GRACE
Short Film

Project Type: Short Film
Project Status: Pre-Production
Writer/Director/Producer: Lesley Fera
Producer: Glenn Milley Producer: Lola Noh
Director of Photography: Kat White

LOGLINE

When a middle-aged woman with Down syndrome learns her mother has died, she embarks on a quest to attend the funeral in Los Angeles, enlisting the unlikeliest of travel companions.

SYNOPSIS

It’s morning at Williams House, a board and care facility in Arcata, CA. GRACE (35, pure sunshine with a soft edge) wakes up to the familiar sights and sounds of her home. Grace has Down syndrome. Grace’s sister, BONNIE (41, Type A, inordinately responsible), visits her unexpectedly to share the sad news that their estranged mother has died. Grace asks to attend the funeral in Los Angeles, but Bonnie explains why they can’t go—she finally landed a new job and can’t risk losing it. Later that night, undeterred, Grace decides to embark on a journey to attend her mother’s funeral.

While Grace rests her swollen feet at a gas station, MATT (32, tatted, world-weary, rough) pulls up to pump gas. After his credit card gets declined, Grace asks him for a ride to LA. He declines, but when Grace winds up in his passenger seat, offering him cash for gas in exchange for a ride, he caves. Once on the road, Matt tells Grace he’ll only take her to Santa Cruz, which is where he’s headed. But as their friendship blossoms, Matt changes his tune and eventually decides to drive Grace to LA.

Things go south when Matt receives a Purple Alert and discovers the police believe someone abducted Grace. A distraught Matt reveals he’s on parole and knows how this will look to law enforcement. To help fix the mess she created and assuage Matt’s fears, Grace calls Bonnie. The next day, Bonnie arrives to pick up her sister. Instead of being upset, Bonnie is grateful to Matt and relieved to find Grace safe.

Matt and Grace must say their goodbyes — forever changed. Through their journey, Grace imparts love and acceptance, gifting Matt the self-forgiveness he needs to move on with his life. And Matt shares unexpected wisdom that changes Grace’s trajectory - and even Bonnie’s - forever: we never need to say goodbye to those we love.

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DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT

GRACE is a humor-laced drama that follows a woman’s journey toward emotional liberation despite perceived limitations. The story celebrates the unlikely kindred spirits who come into our path, surprising us with their goodness. The film explores themes of grief, loss, forgiveness, kinship, sisterhood, and a sense of belonging.

My goal with this film is twofold: to shed light on Down syndrome by paying homage to a dear friend’s daughter, whom I adore, and to help others heal from grief. My friend’s daughter, Grace, is a bright light in an often bleak world; I wanted to repay her for the unconditional love she gives so freely to so many.

Between 2017 and 2020, I lost my mother, father, only sibling, and dog. The stages of grief are intensely real. It’s taken me years to accept the lesson that Grace embraces by film’s end —our loved ones “are closer than breathing, nearer than hand or feet.” (Lord Tennyson). It’s my wish that this film will be a salve for those who have lost someone dear to them.

In a world that’s increasingly numb and disconnected, where demonizing the “evil other” is unfortunately commonplace, now more than ever, I believe we must create stories that restore our empathy and remind us of our shared humanity. GRACE is one of those stories. I hope that this film inspires people to look beyond red or blue to the wounded soul, as we’re all wounded souls in some way, yearning to connect and be loved.

Meet The Filmmakers and Actors

Lesley Fera

Writer/Director/Producer
A proud multi-hyphenate, Lesley Fera’s creative work spans several media—theatre, television, and film. Her passion for screenwriting blossomed during her illustrious acting career, where she appeared in some of television’s biggest hits—including Pretty Little Liars, 24, and Southland. “Black List Recommended,” Fera’s writing has advanced in two network fellowships—NBC/Universal and Warner Brothers—and has been recognized by Script Pipeline, Final Draft’s Big Break, Roadmap Writers, among others. She relishes creating stories centered around flawed souls with huge, wounded hearts on the brink of transformation. Fera has sparked interest from Thunder Road Pictures, Eat the Cat, Weed Road Pictures, Echo Lake Entertainment, MarVista, and FOX Entertainment. In 2026, she looks forward to directing her first film, Grace, which was recently a Top 5 Finalist in both the Film Pipeline Short Film Script Contest and the Shore Scripts Short Film Fund. She is repped by Jeff Portnoy at Bellevue Productions.

