told through the eyes of a girl with Borderline Personality Disorder
#NotAMonster
Introduction
"I Need You to Stay” is the first feature narrative to combat the Hollywood stigma surrounding Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) by turning the "monster" trope on its head. We are a passionate woman led team excited to come together on this important project to inspire hope, resilience and compassion in what often seems like a hopeless existence.
This film is reclaiming the “monster” narrative that Hollywood has exploited for decades in their depiction of Borderline, despite overwhelming studies showing that we're more likely to be victims of abuse than the abusers. Characters coded as villains, murderous stalkers, obsessive psycho ex's or an explanation to undesirable behavior, leave audiences banding together and rooting for the demise of this “bunny boiler”.
This ostracization has bred a deep stigma that seeps into our culture, media, and even clinical and legal settings to discredit victims. When the media reinforces our core beliefs of “I’m a monster” and “I don’t deserve to live”... it’s no wonder we have the highest suicide rate of all disorders. Many due to feeling like we're saving our loved ones from ourselves…
This film is intended for those going through the Borderline journey either with their own diagnosis or through a loved one. We include conversations from all sides of the discussion in order to bridge this gap and shine light from the perspective of a protagonist with BPD.
We explore different therapeutic methods such as IFS, EMDR, DBT, CBT etc… but through a cinematic lens that makes it subtle and beautiful. Our hope is that this will speak to our audience’s subconscious and plant some tools that they can take home with them. We put deep thought into the darker content to ensure that it doesn’t play for shock-value, triggering our audience and deafening our message. At the same time, we believe it is of utmost importance to validate these dark, deep, intense and often times… life and death experiences of those with BPD since our society decides to completely minimize them.
The "I Need You to Stay" screenplay was a finalist in the Ethos Film Awards and has also undergone many sensitivity reads and adjustments from our board of advisors and non-profit partners.
This project is more than just breaking ground. We are also creating important social programs, outreach and initiatives that will outlive the film and ourselves.
“I Need You to Stay” is more than a film. It is a movement. It is a rebellion.
Thank you for checking out our site and hope to be in touch!
Bria & the INYTS producing team
"Everything from our media, our culture, blog posts, and tik-toks are all about how to survive from someone like me
...not how do you survive when you are me ?"
Close to graduating from treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder, Kira isolates for the winter with her loving girlfriend, Luci, in her family’s beautiful lake-side cabin. She is thriving, becoming a strong advocate for her support group peers, and even considering becoming a therapist to help others like her.
Continuing to face the harsh stigma of BPD from friends and family, despite her progress, Kira grows distant and inevitably… relapses.
During their heated argument, Kira wishes that Luci knew what it was like to be her and accidentally infects her with a horrifying plague! As Luci grows sicker and sicker, she begins to personify Kira's greatest fear and shame about herself... a monster. Kira must overcome her self-hatred and dive deep into her own psyche in order to save the love of her life before they lose each other forever.
THE STORY
This scene takes place at the beginning of our film where our protagonist, Kira, and her girlfriend, Luci, engage in "The Game" — a cinematic adaptation of a therapeutic DBT technique used in Borderline Personality Disorder treatment.
Our director had never filmed on a beach before so decided to use this opportunity to discover any obstacles, logistics, additional costs, sound issues, post-production problems, etc. that may arise from filming near a body of water. This way, we are as prepared as possible for when we begin filming the actual production.
OUR SAMPLE SCENE
B O R D E R L I N E P E R S O N A L I T Y D I S O R D E R was deemed the most painful mental illness to have and yet is still heavily stigmatized and depicted in media as “Bunny Boilers”: crazy, manipulative, obsessive murderers who ruin your life.
Despite overwhelming research showing that individuals with BPD are more likely to be victims of abuse than the abuser, this stigma bleeds into our social zeitgeist, our media, and even clinical and legal settings to discredit victims.
C H A R A C T E R I Z E D B Y
A persistent pattern of at least 5 of 9 criteria to be diagnosed. Symptoms must have developed during adolescence. A careful history and physical examination should be performed before a comprehensive psychiatric assessment. DSM-5
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Extreme fear of abandonment
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Chronic feelings of worthlessness or sadness
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Unstable relationships
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Unstable self-image
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Impulsive Self-damaging behavior
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Suicidal Behavior or Self Injury
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Intense deep emotions/rapid mood swings
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Struggles with anger with frequent conflicts
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Stress-related paranoia
D U A L D I A G N O S I S
Borderline personality disorder typically coexists with depression, anxiety, and substance abuse. Symptoms of these conditions may lead the clinician to miss the diagnosis of personality disorder entirely. Careful diagnosis of BPD and co-morbid disorders is the first step. BPD can also be misdiagnosed by inexperienced professionals or those affected by the stigma or "idea" of BPD. Diagnosis should be done by clinicians that specialize in the understanding of BPD.
