MY TYPE
FISCALLY SPONSORED BY bREAKING THROUGH THE LENS,
a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization (EIN: 88-3840078)
making all donations tax-deductible for u.s. citizens
Sadie Stanley and Jacob Ward starring in My Type (short film), directed by Daniela Ruah | Copyright: My Type LLC
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DANIELA RUAH | Director/Producer (she/her)
Daniela is a Portuguese American actress and director whose career spans more than 25 years across television, film, and theater. She landed her first role in Portugal at just 15 years old and went on to achieve international recognition as Special Agent Kensi Blye on the CBS hit drama NCIS: Los Angeles, which ran for 14 seasons as one of broadcast television’s highest-rated series. Her passion for storytelling expanded behind the camera, where she launched her directing career on NCIS: LA, helming multiple episodes on and off the show. She later directed a comedy TV movie in Portugal for RTP1.
Daniela is involved in multiple projects; she recently executive produced the series O Grito, for HBO Max Portugal and Spain; she is attached to direct the film Nowhere Boy, based on Katherine Marsh’s acclaimed novel and she serves as executive producer on …And Then She Was Gone… adapted from Karen McQuestion’s The Moonlight Child. Born in the U.S., raised in Portugal, and educated in London, Daniela brings a global perspective to her work. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband and kids—affectionately referred to as her “human doodles.”
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Project Type: Live Action Feature
Genre: Romantic Comedy, Drama
Status: Development, Financing
Production Country: United States, England
Production Company: My Type LLC (dba High High Productions)
Language: English
Director/Producer: Daniela Ruah
Producers: Nicole MacNaughton, Kimberly Danek Pinkson
Impact Partners: Sansum Diabetes Research Institute, Breakthrough T1D
Logline: Inspired by the real-life love story of a charming young music industry executive with Type 1 Diabetes who DM’s a beautiful young woman who also has Type 1, leading them both to embrace courage, connection, and the beautiful messiness of being human.
Fundraising Goal: $4,875,000
Following the global success of My Type short film (see below details) we are actively seeking financing and distribution partners to develop My Type into a feature film — an intimate, genre-bending love story in the spirit of Love and Other Drugs. To learn more, please visit www.mytype.movie or follow us on social at @mytypemovie
Impact Strategy:
Alongside the feature development, our Impact Campaign continues in partnership with Sansum Diabetes Research Institute and Breakthrough T1D, with a mission to:
• Raise awareness about Type 1 Diabetes: a chronic autoimmune disease in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin, distinct from Type 2 Diabetes in its causes, management, and treatment needs.
• Encourage early detection testing.
• Increase support for T1D research, treatment, and ultimately, a cure.
Most recently, we had the privilege of screening My Type for Girls Inc., spending time with young girls from underserved communities. Next week, we're bringing the film and a panel Q&A to the Friends for Life: Families with T1D Conference in Orlando, FL — one of the most beloved gatherings in the T1D community.
PROJECT STATUS UPDATE
Budget Target: ~ $4.9M
My Type is an indie film shot on 16mm about courage, connection, and the beautiful messiness of being human — with a Type 1 Diabetes twist.
Following the global success of My Type short film, which premiered to sold-out theatres at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, we've continued building momentum on the festival circuit with selections at:
The BAFTA-qualifying Carmarthen Bay Film Festival
The Beverly Hills Film Festival
The London Global Film Awards
The LA Shorts International Film Festival, a qualifying festival for the Academy Awards, BAFTA, Canadian Screen Awards, and Goya Awards
After every screening, audience members find us to ask the same question: What happens to these characters next? We're listening.
We are actively seeking financing and distribution partners to develop My Type into a feature film — an intimate, genre-bending love story in the spirit of Love and Other Drugs — with a target budget of $4,875,000.. To learn more, please visit www.mytype.movie or follow us on social at @mytypemovie
PRODUCERS
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KIMBERLY DANEK PINKSON | Producer (she/her)
With a childhood informed by globally-minded parents, Kimberly is a mission-driven filmmaker, producer, and entrepreneur whose work bridges storytelling, social impact, and regenerative culture. With a slate of narrative, TV, and documentary films, Kimberly uses story to spark joy, connection, and transformative change. Her creative campaigns have spanned brands from Mercedes-Benz and Stonyfield Farms to the UN and Sierra Club, and collaborations with changemakers like Robin Wright, Nicole Richie, and Ben Affleck. She founded the EcoMom brand in 2006 (exit 2010) and built a global alliance of 20,000+ changemakers before “influencers” were a thing.
