Father Joe’s Villages’ new short film “Shine” hopes to change public perceptions of homelessness in San Diego.
Homelessness can be a difficult topic to talk about. As a society when we see homelessness we are forced to face uncomfortable questions about our community’s values, our economy, our social safety net and the value we place on human dignity.
These are challenging questions – even on our best days. It is can be easy to overlook the humanity that lies at the heart of homelessness – the mothers and brothers, fathers and grandfathers – who live without safety, with little hope on our streets.
At Father Joe’s Villages, we know that we can end homelessness and this belief is born from our experience seeing the potential within each individual person that we help and our decades of experience uncovering that potential and helping people, one by one, get back on their feet. Homelessness, at its heart, is a housing issue, but it is also a hope issue. We created an animated short film titled “Shine” to showcase the power of hope and compassion.
We were blessed to team up with amazing partners to bring this film to life. San Diego-based integrated marketing agency, i.d.e.a., and Golden Globe-nominated animators, Reel FX, dedicated their talent and generosity to this vision.
Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Steve Breen: “It can be so easy to see our homelessness crisis as a list of statistics, or tents we pass on our way to work,” says Breen.
“But art awakens our humanity and reminds us that homelessness is about people whose stories are as full of potential as they are of struggle.”
“I wanted to direct the short story because it’s so meaningful,” says Barrett Lewis, creative director at ReelFX.
“I think all creative people hope that their work can contribute to something that makes a difference in the world and crafting a unique and heartfelt narrative about how Father Joe’s Villages helps solve homelessness was that project for me.”
We hope that the film will bring a new kind of attention to San Diego’s homelessness crisis, encouraging the community to see the issue of homelessness in a new light.
Join us. Together, we can see an end to homelessness in San Diego. Make a donation right now.
