Working at Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in London
With children who suffered from EPIDERMOLYSIS BULLOSA (EB) at educated me about this rare skin condition which gives the children suffering from this condition the name “The Butterfly Children.” I fell in love with the butterfly children, in particular Maisy who at the time I met her was just four years of age with RDEB, and by the time I finally got to film Daisy, Maisy was nine-years-old.
Maisy was my muse, my inspiration for Daisy that is why there was no one better to play the part of Isabella than Maisy Keetch, and there was no way we were not going to film a documentary about her.
Maisy is a very fun, loving and outgoing girl, who loves blogging on youtube about her toys and daily life. Maisy was featured in a charity show for four years singing to an audience of three hundred people at The Harlit Theatre Maidstone before being in Daisy. Her acting roles included being a lamb in the Christmas plays and being a chimney sweeper in assembly at school. Daisy was be her film acting debuted.
When we started casting, I wanted Maisy to play Daisy; however, after lengthy discussions with the producers, the casting agent, and her doctors, it was felt that the demand to be set 9 hours a day would be too much for her. Therefore, we decided to cast an actress for the role and gave Maisy the supporting role of Isabella.
I really tried everything I could to make sure Maisy played Daisy, but sadly, there was no way we could maMaisyke it work with the budget with had and me being an up-and-coming director. Therefore I had to be happy with the decision that was agreed on, even though my gut kept saying it had to be Daisy. Dont get me too wrong, the actress that played Daisy was lovely; however, I had written Daisy for Maisy, and I just could let that go.
Filming Daisy
When it finally came time to shoot, Maisy shocked us all and proved everyone wrong. We were all enlightened by this phenomenal little actress hiding inside her. She was on set before schedules and was happy to stay as long as we needed her to stay. She took my direction brilliantly and never complained that it was too hot or that she might be in pain. She was happy to be on set with us and worked hard. She knew all her lines and even had fun improvising for me.
My gut was right, but it was too late; the production had started, Maisy was to be Isabelle. I hoped that the short film would have helped us find funding for the feature film version I had initially written and that she would still be with us to play Daisy. Sadly, finding money for an indie short film, let alone an indie feature film, is probably one of the hardest things to
I am so glad that I decided to film the documentary Maisy and the Making of Daisy along side Daisy as it will allow show what this beautiful little girl has to go through very day of her life and how well she does it. It will show a girl who normally would never be picked as the lead actress on screen, bring a tear to all our eyes on by her performance.
The best thing for me is always watching the rushes. That is when I see if the film is going to come together the way I had dreamt it would. Every time Maisy popped on screen, my editor and I were naturally were drawn to her and were moved by her performance. She is such a delight to watch on the big screen and that is why I see an Oscar lurking around for this little actress : )))
Thank you Maisy for showing us what true professionalism is. Thank you for letting us into your world and letting us capture it. You have moved me and the entire cast and crew in more ways then you will ever know and I hope to work with you on many more project in the future!!!
Congratulations for you first IMDB credit!!! You definitely deserve it!!!
