Whanganui teenager Elliot Jones talks to 'New Zealand heroes' for dyslexia documentary

Elliot Jones has been working on the documentary since the start of the year. Photo / Bevan Conley

Whanganui's Elliot Jones has used his experience living with dyslexia to create the documentary Unlocking Potential.

The Year 13 student has brought in people from a wide range of fields to talk about their own dyslexia journeys for the film.

Its premiere will be in Whanganui this month.

Dyslexia is a specific learning disability that makes it far harder to learn to read, write or do number work.

Jones said there had been struggles along the way, but "a lot of great stuff" had come out of it as well.

One example was his debating skills.

He and the rest of the Whanganui Collegiate team have taken out the Central North Island championships two years running.

"That comes from my ability to think on my feet, which is common for people with dyslexia."

At the documentary's heart was the hope to redefine dyslexia, Jones said.

"Its definition at the moment is currently written down on a piece of paper, which is probably a good hint that it's not the right one.

"The documentary talks about the struggles behind it but also turns it on its head by talking to some New Zealand heroes who have done amazing things.

"Dyslexia has helped them do that."

One person who will be in the audience at the premiere will be Guy Pope-Mayell, chairman of trustees at the Dyslexia Foundation of New Zealand and managing director of Cookie Time.

He will be flying in from Christchurch.

Pope-Mayell said Jones was "a young man on a mission".

"He's obviously had his own experiences and overcome the difficulties and the traumas to come out the other side, facing the world and looking to make some change. That is really fantastic."

One in 10 Kiwis were diagnosed with the condition, although there were probably many more who hadn't been diagnosed, Jones said.

"In the UK it's one in five so you would imagine it would be closer to that number.

"A lot of people out there have dyslexia, which is not something that is talked about a lot."

Guy Pope-Mayell will be making the trip to Whanganui for the premiere. Photo / File

Among others, Jones enlisted actors, Olympic medallists, film-makers and sports coaches to tell their stories for the camera.

He said he could read quite well but struggled with writing.

"It all seems to come out in the wrong order on the page, which makes it difficult to pass notes down the bench to my debating team members. There's a lot of whispering in ears.

"There are things like spellcheck and Grammarly these days though, you just chuck it in the computer and 'boom', it's all good to go."

Jones was a good example of an emerging generation having a better experience through the education system, Pope-Mayell said.

"They are coming out understanding how their mind works and are able to utilise that positively.

"Historically, the vast majority of people [with dyslexia] who have travelled through the education system have had a number of traumatic and emotionally charged events."

That had shut them down from their potential, Pope-Mayell said.

"That's a crime to themselves in terms of the sense of who they are, but also their incredibly unique gifts and talents haven't been given a place to manifest.

"Everybody loses when that happens."

As much as it tuned up with some deficits, there were also phenomenal strengths attached to dyslexia.

Many of them were in tune with what the world needed now.

"As we move into the future, where we've got much more visual, digital technologies and where the landscape is changing more quickly than ever, the dyslexic mind, which processes things incredibly quickly and creatively, is in short supply," Pop-Mayell said.

"That's a bit of a wake-up call to industry in terms of employing dyslexic people.

"They do have super powers."

The premiere of Unlocking Potential will be held at Whanganui Collegiate's Prince Edward Auditorium on Wednesday, July 27 at 7pm.

Following the documentary, a panel will discuss a future where dyslexia is unlocked.

Tickets are free and can be found at eventbrite.com/e/unlocking-potential-tickets-349946959777.