Disability in the arts
Encyclopedia
Disability in the arts is an aspect within various arts disciplines of inclusive practices involving disability
, and manifests itself in the output and mission of some stage
and modern dance
performing-arts companies, as well as the subject matter of individual works of art, such as the work of specific painters and those who draw.
As compared with the more general timeline of performing and visual arts in human history, this "disability art" is a relatively new phenomenon.
by employing disabled dancers alongside their non-disabled peers.
is a professional contemporary dance
company and dance education organization based in Oakland, California
. It was founded in 1987 and was one of the first contemporary dance companies in the world to consciously develop choreography
that integrates dancers with and without physical disabilities
. Their work has received seven Isadora Duncan Dance Awards
and nine additional nominations for both their artistry and production values.
Dance Company is a contemporary dance company of disabled and non-disabled dancers, founded in 1991 by Celeste Dandeker and Adam Benjamin. Dandeker, who had previously trained with the London Contemporary Dance Theatre
, suffered a fall whilst dancing on stage.
The resulting spinal injury prevented her from dancing until choreographer Darshan Singh Buller persuaded her to dance again, albeit from her wheelchair, for the subsequently award-winning dance film The Fall.
From this, Dandeker took inspiration to create Candoco, which, since its inception, has been creating an inclusive dance practice.
is a professional dance company based in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1980, it was the first in America to stage performances involving dancers with and without disabilities. The company uses its performances to enhance public awareness of disability issues and promote social change.
was formed in 1986 by an independent collective of dance
rs who, they claim, had become frustrated and disillusioned with the preoccupation and direction of most dance. The company has produced 16 dance pieces, which have toured internationally, and 4 award-winning films for television. They are performing works that break down the barriers between dance, theatre, and personal politics and, above all, communicate ideas and feelings clearly and unpretentiously. Dancers and production staff include people with disabilities
,
for example in the company's film The Cost of Living.
is a South Africa
n contemporary dance company that "brings together performers with physical disabilities and performers without." It concentrates on the contemporary dance genre, with its activities focused on education and the creation of "performances that are intriguing and intelligent".
is a British
organisation composed of artists and managers with physical and sensory impairments. It was founded in 1980 by Nabil Shaban
and Richard Tomlinson and named for the Graeae
of Greek mythology
. In 1981 the Company was offered the use of an office, rehearsal space and facilities for 18 months by the West End Centre, an Arts Centre in Aldershot
in Hampshire
.
is an inclusion
-oriented Off-Off-Broadway
theater company in New York City
.
, the Physically Handicapped Actors & Musical Artists League, is a theater group and touring company formed in 1989 when a group of former students of the Boettcher School in Denver, Colorado
, frustrated with the lack of theatrical opportunities for people with disabilities
, decided to found a company of their own. PHAMALY performs at the Denver Performing Arts Complex
and the Aurora Fox Theatre. The company's season also includes various touring and educational shows.
(TBTB), formerly Theater By the Blind, is an inclusive
theater company in New York City
that strives develop the talents of individuals with disabilities for work onstage, backstage, in the office and in the audience. It began in 1979 as sighted actors recording plays for the blind. The theater then moved to performances for the blind and then blind performances for the sighted.
element or make a significant contribution as part of the screenplay
. Some visual media companies have a particular focus on issues involving disability. Some examples follow.
) experiences a new freedom as a fully mobile human-alien hybrid (avatar).
Spencer Tracy
plays a handicapped war veteran in Bad Day at Black Rock
. He steps off the train at the almost-deserted desert hamlet of Black Rock. It is the first time the train has stopped there in four years. The remaining inhabitants are unaccountably hostile, but Tracy proves that one good arm is all you need to win a fight.
is a collection of stories by science fiction author Anne McCaffrey
about the brainship
Helva. In a far future, young children with severe physical handicaps can be placed in a life-support shell and specially trained for tasks that a "normal" human would be unable to undertake. McCaffrey, who has described The Ship Who Sang, an early work, as the best story she ever wrote, asked herself one day: "what if severely disabled people were given a chance to become starships?"
Inclusion (disability rights)
Inclusion is a term used by people with disabilities and other disability rights advocates for the idea that all people should freely, openly and without pity accommodate any person with a disability without restrictions or limitations of any kind...
