SPELLERS
Hosted by Teresa Meyer
On-demand
Available
Apr 21, 7:00 PM CDT - May 21, 7:00 PM CDT
Price
Free Screening
Available in
Worldwide
About the event
Want to get inside Joshua's head and see how he, and thousands others like him, view the world? Watch this presentation and be surprised, dumbfounded, convicted and encouraged, but also motivated to see Communication for all nonspeakers come to fruition. It's finally here. You will never look at these kids and adults the same way. Presume Competence. Presume Intellect. You'll never underestimate nonspeakers again.
About the film
Inspired by the book Underestimated, the new full-length documentary SPELLERS challenges conventional wisdom regarding a group relegated to society’s margins: nonspeakers with autism, who most “experts” believe are cognitively disabled. As the film opening asks, “What if we’ve been wrong…about every single one of them?” SPELLERS answers that question, in convincing fashion, through the stories of eight nonspeakers—Aydan, Evan, Sid, Maddie, Jamie, Vince, Cade, and Elizabeth—who all found their voice through the miraculous process of using a letterboard to communicate their thoughts and feelings. As Jamie explains, “we think, feel, and learn just like everyone else.”
Genre
Documentary
Runtime
1h 23m
Released
2023
Director
Pat Notaro
Executive Producer
Jenny McCarthy-Wahlberg, Donnie Wahlberg, Dawnmarie Gaivin, Dana Johnson, Gail Tanner
Cast
Aydan Boden, Jamie Handley, Cade Larson, Vince Rinicella, Madison Hollman, Evan Tastor, Elizabeth Bonker, Sid Sarathy