Belfast-based, award-winning filmmaker Joe McStravick recently completed a Future Screens NI R&D project developing an immersive mixed reality project which allows its user to explore the daily life of an autistic person and/or to explore the daily life of an ASD parent (the neurotypical parent of a child who is autistic). The project was created by Joe McStravick, co-written by Maura Campbell and produced by Purple Finch Productions (Ltd).
Helpless Wonder portrays a particular scenario in a day in the life of an ASD parent and/or of an autistic person from the morning, through to the evening of a typical school day.
Joe’s son Eoin was diagnosed with autism on May 5th 2017. The project is inspired by his experiences of being a parent to Eoin. Joe and his wife have often felt like they are “learning on the job” as the parents of an autistic child. They have also often wondered what it must be like for Eoin to navigate out neuro-typical world.
Joe plans to use the final project as a VR training for ASD parents and young autistic people with the intention to generate interest from the education sector and health care trusts.
For more information on the project and others follow the link here.
Joe McStravick is an award-winning film & TV director. Past projects have been commissioned and/or broadcast by BBC NI, BFI Network, Northern Ireland Screen, TG4 and RTE 2. His short films have screened at various international film festivals, including BAFTA and Academy Award accredited film festivals. As a producer and screenwriter he has produced, written and co-written a number of the film, TV and promo projects that he has directed. He has also directed/produced a range of commercial films and promos for Random, Cable & Wireless, PwC, HM Treasury, BBC and TCL Mobile.