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Anxiety disorders (88%)
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Depression (71-83%)
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Substance abuse disorders (65%)
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Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (56%)
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Eating disorders (25%)
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Bipolar disorder (15%)
C A U S E S
The psycho-social model of BPD essentially equates to long-term childhood stressors, or traumas, that produce biological changes in the brain. A genetic component can increase susceptibility.
Long-Term Environmental Factors
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Childhood physical, emotional, or sexual abuse. Including hostile or explosive households and chronic invalidation from caregivers.
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Neglect or repeated abandonment
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Early separation from a caregiver
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Chronic feelings of self-disgust or shame throughout childhood
Persistent Biological Brain Changes:
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Persistent high levels of Cortisol that damage the brain (The stress hormone that overwhelms the body)
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Reduced Oxytocin or Serotonin Production
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Limbic system changes (controls survival-based emotions such as fear, causing deep intense emotions, short-term memory, faulty threat assessments, and impulse control)
A Genetic Predisposition increases susceptibility
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Born with a hereditary Serotonin-processing gene variation that makes individuals more sensitive to its development.
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Prevention when carrying a genetic predisposition can include a consistent, nurturing and validating environment, and early exposure to treatment during adolescence
ABOUT BPD
S E L F - H A R M & S U I C I D E R I S K S are the largest threats to people with BPD
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Attempting suicide on average at least 3 times in their lifetime
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1 out of 10 individuals will succeed
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This is 40x higher than the general population
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C H I L D H O O D S E X U A L A B U S E T R A U M A
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BPD has the highest rate of Childhood SA reported of all other personality disorders. 76% of people with BPD report having been sexually abused
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BPD patients with Childhood SA Trauma are 10x more likely to attempt suicide and self-mutilating behaviors
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More than 50% of Childhood SA Trauma in BPD patients lasted for over a year, on a weekly basis
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Victims of Childhood SA are 48% more likely to be revictimized as adults
T R E A T M E N T I S P O S S I B L E
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Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, created by Marsha Linehan, is the most effective and standard treatment. It was developed at the University of Washington in Washington State where we will be filming.
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Other effective evidence-based treatments are Mentalization Based Therapy and Transference Focused Psychotherapy.
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There are no medications that can specifically treat BPD, but various can assist with co-occurring disorders and symptom management.
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Treatment should be specifically tailored to the individual and there is no one treatment option that will work for all.
THE RISKS
STIGMA
ˈStɪɡ.mə NOUN: A negative, unfair feeling that most people in a society carry towards something, resulting in bias and prejudice.
S T I G M A S A N D N E G A T I V E A T T I T U D E S
are most always based on misinformation.
Borderline Personality Disorder is wildly misunderstood by the general public. Often used as a broad brush term for undesirable traits of mental illnesses or synonymous with a manipulative, abusive person, this stigma permeates our culture, media, and even healthcare settings by inexperienced doctors.
It has also historically been used in legal settings to discredit victims who have come forward about their abusers, playing to the Jury’s innate bias with buzzwords rather than a factual argument.
This is incredibly dangerous and leads to:
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Avoiding seeking help from psychiatric or medical services, social services, peers, support groups and even from the legal system.
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Being barred from help or punished for asking for it
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Being judged morally for their illness
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Labels such as: untreatable or hopeless (despite treatment available)
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Justification of abuse and harassment towards people with BPD
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Testimony unfairly discredited or scrutinized due to the diagnosis
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… and further isolation and self-hatred that results in self-harm and ultimately, suicidal ideation
A common saying in the mental health community is that “secrets keep us sick”, meaning that the most effective way to combat shame and fear, is to talk about it.
H A V I N G O P E N, F A C T - B A S E D D I S C U S S I O N S
about BPD cuts through misinformation and inspires compassion.
SOCIAL PROGRAMS
& OUT REACH
This project is more than just breaking ground for the representation of Borderline Personality Disorder in media. We are creating important social programs, initiatives, and targeted outreach that will outlive the film and outlive ourselves.
COMBATTING PREDATORY BEHAVIOR
Any sexual misconduct that utilizes power, social privileges, authority, position or situations to sexually abuse or exploit others, including misconduct that orchestrates, entraps or entices others to commit the same. This can be both legal or illegal acts.
