In 2010, Maya and Noah set out to create a family. Maya had just turned 30 and the couple figured within a few months they would be well on their way to planning baby showers and decorating a nursery. But by 2012 when they had nothing to show for their efforts except trash cans full of ovulation test strips and doctor’s recommendations to “just relax,” they decided to start something they knew they could create, a documentary about their journey to parenthood.
Maya is a clinical social worker and Noah is a TV producer, and together they started filming every aspect of their process, from their first appointment with their reproductive endocrinologist to various procedures to IUIs and IVF and IVF with eggs donated from Maya’s sister. (For those of you who know the couple, Maya blogs over at Don’t Count Your Eggs, you know where they are at in their journey, for those of you who don’t I won’t share their ending).
The couple had no idea they would spend nearly five years trying to figure out an alternative answer to the age old question, “where do babies come from?” But they did. And as part of their documentary, they’ve interviewed many different people/couples who have built their families in alternative ways. Maya and Noah are currently trying to raise some post-production funds through an Indiegogo crowd funding campaign that will kick off on March 1st and run for a month.
Maya and Noah are making a feature length film that will not only raise awareness about infertility and what many of us have to go through in order to have a baby, but will also work to erase the stigma of infertility and normalize alternative ways families are made. It’s a personal story with universal appeal and isn’t just for the infertility community. They interview many different people who have gotten creative in how they were going to build a family.
I hope you’ll check out their film website and Indiegogo campaign page and help spread the word so they can raise enough money to finish the film. You can also follow the film updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Photos courtesy of Elizabeth Walker from The Art of Infertility
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I’m very excited for this documentary to come out, and will definitely be donating!
so awesome!!! going to check it out!
I think this is great that they are doing this. I love when people are able to raise awareness of infertility. I especially like the idea of “[normalizing] alternative ways families are made.”
Love Noah’s perspective on filming, I like how they show the raw deal through this journey. Great feature Lisa.