Curse of the Mutant Heirloom

Debra Schaffner weaves reality, memory and imagined worlds – because one thing is never enough. Raised by robots in the suburbs of New Jersey, she eventually made her way west, working as a bike messenger, carpenter, and sound designer before finding her passion as a filmmaker and editor. Her most recent work as an editor and writer can be seen in Julie Forrest Wyman’s The Tallest Dwarf (SXSW 2025, Independent Lens 2026). As a filmmaker, she is interested in the truth that lives in the spaces between fiction and non-fiction storytelling. Debra’s work has been awarded support from SFFILM Documentary Film Fund, California Documentary Project, Berkeley Film Foundation. She has been a resident at SF Film Society’s Filmhouse, Jewish Film institute, and a fellow at BAVC MediaMaker Fellowship.

Julie Wyman’s creative work engages issues of embodiment, body image, and the possibilities and problems of media spectatorship – all informed by her experience of living with hypochondroplasia dwarfism. Her 2025 documentary The Tallest Dwarf (SXSW 2025) is broadcasting nationally on PBS’s Emmy award winning series, Independent Lens. Wyman’s work has been awarded support from Sundance, Sandbox, IDA, SF Film Society, Points North, ITVS, the Creative Capital Foundation, The Princess Grace Foundation, California Humanities and NEH. She has been a fellow at the UC Davis Feminist Research Institute and a resident at SF Film Society’s Filmhouse, Siena Art Institute, Logan Nonfiction and Points North. Her films, including FatMob (2016) Buoyant (2005) and A Boy Named Sue (2000), have aired on Showtime, MTV’s LOGO-TV, and have been exhibited on five continents. She serves as Associate Professor of Cinema and Digital Media at UC Davis.