76% of people with Borderline report having experienced long-term childhood sexual abuse. This kind of abuse grooms the individual to be highly susceptible to being revictimized as an adult.
We have pledged to Hire Survivors of Hollywood Sexual abuse, who are typically blacklisted for coming forward. This means also working diligently to provide safety on sets not only for survivors but allies alike.
94% of women in the film industry report having experienced sexual misconduct. 1 out of 10 men report being assaulted...
OUR PROGRAM
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We've created a mandatory preventative educational course to empower and educate our team on combatting predatory behavior on our set and in the community
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Overt & Covert behaviors, grooming, allyship, power dynamics, industry reform, legal rights and more.
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On-set trauma-informed therapists and at events
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Introducing a "safety liaison" position to advocate for our cast and crew while working with our safety team that consists of therapists, set-medic, intimacy coordinators etc.
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Thorough questionnaire and interviews of all crew
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Content warnings and resources on all call sheets
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and more
BORDERLINE OUTREACH
We have never really been allowed to be a part of the conversation in Hollywood. People talk about us, exploit and psycho-analyze us, code us with a broad brush of mental illness or are a train wreck you just can’t turn away from.
The outreach programs alongside our film are geared toward our Borderline community that will bring artists together, spread education, raise awareness and compassion, but also support and embolden one another with a different narrative than we’ve been used to.
OUR PROGRAM
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Test screenings through the editing process for people with BPD and their loved ones.
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With therapists on-site in case of triggering content
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Private screenings and events for our BPD community with guest speakers and empowerment.
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We intend to use our festival fees garnered from acceptance into festivals to raffle free tickets to our BPD members so they can join us on the red carpet and premiere!
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We hope to distribute the film beyond just traditional streaming, limited theatrical etc. into psychology schools to combat the stigma and fear that still unfairly leaks into clinical settings.
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Neurotypical community discussions and screenings for those wanting to learn more about BPD.
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We hope to partner with organizations combating stigma and inaccessibility to treatment to offer resources to our community
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and more
THE CHARACTERS
K I R A
Our dark and brooding protagonist. Kira is in recovery from Borderline Personality Disorder, including her struggle with addiction as a means to cope with it (a common co-occurring condition). Despite believing the world is better off without her, she must learn that her worth is not based on her mistakes…but rather what she does about them.
Despite Kira’s gentleness and hard work, her supports are still skeptical and easy to judge every move she makes. Will she ever be seen as the protagonist she so desperately longs to be? …Or will she remain the monster?
P L A Y E D B Y B R I A L Y N N M A S S I E
Bria is an award winning LGBTQIA+, non-binary actor that specializes in dark and compassionate performances. They graduated from the Baron Brown Studio Program under D.W. Brown and this will be their debut after publicly coming out as queer.
Bria is known for their roles in: Self Sabotage (2019), Lilith (2018), Serena Waits (2018) and Captors (2020).
L U C I
Kira’s reason for living. Lucille Dubois or Luci for short. She is Kira’s supportive and loving girlfriend that seems too perfect to be true. We soon find that even angels are fallible as we dive into the cycles that she perpetuates on to Kira, replicating the same environment she was raised in while scapegoating their hardships onto Kira’s diagnosis.
Being raised by her controlling, overbearing grandmother, Luci is our prized caged bird within not only her family system, but maintaining the impossible societal expectation of the pure, “good” woman. Sweet and calm, but playful enough to be interesting… she struggles with the guilt of having her own desires, dreams, and anger outside of this innocent ingenue archetype she’s been forced into.
The caged bird meets the feral cat, Kira opens the door for Luci’s freedom and beckons her through but… at what cost?
P L A Y E D B Y A N A B E R G M A N
Ana is passionate about empowering female voices to speak their truth as they navigate the nuance of the patriarchy. Ana is an award-winning actor who graduated from the Baron Brown Studio and is currently studying under Howard Fine, Diana Castle, and Aaron Speiser.
Ana is known for Damien Chazelle’s Film, Babylon (2022) and The Hell We Go Through (2021)
A D E L E I N E
Luci’s controlling, cold and callus grandmother… and Kira’s arch nemesis.
After being widowed then estranged by Luci’s mother, the wealthy, lonely Adeleine was determined to compensate for her own heartbreak by assuming Luci’s parental role in the states. With Luci’s mother unable to gain citizenship, Adeleine has had complete control of Luci’s upbringing, clinging on to her youth and innocence, but she’s an adult now.
