Autism Through Cinema

The Revenant (2015) dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu

A huge welcome today to our final special guest, the wonderful Alex Gregson. Alex is Head of Audio at 344 Audio, and has led on the edits of the last eight episodes of our podcast, for which we are eternal grateful. He is newly diagnosed as autistic and reflects very thoughtfully on how his autism has contributed positively to his career as a sound engineer and audio editor.

For our analysis, Alex brings along Alejandro González Iñárritu's Academy Award winning 2015 revenge thriller The Revenant, and asks David and Lillian to pay particular attention to the rich soundscape of the film. We discuss the careful detailing of the sound design, as well as Iñárritu's concoction of a 'cacajanga' soundscape. We find autistic resonance in the meticulous attention paid to the layering of the natural sounds of the wild landscapes, as well as the precise choices made in the levels of balance between sound effects, score and dialogue.

We move on the reflect on some of the challenges faced by neurodivergent individuals who are sensitive to sound, and consider how filmmakers might rethink their approach to final mix of a movie to better accommodate those who might struggle with such sensory input.

A huge thanks again to Alex for joining us, and for doing such a brilliant job of editing our latest batch of episodes. For more on the work that 344 Audio do, you can visit their website here: https://www.344audio.com/

Voice (2023) dir. Ana Hjort Guttu

In this rather exclusive episode, Alex, Ethan, & David take a look at an as yet unreleased film called 'Voice', directed by Norwegian director Ana Hjort Guttu. A documentary maker from Norwegian TV meets resistance when she contacts a group of filmmaking activists to tell a story that is not her own. 'Voice' is a fascinating look at documentary ethics which gives us a springboard to talk about the issues we might need to consider when the subjects of our non-fiction films are not from our own neurotype. Here's the IMDB entry: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt27035082/ 

We soon move to talking about some of the best and worst offerings of recent documentaries about autism, including the BBC's 'Paddy and Christine McGuinness: Our Family and Autism' and 'Christine McGuinness: Unmasking my Autism'. We also look at 'Chris Packham: Inside Our Minds', 'I Am Greta', and 'I Think We're Alone Now', as well as Alex's own work 'Drawing on Autism'.

We also give a quick shout out to a wonderful radical left comedy podcast Mandatory Redistribution Party, as hosted by neurodivergent hosts Jack Evans and Sean Morley. You can find Mandos here: https://mandatoryredistributionparty.podbean.com/

Thank you for listening!

Doctor Who: The Tenth Planet (1966) dir. Derek Martinus (Part Two)

Part two of our special double episode about the wondrous Doctor Who. Harry Draper is still with us, and we spend some time talking through his brilliant contribution to the world of Who audio stories, his TARDIS-focused tale 'The Last Day at Work', which is available here: https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/doctor-who-short-trips-the-last-day-at-work-1917

We also engage in a fascinating discussion about the joys and perils of autistic tendencies towards extreme fandom, such as the collecting of merchandise, fan socialising, and the deep knowledge of lore. We question to what extent media corporations have a responsibility to consider how far they may be exploiting autistic fans from excessive merchandising and extended universes. We further consider how such fandoms have in turn created certain mythologies about autism itself, especially in relation to gender.

Important final charitable note!: Harry has asked us to share the fundraising page for the British Heart Foundation, created in memory of Big Finish legend Paul Spragg. If you can spare any money, please donate here:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/big-finish-paul-spragg

Thank you for listening, and be safe out there in the big wide world of all of time and space!

Doctor Who: The Tenth Planet (1966) dir. by Derek Martinus (Part One)

We are officially bigger on the inside... Turns out we don't just cover 'cinema', we may occasionally warp our way onto the TV screen if we feel sufficiently compelled. And what could be more compelling than The Timelord themselves? 

It's Doctor Who time (timey-wimey?). Specifically, we focus our sonic screwdrivers onto the second serial of the fourth series of classic Who: 'The Tenth Planet'. This serial is notable for two reasons: the first appearance of the now iconic Cybermen, and the first time the Doctor dies and regenerates.

We are joined by extraordinary special guest, the completely excellent Harry Draper, who is a certified Big Finish Doctor Who audio story author who created the rather marvellous tale 'The Last Day at Work'. Find Harry's audio story here, downloadable for free: https://www.bigfinish.com/releases/v/doctor-who-short-trips-the-last-day-at-work-1917

There was so much to pack in that we decided to split the episode into two parts for your listening pleasure. Part two will be released tomorrow, but for now enjoy our initial discussions! We reflect on the performative values of the cybermen, the presence of female characters and female fans, and our personal histories with this most magnificent titan of British TV.

Tune in again tomorrow for Part 2!

 

Isaac Julien: What Freedom is to Me (2023), TATE Britain Exhibition.

Here at Autism Through Cinema we've always been interested in how film stretches beyond the traditional cinematic space, and how cinema appears in other contexts. With this in mind, Lillian asked Georgia and Janet to indulge in a trip to TATE Britain to take in the multi-screen spectacle of 'What Freedom is to Me', a retrospective of the work of New Queer filmmaker Isaac Julien.

The trio reflect on the freedoms that are afforded to neurodivergent viewers when not confined by the temporal and spatial limits of the cinema auditorium, as well as the social conventions inscribed in those spaces. Julien's work is considered in relation to its black and queer history, and a critical eye is turned towards the use of beauty to depict difficult subject matter.

The use of multiple screens and the freedom to wander in a gallery allow for further reflections on neurodivegent lives; from the 'rules' around how to look at certain things, to the sometimes strained interactions with other gallery visitors.