, and manifests itself in the output and mission of some stage
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
and modern dance
Modern dance
Modern dance is a dance form developed in the early 20th century. Although the term Modern dance has also been applied to a category of 20th Century ballroom dances, Modern dance as a term usually refers to 20th century concert dance.-Intro:...
performing-arts companies, as well as the subject matter of individual works of art, such as the work of specific painters and those who draw.
As compared with the more general timeline of performing and visual arts in human history, this "disability art" is a relatively new phenomenon.
Dance
Some dance companies practice inclusionInclusion (disability rights)
Inclusion is a term used by people with disabilities and other disability rights advocates for the idea that all people should freely, openly and without pity accommodate any person with a disability without restrictions or limitations of any kind...
by employing disabled dancers alongside their non-disabled peers.
AXIS Dance Company
AXIS Dance CompanyAXIS Dance Company
AXIS Dance Company is a professional physically integrated contemporary dance company and dance education organization founded in 1987 and based in Oakland, California. It is one of the first contemporary dance companies in the world to consciously develop choreography that integrates dancers with...
is a professional contemporary dance
Contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of concert dance that employs compositional philosophy, rather than choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement...
company and dance education organization based in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
. It was founded in 1987 and was one of the first contemporary dance companies in the world to consciously develop choreography
Choreography
Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
that integrates dancers with and without physical disabilities
Physical disability
A physical disability is any impairment which limits the physical function of one or more limbs or fine or gross motor ability. Other physical disabilities include impairments which limit other facets of daily living, such as respiratory disorders and epilepsy....
. Their work has received seven Isadora Duncan Dance Awards
Isadora Duncan Dance Awards
The Isadora Duncan Dance Awards or Izzies honor San Francisco Bay Area dance artists for outstanding achievements in a range of categories including: choreography, sustained achievement, individual performance, company performance, costume design, and set design. The awards are presented annually...
and nine additional nominations for both their artistry and production values.
Candoco
CandocoCandoCo
Candoco Dance Company is a contemporary dance company of disabled and non-disabled dancers, founded in 1991 by Celeste Dandeker and Adam Benjamin. Dandeker, who had previously trained with the London Contemporary Dance Theatre, suffered a fall whilst dancing on stage...
Dance Company is a contemporary dance company of disabled and non-disabled dancers, founded in 1991 by Celeste Dandeker and Adam Benjamin. Dandeker, who had previously trained with the London Contemporary Dance Theatre
London Contemporary Dance Theatre
The London Contemporary Dance Theatre was a contemporary dance company, based at The Place, founded by Robin Howard with Robert Cohan as its Artistic Director....
, suffered a fall whilst dancing on stage.
The resulting spinal injury prevented her from dancing until choreographer Darshan Singh Buller persuaded her to dance again, albeit from her wheelchair, for the subsequently award-winning dance film The Fall.
From this, Dandeker took inspiration to create Candoco, which, since its inception, has been creating an inclusive dance practice.
Dancing Wheels
The Dancing Wheels CompanyDancing Wheels Company
The Dancing Wheels Company is a professional dance company based in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1980, it was the first in America to stage performances involving dancers with and without disabilities...
is a professional dance company based in Cleveland, Ohio. Founded in 1980, it was the first in America to stage performances involving dancers with and without disabilities. The company uses its performances to enhance public awareness of disability issues and promote social change.
DV8 Physical Theatre
DV8 Physical TheatreDV8 Physical Theatre
DV8 Physical Theatre is a dance company based at Artsadmin in London, UK. It was founded in 1986 by an independent collective of chiefly modern dancers. It is led by Lloyd Newson, whose intent has been to have a different approach to most contemporary dance than other existing companies...
was formed in 1986 by an independent collective of dance
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
rs who, they claim, had become frustrated and disillusioned with the preoccupation and direction of most dance. The company has produced 16 dance pieces, which have toured internationally, and 4 award-winning films for television. They are performing works that break down the barriers between dance, theatre, and personal politics and, above all, communicate ideas and feelings clearly and unpretentiously. Dancers and production staff include people with disabilities
Disability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
,
for example in the company's film The Cost of Living.
