CG Life and its 24/364 platform have officially launched the inaugural 24/364 Rare Disease Film Festival, a first-of-its-kind cultural event dedicated to rare disease storytelling.
The festival aims to amplify the voices of people living with rare diseases, along with those who care for them and those working to find treatments and cures.
More than 300 million people worldwide live with a rare disease, yet their stories remain largely unseen outside of clinical settings and patient communities.
The two-day festival is scheduled to take place on March 12 and 13, 2027, in San Diego, California.
The event is now accepting submissions from professional and amateur filmmakers, patients, caregivers, advocates, emerging creators, and community members.
The festival will open on Friday, March 12, with a reception honoring distinguished leaders and contributors from across the rare disease community.
The opening evening will include a brief programme, a festival preview, and a cocktail reception with hors d’oeuvres for attendees and guests.
24/364 is a platform created by CG Life to bring year-round visibility to the lived experience of rare disease through storytelling, education, and community experiences.
CG Life was founded in 2003 as a specialised pharma agency built for the unique challenges of bringing therapies for rare and hard-to-treat diseases to market.
Erik Clausen, Managing Director of the Strategic Communications Group at CG Life, outlined the founding philosophy behind the festival and its broader ambitions.
“The 24/364 Rare Disease Film Festival is founded on a simple belief: breakthrough science can change lives, but so can stories,” Clausen said in a statement.
Clausen added that the festival wants “audiences to leave inspired by resilience, bonded through shared humanity, and motivated to support the ongoing pursuit of increased disease awareness, understanding, scientific innovation, and hope.”
Bill Berry, SVP in the Strategic Communications Group at CG Life and a specialist in advocacy communications in rare diseases, highlighted the common motivation shared by patients and families.
“While every story of living with a rare disease is different, our team has worked with hundreds of individuals and families who have offered to share their stories for the same heroic reason — they want to make the journey easier for others,” Berry said.
David Ormesher, CEO of CG Life, stressed that scientific progress in rare disease is frequently outpacing public awareness and broader societal understanding of these conditions.
“Scientific innovation is transforming what is possible for people living with rare diseases, but awareness and understanding often lag behind the science,” Ormesher said.
Ormesher also argued that concentrating rare disease awareness into singular calendar moments fails to reflect the daily reality faced by patients and families around the world.
“Real lives don’t operate on awareness calendars,” he said, describing the festival as part of a larger effort to create year-round visibility for affected communities.
Sponsorship opportunities are now available for organisations seeking to engage a diverse audience while supporting and amplifying voices within the rare disease community.