Have you ever wondered how blind people dream? Well two women did and their curiosity led to the inception of “Do You Dream in Color?” a documentary film about visually impaired children’s waking dreams.

The project was started by USC graduates, Abigail Fuller and Sarah Ivey Dickerson about two and a half years ago. When El Paso native Norma Saldivar moved to California, Fuller and Dickerson invited her to join them on this life-changing labor of love.

At the age of four, Norma Saldivar asked her parents if they could all move to California; they didn’t budge. At the age of eleven, she’d walk around imagining scenes out of a movie on every street corner, her sisters called her weird. Norma light-heartedly defended her oddities by saying, “my weirdness will get me somewhere.” By 18 she was already on her way.

Norma studied film at the University of Texas at Austin, where two of her short films were accepted at South by Southwest, a widely recognized music, film, and interactive conference and festival. Soon after, Norma moved to California (with only 15 dollars) where she worked as a production assistant on ABC’s hit show “Brothers and Sisters.” For many, things don’t always fall into place so perfectly, but for Norma her life flourished when she became involved as the Line Producer for “Do You Dream in Color?” “I have experienced a few things but I’ve learned from them. Nothing’s perfect or easy. Having a good attitude is so important. You have no idea how much that’s helped me.  Everyone has to find their own passion, their own drive,”

stated Norma.

The intention of “Do You Dream in Color?” is to bridge the gap between the blind and sighted worlds by animating the dreams of blind kids. “We are animating dreams of visually-impaired children to interpret how they see the world. We’re intertwining that with their waking dreams over the course of a high school year,” explained Saldivar. The film crew met over 300 children and personally interacted with each and every one of them. They narrowed it down to seven visually-impaired children who showed extraordinary ambition, but most importantly, didn’t see their blindness as a disability. “These kids were very ambitious,” stated Norma, “some even more ambitious than sighted people.”

“Do You Dream in Color?” starts off at Camp Bloomfield, a camp for blind teenagers based in Malibu. Over the course of the year, the film crew will follow each teen in their respective city, as they overcome adversities, struggles but most importantly, live their lives. Working with blind children has opened Norma’s eyes–an impact she hopes the film will have on the rest of the world. “These kids don’t let anything stop them. It’s nice to see that inspiration considering they’re visually impaired. At first I would get sad, because I felt bad. But the more I hung out with them, the more exciting it was. They’re not dwelling; it’s not a disability, it’s an ability. It has opened my eyes to the whole world and not automatically assuming   that because someone’s blind, they’re sad,” stated Saldivar.

The film crew will follow the seven children until June of 2010. Viewers will experience fun and touching stories from one student named Hannah, who was born in China and adopted at age twelve by American parents. Hannah’s purpose throughout the film is getting reacquainted with her past. Another student named Carina is a second generation Mexican-American and the first in her family to graduate from high school and attend college. “Do You Dream in Color?” is set to release in January of 2011 and the crew remains hopeful on premiering the documentary at the Sundance Film Festival.

If you would like to make a donation or get involved in the “Do You Dream in Color?” project you may

e-mail Norma Saldivar at DoYouDreamInColorDoc

@gmail.com.