The world premiere will take place on the gorgeous island of Aruba in the Caribbean.

We are happy to announce our film Unspoken Truth/De Waarheid is selected for the Playa Film Festival and will be screened in the Kingdom of Shorts competition in front of a live audience. The Kingdom of Shorts competition is made for filmmakers established in Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Sint Eustatius, Saba and the Netherlands. The recipients of the Jury Award are determined by a diverse panel of judges from various countries.

Playa Film Festival is an international film festival organized by CINEARUBA and is a 3-day film festival at the heart of Oranjestad, Aruba. A place where filmmakers and film lovers come together to celebrate the art of cinema. The festival invites all guests to an immersive cultural experience with networking sessions, movies, talks, food, and fun.

"This film isn’t just about stuttering. It’s also about injustice and resilience."

The Stuttering Is Cool podcast offers encouragement and methods on how to manage your stuttering and live the life you want. Daniele interviews other people who stutter, report on what's happening in the stuttering community around the world, the latest on stuttering research and therapy, and he also takes you behind the scenes in the creation of his Franky Banky comics.

In this podcast episode we talk about the film, how it was directing a fluent-speaking actor and having the score made by a composer living in Syria. We also taking a look into how the film was disqualified from the European Film Festival Integration You and Me, claiming stuttering isn't a disability. This, despite the fact that the festival is a European event that receives funding by the EU which recognizes stuttering as a disability and prohibits discrimination under its laws.

Listen to the episode

A few months ago, Unspoken Truth was immediately disqualified from a European disability film festival because the organisers claimed that stuttering is not a disability. This exclusion, from a festival that presents itself as 'inclusive', has drawn widespread criticism.

Stamily.org, together with over 27 organisations worldwide, is now holding the festival to account. In an open letter addressed to the festival director, they call for immediate rectification, stating that the exclusion of stuttering is not just discriminatory but also legally and factually incorrect. Stuttering is officially recognised as a disability by the World Health Organization and is covered by the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which Poland has ratified.

The festival in question? The European Film Festival Integration You and Me (Integracja Ty i Ja)

The letter points out that people who stutter are often marginalised, mocked, and face systemic barriers in education, employment, and daily life. To then be excluded from a disability festival further silences an already underrepresented community. This, while the festival prides itself in giving these same underrepresented communities a stage to be heard!

The open letter also highlights that the festival receives public funding, including EU support, which comes with a responsibility to uphold the values of inclusion, accessibility, and non-discrimination.

After more than four months of silence from the festival, despite repeated requests for clarification, Stamily and the signatories have decided to go public with their concerns.

Read the open letter on Stamily.org

PRLog

An updated poster for an updated (final) edit.
The film is now officially finished.

Our film, Unspoken Truth, focuses on severe chronic stuttering. We submitted it to several film festivals, including those dedicated to disability-focused stories. While all followed the standard selection process, one stood out. The 'European Film Festival Integration You and Me' did not just reject the film, they disqualified it almost immediately. The reason? The festival stated that stuttering is not a disability.

Film festivals are often seen as platforms for diverse voices, spaces where underrepresented stories can be shared with wider audiences. For films about disability, these festivals provide an opportunity to raise awareness and foster understanding. However, our experience with the European Film Festival Integration You and Me (Europejski Festiwal Filmowy Integracja Ty i Ja) raised an unexpected issue: What happens when a festival dedicated to disability inclusion does not recognize a globally accepted disability?

Typically, festivals take weeks or even months to evaluate submissions, with multiple judges reviewing each film before final selections are made. The speed of this disqualification stood out: several hours (Feb 06, 2025). It was not a matter of artistic merit or fit with the festival's programming, but first a surprising lack of awareness that stuttering is a disability, and later on, a refusal to acknowledge its classification by both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN).

We reached out to the festival for clarification, providing official documentation from these organizations. We also included a video from ABC News demonstrating the challenges faced by individuals with severe stuttering. However, we received no response. Given this, we chose to withdraw our interest in screening at the festival.

This situation reflects a broader issue. While stuttering is medically and legally recognized as a disability, public perception often differs. Many people assume it is something that can be "fixed" rather than a lifelong condition with significant challenges. This is, in fact, a central theme of Unspoken Truth: How those with severe stuttering frequently have their experiences dismissed or invalidated. Suttering isn't a sign of incompetence. It's a disability and as such it grants individuals certain rights, including acknowledgment of their challenges.

Stuttering, like many disabilities that don’t fit the most visible narratives, is often misunderstood or overlooked. We produced our film so this underrepresented disability isn't just seen, but heard.

WHO (World Health Organization):
International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and Handicaps (PDF)

The UN (United Nations):
ICIDH-2, International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (PDF)

LinkedIn Article

EuropaWire PRLog

Unspoken Truth (De Waarheid) has been officially selected for the SmallRig Awards 2025, a closed festival by the well-known camera equipment manufacturer.

After its pre-release, the film was picked up by the SmallRig Awards. The SmallRig Awards is a competition hosted by SmallRig, a well-known manufacturer of camera accessories and cinematography equipment, to recognize and support visual storytellers who focus on addressing social issues on a global scale. This includes, but is not limited to, marginalized communities lacking representation, global warming, animal conservation, economic and social inequality, health crises, cultural and social divides, and gender inequality.

At the SmallRig Awards only the finalists get screened in a closed online environment. Being selected out of a total 8.000 submissions is already a feat.

Ruby Yang serves as the President of the Jury for the SmallRig Awards. She is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) and winner of the Best Documentary Short Subject 'The Blood of Yingzhou District' at the 79th Academy Awards.