If she lets Luci grow up… would that mean she’d leave Adeleine too?
Beginning as the “villain” of our story, antagonizing Kira while simultaneously filling the parental hole in her life, her hostility hiding her own fear reveals a relatability to outsiders that has watched their loved ones struggle with BPD and felt helpless to protect them.
T A R G E T C A S T I N G : G L E N N C L O S E
Our ideal casting would be the power house talent, Glenn Close, who is not only a multi major award winning actor, but also a strong dedicated advocate for social and global change. Close starred in the problematic film, "Fatal Attraction" that was the catalyst for Hollywood's obsession for vilifying BPD characters. With the controversy behind the creation of the film, Close never got to finish her story and redeem Alex Forest, the BPD coded character who was brutally murdered and had the audience rabid for her demise. This would be an incredibly healing full circle for our Borderline Community and a poetic close to the Borderline journey the film set forth into Hollywood. SEE BELOW FOR MORE DETAILS
A H E A L I N G F U L L C I R C L E
W H Y G L E N N C L O S E ? In the infamous film, Fatal Attraction, the talented Glenn Close starred as the “bunny boiler” character, Alex Forest. This soon-to-be controversy would become the catalyst for problematic BPD representation and stigma in Hollywood to follow.
Close worked diligently with mental health professionals to bring authenticity and vulnerability to what was originally a heartbreaking character in a tragic story. But after test screenings, the studios forced last minute changes to the character that made her a psychopath the audience was rabid for a demise of.
In the words of a studio executive, "We need to terminate the b*tch with extreme prejudice". After the film was released, Close talked about how the story didn’t do right by Alex. She said it “played into the stigma” of mental illness, sensationally turning Alex into a crazed villain instead of a woman who needed help.
Close and the writer were very protective of the character, fighting the studios for two weeks before eventually conceding. Close never thought of Alex as a villain, stating that "I wasn't playing a generality, I wasn't playing a cliche. I was playing a very specific, deeply disturbed, fragile human being, who I had grown to love."
In the recent TV Series, "Fatal Attraction", the director had set out to redeem Alex by showing her perspective and why she became who she was. Although the show had good intentions of depicting "cluster b disorders" (described by the creator), they horribly missed the mark, if not made the stigma and depiction of the mentally ill woman worse while also sensationalizing common DBT skills that Borderlines utilize through treatment as confusing crazed, rituals of the psychopathic character, and feeding into the incredibly destructive narrative surrounding su*cide when Alex fakes overdosing on pills to keep the hero from leaving her. The erratic, unjustified and radicalized behaviors of Alex further stigmatize Borderline depictions as unpredictable, terrifying, lying, manipulative, selfish villains which does not align at all with what having Borderline actually is.
Bringing Close on to I Need You to Stay would be such a healing full circle for our Borderline Community to finally finish the vulnerable representation taken from her that she had worked so masterfully on many years ago. If we are able to secure her, she'd be returning as the unexpected maternal figure in Kira's life that bridges the gap between Borderlines and their loved one, and through her arc represents a resolution of the animosity and stigma our society still holds today. Something that Alex Forest never had the chance to experience. Flipping the “bunny boiler” trope on its head, we can heal our community how Fatal Attraction should have all those years ago. With love.
OUR TEAM
THE DIRECTOR
B R I A L Y N N M A S S I E
Bria uses dark and compassionate storytelling to bring voices to the light that are otherwise ostracized and stigmatized by our society. Without shying away from validating the truths in the experiences of their audience, Bria is mindful of ensuring they do not distract from the messages in their films by shaping these experiences into statements of hope and resilience in otherwise challenging times.
Bria’s special focus in post-production working with both studios and independent filmmakers has highlighted their voice as a director. Their award-winning short film, “Self Sabotage,” and the latest feature, “Vengeance Girl,” delve into shame, revenge, guilt, and regret.
Bria took a brief hiatus after their earlier films to seek treatment for Borderline Personality Disorder and C-PTSD which has further refined their voice and purpose in their work. "I Need You to Stay" will be their first film after returning to the public and coming out as LGBTQIA+.
As a survivor of Hollywood Sexual Abuse, they actively advocate for industry reform in areas like Predatory Behavior, Mental Health, and harmful tropes.
ANA BERGMAN
Ana is a tenacious producer, award-winning actress, and model. She began her career by producing fashion shoots for magazines like "OK!," and "Playboy."
