About

Synopsis

Honest and raw, Kelly’s Hollywood tells the intimate story of an aspiring actor who brings his sister, born with Down syndrome, out to Los Angeles to pursue her dream of becoming a Hollywood diva. But as her health begins to fail and she becomes increasing jealous of his fiancée, he is forced to confront his co-dependent sibling relationship and the threat it is posing to his engagement.

Rating: PG-13 (Contains some adult themes and strong language)

82 minutes

A new song, "See Me Fly," will be heard for the first time, written for the movie by Lenka and Mike Kevin Farrell (www.catminoritymusic.com)

Filmmaker Bio

Brian Donovan has been a professional actor for more than 30 years in film, television and radio. He has worked on-screen with such luminaries as Jim Belushi, Jim Carrey and Angelina Jolie. He has been the announcer for Disney and voices countless animated heroes; currently as Rock Lee from the juggernaut hit, Naruto. Presently, he can be seen in the indie films, Somebody’s Mother and Fame-ish. www.briandonovan.org

In addition, Brian has been the executive director of the Los Angeles Repertory Theater (www.larepertorytheater.org) since 1994, producing and directing more than 50 inner-city high school workshops and live shows. He is also the creator, writer and producer of the Mighty Me Training Camp (www.mightyme.com), a top ranking children’s self-empowerment program streamed by Discovery Education for more than five years.

Brian lives in Los Angeles with his family and dog, Cosmo.

Filmmaker Statement

"There’s a saying, ‘love is the only true adventure’, I would add, ‘making a movie about love is the only true adventure’. When I picked up the camera 15 years ago and started shooting my sister Kelly, I didn’t have much of an agenda. I was capturing moments in her life that intrigued and inspired me, but when those moments started to affect me more directly, I got more serious about making this film. I had a unique perspective on an intimate relationship with a disabled sibling, so intimate that my romantic relationships became increasingly complicated and constrained, leading me to this exploration on human connection, commitment and the choices in life that effect one’s fate.

Side note: When I heard that 90% of expecting parents were choosing to abort their fetus upon discovering potential disabilities through genetic testing I started to worry. I’m not here to judge and my film stays far away from the pro-life/pro-choice battle. However, growing up, my father was deaf, my sister had Down syndrome and my best friend was born with Kyphosis or in lay man’s terms, a ‘hunch back,’ and I can’t imagine my life without them. They have contributed more to humanity than almost everyone else I know. I felt it was vital to make a film about my sister who personified to me that it’s ‘not who you are when you’re born, but who you are when you live.’

Production Stills

"Truth be told, I didn't know what the future held, but I did know that life is short and everything worth living for starts with a leap of faith and a dream. A dream that anything can can happen....anything can be. Especially if you have a cheerleader by your side." Brian Donovan, Director & Brother