IMDB - Lesley Ferra
Lola Noh

Producer
An actor/producer whose work is rooted in creative leadership and intentional storytelling, Lola Noh draws upon her diverse background as an Asian-American woman, gymnast, teacher, and student advocate to challenge assumptions and help create new perspectives through universal themes. She strives to cultivate environments centered on collaboration and problem-solving where everyone can thrive. Noh has produced over 25 projects across digital, short-form, and feature storytelling. Her producing credits include the Emmy-nominated web series Ctrl Alt Delete starring Ed Begley Jr.; the heartfelt feature film 2 Lives in
Pittsburgh (Amazon Prime), featuring Annie O’Donnell; and the award-winning short films Made Public, starring Jeanine Mason & Josh Zuckerman, and Saved Rounds, directed by John Finn. Noh’s acting credits include appearances in the feature films Banging Lanie (Amazon Prime) and Love and Baseball (HBO Max).

IMDB - Lola Noh
Glenn Milley

Producer
Emmy®-winning television producer Glenn Milley, a four-time nominee, has built a successful unscripted career over 17 years, producing for major brands like Amazon Prime, CBS, Fox, Hallmark Media, Hello Sunshine, and NBC. He won his first Emmy® in 2021 alongside Jada Pinkett Smith for Red Table Talk, the #1 Facebook Watch series that reached over 1.5 billion views. Currently, he serves as Executive Producer of two podcasts, and has several scripted projects in development, including The Committee, a quarter-finalist in the 2023 Final Draft Big Break Screenwriting Contest. A Brooklyn native now based in Los Angeles, Milley has been a Television Academy voter since 2015 and a PGA member since 2021.

IMDB - Glenn Milley

Katharine White

Director of Photography

An award-winning cinematographer, Katharine White works in narrative, music video, and commercial content. She is especially driven to tell stories about anti-heroes, underdogs, and marginalized characters. White’s work has appeared in publications such as Glamour, Entertainment Weekly, AltPress, Billboard, FADER, Refinery29, Complex UK, Kerrang!, NME, and Stereogum, and has been viewed by millions of people online. In 2021/2022 she was honored to be selected as an ASC Vision Mentee.

IMDB - Katharine White
Jamie Brewer

Actor (Grace)
An actress, model, and intrepid disability advocate, Jamie Brewer is perhaps best known for her work on the anthology series American Horror Story. Brewer made her television debut as Adelaide “Addie” Langdon in American Horror Story: Murder House, and went on to portray multiple characters in later seasons of the series. Brewer became the first model with Down syndrome to walk the runway at New York Fashion Week, and she made history again as the first woman with Down syndrome to star in an Off-Broadway production — Amy and the Orphans — for which she received the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play. Beyond her artistic achievements, Brewer is a vocal advocate for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. She has held leadership roles in organizations such as the ARC and one of her proudest moments was when she helped lobby for legislative change regarding the use of derogatory language in Texas law.

IMDB - Jamie Brewer
Samantha Sloyan

Actor (Bonnie)
Having had the privilege of collaborating with Lesley Fera several times before, Sloyan is thrilled to be doing so again on GRACE. Samantha is known for her compelling performances across theatre, television, and film, including The Geffen Playhouse / The Thanksgiving Play; Kirk Douglas Theatre /Jon Robin Baitz’s Vicuña; Segerstrom Center for the Arts / PBS Great Performances / Ellis Island: The Dream of America; and Buzzworks Theater/ Munched, for which she received the LADCC and LA Weekly awards. Sloyan’s breakout roles in television include that of Dr. Penelope Blake on Grey’s Anatomy. She has become a frequent collaborator with filmmaker Mike Flanagan, starring in his acclaimed series Midnight Mass, The Haunting of Hillhouse, and The Fall of the House of Usher as well as in his feature film, The Life of Chuck, which won the People’s Choice Award at TIFF 2024. Most recently, she had an arc on the Emmy-award winning drama THE PITT (HBO MAX) and will play Margaret White in Mike Flanagan’s upcoming adaptation of CARRIE.

IMDB - Samantha Sloyan
David Coleman

Actor (Matt)
A New York based actor and filmmaker, Dave Coleman has appeared in Law and Order (NBC), Blue Bloods (CBS) and WarGames (MGM). His film The Wake, written by John Patrick Shanley, was the recipient of the Best Picture and Best Actor prizes at the SoHo International Film Festival, and went on to become Oscar-qualifying. The short narrative film is Coleman and Shanley’s joint effort to bring the heartbeat of New York theater to the big screen. He’s currently on tour with a theater production about the stories and life of Edgar Allan Poe.

IMDB - David Coleman