Project type: Fiction ShortGenre: Dramedy / FamilyProject status: Pre-ProductionProduction: March 2025Writer/Director: Desdemona ChiangProducer: Selena Leoni & Phoebe WongSupported by: Women In Film & DramaLeagueProduction Company:
Little Paws PicturesLogline: An up-and-coming stand-up comedian delays her career aspirations to do the greater work of caring for her 99 year-old grandmother in her final years.

Supported by Drama League of New York

Synopsis:It’s Wednesday open mic night at The Slow Clap Club. CATHY TAO, a scrappy 27 year old, takes the stage. She’s been a regular here for years, and her dream is to be a standup comedian. We discover through Cathy’s set that she is a full-time caregiver to her 99-year old grandmother NAI NAI, whom she lives with.
Over the course of her set, Cathy shares bits about her life with Nai Nai—the anecdotes are funny and surprisingly moving, and she is a hit with the audience. We discover that there has been interest in Cathy for quite some time from the industry, but she’s been putting off a professional career because she knows that her time with Nai Nai is not going to last forever.

Project type: Documentary ShortTheme: Personal Narrative / FamiliesProject status: Picture LockedDirected By: Dasha Altukhova & Jacob Wolf LeftonProduced By: Selena LeoniFiscal Sponsorship Provided By:
From The Heart Productions
*Your donation to the film will be tax-deductible.Production Company:
Little Paws PicturesLogline: In his desire to provide physical support for the birthing parent of his child, Jacob (he/they) challenges traditional parental roles by exploring the possibility of male breastfeeding.

IS THIS A "DAD" THING? is a fiscally sponsored project of From the Heart Productions, a non-profit independent media arts organization. From the Heart Productions will receive grants for the charitable purposes of IS THIS A "DAD" THING?, provide oversight to ensure that grant funds are used in accordance with grant agreements, and provide reports as required by the grantor. Contributions for the charitable purposes of IS THIS A "DAD" THING? must be made payable to From the Heart Productions and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

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MEET THE FILMMAKERS

Jacob Wolf Lefton - Director/Participant
Jacob Wolf Lefton (he/they) is an actor and filmmaker in Berlin who plays male and nonbinary roles. His films address questions of belonging, obligation, and cultural identity. He co-wrote and acted in “Until Death Do Us Part,” which won the Filmapalooza 2020 World Film Challenge. He also supported participatory documentary methodologies as part of a peacebuilding process in the Philippines.Dasha Altukhova - Director/Editor
Dasha Altukhova (she) is a visual artist and filmmaker with a background in stage acting and physical performance. Her artistic approach focuses on personal themes, including existential givens, body, and memory. She directed one short and one medium-length documentary film and various commercial projects. Her works were screened at the European Film Awards, Doc. Berlin, Norwich Queer Festival.Selena Leoni, Little Paws Pictures - Producer
Selena Leoni (she) is a transnational producer with over a decade of experience in film, television, and multimedia. With a stellar track record, she has led diverse projects across genres that reached various platforms, including STARZ, Amazon Prime, and Apple TV, and earned recognition at prestigious festivals such as Shortlist for the 2024 Academy Awards and an Honorable Mention on the 2024 Gold List.

Dasha Altukhova - Director/Editor

Much of my female experience has been associated with anxiety and isolation. I have felt it is imposed on me and requires me to face feelings of fear and danger, some of which I can’t share with anybody, even those closest to me. For me, the accumulation of these feelings leads toward pregnancy, which I feel as an imposed burden on the body as much as a potential gift. In a moment when my gender alienated me from my body, I met Jacob and saw in his story that it is possible to build bridges that connect people and dispel the loneliness of gendered experiences.In my art, I approach the theme of body and embodiment through exploration and introspection. I am used to asking questions to myself and finding reasons in myself to take action. What I find intriguing about Jacob is that his approach to his body is not directed inward but is reflective of his partner’s needs and a shared vision of parenthood and family.
This vision can help people make more sense of their own gender, their partnerships and parental journeys. That is where I see the importance of telling this story. Together with Jacob, I want to show that our bodies are not our prisons, and even if they seem to be, we can learn from others how to break their walls and turn their metal bars into beautiful plants.

Jacob Wolf Lefton - Director/Participant

I chose to make this film of my own experiences inducing lactation and nursing my child because when I became interested in the subject, it was very difficult for me to find guidance. I found no depictions of someone like me breastfeeding and examples or discussions of anyone inducing lactation without first having years of estrogen in their bodies.When I tell people that I breastfed my child, they don’t believe it because they’ve never considered that it’s possible for men. Inducing lactation is usually done by adoptive mothers of newborns or to support cis women who are struggling to produce milk, or held within the queer community among lesbian and transfemme parents. In our culture, a disproportionate amount of care work, especially the physical burdens of pregnancy and infancy, is on women and their bodies. My partner and I were seeking ways to equalize the physical burden of bringing a child into the world.I turned the camera onto myself because I hoped that if this process worked, I could create new images of parenthood. Changing our culture requires changing our imagination. In this film I use my masculine body to breastfeed my child. It’s real and beautiful. I want to share this image of reality so other men and their partners can be inspired to seek it for themselves if they wish.