With Crip Camp, Falling Through nominated, there's hope Oscars become more inclusive of differently-abled

Traditionally in Academy Award-nominated movies, disabled people appear only when an actor seeking an Oscar-worthy role plays one on screen. “I hope that it’s not just the flavour of the year, that it goes beyond, and that this is a trend that will continue.” Traditionally in Academy Award-nominated movies, disabled people appear only when an actor seeking an Oscar-worthy role plays one on screen. That has led some disabled people to feel like “they’re stealing our stories,” said LeBrecht, a sound designer whose friend, documentary director Nicole Newnham, asked that he direct Crip Camp with her. “If we just realise that the stories around disabilities aren’t just about overcoming adversity or tragedy,” he said, “then I think we could see kind of the beginning of a golden age where finally people with disabilities show their true lives, their real-life experiences.” The disabled have long been among the least represented groups in film and television. Paul Raci, a child of deaf parents who is nominated for best supporting actor for his role as a leader of a sober house for the deaf, understands the criticism, but said, “for the most part, deaf people have accepted this movie with open arms.” “It shows a deaf sober house, deaf people as addicts, which is a totally new idea to show deaf people as people that have the same foibles you and I have, the same challenges, the same journeys,” Raci said.