Film Title:
The Perfect Match
Film Synopsis:
Following his calling from God, Patrick McFarlane finds himself homeless, living out of the back of his truck with two wiener dogs. In complete desperation, he places an ad on Craigslist, after his seven-year journey to donate a kidney remains unfulfilled.
An extremely touching true story of altruism, “The Perfect Match” documents kidney donor, Patrick McFarlane, through his personal obstacles and societal challenges on his path to find a donor program that will accept him, and ultimately find a kidney recipient that will be a perfect match.
Regret and redemption are interwoven with Patrick’s remarkable ability to laugh at himself and his amazing perseverance in achieving his goal, no matter the cost.
A dedicated, emotional journey and heart-felt true story of Patrick McFarlane: kidney donor, Christian, human, homeless man, father, leader, and hero.
Key People (cast, crew, etc.):
Patrick McFarlane, kidney donor; Marcia Gould, kidney recipient; Jack Leibel, mutual friend/matchmaker; Dr. Gabriel Danovitch, Medical Director Kidney Transplant Center UCLA; Jennifer Barbaro, Filmmaker
Why did you decide to submit to FirstGlance?
It is always exciting to have the opportunity to share my work with my peers and film enthusiasts.
Festivals are an extremely important venue for indie film as they tend to attract people who have a passion for film and an appreciation of the hard work that goes into filmmaking, so it is very gratifying to screen at festivals. FirstGlance is a huge supporter of indie film and I really appreciate that.
Will someone from your team be attending FirstGlance?
Yes, Jennifer Barbaro, Marcia Gould, and possibly Jack Leibel and Patrick McFarlane.
What is something you feel is important for our readers to know about your film?
“The Perfect Match” has the ability to effect and educate so many people, not only on kidney health awareness, that directly affects so much of the population, but also on an altruistic level of how people can help through donation, awareness, advocacy, and support.
I hope that people develop a greater understanding of the challenges faced by both kidney donors and recipients and will consider the possibility of donation.
I hope to provoke thought about moral and ethical responsibility of the “system” versus the desires and rights of the adult donor, regardless of their reasoning to donate. I hope to initiate questions regarding our complicated organ donation system and the realities of non-directed donors, and inspire people to take a look at one self; if they would donate a kidney to a stranger to save a human life, and appreciate the heroic gift that Patrick McFarlane has given.
What should viewers expect from your film?
Viewers should expect an informative, entertaining, and emotional true story that evokes laughter, sadness, and hope, and provokes thought.
Do you have any production stories our readers might enjoy?
I found out that Patrick was an accepted donor just a few weeks prior to the donation surgery. The surgery was scheduled for several months out and then there was a cancellation and everything was happening immediately with no time to prep or raise funds.
Patrick, the donor was homeless and in Colorado, which made it difficult to track him down, I was residing on the East Coast, and Marcia, the recipient was in LA. There was no time to secure a crew or budget, so I jumped on a plane with the only camera I owned at the time, a Canon XL2, and hoped Patrick would want to participate. Filming began as I met Patrick for the first time and things were in fast forward, so I just had to wing it or miss it.
What are you looking forward to most at FirstGlance?
First, I will say that I love working with my clients and am appreciative of earning a living, doing what I love as a director/producer.
For me, film festivals are different. They are an opportunity to mingle with others who truly have a passion for filmmaking and have sacrificed so much to make an independent project that they usually have not been paid to create, but have struggled to do so to share their voice and art, as I did for “The Perfect Match.”
First Glance specifically does so much to support the indie filmmaker, so I look forward to meeting the other filmmakers, seeing their films, and sharing my voice.
Where can our readers find more information about your film?
https://www.facebook.com/ThePerfectMatchFilm/
https://twitter.com/perfectmatchmov
https://youtu.be/B7b1EmN_k1Y
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3444696/
http://thevisualplanet.com/video/featuresshorts/the-perfect-match/
“First Glance at FirstGlance” is a feature we will be running up to the FirstGlance Film Festival April 15-17 in Los Angeles. We will be giving you the info you need to know to about the great films you’ll be able to see, while also getting you excited and ready for the fest! If you’d like more information or to purchase tickets, visit their website.
All information, trailers, and photos seen here have been provided by the filmmakers whose films have been accepted to the festival.