Thank youfor joining team Railfan! Many of you have come from postings we shared online, we are grateful that you’re supporting our little engine FILM that could.  We can’t wait to share Railfan with you, both the documentary along with pop-up galleries of Travis’ portrait series. 

You’re probably here because you’ve got someone in your life with autism. I hope when you see our film, it gives that real sense that you’re not alone. We open a window into the lives of 6 different families who live with autism. We’ve chosen moments that are funny (these kids are hilarious); touching; and familiar; and that speak to the challenges and rewards of parenting– no matter what our families look like. 

We want to turn our screenings into engaging events that let us talk about these kids; to open some dialogues wherever we can about how to make lives better for folks with ASD (with a little bit of public transit infrastructure critiques along the way!) You  being here, just reading this, and sharing awareness of our project is so essential, so again, our sincere thanks. I hope in return we’re able to give you something that makes you feel seen. 

FILM UPDATE:  Railfan is ‘picture-locked’ and is now getting a professional sound treatment courtesy of a post-production grant we received from the National Film Board of Canada’s Filmmaker Assistance Program. Hopefully our subway sounds will pass the test of discerning listeners! 

CROWDFUNDING: Our campaign launch date is now September 15th, 2026! Add this to your calendar! Especially if you’re in Toronto or NYC where you’ll be able to participate in one of our launch parties (details to come)… And please please spread the word about us wherever you can. If you're part of a local support group, or have some friends who you think would love an heartfelt story about kids + trains - let people know! 

SIGN UP: And if you haven’t already done so - now’s the time to SIGN UP on the prelaunch page - by doing so you’ll automatically get the update on the campaign start. Maybe you’ll be the first to score one of the limited Portrait sessions by Travis Hugget of the Railfan in your life / and/ or the person of your choice in Manhattan! Or get hold of one of our limited special ‘Diamond Q’ editions of Railfan on DVD/Blu-ray (with a special Railfan-centric commentary track!) 

 

CALL FOR ART!  We loved seeing the art made by the kids in Railfan. Hand drawn maps; trains scrawled on  wipeboards (hot tip for kids going through too much paper!) or even customized subway toys all with the correct route information. Talk about a window into someone's world... So please SEND US art by the Railfan kids in YOUR life, and (with your permission) we’ll signal boost to all our followers! Send art to: [email protected] 

Hi, I’m Ian Daffern, and I wrote this newsletter. I’m the director of Railfan. I'm from Toronto, and I've got two kids: a 10 year girl who loves tiny dogs and Labubus, and a son, who got me interested in trains. No he’s not on the spectrum (that we know of); but that didn’t stop him from drawing a billion transit maps, or taking us to nearly every train station in the TTC. I’m really grateful for Travis opening his world up to me. And I hope I’ve done it justice in how we’ve told the stories of these amazing kids and their families. Peace & Love - Ian 

Inspired by the artwork of Travis Huggett 

Produced By: 

Idfactory 

Supported by: 

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