Director’s Statement

Right before the Great Recession in 2008, before the iPhone was launched in 2007, and around the time Pluto was reclassified to a dwarf planet, was the last generation that experienced childhood before ubiquitous smartphones. 

These black boxes, along with the rapidly approaching advent of social media, changed the way people of all ages fundamentally related to each other. 

Growing Pains is a coming-of-age story, set in 2006 - an awkward time in recent history, for both fashion and a girl going through puberty. I keenly remember first developing breasts, feeling like everyone’s looking at my tits. I began to shift the way I held myself, down to the way I breathed. The men in my life distanced themselves, the women spoke halfway advice in hushed tones, wrapped in lessons of modesty and protecting purity. I remember being asked to wear clothes rather than a towel while walking from the bathroom to the bedroom after showering. Why? For the men in the house. Apparently I was too old for that, but too young to know why. 

I started to learn what it was like to be perceived, how to picture myself from the outside. I remember a constant feeling of being watched. Typical puberty insecurity and anxiety, right? Well, perhaps not. 

In regards to puberty and changing bodies, kids, particularly girls, don’t have enough education. When adults and parents are repressed, ashamed, or lacking knowledge themselves, they pass along that to their children, leaving children more vulnerable and unprotected. But kids are smart, girls are resourceful, we learned how to learn from each other, how to smuggle bras, makeup, and eventually facts from the internet. The early internet arguably gave more than it took. But now, for girls growing up, all the worse traditions are exacerbated. She doesn’t just feel an inner eye, there are actually more eyes on her than ever before. 20 years since 2006, the promised protection of constant surveillance is unfulfilled. The feeling of being watched is more true than it has ever been, and it’s beginning younger and younger through technology. 

As a girl, the moments I felt the most free from the Eye were in solitude and nature. Finding havens in the shape of a handbuilt lean-to of logs and pine needles, or a rooftop where I could sit and stare at the clouds. It’s in this tactile connection with nature where kids can find truth, simplicity, and hope. All by accident, through intuition, simply through the allowance of their own play. Rather than being harvested online, they can observe and watch through curious experience. Through awkwardness and sincerity, that is growing pains.

Short films are notoriously hard to fund. Before a director makes their first feature, they must first hone in artistically, often through short films. By being a patron, you’re supporting an entire crew of creative professionals as they continue in their careers.

With Growing Pains, we plan to do a short but effective festival run (think SXSW, Female Eye Film Festival, and Hollyshorts to name a few), with an online marketing focus on the behind-the-scenes process, hence why we are documenting the whole process of making the short film. Then we will make it available on the best short film platforms and continue what we do best: making films.

There are two ways you can donate.

1. For smaller donations, we recommend directly through venmo. Any amount helps!

2. Through our fiscal sponsorship with Future Front, we can accept Venmo, ACH, physical checks, or even in-kind donations such as locations for filming, catering for crew meals, and equipment. All donations are tax-deductible. So, tax write off, baby!

   Plus, for larger donations, there are perk options like Executive Producer credit, getting a poster and/or prop from the film, and coming to set for a day to see it all in action, and more.

Simply click here to pledge an amount and Future Front handles the paperwork. Easy!

If you have any questions, please reach out to j.manzo.film@gmail.com

Your donation will go towards:

• casting costs to find the best young actor for this challenging and intuitive role

• 2006 set dressing, furniture and tech to develop the world

• Building a tunnel room/CCTV screen room set on a soundstage

• Compensate the crew with a little something for their time, efforts, and skill!

The goal of the film is to capture what 2006 felt like, authentically and effectively.  

For audiences, the plan is a short but impactful festival run - SXSW, Female Eye Film Festival, HollyShorts to name a few. There will also be a local Austin, TX screening event event with businesses and artists who have aligned missions with girls’ puberty education. 

Plus, using my 10-year marketing background, a social campaign using Behind the Scenes footage to share the process and build ongoing viewership, leading to a launch on a premium short film platform distribution plan like Klipist or Shortverse.

We are filming in Austin, TX October 16-19th.

We are looking to source more 90s tech.

We are also looking for a 70s-90s house to film in.

If you have any leads, reach out to mandy@manifestafilm.com