Autism Movie Plays a Part in 2012 US Presidential Election
Those of you who have been following us for a little while know that our film features a family out of Iowa who are incredibly active in the 2012 US Presidential Elections speaking about autism every time the season comes around. What you may not know is that thanks to them, the only person still currently running for president this year that has not received a t-shirt and heard about our film is President Obama himself!
Thanks to Lin, Mark, and Sam Wessels, nearly all of the 2012 GOP Presidential election candidates heard about the film, including: Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Herman Cain, Michelle Bachmann, and Tim Pawlenty. Heck, even Mike Huckabee got his picture taken with Sam. Not only that, but videos of Sam Wessels speaking with election candidates about autism and our film this cycle generated over 370,000 hits on YouTube so far. That’s a lot of people hearing about one boy and autism, and good for the autism movement no matter what people say out there.
One of the things that makes the United States of Autism the feature documentary for autism and the 2012 election year and beyond is the strength of our people. Here, the Wessels family are not afraid to state what their views are on the movement and what they believe is necessary to move everyone forward. There are many out there who do not agree with them and we take no stance either way on the content of the message. However, we here for the movie believe that it is far more dangerous to stifle opinions, even if one vehemently disagrees. Long term, some sort of common ground must be built for all of the individuals, whether they be children or adults on the autism spectrum. It doesn’t matter if you’re a parent of a severe child that can not speak and possibly never will, to a fully functioning adult that is either excelling or searching for acceptance and growth in society, to anyone in between, all of these groups have to work together if this thing called “autism” is going to become a movement for those seeking a better life. Ultimately, this is what our film is about, the real America: “E pluribus unum”, which means “out of many, one”.
Thank you to Lin, Mark, and Sam for standing tall for what you believe and making sure the world hears you, especially in shaking hands with nearly every potential leader of the free world for the next 4 years to do so. We at the United States of Autism are proud to have you as one of our featured families, and look forward to sharing your heart with the world.
Now if only someone could help us get the message to President Obama…
Mitt Romney talking Autism with Sam: (4k views and counting)
Newt Gingrich talking Autism with Sam: (5k views and counting)
Rick Santorum talking Autism with Sam: (6k views and counting)
Ron Paul talking autism with Sam: (62k views and counting)
Michelle Bachman talking autism with Sam: (294k views and counting)
Tim Pawlenty talking autism with Sam: (70 views and counting)
Herman Cain talking autism with Sam: (80 views and counting)
Boots Art Gives New Dimension to Autism Documentary
I have never appreciated more the idea of staying behind to watch the credits at the end of a film, as much as I have since putting together the United States of Autism film. So many people play such a huge role in the process of any film, yet most of the time, the only thing we recall are the leads, maybe some really strong supporting characters and just maybe the director. In an effort to get everyone to really know the faces behind our project, we are implementing a new segment here on the blog that really takes a look at some of the folks that really made putting together the film a reality.
Jamie "Boots" Marshall
Meet Jamie “Boots” Marshall. Officially she is credited as being our Creative Guru & Artist for the film. What exactly that means is that for many long and patient days (our Director is a bit of a perfectionist) Boots designed all the artwork that you see on the film’s website as well as all the artwork you will see in the film itself (there are a bunch of animations in the film) and on our official t-shirt!
For those of you that have come to recognize our anthropomorphic puzzle piece “person” through The Tommy Foundation for Autism, it’s ever changing form to conform to the specific event we are having is all thanks to the creative genius you see to the left of your screen. She originally designed that character for us and has subsequently changed its form for events ranging from talks, walks, sensitive santa and of course the film itself!
Boots is an in demand artist whose work can be see online on sites like Boots Draws, Boots Tees and GoodJoe. She is a 2000 graduate on Franklin and Marshall College which is incidentally where we first met her and fell in love with her work and her, of course.
When asked why she partook of this particular project, she responded with the following: “I’ve known Rich and Sugey (and Tommy) for years, and they are some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met. Their dedication, hard work, and huge hearts inspire me every day. When Rich came to me and asked if I could contribute to the film he was making, the answer was an immediate “yes.” I knew it was going to be something great. Not only because the project sounded immensely intriguing, but because The US of Autism is a film that needed to be made. And now that it’s finished, I am so proud and humbled to have been a part of it.”
We are so excited to have someone of Boot’s caliber involved with the film and hope all our fans will enjoy seeing her work throughout the film!
GOP at Iowa Straw Poll Show Off Their United States of Autism Shirts
Thanks to Lin Wessels, one of the families from the United States of Autism film, four GOP presidential candidates, one US senator, one Fox News commentator, and thousands of local Iowans had the opportunity to hear and see the great United States of Autism t-shirts! The GOP contenders receiving t-shirts included Ron Paul, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum and Herman Cain. The GOP Senator from Iowa Chuck Grassley also received a t-shirt as well as Fox News Commentator Mike Huckabee.
This was an exciting opportunity for the 2012 election candidates to start becoming aware of autism and the role it will play in the election. We’re also very thankful here at the United States of Autism to have the help of Lin and her family in helping to put this in place. While we can not always be out there at every event, the passion and commitment of all our families can play a key role in moving this film forward. Thanks Lin!
Be sure to Buy Your United States of Autism T-Shirts Here!
Stay tuned for more in 2012 as our film about the best of America as seen though the eyes of families affected by autism comes out, and the US election comes into focus. Coincidence? It sure seems like somebody might have been planning this all along…
United States of Autism T-Shirt Spotting in Maryland
Looks like we have another United States of Autism t-shirt spotting, this time in Maryland! Take a look at the Chuck and Susan Hancock family out of Maryland with their son Charlie! We are excited to see them in their t-shirts, and also to see some great pictures of their family.
Be sure out there what once you get your t-shirts to send us the pictures so we can post them to the world!
United States of Autism Official T-Shirts Now Available
Custom designed t-shirts for the upcoming film the United States of Autism are now available! Created by renowned artist Jamie M. Marshall, they are printed on high-quality cotton t-shirts with a beautiful designed logo on the front and a copy of the United States of Autism plane and web address on the back. You can help be a part of the change and action of the film by wearing one of these around and showing all your friends that autism gear can be pretty cool!
Be sure to send us pictures of you in your United States of Autism T-Shirt as we’re creating a blog post of locations around the world where we can find people wearing our shirts! Feel free to forward them to info@usofautism.com, and be sure to tell us where you are, and when the picture was taken. We can’t wait to see more from around the world!