After Jackson Sherry graduated from Monterey High School, he enlisted in the Navy and was trained to operate nuclear power generators aboard submarines. While on leave, he was involved in a near-fatal car accident in Big Sur that left him paralyzed from the shoulders down. 

Nearly eight years later, Sherry has written and published a self-help memoir, in which he uses his experiences to teach others about resilience, completed two triathlons, using only his arms, and is preparing to debut his first short film "Laddie," about a disabled man who struggles to ask for help. 

It’s a semi-autobiographical story that seeks to demystify and correct misleading representations about disability. 

“Asking for help after losing my independence was one of the most difficult hurdles in my navigation through life with a disability,” Sherry said. “I wanted to make a story to capture the complex emotion in hopes that I can help or relate to others going through the same thing.”

He credits CSUMB mentors, including lecturers Gabrielle Gallanter, Rodrigo Ojeda-Back and Chris Carpenter, for guiding him and fellow students with whom he collaborated. Sherry is due to graduate next year from the Cinematic Arts and Technology program, and plans to continue writing and making films. 

“I feel incredibly lucky to have found film as an art form,” Sherry said. “The community I've found at CSUMB has been one of the most welcoming groups to be a part of and I wouldn't be where I am today without them.” 

The CART Club Film Festival will screen a number of student films, is open to the general public and takes place 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 11, at the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences building, Room  1401. 

More information can be found on the film’s website.