There’s no such thing as ‘looking autistic’ in film, TV

Published : Apr 01, 2023 16:58 IST - 6 MINS READ More autistic characters are starting to be featured on-screen. Our image of what it’s like to be autistic is mostly shaped by popular media, according to Cian O’Clery, director and co-creator of “Love on the Spectrum”, an Australian reality TV series about what dating can look like for adults with autism. Like the Rain Man, autistic characters in popular media are often portrayed as “savants.” “A big misconception is that we’re intellectually superior. Research shows that around 10 per cent of autistic people exhibit exceptional cognitive abilities, with some studies reducing this number to less than 1 per cent. “It would be good for people to be able to put themselves in autistic people’s shoes and realise how overwhelming even a simple place like a classroom could be,” says Emily.