About Breaking Through!

Following the success of the first-ever Breaking Through! Musical Theater Intensive in New York City in 2018 and our nationwide Breaking Through! Chapter Workshops in 2019, we adapted our 2020 workshop weekends into a three-and-a-half month virtual masterclass during the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis. Participants were cast in roles for our adapted presentation of Hemophilia: the Zoomsical! The cast experienced theatrical rehearsals for a recorded presentation of the full musical script, supported by a full audio and video team. The final edited movie musical is available on the home page above.

In 2021, Believe continued our virtual programming with the Breaking Through! Ensemble, with community participants from around the country, virtually rehearsing more original songs about living with a bleeding disorder. The final performances were included in Believe’s virtual Big Bloody Talent Show premiering the night before National Hemophilia Foundation’s virtual Bleeding Disorder Conference.

Looking Back at the First Breaking Through!

In 2018, we produced the first ever Breaking Through! The 3-day Hemophilia: The Musical™ workshop sessions focus on the therapeutic power of self-expression through breath, song, creativity, character development and cast team-building, writing and journaling, visual arts, singing, and performance.

Our International team of professional facilitators empower the teens to express what life with a bleeding disorder means to them, and how to address those challenges through artistic and creative expression.

Our first Breaking Through! weekend workshop, in New York City, in the fall of 2018, was evaluated by our program partners at the Foundation for Art and Healing, and the results were powerful:

100% of Cast Members left feeling more connected to
others with bleeding disorders;

100% of Cast Members left feeling more motivated in managing
all aspects of their bleeding disorder;

100% of Cast Members said they were more likely to
engage in the creative arts.

These particular results were exciting and empowering to all of us at Believe Limited; we are a team of artists who know what the arts and self-expression has meant in our lives. It is thrilling and humbling to see that we are translating our passion into results for the community with the help of our fantastic program partners at BioMarin.

PATRICK JAMES LYNCH, Breaking Through! Creator

Creator, executive producer, and star of the award-winning bleeding disorders web series Stop The Bleeding! Host and creator, The BloodStream™ Podcast. Executive producer, writer, and director of the World Federation of Hemophilia’s (WFH) ten-part "Treatment For All" web series. Director, Bombardier Blood, feature film about Chris Bombardier’s successful quest to become the first person with severe hemophilia to summit Mount Everest. Patrick has been recognized with the Hemophilia Federation of America's Terry Lamb Health & Wellness Award (2013), NHF’s Loras Goedken Meritorious Achievement Award (2014), and was chair of WFH’s World Congress Humanitarian Aid Program Session (2018). Patrick lives with severe hemophilia A and dedicates his work to the memory of his brother Adam, who was also born with severe hemophilia A but died at 18 of an intracranial bleed. Founding Board President, 501(c)(3) Entertainment to Affect Change (E2AC).

RYAN GIELEN, Breaking Through! Creator

Producing credits include the new documentary My Beautiful Stutter (2021), from executive producers Paul Rudd, Mariska Hargitay, Peter Hermann, and George Springer and the documentary Bombardier Blood (2020), from executive producer Alex Borstein. Executive producer of sometimes, i think about dying (Sundance, 2020 Academy Award-shortlisted), Director, The Graduates (2010), in the top ten comedies all time on Hulu. Director, Turtle Hill, Brooklyn (2013 feature film, Audience Award for best Best Narrative, LGBT NewFest). Producer, Stop the Bleeding!, award-winning web series and Helping Hany. Ryan’s films have won awards for writing and direction in festivals around the world, and he’s a two-time WEBBY winner for his interactive 2010 web series Deleted: The Game, and the 2020 Shorty Social Good Award for My Beautiful Stutter. Ryan is a contributor to NoFilmSchool.com, Sundance Film Festival Artist Service’s Blog, and Tribeca Film Fest Blog.

DRAMA DEL ROSARIO, Breaking Through! Workshop Director

Drama Del Rosario is a Filipinx documentary film director and producer. Known for his documentary films that tackle queer issues and mental health, he is the winner of the inaugural BAFTA-GSA Commissioning Grant in 2019 for the documentary I'm Okay (And Neither Are You), as well as the Loni Ding Award in Social Issue Documentary presented by the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) in 2019 for the documentary In This Family. Born and raised in the Philippines, he graduated from the Ateneo de Manila University with a BA in Communication, Magna Cum Laude, and later worked within Southeast Asia as a director for music videos and app content. He then moved to the US and graduated from the New York Film Academy (Los Angeles Campus) with an MFA in Documentary, Summa Cum Laude. Today, his documentaries screen around the world, and he maintains great relationships with past clients including Adidas and BMG Rights Management. During his free time, he is a reality television couch potato.

PAUL RUSSELL, Breaking Through! Musical Director

Paul trained at one of London's top conservatories for the performing arts. Upon graduating he spent several years performing in West End musicals and international tours. In 2008 he sang for The Queen of England at Balmoral Castle. As a vocal coach Paul leads choirs in London, New York, Miami and Dubai. He has worked with Oscar & Grammy winner John Legend as the vocal director to a children's chorus at a series of concerts in the states; he has coached Hollywood actors Liv Tyler and Hugh Jackman. Paul is now based in London, but regularly travels to the U.S. to lead summer theatre camps with children and teens, and direct choirs for companies such as Google and AIG Insurance. Paul is also the director of UK Haemophilia Society’s choir, and recently directed them at WFH Congress 2018 Opening Session.

JESSICA RICHMOND, Breaking Through! Assistant Workshop Director

Jessica Lauren Richmond ("J-Rich") - Creative Producer and Multi-Media Strategist. Jessica earned her BFA from Boston University's College of Fine Arts and studied at LAMDA -  the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. Jessica has developed narrative content and immersive events with an array of media outlets including: YouTube Red, HBO, SoHo House, Believe Limited, and Niantic Labs. She coordinates media for Skin Motion - an augmented reality platform that brings tattoos to life and has produced 2 music festivals with non-for-profit organization The Shadows Foundation.

About Believe Limited

Believe Limited is an award-winning boutique agency focused on creating educational, inspirational and deeply impactful digital content, live events, podcasts and more for rare disease communities, with a deeply-rooted focus in hemophilia and bleeding disorders. Our work has been honored by the National Hemophilia Foundation (NHF). Hemophilia Federation of America (HFA) and the WEBBYs. To learn more about content and programming, please visit www.BelieveLTD.com.