Inside the Marvels of Media Festival, first and only film festival for media-makers on autism spectrum
NEW YORK -- The Marvels of Media Festival was created to be a different kind of film festival, one that celebrates media makers on the autism spectrum.
With film screenings, VR experiences and sensory rooms, the event at Astoria's Museum of the Moving Image is a haven for all media-loving people.
"It's really exciting to be recognized for something that is typically seen, as like, a deterrent to be an artist in a space and have that be not only recognized but celebrated," said filmmaker Dan Oliver Lee.
One of the special treats of the night was a sneak preview of "Ezra," a film about a father and son grappling with an autism diagnosis. The film is based on writer Tony Spiridakis' experience with his own son.
"I'm the screenwriter of 'Ezra,' and it comes very much from my own experience. When I first heard that my son was autistic, my reaction was, well, how much money do we need to fix this, you know? To which the doctor said a couple of years and you'll figure out that autism is cool and it's okay. In other words, like, so it's not about fixing the child. It's about accepting the child," said Spiridakis.
Tony Goldwyn, who directed "Ezra," shared why he thinks representation in film is so important.
"When we saw the work they were celebrating here last year, we were so inspired by it, honestly. All the different filmmakers and media makers that were being showcased, their work was incredible, especially as storytellers ourselves," said Goldwyn.
The media makers stressed how special the event is and why they wanted to participate.
"It's not just important to represent autistic people in front of the camera. It's also important to represent autistic people who are telling stories as well. And these stories aren't only like, some of them are about being autistic and some of them aren't about being autistic. Some of the films tonight are actually more focused on queer identity, for example," said co-organizer Miranda Lee.
"We've found that there's actually a really significant percentage of our population for whom, you know, filmmaking and interacting with screens is a way to connect to their community," said Aziz Isham, executive director of Museum of the Moving Image.
"It's always just really gratifying to find community and the film space because, you know, film is all about who you know, and finding a company and a crew. So it's really great to meet other like-minded people, but also people with very different experiences, but that you are still related to and being autistic," said filmmaker Daniel Oliver Lee.