TPP 308: Joyfully Parenting & Experiencing Gifted and 2e Children, with Marc Smolowitz

For today’s episode, I’m bringing multi-award-winning director, producer and executive film producer, Marc Smolowitz, back on the podcast. It was four years ago that Marc first came on the show to talk about a movie he was working on called The G Word, a feature-length documentary about giftedness that asks the urgent equity question – In the 21st century, who gets to be Gifted in America and Why? Marc is currently working on the post-production of the movie so I wanted to invite him back to talk about what the last 4 years have been like in the giftedness community. What has changed? What are the things we need to be looking out for and what initiatives have been created?

AND, I also wanted this show to be a part of celebrating the 2nd annual Gifted / Talented / Neurodiversity Awareness Week, a week-long celebration created by Marc and which is happening this very week. The theme for this year’s awareness week is Gifted JOY, and I really love the idea of connecting the concept of joy and empowerment to the conversation surrounding giftedness.

Marc Smolowitz is a multi-award-winning director, producer, and executive producer who has been significantly involved in 50+ independent films. His films have been screened at the world’s top-tier festivals such as Sundance, Berlin, Venice, Tribeca, Locarno, Chicago, Palm Springs, SF FILM, AFI Docs, IDFA, and DOC NYC, among others. In 2009, Marc founded 13th Gen, a San Francisco-based company that works with a dynamic range of independent film partners globally to oversee the financing, production, post-production, marketing, sales, and distribution efforts of a vibrant portfolio of films and filmmakers. 

In 2022, Marc is currently in post-production on THE G WORD – a feature-length documentary about giftedness that asks the urgent equity question – In the 21st century, who gets to be Gifted in America and Why?

Things you’ll learn from this episode

• How the conversation surrounding giftedness and neurodivergence have changed in recent years and how those have impacted the direction fo The G Word
• Why it’s so important to include the concept of neurodivergence in the broader conversation about gifted and talented populations
• How we can intentionally use joy to explore and ease pain/trauma narratives, especially for gifted and neurodiverse populations
• How parents can lean into the joy of raising their gifted children and get involved in celebrating GTN Awareness Week

Resources mentioned:

• 13th Gen, Marc’s production company
• The G Word Film
• G/T/N Awareness Week
• Supporting Black, Gifted Students with Dr. Joy Lawson Davis (Tilt Parenting podcast interview)

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