Remix Dance Project
Remix Dance ProjectRemix Dance Project
The Remix Dance Project is a South African contemporary dance company that "brings together performers with physical disabilities and performers without"....
is a South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n contemporary dance company that "brings together performers with physical disabilities and performers without." It concentrates on the contemporary dance genre, with its activities focused on education and the creation of "performances that are intriguing and intelligent".
Restless Dance Theatre
Restless Dance Theatre is a pysically integrated dance company based in Adelaide, Australia. The company has three core areas of activity: a community workshop program for small children with intellectual disability, a core performance group of 15 - 26 year olds with and without disabilities who work in collaboration with professional artists and a touring company of professional dancers.Graeae Theatre Company
Graeae Theatre CompanyGraeae Theatre Company
Graeae Theatre Company is a British organisation composed of artists and managers with physical and sensory disabilities. It was founded in 1980 by Nabil Shaban and Richard Tomlinson and named after the Graeae of Greek mythology...
is a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
organisation composed of artists and managers with physical and sensory impairments. It was founded in 1980 by Nabil Shaban
Nabil Shaban
Nabil Shaban is a British actor and writer. He founded The Graeae - a theatre group which promotes performers with disabilities. He has a son named Zenyel....
and Richard Tomlinson and named for the Graeae
Graeae
The Graeae , were three sisters who shared one eye and one tooth among them. They are one of several trios of archaic goddesses in Greek mythology. The Graeae were daughters of Phorcys and Ceto...
of Greek mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
. In 1981 the Company was offered the use of an office, rehearsal space and facilities for 18 months by the West End Centre, an Arts Centre in Aldershot
Aldershot
Aldershot is a town in the English county of Hampshire, located on heathland about southwest of London. The town is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council...
in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
.
Nicu's Spoon Theater Company
Nicu's SpoonNicu's Spoon Theater Company
Nicu's Spoon is an inclusion-oriented Off-Off-Broadway theater company in New York City. Its artistic director is Stephanie Barton-Farcas, who won the OOBR award for direction of Suburbia in 2004, the NYU Thom Fluellen Award in 2006 and the 2008 NY Innovative Theater Award for Outstanding Actress...
is an inclusion
Inclusion (disability rights)
Inclusion is a term used by people with disabilities and other disability rights advocates for the idea that all people should freely, openly and without pity accommodate any person with a disability without restrictions or limitations of any kind...
-oriented Off-Off-Broadway
Off-Off-Broadway
Off-Off-Broadway theatrical productions in New York City are those in theatres that are smaller than Broadway and Off-Broadway theatres. Off-Off-Broadway theaters are often defined as theaters that have fewer than 100 seats, though the term can be used for any show in the New York City area that...
theater company in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
PHAMALY
PHAMALYPHAMALy
The Physically Handicapped Actors & Musical Artists League, or PHAMALY, is a theater group and touring company formed in 1989 by a group of former students of the Boettcher School in Denver, Colorado...
, the Physically Handicapped Actors & Musical Artists League, is a theater group and touring company formed in 1989 when a group of former students of the Boettcher School in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, frustrated with the lack of theatrical opportunities for people with disabilities
Disability
A disability may be physical, cognitive, mental, sensory, emotional, developmental or some combination of these.Many people would rather be referred to as a person with a disability instead of handicapped...
, decided to found a company of their own. PHAMALY performs at the Denver Performing Arts Complex
Denver Performing Arts Complex
The Denver Performing Arts Complex located in Denver, Colorado, is the second largest performing arts center in the world after New York City's Lincoln Center. The DPAC is a four-block, site containing ten performance spaces with over 10,000 seats connected by an tall glass roof...
and the Aurora Fox Theatre. The company's season also includes various touring and educational shows.
Theater Breaking Through Barriers
Theater Breaking Through BarriersTheater Breaking Through Barriers
Theater Breaking Through Barriers , formerly Theater By the Blind, is an inclusive theater company in New York City that strives develop the talents of individuals with disabilities for work onstage, backstage, in the office and in the audience. It began in 1979 as sighted actors recording plays...
