Films About Disability Inclusion (Ages 15-17)
The films presented below reflect the reality of what it means to live with a disability—issues able-bodied people aren’t confronted with every day. These films provide an excellent entry point into an important conversation about living in an inclusive and diverse society. Pour visionner cette sélection en français, cliquez ici.
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The films presented below reflect the reality of what it means to live with a disability—issues able-bodied people aren’t confronted with every day. These films provide an excellent entry point into an important conversation about living in an inclusive and diverse society.
Pour visionner cette sélection en français, cliquez ici.
Playlist
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The Dance of WordsYves Étienne Massicotte 2014 44 minOver 200,000 people in Canada are deaf. For deaf francophones, Quebec Sign Language is essential to both their identity and their connection to the deaf community. In the past decades, parents and doctors have pushed for hearing aids, cochlear implants and a mainstream education for deaf kids. Yet this thrust into the hearing world has come at a price for some deaf students, who may have trouble following classroom activities and end up being marginalized.
The Dance of Words features young artists who have embraced their deaf identity in adulthood after spending a difficult childhood in the grey zone between hearing culture and deaf culture. These emerging artists show how they are using the arts to build a deaf culture that makes them proud. They shine a spotlight on their community while promoting and advancing deaf culture with a keen sensitivity. -
We Regret to Inform You...Eva Colmers & Heidi Janz 2015 11 min
In a check-box society that functions by dividing us into neatly-defined categories, where does someone with a strong mind and a weak body fit in? Dr. Heidi Janz - award-winning playwright, accomplished academic, and self-described ‘crip’ – has a curious problem. Despite her obvious physical limitations she is denied financial assistance from government programmes because of her “productive” mind. Following Heidi through her everyday life, with all its unique responsibilities, opportunities, and challenges, We Regret to Inform You... offers an unsentimental, and unapologetic, look at what it means to be both “disabled” and “productive”.
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Picture ThisJari Osborne 2017 33 min
What does it mean to be disabled and desirable?
In Picture This, a new documentary by Jari Osborne, we meet Andrew Gurza, a self-described “queer cripple” who has made it his mission to make sex and disability part of the public discourse.
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SHAMELESS: The ART of DisabilityBonnie Sherr Klein 2006 1 h 11 min
Art and activism are the starting point for a funny and intimate portrait of five surprising individuals with diverse disabilities. Packed with humour and raw energy, this film follows the gang of five from B.C. to Nova Scotia as they create and present their own images of their disabilities.
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Acting BlindMartin Duckworth 2006 52 min
This touching documentary follows a cast of blind and visually impaired actors as they prepare Dancing to Beethoven, a play about blindness. The film takes us deep into the lives of the actors. We hear stories of their shock and disbelief at first losing sight and of their struggles coping with a life without it. We hear them talk about grieving and pining for the visual world. They tell the moving story of how this play is itself a victory, a type of salvation, for each of them. By opening night, at the renowned Place des Arts in Montreal, they are a close-knit cast, well-honed and ready to step out of the wings and into the light.
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The ArtisansDaniel Léger 2018 51 min
The Artisans takes us into the rhythms of daily life at a unique organization, where the workers are as courageous as they are colourful.
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Tying Your Own ShoesShira Avni 2009 16 min
This short animated documentary offers an intimate glimpse into the exceptional mindsets and emotional lives of four adult artists with Down Syndrome. An artful, four-way essay about ability, film explores how it feels to be a little bit unusual.
In her follow-up to her award-winning film, John and Michael, filmmaker Shira Avni pursues a deeper understanding of esteem and disability by inviting Petra, Matthew, Daninah, and Katherine to consider their pasts, relationships and ambitions. -
Toward IntimacyDebbie McGee 1992 1 h 1 min
This feature documentary follows a number of women with disabilities as they affirm their right to seek, develop and sustain intimate relationships with the partners of their choice. In this moving one-hour film, four disabled women from across Canada share their personal experiences, with particular emphasis on sexuality, self-esteem, stereotyping, and parenting.
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The TournamentSam Vint 2020 22 min
Over the course of a weekend tournament, youth sledge hockey teams from the U.S. and Canada battle for supremacy. Designed for players who have a physical challenge, the fundaments of the sport — passing, shooting, trash talking your opponents – remain the same. Director Sam Vint captures the end-to-end action as the Manitoba Sledgehammers do it all.
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A Mind of Your OwnGail Sweeney 1999 37 min
It is estimated that in every Canadian classroom, there are two or three kids affected by a learning disability. Although they are generally of average or higher intelligence, these kids struggle every day to keep up with the class and to be accepted. Meet Henry, Stephanie, Matthew and Max, four incredible kids who won't let their learning differences hold them down. As they confront their disabilities and revel in unique talents like singing and chess, it becomes clear that "different" can also mean wonderful. This warm and inspirational video will encourage and boost the self-esteem of kids struggling with learning disabilities, and foster understanding in their peers.
