Since 1992, the United Nations has dedicated December 3 of each year to the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, a date devoted to “mobilizing support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.” In this regard, this significant day seeks to promote an inclusive and accessible society, recognizing that 15% of the world’s population lives with some form of disability.
So in honor of the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we have prepared a selection of films that support the social and labor inclusion of this population group.
We have gathered eight emblematic titles that challenge preconceived ideas about disability, invite empathy, promote an inclusive culture and foster a deeper understanding of the human experience. We assure you that there is something for everyone in our selection.
Ray (2004)
Countries: United States
Directed by: Taylor Hackford
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Regina King, Larenz Tate, Clifton Powell
Where to Watch: HBO Max, Prime Video, Starz
Co-produced and directed by Taylor Hackford, Ray is a biographical musical drama that tells the story of the life and career of legendary R&B musician Ray Charles (Jamie Foxx). The film shows from his humble beginnings in the South, where he went blind at age seven, to his meteoric rise to stardom.
Ray is an inspiring tribute to a man who prevailed despite vision loss, poverty, racism and drug addiction. In the face of such adversity, Ray’s mother does everything she can to set him on the path to self-sufficiency and success in a world that is not very kind to blind people, nor to people of color.
The film sees Ray overcome all kinds of obstacles and uncertainties in order to become what he has always dreamed of: a man of his own.
Incidentally, at Jamie Foxx’s request, the script was translated into Braille so that Ray Charles could read it and be a part of the whole process; for his performance Foxx won an Oscar in the Best Actor category.
Campeones (2018)
Countries: España
Directed by: Javier Fesser
Starring: Javier Gutiérrez, Juan Margallo, Jesús Vidal, Athenea Mata, Luisa Gavasa
Where to Watch: Apple TV (MX)
Campeones (Champions) is a sports comedy-drama that has won several Goya awards, including Best Newcomer and Best Film.
This engaging feature film follows an exalted coach and his team of players with intellectual disabilities as they overcome countless obstacles; we can’t overlook the fact that Campeones features ten actors with disabilities in the lead roles.
The story centers on the life of Marco (Javier Gutiérrez) a Spanish league basketball coach who has severe attitude problems that have led him to separate from both his wife Sonia (Athenea Mata) and his job. After a drunk driving accident, Marco is sentenced to community service, and then finds himself coaching a team of adults with intellectual disabilities at a local community center.
With a touch of laughter and great sensitivity, this sports story has a message of understanding, inclusion, and breaking down prejudices. Fesser and co-writer David Marques have done their best to highlight the strength of friendship and teamwork.
Campeones is inspired by Aderes Burjassot, a Valencian basketball team of people with intellectual disabilities that won twelve Spanish championships between 1999 and 2014.
A North American remake was released in 2023, titled Champions with Woody Harrelson at the head of the cast.
Black (2005)
Countries: India
Directed by: Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, Shernaz Patel, Nandana Sen
Where to Watch: Netflix
Black is one of Bollywood’s bravest and most beautiful films. Written, produced and directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, it is inspired by the life of activist Helen Keller and her autobiography, The Story of My Life (1903).
“The cathartic story of a young girl who cannot see, hear or speak and the teacher who illuminates her dark world,” describes the synopsis. Black revolves around Michelle (Rani Mukerji), a deaf and blind woman, and her relationship with her teacher Debraj (Amitabh Bachchan), an elderly alcoholic capable of defying convention.
Throughout the feature film, the profound challenges Michelle faces as she navigates a world of darkness and silence are shown. One can soon tell that the protagonist’s disability is addressed with depth and commitment, portraying her experiences and her relentless desire to connect with others.
With a carefully crafted script, Black takes us on an uplifting journey of the human spirit, exploring themes of hope, courage and the human struggle to find light in a dark world.
A Turkish remake, Benim Dünyam, was released in 2013.
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution (2020)
Countries: United States
Directed by: James LeBrecht, Nicole Newnham
Where to Watch: Netflix
A unique hippie camp in the 1970s for young people with functional diversity is the starting point for Netflix’s powerful project Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution, an award-winning documentary that explores the struggle of this group to achieve equal rights in the US.
According to Cripcamp.com’s official synopsis:
“In the early 1970s, teenagers with disabilities faced a future shaped by isolation, discrimination and institutionalization. Camp Jened, a ramshackle camp “for the handicapped” (a term no longer used) in the Catskills, exploded those confines. Jened was their freewheeling Utopia, a place with summertime sports, smoking and make-out sessions awaiting everyone, and campers experienced liberation and full inclusion as human beings. Their bonds endured as many migrated West to Berkeley, California — a hotbed of activism where friends from Camp Jened realized that disruption, civil disobedience, and political participation could change the future for millions.”
