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Girl With Rare Skin Condition Honored in Black Hat Project

Cassie England, who passed away last month of a rare skin condition, is to be honored in the upcoming film Black Hat from independent film studio Good To Be Seen Films.

Cassie was afflicted a disease known as recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa, which causes one's skin to blister and erode exceedingly easily. She was known by many for her love of anime and manga. She had been a fan of both since she was 7 years old, and her most prized possession was her collection of cat ears. Her ultimate aspiration in life was to move to Japan to study art and become a manga artist. Despite her condition, which in her final days caused her fingers to become worn down to her palms, Cassie still continued her love of drawing, often bringing her art with her to conventions to show others. She passed away on January 10 as a result of an infection she contracted due to her condition.

After hearing about Cassie's story through a mutual friend of her family, Robby Bryan, the creative mind behind Black Hat, and owner of Good To Be Seen Films, met with Cassie's family shortly after her passing. Though he had not heard about her struggle at the time of the film's conception, he found that her story of bravery was very similar to that of Black Hat's protagonist Dandy. In order to give a voice to Cassie's story and pay homage to her, Bryan has decided to include a character named and based off of Cassie in the film.

The film itself surrounds the story of Dandy, a teen artist, desperate to be discovered by showing her manga to anime director Shinichiro Watanabe, despite the fact that she must travel to a convention across the country to do it. Though the movie is a live action film, it will feature 11 minutes of original animation. Producer and co-founder of Madhouse Inc. Masao Maruyama (Death Note, Trigun, Chi's Sweet Home) has expressed interest, pending scheduling.

Black Hat is currently seeking enough funds for production on Seed&Spark. At this point in time, the producers and creators are still trying to raise about $300,000 by February 22.

Cassie's family is also currently asking for charitable donations to help them pay for the medical bills, as well as other expenses left behind after her passing.

[Via: New York Daily News]