Kiwi travelling world with dying Uncle to film Documentary

Auckland based filmmaker Guy Pigden who directed cult kiwi horror/comedy I Survived A Zombie Holocaust is about to embark on a very different filmmaking journey. On April 17th he is putting all his filmmaking equipment into a suitcase and hopping on a plane to London to film a Documentary on his Uncle, Gregory Wilsdon who 3 years ago was diagnosed with MSA (Muscular System Atrophy) a very rare degenerative neurological disease.

‘It’s a bit like Parkinson’s’ Pigden says ‘but the effects are much more rapid and devastating. My Uncle since being diagnosed went from being completely able bodied 3 years ago to now being in a wheelchair unable to move most of his extremities, often not able to speak. Everything must be done for him and he requires 24/7 around the clock care. It’s very hard for someone healthy to imagine what that’s like. Your body just slowly shuts down until it only serves as a window for you to look out at the world which you can no longer participate in.’

Pigden says his connection with his Uncle began when he moved to London at 19 years old. ‘I was totally clueless, I’d gone from living in Dunedin my whole life to moving to one of the biggest busiest cities in the world. My Uncle was like a big brother to me. He looked out for me, he helped me get a job in the film industry, he did everything he could to help push me toward my dreams of becoming a filmmaker and he set me off on this path. Now I’m hoping that I can apply my skills as a filmmaker to help him.’

Pigden says he first thought of the idea of filming a documentary on his Uncle after seeing a video his Uncle created talking about his battle with MSA. ‘The video was completely silent, featuring text and images only because he has lost his voice to MSA. I remember thinking how powerful my Uncle’s story was that he had to endure so much just to stay alive another day. And then the next day he fights that battle all over again. That’s true bravery. I wanted to expand on my Uncle’s words and film the things he couldn’t so people truly could get a sense of not just what he was going through but also his wife and daughter.

Pigden admits he is far from a documentarian, ‘Usually I try and make movies purely for entertainment purposes this is completely out of my comfort zone. Most the time you make films in part for yourself and to serve your own ego, but making this film is hopefully just to do good. My only agenda is to create something that helps people understand the illness better and more importantly to give my Uncle a voice again, that’s what this film can do. ‘

Pigden is currently trying to raise money through a crowdfunding campaign to cover some of the expenses of his trip and the post production on the film. Pigden says his ultimate goal is to raise enough money so that he can finish the film in time for his Uncle to see it. You can contribute to his campaign through the link below.

https://gogetfunding.com/documentary-about-multiple-system-atrophy-msa/

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