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Down With X

A film by Persistent Pictures

Guatemalan artist Isabella Springmühl is the head designer for the Down to Xjabelle label. This documentary film explores what inspires her, how she built her internationally renown clothing line, and what it is like for her to work and live as a young woman with Down Syndrome.

As early as six years old Isabella was holding a pencil and designing clothing. Seeing the beauty in the world and the vibrancy in her native Guatemala is something that has always come naturally to her and influenced her drawings. She knew that she wanted to study fashion design to continue developing her artistry but the Universities she applied to denied her admission based on her having Down Syndrome. Undeterred and supported by her family, in her teens Isabella began creating her own fashion studio with the helping hands of her grandmother and mother creating the ‘Down to Xjabelle’ label.

The Down to Xjabelle line is inspired by the rhythms, landscape, and traditions of Guatemala.  The clothing is designed to be inclusive for both bodies with and without Down Syndrome. With Isabella at the helm, the label has toured nationally and internationally and has been met with a growing global success. This is the film that documents her journey.

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Meghan Shea, Director

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We are grateful for the generous support of our sponsors:

National Endowments for the Arts
Massachusetts Cultural Council
Lowel Cultural Council
Cabot Family Charitable Trust
Liberty Mutual Foundation
City of Boston Arts and Culture