For the teenagers, Camp Jened was a place where they could be themselves, away from the pressures of an unsympathetic society. Beyond the camp itself, the documentary shows the influence it had on people. Many of the attendees became activists in the movement for the civil rights of disabled people. Netflix’s Oscar-nominated Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution was produced by the Obamas.
Uplifting and inspiring, the documentary shows what people can achieve through willpower, organization and political activism.
Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (2007)
Countries: France, United States
Directed by: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Mathieu Amalric, Emmanuelle Seigner, Marie-Josée Croze, Anne Consigny, Niels Arestrup
Where to Watch: Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
Directed by visual artist Julian Schnabel from a screenplay by Ronald Harwood, Le Scaphandre et le Papillon (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) tells the memoirs of the charismatic editor-in-chief of the French magazine Elle, Jean-Dominique Bauby, after suffering a massive stroke in 1995.
Schnabel’s adaptation chronicles the moving experience of Bauby (Mathieu Amalric), who develops locked-in syndrome, a rare condition in which the mind is fully active while the body is immobilized. In this case, Bauby’s entire body is paralyzed except for his left eyelid, which eventually becomes his only and powerful means of communication.
Le Scaphandre et le Papillon depicts Bauby’s life before and after the dramatic incident, and conveys the message that imagination can transcend the physical limitations of an illness.
As for the film’s title, it comes from the journalist’s memoirs, which compare Bauby’s physical immobility to a diving suit, while his mind flutters like a butterfly.
My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown (1989)
Countries: Ireland, United Kingdom
Directed by: Jim Sheridan
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Ray McAnally, Brenda Fricker, Cyril Cusack
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video, MGM Plus
Director Jim Sheridan’s My Left Foot chronicles the inspiring life of Irish painter, poet and writer Christy Brown, born with cerebral palsy to an impoverished family. The 1989 film is based on his autobiography and the recollections of those who knew him.
According to the official synopsis:
“No one expects much from Christy Brown (Daniel Day-Lewis), a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic quadriplegic and essentially paralyzed, a miraculous event occurs when, at the age of 5, he demonstrates control of his left foot by using chalk to scrawl a word on the floor. With the help of his steely mother (Brenda Fricker) — and no shortage of grit and determination — Christy overcomes his infirmity to become a painter, poet and author.”
The film adaptation lays bare the trials and tribulations of Brown’s life, many of them caused by his near-complete quadriplegia. In this sense, Brown who grew up in the 1940s and 1950s, had to fend for himself in an era when people with physical disabilities had few treatment options and often suffered from a strong social stigma.
Without a doubt, Brown’s story is one of the great stories of human courage.
Wonder (2017)
Countries: United States
Directed by: Stephen Chbosky
Starring: Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson, Jacob Tremblay, Mandy Patinkin, Daveed Diggs
Where to Watch: Netflix, Disney Plus, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
There could not be a list of films that deal with the subject of disability without this cinematic gem, directed by Stephen Chbosky, and based on Raquel Jaramillo Palacio’s heartwarming novel.
Wonder tells the story of Auggie Pullman (Jacob Tremblay), a 10-year-old boy with Treacher Collins syndrome, a disease that causes craniofacial malformations due to a genetic mutation. As a result, Auggie undergoes 27 different surgeries in order to see, speak or hear, and has never been able to attend a mainstream school.
However, the time has come in Auggie’s life to enter a classroom with other children and prove that, despite his physique, he is a child like any other. Wonder promotes values such as kindness and empathy, and seeks to teach viewers to appreciate people for who they are, not what they look like.
The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)
Countries: United States
Directed by: Tyler Nilson, Michael Schwartz
Starring: Zack Gottsagen, Shia LaBeouf, Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes
Where to Watch: Netflix, Prime Video, Apple Tv
Co-written and co-directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz, The Peanut Butter Falcon tells the story of a man with Down syndrome who pursues his dream of becoming a professional wrestler.
The official synopsis for The Peanut Butter Falcon is as follows:
“Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a young man with Down syndrome, runs away from a nursing home to pursue his dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a small-time outlaw on the run, becomes Zak’s unlikely coach and ally. Together they travel from North Carolina to Florida, eluding capture, drinking whisky, finding God, and catching fish. Eleanor (Dakota Johnson), a kind nursing home employee, joins them on their journey after learning her boss intends to send Zak to a more severe form of confinement.”
As Zak and Tyler spend time together on the road, surprising and unlikely bonds grow; one of the highlights of the film is its vulnerable dialogue about love and loss, good and evil, and their hopes and fears.
In 2020 actor Zack Gottsagen Zack became the first person with Down syndrome to host the Oscars.