What’s it like for a young person whose parents provide foster care to other children? What’s it really like when another child comes to live with you? What are the highs and lows, and how do you make it work for everyone?

This project entailed working closely with a group of young people aged 13 to 20, all of whom were the natural children of foster carers, and who had secured funding to create a film for other young people whose families were considering fostering. They had a clear idea of the story they wanted to tell, and Deadline’s job was to help them do just that.

We started with a workshop to bring together all their experiences and ideas, discuss the look and feel of the film, and craft all of this into a script that worked. The young people also created initial designs for the “blob” foster family that would feature on the DVD, which was then brought to life by our animator. The final film combines live action, animation and graphics, along with voiceovers by the young people themselves, who also presented directly to camera. The result was a film that is accessible, fast-paced and amusing, whilst also being searingly honest about what being a foster family is like. You can find out more about the project from the Essex County Council Website here.

Fostering: The Facts was created at the same time as The Best Job I’ve Ever Done, a DVD we developed on behalf of Essex County Council to recruit adults as foster carers.