'You're not weak for asking others for help': Regina teen's animation inspires beyond the classroom
An animation done for a Grade 8 school project is resonating with audiences outside of the classroom walls of the Regina boy who created it.
Thirteen-year-old Roman Fehr drew more than a thousand frames to create a video titled Overcoming the Darkness for a project on social justice.
"Art has always been like a knack for me, and I've never tried animation and I've always wanted to do something like that," said Roman.
In the video, a person seeks help for depression, speaking to friends, talking to a therapist and getting medication. By taking these steps, a hero inside the character has enough power to use a sword to fight off a shadowy, grinning monster. The hero is victorious.
The idea to use an inner hero came to Roman after a long car ride home.
"I was thinking of different art concepts and different characters because that's what I really liked doing, just drawing my own original characters, and I came up with a hero that could overcome any emotional damage, if it just gets the support from others and from its peers and stuff like that," said Roman.
"That was one of my main messages. You're not weak for asking others for help."
'It choked me up'
After a few late nights working on the project, Roman showed the video to his parents. His dad, Trent, was moved by his teenage son's work.
"When I saw it, I did what every or what many parents would do, which was immediately go to Facebook and brag to all my friends about it. That was pretty special. It choked me up right away," said the elder Fehr.
"It was his message in the end, the inner hero, giving it the strength that we need to overcome these things that we sort of deal with in life. Roman's always been very good at visualizing those sort of problems."
And that message has hit home for many struggling with mental health. The comment section on the younger Fehr's YouTube post has a dozen comments, all positive.
"I love this! I've already showed it to my entire family as we all struggle with depression. Thank you for working so hard to spread the word on a difficult topic. The animation is awesome as well, you're very talented," Mariana Price wrote.
"Thank you for your work on this video. I work in mental health and have just shared this amazing video with a group of colleagues and plan to share it with patients, as well. Keep up the good work," added Eric Rosoff.
Response surprised Roman
The response took the Fehr family by surprise, especially Roman. He said he never thought his school project could impact others.
"He was just hoping that someone would be uplifted by his video. If we can get someone the help that they need then that'd be just great," said Trent.
"This is bigger I think than we ever thought it would be."
Roman added he hopes he can use the video to help kick-start a career in animation.
