Parents of a child who has an autism spectrum disorder are creating a film called “The United States of Autism”. It is a film designed for parents of children who have autism. The filmmakers went across the country, and spoke with people about autism.
Richard Everts and Sugey Cruz- Everts are the parents of a child who has an autism spectrum disorder. They, with the help of others, have created a film called “The United States of Autism”. In the film they were able to travel 11,000 miles, in 40 days, around America. They filmed families and individuals who are affected by autism. Each got to tell their stories, and share their experiences.
The filmmakers believe that a movie like the one they are making can transcend the autism community. They feel that the film is about autism as much as it is about America. One of the purposes of this film is to educate people about autism. Another purpose is to unite the autism community.
If I am understanding correctly, the idea here is that parents shouldn’t be splintering into smaller groups based on how high-functioning, or low-functioning, their child happens to be. These groups must work together in order to create an autism movement that can work towards helping people to seek a better life.
In a way, this film has some similarities to the film called “Wretches and Jabberers”, which is a film by Gerardine Wurzburg. In that film, two adults who have an autism spectrum disorder travel around in an effort to raise awareness about, and a better understanding and acceptance of, autism and the people who have it.
The difference between these two films is that “The United States of Autism” has more of a focus on the families of children with an autism spectrum disorder. It is about a whole lot of people who have been affected by autism, in different ways, who are sharing their stories, viewpoints, and ideas. Difference of opinion are accepted, not used as a way to create conflict.
There have been t-shirts created for this film. Some of these t-shirts have been given to the politicians who are, or were, campaigning to become the Republican Presidential nominee for the 2012 Presidential election. This unfinished film is already making an impact.
Image by Eric Fischer on Flickr