Nansie

More than 1.5 million Australians care for someone living with dementia, and it is the leading cause of death for women. But very little is preparing us for that. There is a disconnect between our younger generations caring for a loved one living with dementia. This film is not about blame, but rather to inspire others to support family and friends living with the disease. Through their personal journey, the two sisters hope to humanise the disease by showing quality moments with their nana. Dementia and nursing homes can be confronting and they want to give viewers tools and ideas on how they can show up in their own lives.

Across the last five years, the two girls haven’t seen any other young people in their Nana’s nursing home. Their goal is to become living proof that spending time with people suffering from a mental illness like dementia can still be rewarding, and often, beneficial for the individual caring as well. Through their experience in the film and on social media, they are giving away tools and ideas for people to use when visiting a loved one, and show that life doesn’t’ stop at the diagnosis.

Our short term outcome would be to have viewers visit a loved one after the screening. It’s very likely that everyone knows someone in care, or living alone. Medium term outcome would be to encourage programs like “schools in nursing homes”, when primary and secondary students visit on a regular basis their local nursing home. The long term outcome would be to change the vision we have of nursing homes as closed places, but having more exchanges between both worlds. Make the process a norm and less scary for younger people. By interacting with residents, these types of diseases will take longer to settle and it would be of great help for carers who often don’t have time to interact with residents after taking care of their basic needs.

Our relationship and access to this community comes through a strong commitment to sharing Nansie with audiences who can connect with its themes of care, aging, and intergenerational relationships. We are working with organisations such as ATOM to bring the film into schools across Australia, with the option for the sisters to participate in Q&As with students to debunk myths and inspire intergenerational connection. With the support of Southern Cross Care and other aged care facilities, we are reaching healthcare workers by organising screening events and providing access to the film for staff. We are also pursuing broadcast opportunities with the support of influential figures such as Ita Buttrose AC OBE. Nansie has already begun to resonate internationally, with official selections at the Byron Bay International Film Festival, the Budapest International Documentary Festival, the Doker Film Festival, and the Rhodope International Documentary Film Fest.

The first step viewers can take after watching the film would be to visit their loved ones, and start a conversation with young people to encourage them to do so. Parents and teachers would be able to download our study guide to accompany them in the process. We want to encourage our social media trend #youllneverneverknowifyounevernevergo. We want to encourage teachers present during screenings to show their students the documentary.
We want to encourage health care workers to share the documentary with colleagues and families.