By Eddie deAngelini
Most people would call Jesse Wilson a hero. But if you ask him, he'll tell you that he's in the business of making heroes and not being one. Jesse is the tireless driving force behind The For The Win Project, a charitable organization that turns children with special circumstances into their favorite heroes. These children see themselves transformed into their favorite superhero or movie hero in their own custom movie poster, film trailer and interactive experience, giving them the courage to face their own illness or handicap.
How did The For The Win Project start? I talked with Jesse Wilson to find out.
The seed of For The Win came from the movie poster you created for the hugely viral story of Batkid. How did you get involved with that story and how did it lead to For The Win?
Like many, I was enthralled by what Make-A-Wish did for Miles aka Batkid. To see so many come together for something so positive was incredible to witness. I remember sitting at my computer thinking, wow, this boy just lived a Batman movie. Being a designer, I felt like he needed his own official movie poster to commemorate his day. I tweeted Make-A-Wish as it was all unfolding, telling them my “great” idea. I stared at my screen for several minutes expecting them to tweet back something like, “Yes! Great idea! We're on it!” Until I realized, Jesse, this is what you do, why don't you do it. So I did. A popular movie website posted it and the wheels began turning in my head. The Batkid phenomenon mixed with some other traumatic life experiences got me thinking about my contribution to the world. The For The Win Project finally took shape in my head around that time.
For The Win has transformed several special children into a variety of heroes in their own film poster and themed experience. Which one is the most memorable to you?
Oh my gosh, that's nearly impossible to answer. They're all so amazing and memorable. Although if I had to choose, the FTW experience we did for Tater was extra special. Gabriel aka Tater had been suffering from stage four neuroblastoma cancer since age 3. Tater and I shared a similar role model growing up in the form of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Tater looked to Dwayne for strength in times when he needed it most. To be able to stand with Dwayne, on the set of his latest movie, and give this amazing and tough child the chance to be his hero, in front of his hero, in his own one-of-a-kind movie poster, was a completely surreal and powerful experience. There weren't too many dry eyes that day. Now that my little friend Tater is no longer with us, I think back to that day and hope it gave him a full day of joy and no pain and suffering.
You've had some big celebrities take part in your heroic campaigns. Can you name a few and how did that come about?
We refer to the celebrities as “Sidekicks” since the children are the real heroes. We've been so blessed with support for our young Heroes from people like Stan Lee, Kevin Smith, Kevin Hart, the new Ghostbusters cast, William Shatner, Dwayne Johnson, Carrie Fisher, and most notably for this article, Chris Pratt. I mention Chris because he was an early supporter of what we're doing when my FTW co-founder, Jaimie Trueblood, introduced him to The For the Win Project while they worked on a film together. Chris has such a big heart and like us, he's such a big kid. We're excited to reveal a new Hero's poster and trailer soon that Chris graciously agreed to take a starring role in this time. I can't thank them all enough for showing some love.
Your current campaign is to turn a young man named Braeden, who suffers from Bronchial Malacia, into a Ghostbuster. How did you meet Braeden and how can people help with this campaign?
From a local news story we found out about Braeden, a 7-year-old Ghostbusters super fan currently battling a respiratory illness known as bronchial malacia. Braeden's charisma was so inspiring that we came up with an idea to get him out here to Hollywood and be transformed into a Ghostbuster, and featured in his own movie poster and trailer. With the support from Sony Pictures' Ghost Corps, we have a huge day planned for him that includes a ride in the Ecto 1 Ghostbusters car, a private studio tour, meeting some Ghostbusters, and concluding in his own photo and video shoot! Thus far, Jaimie and I have been paying for everything we do out of our own pockets. So we're trying to raise $6,000 by Aug. 19 to make Braeden's dream a reality. We encourage people to donate at www.GoFundMe.com/BraedenForTheWin.
What does the future hold for The For The Win Project?
So much! There's so many things I want to see us do and accomplish for these deserving kids. We're working on a show concept. An inspiring program that takes viewers on this unique roller coaster of awesome as we find new Heroes, and the process of transforming them into larger-than-life champions. Outside of TV and movie heroes, I also see our Heroes desiring to be athletes and musicians. I want to begin incorporating additional creative methods to motivate and make these kids feel exceptional. Like virtual reality, album covers, comic books, their own action figures, and bigger unveiling ceremonies of what we create!
