Filmmaker Katie Mathews never anticipated becoming so passionate about dementia, but her personal experience with memory loss inspired her and a script soon followed. In 2021, Dementia Spring awarded her with the inaugural Dementia Arts Impact Award for her short film, Dark Moon.
As a filmmaker, Mathews likes to focus on what she calls ‘the emotional truth’ of complex issues. Dark Moon will be her most personal project so far. It portrays a father and daughter’s journey through his early stages of a new dementia diagnosis. It’s a story about how relationships between loved ones change along the dementia journey, and about how unpredictable, even surreal those changes can be.
Mathews sought the support of Dementia Spring because of its ability to provide expertise, context and contacts to round out her depiction of dementia.
“It was with help from Dementia Spring that I was able to make sure the script hit on some of the important symptoms of dementia and the common experiences of people living with dementia.”
Mathews is one of many visual and performing artists who are telling a new story of dementia through various mediums, and the Dementia Spring Foundation is proud to support her journey. With filming now complete and Mathews in the post-production phase, we’ll learn more about the Dark Moon project in the coming months.
The 2022 Dementia Arts Impact Awards are open now! Learn how to apply »