(TBTB), formerly Theater By the Blind, is an inclusive
Inclusion (disability rights)
Inclusion is a term used by people with disabilities and other disability rights advocates for the idea that all people should freely, openly and without pity accommodate any person with a disability without restrictions or limitations of any kind...
theater company in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
that strives develop the talents of individuals with disabilities for work onstage, backstage, in the office and in the audience. It began in 1979 as sighted actors recording plays for the blind. The theater then moved to performances for the blind and then blind performances for the sighted.
Film
Disability may be an essential plotPlot
Plot is a literary term defined as the events that make up a story, particularly as they relate to one another in a pattern, in a sequence, through cause and effect, or by coincidence. One is generally interested in how well this pattern of events accomplishes some artistic or emotional effect...
element or make a significant contribution as part of the screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
. Some visual media companies have a particular focus on issues involving disability. Some examples follow.
Plot
- Sur mes lèvresSur mes lèvresSur mes lèvres is a 2001 French film by Jacques Audiard, co-written with Tonino Benacquista. The film stars Vincent Cassel as Paul, an ex-con on parole, and Emmanuelle Devos as Carla, a nearly deaf secretary whose colleagues treat her disrespectfully, causing her to suffer...
features a heroine who is introduced immediately with a shot of her putting her earpiece in. Carla (Emmanuelle DevosEmmanuelle DevosEmmanuelle Devos is a French actress. Devos was born to daughter of actress Marie Henriau in Paris. She appeared in 50 films between 1986 and 2009. She won the César Award for Best Actress in 2002 for her performance in Sur mes lèvres, directed by Jacques Audiard...
) is by no means weak-willed, but her partial deafness makes it more distressing to watch her cope with her job as an overworked and under-appreciated secretary. It is only when she faints from the exhaustion of picking up after her unpleasant coworkers that Carla accepts the boss's offer of an internInternInternship is a system of onthejob training for white-collar jobs, similar to an apprenticeship. Interns are usually college or university students, but they can also be high school students or post graduate adults seeking skills for a new career. They may also be as young as middle school or in...
assistant. She rapidly falls in love with her new colleague, an ex-convictConvictA convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison", sometimes referred to in slang as simply a "con". Convicts are often called prisoners or inmates. Persons convicted and sentenced to non-custodial sentences often are not termed...
, and ends up colluding with him in an outlandish scheme.
- Rory O'Shea Was Here, about a young rebel man with muscular dystrophyMuscular dystrophyMuscular dystrophy is a group of muscle diseases that weaken the musculoskeletal system and hamper locomotion. Muscular dystrophies are characterized by progressive skeletal muscle weakness, defects in muscle proteins, and the death of muscle cells and tissue.In the 1860s, descriptions of boys who...
who tries to help a fellow young man with cerebral palsyCerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
follow him in the arts of "getting drunk and getting laid". Rory dies at the film's end, but his mission has been accomplished: his friend with CP has successfully been taught self-determinationSelf-determinationSelf-determination is the principle in international law that nations have the right to freely choose their sovereignty and international political status with no external compulsion or external interference...
, and carries on the legacy.
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NestOne Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film)One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Miloš Forman and based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey....
is a drama about the (mis)treatment of mental patients which was the second film to win all five main Academy Awards.
- The Cost of LivingThe Cost of LivingThe Cost of Living is an EP by the English punk rock band The Clash. It was released on 11 May 1979 in a gatefold sleeve. The EP was produced by the band and Bill Price, it marked a transition in musical styles for the band, bridging the intensity of their earlier, punky albums with the broader,...
, by DV8 Physical TheatreDV8 Physical TheatreDV8 Physical Theatre is a dance company based at Artsadmin in London, UK. It was founded in 1986 by an independent collective of chiefly modern dancers. It is led by Lloyd Newson, whose intent has been to have a different approach to most contemporary dance than other existing companies...
, which is less a coherent plotline and more a loosely-gathered collection of scenes features dancer David Toole interacting with other dancers and having a close friendship with an able-bodiedAble-bodiedAble-bodied refers, in law, to an individual's physical or mental capacity for gainful employment or military service, and it is in this sense that the term is also used regarding eligibility for payment of child support or alimony....
fellow artist.
