In November of 2001, Ally Walker took a walk in the park that changed her life and, more importantly, the life of a little boy named Norman - forever. Norman was an eleven-month-old baby who lived on the streets of Los Angeles with his mother. After spending time in the park with the mother and baby, Ally felt a strong desire to help. She put them in her car and spent the day taking them to shelters, clinics and outreach programs. She also contacted the mother’s relatives to see if they would help get the duo off the street. But all her efforts were to no avail. Even worse, spending the day with Norman’s mother had convinced Ally that she was not well and Ally became frightened for the baby’s safety. Fortunately, by nightfall she found a shelter that was willing to take them and once they were safely admitted, she called the Department of Children and Family Services to make sure that the child would be properly monitored. Days later, Ally found out that the baby had been taken from his mother and put into foster care. Since she was not a relative, Ally was given no information on what would happen to Norman or his mother.
This documentary was done in an attempt to understand what life is like for children like Norman living in foster care. Together with Adam Davidson (Director of the Oscar winning short film, THE LUNCH DATE), Ally chronicles the lives of several children in L.A.’s foster care system and talks to the families whose lives have been forever changed by it. The film focuses on the system in Los Angeles but could be anywhere in the United States. FOR NORMAN…WHEREVER YOU ARE takes you inside the ‘business’ of fostering children in a way that no other film has dared to do. It points out the flaws of the current system while never losing sight of the fact that a system is needed. It also shows the viewer how strong of a role poverty plays in the raising of children in this country.
In 2005, FOR NORMAN…WHEREVER YOU ARE won Best Documentary Award at the San Fernando Valley International Film Festival and Film of Conscience Award at the Wine Country Film Festival. |
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