AAMDSIF Virtual Film Festival | Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation (AAMDSIF) Return to top.

AAMDSIF Virtual Film Festival

Introductory image: Group Photo at Representative Matsui's Office

Her Unlikely Kin (2016)

Her Unlikely Kin

Kenneth J. Raimondi, Director

A troubled war veteran's chance for redemption comes from a dying girl's last hope. Sarah Rassi is running out of options. She needs a bone marrow transplant and her only match on the registry is troubled war veteran Peyton Sinclair. Can Peyton overcome his own battles with PTSD to step up and save Sarah's life? Her Unlikely Kin tells the story of two strangers, who by rare genetic chance, can offer each other new life. Director Raimondi is himself a survivor of aplastic anemia.

Watch Her Unlikely Kin.

Rose (2015)

Running Through

Ritchie Vermeire and Dilgesh Rojbeyani, Directors

Rose is an award-wining short film, directed by Ritchie Vermeire and Dilgesh Rojbeyani. In this poignant story of an 11-year-old girl suffering from aplastic anemia, her family desperately seeks to find a stem cell donor to save her life. When insurance companies refuse to pay for treatment, life for Rose and her mother Céline becomes increasingly difficult. The film is based on true stories, one of them being Ritchie Vermeire’s own journey. He suffered from the same disease as Rose and eventually recovered after having a stem cell transplant.

Watch Rose. (Please note this is a foreign language film with English subtitles.)

Bench to Bedside: Liviya’s Story (2013)

Bench to Bedside

Steve Dorst, Director

Produced by The Foundation for Biomedical Research, Liviya’s Story is a 25-minute video featuring seven-year-old Liviya Anderson and her family, following the timeline of her aplastic anemia diagnosis, subsequent treatment and unexpectedly rapid recovery. Included are interviews with Liviya’s doctor, researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Liviya’s teacher at her elementary school. It also documents the Anderson family's efforts to call attention to this disease and support ongoing research, particularly important for patients like Liviya who don’t have a sibling bone marrow match. Liviya’s Story was nominated for two Emmy awards.

Watch Liviya’s Story.