Kimberly has been a keynote speaker a featured and subject matter expert on sustainability, regenerative filmmaking, children in nature, and at conferences such as the World Women’s Forum, Natural Products Expo West, and Bioneers; and by The New York Times, 20/20, The TODAY Show, and Bloomberg among others. She lives in Santa Barbara, CA and is always inspired by Nature, as part of nature, and by her son, nephews, and all the children of the world.
NICOLE MACNAUGHTON | Producer (she/her) - Type 1 Diabetic (diagnosed 2025)
Nicole MacNaughton is a passionate talent manager and producer known for her sharp eye for talent, collaborative spirit, and dedication to authentic storytelling. She represents a diverse roster of actors through Untamed Artists LA and has produced projects including Reeling and Portraits of a Grieving Housewife, both recognized for their emotional depth and originality. With a full slate of film and television projects in development, she continues to champion bold, human-centered narratives.
Before shifting her focus to actors and entertainment, Nicole built a successful career managing top professional athletes, guiding branding and endorsement strategies for some of the industry’s best. As a seasoned brand builder and marketing strategist, she has cultivated lasting partnerships with established voices and national brands, led major campaigns, and helped startups grow their audiences and revenue.
Nicole’s expertise spans brand development, content creation, event production, social media, and strategic communications. She is known for her integrity, creativity, and ability to lead projects from concept to execution—always with heart and impact at the core.
STORY INSPIRED BY
REAL-LIFE COUPLE ZACH WHITE & ELISE SCALFANI
From Left to Right: Lead actors Sadie Stanley and Jacob Ward at Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2026 together with director Daniela Ruah together with Zach White and Elise Scalfani (real life couple who inspired My Type).
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
by Daniela Ruah, Director/Producer My Type
In making the short film My Type, stepping into a world I didn’t yet fully understand, and doing so alongside people who live it, became a beautiful creative challenge. I found myself both director and student, learning a new language: the lived reality of Type 1 diabetes. It isn’t a tragedy; it’s a rhythm—a responsibility, a steady hum beneath the surface that shapes choices without defining a life. What drew me to this story wasn’t only the medical truth, but the human one: how people can share the same diagnosis and still occupy entirely different emotional landscapes.
As producers Nicole MacNaughton and Kimberly Danek PInkson and I are now in development on the feature film for My Type, we remain committed to the same mission: deliver a beautiful love story that weaves together universally common themes of longing for connection, the need for courage, and the beautiful messiness of being human, all with an undercurrent of Type 1 Diabetes.
Set in the soft, ocean-washed light of Santa Barbara and captured on 16mm film, this film follows Lila and Oliver, from their first meeting in a T1D chat room onto the roller coaster that is life.
It is important to me to depict their differences from the beginning. For Lila it fuels fear, and for Oliver, it sparks freedom. The fragile space between those two perspectives is where our film lives. Lila’s world is rendered in cool tones — a white kitchen, bluish-grey walls, a navy shirt, and her sister's ice blue eyes. Her environment reflects her guarded interior: controlled, quiet, braced.
Oliver, by contrast, lives in a world of warmth and possibility. Soft light, warm colors, pumping music, and an ease that pulls Lila into his orbit the moment she arrives. His palette invites her into something gentler, brighter — a warm beginning for a first encounter that neither of them realizes will shift something inside them in such a short span of time.
Shooting on 16mm is also deliberate. Film holds a softness and grain that feels alive — imperfect, textured, beautifully human. Just like this couple audiences will root for.
This project was developed with love and an openness to learn. I hope viewers walk away with curiosity and a sense of quiet optimism — that even a first-time face-to-face encounter can shake something loose inside us, replacing fears with possibilities.
Sadie Stanley starring in My Type (short film), directed by Daniela Ruah | Copyright: My Type LLC