This short film uses animation to tell stories of homelessness in Philly

“I grew up in Iowa. My mom married my stepfather and my childhood turned very abusive. I was doing all the household chores while my stepsister and brother got spoiled. When I first found out I was transgender, I was 11 but I didn’t have words for it.”

That testimonial, delivered by a transgender homeless individual living in Philadelphia, comes from the promotional video for an upcoming animated short film called “Homeless to Hopeful.” Created by local animator John Serpentelli, the film will tell the life stories of a handful of homeless individuals in Philadelphia using their own words, and animation to conceal their identities.

The promotional video introduces us to three individuals, two of whom sell street papers for local nonprofit One Step Away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlGfAFDGtYY

The film is currently a work in progress, and Serpentelli has been crowdfunding through Generosity to raise the $4,200 he needs to finish the project.

“The people who are living on the streets got there in a variety of ways. Once they become homeless they are too often considered something ‘less than’ human,” writes Serpentelli. “They are ignored as if they are invisible or even worse, treated as if they somehow deserve to be homeless.”

Serpentelli’s is no stranger to using his craft for social good. Last year he produced “Animating Autism,” a film that follows seven children as they work together to create an animated film.

The animator says a portion of the profits made from Homeless to Hopeful will go toward the individuals in the film.