cartoonmentary

In addition to Chari Pere's “by-day” job as a cartoonist for Red Bull, she also documents and illustrates real people’s life experiences. Because of the unsuspecting nature of the medium, the subjects of these cartoonmentaries can tell true stories that are usually too difficult to share.

The book

The next big goal is to publish a book in this style with ten, 10-page comics about things that women and men go through in relation to childbirth; topics that are still taboo, despite the fact that they are so common:

1. “Miscarried, The Comic” – Published last year, Chari's own story about coping with miscarriage. 

It was shared on social media by Mayim Bialik, and Dr. Jessica Zucker (the creator of #IHadAMiscarriage), and blogged about on websites like Kveller and Modern Loss,

It reached 40,000 people overnight, and led to an invite to an international festival in London where Chari gave lectures and workshops focused on sharing stories and coping with miscarriage.

2. “Michael’s Miscarriage” – The second comic in my series was published on Mayim Bialik's website, GrokNation.

Michael Buls sent fan mail and included his story after reading “Miscarried, The Comic.”

3. “The Diagnosis” – A woman’s experience discovering that her baby has Down’s Syndrome, featuring Daniela Weiss-Bronstein. Pencil draft is available upon request.

In progress

Currently developing...

4. IVF & “Termination” - The adaption of the difficult social media posts telling the story of photographer Abbie Sophia’s as she shares her journey to motherhood via IVF, miscarriages, and termination.

5. Genetic Disorders: Tay-Sachs; The story of a couple who discovered they are both carriers of the disorder and who had to conceive via IVF. Featuring Leah Newman and Micah Glass-Siegel. 

6. Secondary Infertility – Featuring Camille Bennett Wilson’s story of being unable to conceive after having one healthy baby, and 7 failed IVF attempts - now on their 8th try. 

7. Stillbirth - A fan of "Michael's Miscarriage" reached out from the UK to tell his story, which he had shared on a personal blogpost. 

8. Adoption

9. Postpartum Depression – Possibly the story of comedienne Angelina Spicer.

10. Traumatic Childbirth

The Documentary

"Miscarried, The Comic" is also currently being developed into a live action/animated documentary with an award winning filmmaker in England. We've secured 30% of our budget with grants.