- Helena Bonham CarterHelena Bonham CarterHelena Bonham Carter is an English actress of film, stage, and television. She made her acting debut in a television adaptation of K. M. Peyton's A Pattern of Roses before winning her first film role as the titular character in Lady Jane...
plays a woman with motor neurone diseaseMotor neurone diseaseThe motor neurone diseases are a group of neurological disorders that selectively affect motor neurones, the cells that control voluntary muscle activity including speaking, walking, breathing, swallowing and general movement of the body. They are generally progressive in nature, and can cause...
in The Theory of FlightThe Theory of FlightThe Theory of Flight is a 1998 film directed by Paul Greengrass, starring Helena Bonham Carter and Kenneth Branagh. Carter plays a woman with motor neurone disease, and the film deals with the sexuality of people with disabilities....
. The film deals with the sexualityHuman sexualityHuman sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
of people with disabilities.
- The Australian film Dance Me to My SongDance Me to My SongDance Me to My Song is a 1998 Australian drama film directed by Rolf de Heer. It was entered into the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. The film grossed $175,138 at the box office in Australia.-Cast:* John Brumpton - Eddie* Danny Cowles - Joe...
, with similar themes to The Theory of Flight, was written by and stars Heather Rose, who herself has cerebral palsyCerebral palsyCerebral palsy is an umbrella term encompassing a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions that cause physical disability in human development, chiefly in the various areas of body movement....
.
- In Wait Until DarkWait Until Dark (film)Wait Until Dark is a suspense-thriller film directed by Terence Young and produced by Mel Ferrer. It stars Audrey Hepburn as a young blind woman, Alan Arkin as a violent criminal searching for some drugs, and Richard Crenna as another criminal, supported by Jack Weston, Julie Herrod, and Efrem...
, a blindBlindnessBlindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
woman (Audrey HepburnAudrey HepburnAudrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Although modest about her acting ability, Hepburn remains one of the world's most famous actresses of all time, remembered as a film and fashion icon of the twentieth century...
) must fight criminals who break into her home. Hepburn was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress.
- In Snow CakeSnow CakeSnow Cake is a 2006 independent drama film directed by Marc Evans and starring Alan Rickman, Sigourney Weaver, Carrie-Anne Moss, Emily Hampshire, and Callum Keith Rennie...
, Sigourney WeaverSigourney WeaverSigourney Weaver is an American actress. She is best known for her critically acclaimed role of Ellen Ripley in the four Alien films: Alien, Aliens, Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection, for which she has received worldwide recognition .Other notable roles include Dana...
plays an autistic woman, and has said that she spent enormous amounts of time with a real-life autistic individual in order to totally immerse herself in this roleMethod actingMethod acting is a phrase that loosely refers to a family of techniques used by actors to create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances...
.
- The romantic drama Children of a Lesser GodChildren of a Lesser GodChildren of a Lesser God is a 1986 American romantic drama film directed by Randa Haines and written by Hesper Anderson and Mark Medoff. An adaptation of Medoff's Tony Award-winning stage play of the same name, the film stars William Hurt and Marlee Matlin as two employees at a school for the deaf:...
tells the story of a speech teacher at a school for deaf students who falls in love with a deaf woman (Marlee MatlinMarlee MatlinMarlee Bethany Matlin is an American actress. She is the only deaf actress to win the Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, which she won for Children of a Lesser God. Her work in film and television has resulted in a Golden Globe award, with two additional nominations, and four Emmy...
) who also works there. Matlin, who is in real life almost completely deaf herself, is the youngest-ever winner of the Academy Award for Best ActressAcademy Award for Best ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
.
- In The Horse WhispererThe Horse WhispererThe Horse Whisperer is a 1998 American drama film directed by and starring Robert Redford, based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Nicholas Evans...
, teenager Grace (Scarlett JohanssonScarlett JohanssonScarlett Johansson is an American actress, model and singer.Johansson made her film debut in North and was later nominated for the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead for her performance in Manny & Lo . She rose to further prominence with her roles in The Horse Whisperer and Ghost World...
) loses her lower right leg in a riding accident which also leaves her horse traumatised. The film portrays the physical and mental recovery of both horse and rider after her mother (Kristin Scott ThomasKristin Scott ThomasKristin A. Scott Thomas, OBE is an English actress who has also acquired French nationality. She gained international recognition in the 1990s for her roles in Bitter Moon, Four Weddings and a Funeral and The English Patient....
