The other day I had a chance to see the award-winning short,
“The Butterfly Circus” and was stunned. I’ve never heard of this little film
before, but it was incredible. Great writing, well acted and very artistic. I
even got a little choked up. It was created in 2009.
They say that over 20 million people have seen this short
and has been translated into 19 different languages, so I must have been one of
the last. The story takes place during the height of the Great Depression. A
showman (Eduardo Verastegui of “Bella”) of a Butterfly Circus leads his troupe
to places and people who need encouragement. During one trip they find Will
(Nick Vujicic), a man without limbs at a rival carnival sideshow. Living a
miserable life, Will chooses to travel with the Butterfly Circus and his life
is changed beyond his dreams.
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| Rebekah and Joshua Weigel |
In real life, Nick Vujicic is a Serbian Australian evangelist and
motivational speaker. He was born with tetra-amelia syndrome, a rare disorder
characterised by the absence of all four limbs. Vujicic was not only physically able to do the role, but he is quite the actor as well with only a hint of his accent coming through.
“The Butterfly Circus was created by Joshua and Rebekah Weigel
who serve as partners in marriage as well as the arts. Their goal is to create
meaningful films that entertain, challenge and inspire others. Together they
have done this with their other shorts –“Liv” (2009), “Stained” (2008) and
“Snare” (2007). According to the couple’s website, the short has proved to be
so popular that plans have been made to expand the short story into a feature
length film. However, as of March 2011, no new updates have been posted.
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| Will (Nick Vuijicic, center) and a showman (Eduardo Verastegui0 |
If you too haven’t seen the film, now is your chance. You
can visit the Weigel’s website and see the full production. The story is
family-friendly with a message that everyone will appreciate. While you are at
the site, you can sign up to receive updates on the upcoming film and purchase
copies of the film on DVD if you so desire.
