Deej

Deej
Written by David James Savarese
Directed by Robert Rooy
Production
Running time 72 minutes
Release
Original release 2017

Deej is a 2017 documentary of the story of Savarese, an American autistic activist who is nonspeaking and uses alternative and augmentative communication methods, in his daily life as a high school student preparing for transition to higher education.[1][2]

Background

The film was directed by Robert Rooy and David James Savarese, known as DJ or Deej.[3][1] Savarese is co-creator and co-producer of the documentary, which was filmed primarily in Iowa. The film emphasizes Savarese's goal of promoting communication access for all nonspeaking autistic people, as part of the neurodiversity movement.[4]

Savarese was adopted from the foster care system and diagnosed early in life as autistic.[5] As a child, Savarese and his adoptive parents struggled to ensure his inclusion in the local public school system.[6] Eventually winning the right for Savarese to receive education in public schools, Savarese and his parents framed their challenges as a civil rights struggle against ableism.[2][7][5] Since the events featured in Deej, Savarese attended and graduated from Oberlin College.[7][8]

Deej aired nationally on PBS in October 2017.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 Inc., POV | American Documentary. "AMERICA REFRAMED UNFILTERED: Inclusion Shouldn't Be a Lottery". POV's Documentary Blog. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  2. 1 2 Corley, Maria (2017-09-20). "Deej: A non-verbal autistic man raises his voice for inclusion". Medium. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  3. ↑ Rooy, Robert (2017-10-17), Deej, retrieved 2018-05-20
  4. ↑ iborha@newspost.com, Imade Borha. "DJ 'Deej' Savarese pursues freedom as an non-speaking autistic man in new documentary". The Frederick News-Post. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  5. 1 2 Gabbard, Chris (2008-01-31). "Savarese, Ralph James. Reasonable People: A Memoir of Autism and Adoption". Disability Studies Quarterly. 28 (1). ISSN 2159-8371.
  6. ↑ "'Deej' film puts a spotlight on autism and disability rights". The Arizona State Press. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  7. 1 2 Fishman, Kate. ""Deej" Highlights Interdependence, Challenges Assumptions". The Oberlin Review. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  8. ↑ Gittin, Adam. "Student Panelists Celebrate Neurodiversity". The Oberlin Review. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  9. ↑ "'Deej' film spotlights nonspeaking student with autism | National Center on Disability and Journalism". ncdj.org. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.