) drives them from New York to Montana to meet "horse whispererNatural horsemanshipNatural horsemanship is the philosophy of working with horses by appealing to their instincts and herd instincts. It involves communication techniques derived from wild horse observation in order to build a partnership that closely resembles the relationships that exist between horses.- Basic ideas...
" Robert RedfordRobert RedfordCharles Robert Redford, Jr. , better known as Robert Redford, is an American actor, film director, producer, businessman, environmentalist, philanthropist, and founder of the Sundance Film Festival. He has received two Oscars: one in 1981 for directing Ordinary People, and one for Lifetime...
.
- There is an amputee in Battleship Potemkin (1925).
- The 2010 Chinese film Ocean HeavenOcean HeavenOcean Heaven is a 2010 Chinese-Hong Kong drama film starring martial arts superstar Jet Li in his first full drama role. It also co-stars Taiwanese actress Kwai Lun-mei, who previously starred in Jay Chou's Secret...
is about an autistic son.
Screenplay
In the 2009 science fiction film Avatar, the paraplegic protagonist (Sam WorthingtonSam Worthington
Samuel Henry J. "Sam" Worthington is an English born, Australian actor. After almost a decade of roles in Australian TV shows and films, Worthington gained Hollywood's attention by playing Marcus Wright in Terminator Salvation and the lead role, Jake Sully, in James Cameron's science...
) experiences a new freedom as a fully mobile human-alien hybrid (avatar).
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Tracy
Spencer Bonaventure Tracy was an American theatrical and film actor, who appeared in 75 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy was one of the major stars of Hollywood's Golden Age, ranking among the top ten box office draws for almost every year from 1938 to 1951...
plays a handicapped war veteran in Bad Day at Black Rock
Bad Day at Black Rock
Bad Day at Black Rock is a 1955 thriller film directed by John Sturges that combines elements of Westerns and film noir. It tells the story of a mysterious stranger who arrives at a tiny isolated town in a desert of the southwest United States in search of a man...
. He steps off the train at the almost-deserted desert hamlet of Black Rock. It is the first time the train has stopped there in four years. The remaining inhabitants are unaccountably hostile, but Tracy proves that one good arm is all you need to win a fight.
Companies
Roaring Girl Productions is a professional media company based in Bristol, UK, which creates fresh representations of disability in its productions. Founded in 1999 by artist-activist Liz Crow, RGP's work tours internationally and has set new standards of good practice for the inclusion of disabled people in film production and as audiences.Literature
The Ship Who SangThe Ship Who Sang
The Ship Who Sang is a science fiction novel by Anne McCaffrey, a fix-up of five stories published 1961 to 1969. Alternatively, "The Ship Who Sang" is the earliest of the stories, a novelette, which became the first chapter of the book...
is a collection of stories by science fiction author Anne McCaffrey
Anne McCaffrey
Anne Inez McCaffrey was an American-born Irish writer, best known for her Dragonriders of Pern series. Over the course of her 46 year career she won a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award...
about the brainship
Brainship
A brainship is a fictional concept of an interstellar starship. A brainship is made by inserting the disembodied brain and nervous system of a human being into a life-support system, and connecting it surgically to a series of computers via delicate synaptic connections The brain "feels" the ship ...
Helva. In a far future, young children with severe physical handicaps can be placed in a life-support shell and specially trained for tasks that a "normal" human would be unable to undertake. McCaffrey, who has described The Ship Who Sang, an early work, as the best story she ever wrote, asked herself one day: "what if severely disabled people were given a chance to become starships?"
See also
- Disability in the mediaDisability in the mediaThe depiction of disability in the media plays a major role in forming public perception of disability. Perceptions created by the media informs the way people with disabilities are treated in society...
- Shameless: The ART of DisabilityShameless: The ART of DisabilityShameless: The ART of Disability is a documentary film by Bonnie Sherr Klein about persons with disabilities. Produced in 2006 by the National Film Board of Canada, it is Klein's first film since a catastrophic stroke in 1987 left her a quadriplegic...
(documentary film)