The original score by composer Fayez Saraya a.k.a. "Divergent" is now available online!

It was an amazing experience working with the composer from Syria to make the soundtracks for this film.

For me, it was less about location and more about finding someone who shared the same drive and understood the deeper message of the film. Coming from a place where people face real challenges, he connected with the themes in a way that added an authentic layer to the music. We both wanted to capture that sense of resilience and hope, which made this collaboration feel especially meaningful.

Since the film is in Dutch and Fayez doesn’t speak the language, we had the added challenge of bridging a language gap. We worked thoroughly to communicate the meaning behind each word, action, and gesture in the film, making sure every moment was understood on a deeper level. This collaboration required us to work closely with the editing process, timing the score frame-by-frame to match the film’s emotional beat. The result was a score that didn’t just accompany the visuals, but truly captured the story’s essence.

Listen on:

On October 22, 2024, International Stuttering Awareness Day, we held a private pre-release event for our short fiction film De Waarheid (Unspoken Truth) in a packed theater. It was a memorable evening that went smoothly, with the film receiving an overwhelmingly positive response.

The audience

The audience was moved by the film’s portrayal of how profoundly stuttering can impact a person’s life. They found it both inspiring and captivating, resonating with its core message: stuttering poses a significant challenge to free expression, and its impact is too often underestimated.

Q&A Session

After the screening, we hosted a Q&A session with the director, producer, and key cast members.

Time for drinks

To end the night, we raised our glasses and took photos with the cast, crew, and members of Demosthenes, the Dutch association for people who stutter. It was a great opportunity to openly discuss the topic and reflect together on the process of creating the film.

Now, we’re looking forward to the next steps in distribution, aiming for festival selections and other platforms that can help spark a wider public dialogue about chronic stuttering.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and made the night unforgettable. We showed that beautiful things can happen when talent and passion are given a chance, whether it’s a first-time actor in a lead role, a composer from Syria pursuing his dream of creating film music or a director who stutters.

Photos by Chris Lap

October 22nd is the day.

As we're getting ready for festival submissions, our first private screening will take place on October 22nd 2024 in Amsterdam.

We're looking forward to a night in which we celebrate the almost-completion of our first short film. We're happy and lucky we get to celebrate this on International Stuttering Awareness Day, an annual celebration intended to raise public awareness of the issues faces by millions of people - one percent of the world's population - who have a chronic stutter or stammer.

De Waarheid, een korte film van regisseur Irmo Stijnberg, is allereerst een drama over de werkvloer van nu. Een vage beschuldiging van grensoverschrijdend gedrag kan je carrière breken. Dat ondervindt ook Timothy, een gemotiveerde werknemer van een designbureau in Amsterdam.

Voor de vorm wordt hij nog even ter verantwoording geroepen, maar het besluit van de geschrokken directie staat eigenlijk al vast. Winst is hier belangrijker dan waarheidsvinding. Wat even wennen is, maar toch ook wel snel went, is dat hoofdpersoon Timothy stottert. Waar zijn collega’s ad rem uit de hoek komen, moet hij de woorden er steeds uit persen. Hoe meer Timothy in het nauw gedreven wordt, des te meer dit hem opbreekt. Dit roept de vraag op of Stijnberg hiermee een statement wil maken: is er in dit #MeToo-tijdperk nog wel voldoende ruimte voor het verhaal van de beschuldigde?

Of is dit slechts interpretatie van de kijker? Wie minder op de verhaallijn let, ziet vooral een film over hoe het is om te stotteren. Hoofdpersoon Mike Bloemberg stottert in het echt niet, maar speelt dit wel heel overtuigend. We zien de film vooral door zijn ogen en denken met hem mee. Daardoor voel je hoe het is als je gedachten sneller gaan dan je spraak en hoeveel energie het dan kost om bij groepsgesprekken ‘in the game’ te blijven. Regisseur Stijnberg stottert wél: via zijn acteur laat hij de kijker ervaren hoe dat is. Ook hier geen boodschap of opgeheven vingertje. De film spreekt voor zich.

De Waarheid van regisseur Irmo Stijnberg is een intrigerend drama over hoe het is om te stotteren in een wereld waarin vlotte babbelaars ‘de macht’ hebben. Een wereld ook waarin reputatie blijkbaar belangrijker is dan rechtvaardigheid of waarheid. Stijnberg brengt deze twee werelden, bewust of niet, in realistische en bondige scènes knap samen. Een verhaal dat nog lang door je hoofd blijft spoken, omdat het met heel weinig woorden zo ontzettend veel zegt over dit gespannen decennium.

Steven de Jong
Schrijver van de roman Bezorgde Burgers, true-crime-boek De Hennepkwekerij in Oma’s schuur en Gelieve niet te stotteren op onze inclusieve werkvloer.
www.stevenschrijft.nl

"Editing is rediscovering a story within the chaos. Then trying to shape that story to be the best it can be, with all its little intricacies." (Irmo)

Photo taken on day 1 of shooting. After 3 days and a long editing process, we've come a long way.

We are excited to announce that our film has reached picture lock! After countless hours of creativity, hard work and collaboration, this milestone marks the completion of our edit and a major step closer to bringing our story to life.

Thank you to our incredible cast, crew and supporters who have believed in this project from day one.

Stay tuned for more updates as we move into the next exciting phase of sound design, color grading, and finishing touches. If you'd like to contribute, you can still do so at our GoFundMe page. Every contribution helps bring our vision to life and to spread the word.

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