looking away
as if they're looking at something too terrible or they don't want to embarrass  me
and I understand that too. I did the same thing. But I would feel a lot
better if they had a question like, why is he the way he is?"
                                                                                            -Nancy Benson about her son, Brad

 
Part II  is about the determination and will to find a place in the world for these children and their families.  Medical, educational and financial decisions are a daily requirement and always a struggle. Life affirming choices dealing with absolute dedication vs. adoption vs. institutionalization are the hardest to confront. Early intervention programs become the first substantial source of support. The outreach of educational programs is usually the first sign of hope and reality. Through thoughtful and creative care, the best possible quality of life can be attained. A life filled with mutual respect and love.

"I came here and saw these people that maybe couldn't do what
I could do and I said, maybe I could do something with them.
And emotionally, you get caught up in their lives...
You can't do it disconnected.
You can't do it without falling in love....
                                                                           -Richard Humlecher, Director of family services at SDTC

The conclusion is about the future. What is to become of these children as they grow older? This section is about compassion and possibilities. It is about climbing the mountain and staying engaged. By promoting well being and a language that promotes possibilities, the perspective on life changes.  In their own special way, these children are gifts who teach us about ourselves. They teach us to connect and to appreciate. They open our hearts and teach us to love. Ultimately, "For Love Of Julian" is about appreciating what you have and making of life what you can.

"I'm made this movie to fight the guilt, the sense of helplessness.
 I can't make my son walk, or talk, or reach for a toy, or eat,
but at least I can make the world know that Julian
exists and that children like him exist".
                                                                                    -Meira Blaustein

The population we are portraying is often vision and hearing impaired, wheelchair bound, nonverbal and developmentally delayed. They need special care and recognition. "FOR LOVE OF JULIAN" attempts to extend that recognition. Our aim as filmmakers is to present a powerful movie in a way that touches everyone on an educational and emotional level. The central objective of this project is to ensure that the next time a stranger meets a person with multiple handicaps, they will not look away but rather into the eyes of a human being; staring across a divide no longer.

Julian Pelle Blaustein Rejto
January 22.1989 - June 10, 2007

A poem for Julian

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