Fantastic documentary- Everyone should see this

I just saw the premier of The Sunshine Boy this afternoon at TIFF, and what a privilege it was. A beautiful & engaging documentary that manages to both educate and advocate effectively. This should be required viewing when today everyone seems to have an opinion on Autism/Aspergers, but so few people actually understand the conditions they're discussing.

The documentary follows the journey of one woman as she seeks a way to communicate with her severely Autistic son. Throughout the documentary there are interviews with many prominent researchers and therapists, individuals with Autism (most notably Temple Grandin), and other families working with their own Autistic children. The film is an excellent primer on the condition, but reaches beyond basic education of the facts. One fundamental point that many don't seem to be aware of is that Autism in no way affects intelligence. Communication and socialization are impaired, as well as sensory experience, so that the individual does not learn, communicate & behave in what we think of as the normal way. But the fact is that the individual is still there, every bit as intelligent, aware & in many ways capable as the non-Autistic person standing next to them. It's incredible to watch as these children learn to communicate and begin to express themselves- their personalities, abilities, emotions, thoughts & desires. The most striking thing is how like other children they are- we display our ignorance and penchant for mental shortcuts (the same kind that lead to racism, eg) when we assume that because a child doesn't speak, has repetitive behaviours we find odd, and doesn't socialize, that that child is 'less than' others (less capable, less intelligent, less a human being). Too many parents are still told to give up on their child & too many people refuse to support any funded therapy that would help these children to learn communication and break out of the isolation of their minds.

I hope this film gets a wide release and the attention it deserves. Thousands of children worldwide are being cast aside because of ignorance and fear. We could change that.