She received the Best Actress award at the Toronto Indie Filmmaker's Festival for
"The Hell We Go Through," a powerful short film addressing Human Trafficking.
Ana brings a strong financial academic background to her decade of experience in front of and behind the camera, including her work with masters such as Brad Pitt.
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
ANANYAA SHAH
Ananyaa Shah, better known as Dipa Shah, got her start as a successful Bollywood actress. Pivoting toward Hollywood, she decided to take her career into her own hands as an Executive Producer and a powerhouse woman filmmaker.
Ananyaa's Executive Producing Resume is best known for “He Went That Way” starring Zachery Quinto which recently premiered at Tribeca and “Groovetails” starring Jamie Foxx currently in post-production.
Ananyaa is passionate about our team's mission to bring industry reform for survivors of Hollywood Sexual Abuse behind the camera, and a powerful social impact mission in front of.
PRODUCER
CONSULTANTS
JON FITZGERALD
Jon is a passionate social advocate through the power of cinema and is an essential part of our distribution strategy as our Film Festival Strategist. As a co-founder of the Slamdance Film Festival (1995), and Festival Director for the prestigious AFI Film Festival (1997), he is doing wonderful social justice and educational work through his company, "Cause Cinema".
SARAH ANN MASSE
Sarah Ann-Masse was one of the first women to come out against Harvey Weinstein and was sequentially black-listed. She founded Hire Survivors to provide opportunities to survivors and whistle-blowers that are statistically blacklisted for speaking their truth. We are so excited to have Sarah come on board as our consultant on our film to ensure safety and support for all survivors and allies!
JUSTIN GIDDINGS
With the nickname of “The Kickstarter Guy”, Justin is a crowdfunding coach, mentor, strategist, consultant and teacher that has helped 300+ clients successfully raise over $10 million dollars. The best part? He has a 97.6% success rate with his private coaching clients! He has been teaching Bria for over a year on various platforms and is excited to take on this ambitious project to bring it to life!
BOARD OF ADVISORS
Our anonymous board of advisors consists of doctors in psychology, reputable filmmakers, and individuals from our borderline community.
FISCAL SPONSOR
We're thrilled to be fiscally sponsored by the Northwest Film Forum, a non-profit that supports the community and showcases independent cinema. Through diverse programs catering to underrepresented people, they foster a vibrant film community through education, advocacy and representation that cultivates a culture that challenges perspectives and inspires engagement.
SPONSOR
Washington Film Works is a non-profit organization that manages the Washington State Motion Picture Competitiveness program and has committed 30% of our in-state spend in cash! Their mission is to create economic development opportunities by building and enhancing the competitiveness, profile, and sustainability of Washington State’s film industry
our pledge
We pledge to build a safer, more equitable industry by giving opportunities, auditions, and interviews to survivors and Silence Breakers. We'll never retaliate against anyone for coming forward about sexual violence. We pledge to Hire Survivors. #HireSurvivorsHollywood
director's note
I was diagnosed at as a child after engaging in self-harm behaviors. I would soon be in and out of hospitals the majority of my formative years for dozens of suicide attempts and self injuries.
Due to the narrative imbued in our culture, parenting books, movies, media etc. I saw myself as a monster that needed to be done away with in order to save everyone I loved... from myself.
This crippling shame for simply existing fueled my self destructive behaviors that would go on for decades. This was further reinforced with clinical abuse and inaccessibility to treatment. Besides our broken, outdated healthcare system, we were just unaware that treatment even existed. The advice given to my family by the inexperienced doctors we did have access to essentially made things much worse. But they had nowhere else to turn to and all felt hopeless.
Finding treatment later in life was like waking up from a nightmare that I didn’t even know I was having. Learning about my brain chemistry, nervous system, psychology, actually making friends that saw me at my worst and still loved me, discovering that it was not my fault I developed borderline and my experiences were very real and very common, and most importantly... healing, it all gave me a hope that I never had before. It put everything into perspective and suddenly… made sense.
I could start to see myself as a sensitive, loving, smart, and loyal person that could actually build a life worth living but… the first step was believing I deserved it. Which… I just couldn't.
This movie is important for people like me to see themselves fully on screen and different than any other narrative depicting them. To know that there are other people like us and that there is a journey to be had. It is important to not only validate the real pain and shame that we live through every day, since our society is hellbent on minimizing it despite countless studies, but also to compassionately show to everyone just how big our hearts are. We choose to wake up every day when everything in our body and soul is telling us not to and still have so much love left to give.
We are not monsters.
I don't want any little girl to ever believe that about themselves again.
