A Rare Disease And Analog Photography Merge In A Portrait Of Self-Discovery
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Photographer Cy Kuckenbaker’s short film “Everything Twice” links his eventual discovery that he was born with a rare disease to an analog photography practice he began to address burnout. The film uses images made with homemade cardboard cameras and drugstore magnifying glasses to reflect on self-discovery, disability and disconnection. The source report does not identify the disease or provide details about the film’s release.

Photographer Cy Kuckenbaker has made the short film “Everything Twice,” connecting the discovery that he was born with a rare disease to a slow, handmade analog photography practice he began while dealing with burnout. The film brings together personal reflection and images made with homemade cameras to examine disability, self-discovery and how people orient themselves in the world, according to a report by Colossal.

Kuckenbaker noticed from childhood that one of his eyes drooped. He initially attributed it to a snowboarding accident, but doctors dismissed that explanation, the Colossal report says. After many tests and years of uncertainty, he learned he had been born with a rare disease. The report does not name the condition or describe the diagnosis in clinical detail.

Alongside that experience, Kuckenbaker developed a deliberately slow photographic process as a response to burnout. He built cameras from cardboard boxes and drugstore magnifying glasses, then photographed landscapes and other sights on the West Coast. The film pairs this labor-intensive method with the drawn-out process of learning about his condition, using both as material for a personal account rather than presenting a medical explainer.

Colossal describes “Everything Twice” as a meditation on disability and disconnection, as well as on loss and the ways people understand their place in the world. The available report gives a description of the project but does not specify its runtime, screening history or whether it is available to watch online.

At a glance
reportWhen: Reported October 2026
The developmentA report on Cy Kuckenbaker’s short film “Everything Twice” describes how it pairs his rare-disease discovery with a handmade analog photography process.

Photography as a Record of Discovery

The project connects two forms of slow work: constructing images through simple, handmade equipment and arriving at an explanation for a physical difference after years of tests. That pairing gives the film a way to explore uncertainty and self-understanding through both process and subject. It also places a personal account of disability within an artistic practice, rather than treating the diagnosis as the whole story.

For audiences, the reported significance is less about the technical specifics of the disease—which have not been provided—and more about how Kuckenbaker makes meaning from experiences that took time to understand. His improvised cameras also foreground the act of looking: the film’s subject and its method both turn attention toward how perception shapes orientation.

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From Eye Difference to Film

Kuckenbaker’s account, as summarized by Colossal, begins with a visible difference he noticed as a child. He linked the drooping eye to a past snowboarding accident, but doctors rejected that explanation. A diagnosis came only after numerous tests and many years, according to the report. It does not give dates for the tests, the diagnosis or the start of production.

The photography practice developed in the setting of burnout. Rather than relying on conventional equipment, Kuckenbaker made cameras using cardboard boxes and magnifying glasses bought at a drugstore, then photographed West Coast locations. Colossal frames the combination of this hands-on method and the long path to diagnosis as the film’s central structure. No additional production or distribution details are included in the source report.

““a quiet meditation on disability and the ways we orient ourselves in the world.””

— Colossal, describing “Everything Twice”

Diagnosis and Release Details

The source report does not identify the rare disease, explain its symptoms or say how it affects Kuckenbaker beyond the eye difference he noticed. It also does not provide the date of diagnosis, the names of the doctors involved, or further information about his care. Those details should not be inferred from the film description.

It is also unclear from the report when “Everything Twice” was completed, where it can be viewed, whether it has been screened publicly, and whether Kuckenbaker has discussed the work in a separate interview. The available account describes the film’s subject and visual method but does not establish its wider reception or distribution.

Where the Film Can Be Seen

The immediate next step for readers is to check the film’s official pages or Kuckenbaker’s channels for viewing and screening information; the Colossal report does not provide those details. Any further account of the diagnosis or the project’s production would need to come from Kuckenbaker or another directly attributable source. Until then, the confirmed account remains the film’s stated connection between his rare-disease discovery and handmade photography.

Key Questions

What is “Everything Twice” about?

It is a short film by Cy Kuckenbaker that links his discovery that he was born with a rare disease to an analog photography practice he developed while dealing with burnout. Colossal describes it as a reflection on disability, disconnection and self-discovery.

What rare disease does Kuckenbaker have?

The report does not name the disease or provide medical details. It says he learned after years of tests that he was born with a rare condition.

How did he make the photographs?

Kuckenbaker used homemade cameras made from cardboard boxes and drugstore magnifying glasses. He photographed landscapes and other sights on the West Coast.

Where can viewers watch the film?

The source report does not state whether “Everything Twice” is available online or list screening dates. Viewers will need to consult Kuckenbaker’s official channels or any project page for current access information.

Source: thisiscolossal.com

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