Sadly, the exhibition has now closed, but more on Isaac Julien's work can be found via his website: https://www.isaacjulien.com/

Thanks for listening.

 

Episode edited by 344 Audio. 

Live Event Preview: Still Lives (2023) at The Garden Cinema

On the 9^th September 2023 the ATC podcast team will be appearing live at The Garden Cinema in Covent Garden, London.

There will be a screening of Celine Song’s critically acclaimed debut film ‘Past Lives’ at 14:50 followed by a panel discussion & Q&A with Lillian, Georgia, Ethan and David.

The screening will be a relaxed screening, and tickets can be purchased here: https://www.thegardencinema.co.uk/film/relaxed-screening-past-lives/

Read more about 'Past Lives' in this 5-star review: https://www.theguardian.com/film/2023/sep/06/past-lives-review-a-must-see-story-of-lost-loves-childhood-crushes-and-changing-identities

 

Blade Runner (1982) dir. Ridley Scott

An episode which has been a long time coming, Georgia, David and Lillian finally tackle the cult classic cyberpunk sci-fi of Ridley Scott's groundbreaking Blade Runner.

There is much to discuss from this 'parable of neurodiversity' (as David puts it), including how the Voight-Kampff test of the film mirrors the real-life 'empathy' tests of autism diagnoses, and how the tag-line 'more human than human' relates to language used to describe (and dehumanise) autistic people.

The gang also consider the status of the cyborg 'replicants' as potential neurodivergent activists, while a special focus on the character of Rachel reveals how the film's cinematography potentially behaves in a neuroqueer manner.

The episode is inspired by David's article on autism and Blade Runner which can be found here if you have the access: https://www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/sfftv.2022.12

If not, you can find a version of the article in Chapter 4 of David's PhD thesis, which is available for free (after signing up to Academia.edu) here: https://www.academia.edu/45516790/The_Fantastic_Autistic_Divergence_Estrangement_and_The_Neuroqueer_Screen_in_Blade_Runner_The_Final_Cut_2007_and_Community_2009_2015_

And for even more on the connections between autism and Blade Runner do check out this blog series by SpeakerToAnimals: https://speakertoanimals.wordpress.com/2017/03/27/do-aspies-dream-of-electric-sheep/

 

Audio edits by 344 Audio.

Raw (2016)

With content warnings about discussions around cannibalism, abuse, and eating disorders, Georgia, Janet and Lillian return to tackle the meaty subject of female body horror via Julia Ducournau's grisly debut, Raw. The trio reflect on associations between autism and eating, with particular focus on the processes and difficulties around misophonia, before navigating the tricky relationship of cannibalism and sexuality. There are frank discussions about how norms are undermined in the film, and how acts of masking and gender performance can resonate with autistic female experience. Georgia offers the film as an analogy for the abjection of adolescent life when identities are being formed and rejected, associating this with the turbulence of autistic social navigation.

Lillian's thoughts on Ducournau's second film Titane can be found in Plinth on the following link: https://plinth.uk.com/blogs/magazine/titane-essay-the-horror-of-the-body-in-julia-ducournau-titane

We also welcome our new editors 344 Audio, who will be working hard behind-the-scenes to take us all the way up to our 50th episode.

Many thanks for listening. And please don't be tempted to take a nibble out of your friends...

ET: The Extra Terrestrial (1982) with Sam Chown-Ahern

ATC phone home, ATC phone home...!

We're back among the aliens and the spaceships today as we tackle Steven Spielberg's tear-jerking classic. We're also incredibly delighted to welcome yet another wonderful special guest, the brilliant Sam Chown-Ahern! Sam is a filmmaker, artist, collaborator, and member of the Neurocultures Collective, who are currently working with Autism Through Cinema in the creation of an experimental feature film. Sam also presented a wonderfully bizarre re-edit of a scene from ET at the Autism Through Cinema conference in January 2023, and we discuss her motivations behind these artistic choices.

But mostly, we're having a good old chat about a well-beloved film. We find particular interest in the film's navigation of tropes from horror films and family dramas, and we consider Elliot as a figure of loneliness. We also pick up on ET as a film about communication, connecting this with non-normative modes of autistic communication.

Huge thanks to Sam! Check out Sam's work here: https://www.samchown-ahern.com/

Harold & Maude (1971) dir. Hal Ashby, with Andrew Brenner

We've made a brief sidestep into TV for the first half of episode #41 because we are joined by the wonderful Andrew Brenner, Headwriter of the CBeebies show Pablo. For the uninitiated, Pablo is an animated show about an autistic boy and his imaginary animal friends and has been a staple of CBeebies since 2017. Andrew talks us through how the show came to be, how it developed, and the importance of working with autistic performers. Three particular episodes of the show are discussed, all of which are freely available to view on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b097bs09/pablo

It's also worth mentioning that we have previously featured one of the voice actors from Pablo, the brilliant artist Sumita Majumdar who joined us for episode #23 to talk about Being Frank: The Chris Sievey Story. Do scroll back through our archive to find it!

Following the Pablo chat, Andrew, Janet, Alex and Georgia move on to discuss the 1971 Hal Ashby film Harold & Maude. The film's two outsider protagonists are considered in autistic terms, as is their unusual age-gap relationship. Empathy comes under examination, which is found to be lacking in the stiff typical characters that surround the central pair, before the discussion turns to how the two central characters buck the conventions of gender expectations.

Towards the end, Andrew gives a shout-out to our crossover episode with Talking Images in which co-host David Hartley talks about another of Ashby's films about an outsider: Being There. Here's the link to that episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ACULrwtGxYWM867qPxpdU

Huge thanks to Andrew for joining us!