featherStrength: a father’s decade-long journey into caring

A new documentary offers a rare, first-hand view of what it means to become an informal carer.

At this week’s International Young Carers Conference in Berlin, we had the chance to view featherStrength, an award-winning documentary, and to meet its filmmaker, Jon Earle.

featherStrength follows Jon, the father of a child with complex developmental challenges, over the course of a decade. There is no external film crew: Jon is both the filmmaker and the film’s protagonist. The result is a unique, intimate and deeply human insight into the experience of becoming a carer, told by someone living it.

The film won Best New Zealand Feature at Doc Edge 2026, an Academy-qualifying festival.

At 47 minutes, featherStrength is well suited to screenings, discussions and community events. It can be an important tool to raise awareness of the realities faced by informal carers and to help build the informal carers movement that is so needed.

The film is not yet publicly available. If you are interested in organising a launch in your area, or have any questions about the project, please contact Jon Earle directly at info@jonearle.com.

You can find out more on the project website: www.featherstrength.com