Once again like Rain Man, a team dedicated to neurodiverse representation

In the decades after the 1988 disability drama Rain ManHollywood's representation of people on the spectrum has moved the needle a bit in the neurodiverse experience with popular shows like Good Doctor, Love on the spectrum AND Atypical. However, there is still a much more diverse area to cover when depicting neurodiverse experiences on screen. Once again, like Rain Man, directed by Sue Ann Pien and written by Bella Zoe Martinez follows a spunky young actress named Zoe (Martinez) as she travels around Los Angeles to audition for limited, stereotypical roles for neurodiverse creators. This short film recently premiered at the Oscar qualifying festivals, LA Shorts International Film Festival and Kino NoHo, taking home both awards for Best Short Film.

Here, Pien and Martinez – both of whom identify as autistic – talk to Deadline about their short film and the importance of on-screen representation and casting disabled filmmakers in Hollywood.

DEADLINE: What prompted you to create this short film? This is all based on your personal experience as an autistic filmmaker and aspiring actor, I guess.

BELLA ZOE MARTINEZ: Normal. I wrote this film with my parents. I wrote this film based on the auditions I took as an actress. I always tried to audition for normal characters. When I auditioned for autistic characters, they seemed flatter than a real character or an obstacle thrown in there at the last minute, or unfortunately they didn't get much attention. I felt like they weren't real characters. I played a disability, not a person. It was sad. Because the character I play, Zoe, is based on me, my brother and my sister. So technically it's not a standalone game because it's a cheat. But I wanted to create this character because I've never seen anyone or any character like me in the media or in general. It's kind of sad.

DEADLINE: Sue Ann, this is your directorial debut in the narrative space. How did you come across this project?

SUE ANN PIEN: I got the script from Elaine Hall, who is an Emmy winner and cast the film Love on the spectrum. She was also an autism supporter As we see it, where I met her. She sent me the script and Bella asked if I would be in it. I looked and saw that it was a cute short film. I really liked the idea that we would create something from her perspective. I replied, “I'll act in this movie if you let me direct it.” Bella's parents were also producers on this film and they went to producer Suzann Ellis, who they have worked with for many years, and told her I wanted to direct. So two years later, here we are.

DEADLINE: Can you tell us more about the people in front of and behind the camera? Were they also neurodiverse or on the spectrum?

MARTINEZ: Half of the cast and crew were neurodiverse, and some even had disabilities. (One person) had a walker, (the other) had a service dog named Max, a big old German shepherd. He was such a good boy on set. Tal (Anderson, visual effects designer) was also slightly autistic. I know some people had ADHD and other things. Danielle (Perez, actor) used a wheelchair and was one of the casting directors for the short film.

DEADLINE: Bella, how did you find your way into screenwriting? Has this been an interest of yours since you were younger?

MARTINEZ: I've always been interested in making stories. When I was younger, I used to record stuff with my siblings a lot. I know my sister started directing when she was young. I've always liked taking videos of myself with my toys, dolls or friends. I also draw a lot.

DEADLINE: I'd like to talk about a line from the short film “What's Your Superpower?” A casting agent tells Zoe this line about the idea that people with autism have something they are naturally gifted at. Can you talk about the tropes associated with this stereotype and why it was important to include it?

MARTINEZ: For some people who were neurotypical on set, they represented someone who was also autistic, such as a friend or family member. But when it comes to my experiences with autism, I mask much more than that. When I was young, I received services before the age of two because I was part of a pilot program and observing my siblings. My parents said I watched my siblings undergo ABA (applied behavior analysis) therapy and little me decided I wanted nothing to do with it. I just outsmarted the therapist. But masking is technically acting, so that's quite a lot. I knew what autism was when I was younger, but I don't think it registered what it meant or that it was supposed to be any different because it was normal to me.

But when people said, “You don't look autistic, you don't sound autistic.” I say to myself: “Is this supposed to be a sound? Sorry. What?” I remember my friends had different experiences because I had friends who were also autistic and on the spectrum. My best friend is a little older than me, but I remember that she always loved communicating with her works of art, but was a little shy. She loved to draw a lot, but she didn't know how to talk to other people. She knew what other people were saying, but she didn't know how to talk to them. For some people on the spectrum, we know what they are saying, we understand you all, but we don't think they fully realize that what they are doing hurts. I know some people are misinformed and mean no harm, but it can be hurtful, especially when you talk to us or to us but not to us because you seem to give in to temptation. It's like you're talking to a little kid in that sing-song voice, but you're not talking to him like everyone else.

I remember going to the Girl Scouts because I did it myself. There was one tour guide who sang to the little girls in a sing-song voice, and then there was my mother who had every other adult talking to them and they loved it. much more of it. Even me and my sister, who is autistic, liked it a little more because, well, that's what everyone says. Why do you say that? That's weird.

DEADLINE: What tropes would you like to dispel and what issues would you like to highlight with this short film?

MARTINEZ: I would say (to Hollywood): develop your approach to writing an autistic character a little more. Because I've only really seen one way autism is described, but I've never seen it done any other way because people forget that autism is a spectrum. Not only can characters be somewhat non-verbal or sensitive to touch. Some autistic people find it easier to make eye contact with people or enjoy talking to people, which drains their social battery, and when they don't want to talk anymore, they just don't talk anymore. Some are simply better functioning. I've never really seen a character where it's not really about her autism, but about something she's more passionate about, not something that seems (forced) but a real (natural) interest. But we're also stupid little goblins who love our hyperfixations.

SMALL: I like what Bella said because it's true. Especially for me as a taller, camouflaging person. I'm a movie buff, so I know Alex Plank was a consulting producer Bridge series in which Diane Kruger plays a character on the spectrum as a detective. There is also Lisbeth Salander. I even auditioned for the role of Miriam Wu (David) Fincher a long time ago, but I remember reading this book and having never seen a character like this, it was really interesting. How we see it It was amazing to be a part of this event because I had never seen Asians on the spectrum, so it was groundbreaking. It was a huge event, especially in our community. In Chinese communities, differences of any kind are a source of shame. This was unfortunate for me because I was born in a time when there were no services that could accommodate my differences. While on set, I was shocked by the level of support and family love compared to the statement: “You're very wrong, don't be yourself, we'll be better off without you.” That was the trope: the message about autism is a terrible, dark thing that affects the family, and we don't want what you have in that family.

MARTINEZ: I still get horrified when I come across some of the things that some of these organizations that help people with autism try to do, and it makes me sick. I don't look at it very often because I'd rather not throw up my lunch, thank you very much.

TERM: What does the title mean? Once again, like Rain Man?

MARTINEZ: I chose Once again, like Rain Man, Because Rain Man for the first time people saw that there could be more types of people with autism. This is actually the reason why kids can get help now, because before most (people on the spectrum were included) and sorry, my English was “impaired” and “dumb”. That they can't really think for themselves or do anything. That wasn't true at all. We are smart, we are funny. A lot of these people just didn't get a chance back then and it's sad to think about it. This was the first step in helping children on the spectrum because without it I probably would not have received the services my siblings and I received when we were little.

I hope that my short film will be the next step for people to see what I did and what we all did and just care about what they see, because sometimes people forget that autistic people are people too. We are just as human as you, we just see the world differently. Sure, you may not understand our point of view, but sometimes we don't understand your point of view either.

(This interview has been edited for length and clarity)