Library Research Guides: National Disability Awareness Month Streaming and DVD Resources: Home

Background

"People with disabilities face many difficulties in all facets of daily life. In 1987 President Ronald Reagan officially declared the month of March as National Developmental Disabilities Awareness (NDDA) month. However, over time, the title has shifted to National Disability Awareness Month to become more inclusive of all disabilities. This includes the observance of Disability Pride Month celebrated in July, and other disability-related holidays & celebrations in October. The NDDA proclamation called for people to provide understanding, encouragement, and opportunities to help persons with disabilities to lead productive and fulfilling lives. This class of disabilities can refer to impairments in learning and behavior, such as autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and impairments in physical and/or intellectual functioning such as cerebral palsy, spina bifida, and Down syndrome." ~ Stem Learning and Research Center

Media Services encourages you to explore the Office of Disability Services for Students, located at Eigenmann Hall, #001, 1900 East 10th Street on the IUB campus for additional resources.

Representation in Pictures & Film

KTTV News. Audio: Governor decrees March as Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month as Missourians with Disabilities Lobby for Caregiver Funding. Missouri. Accessed 15 Feb. 2023.

IUB Streaming Titles

The streaming titles listed below are available via IUCAT, and require CAS authorization. We invite you to explore more titles in IUCAT using variant keyword searches, such as: developmental disabilities, people and disability, employment and disability, etc.

For a list of additional titles, see sidebar to access Disability Awareness Month Film & TV Catalogue, 2023

American Masters, Becoming Helen Keller
Helen Keller, who was deaf and blind, used her celebrity and wit to champion rights for women, people with disabilities and people living in poverty. Examines the complex life and legacy of this author, advocate and human rights pioneer. (Documentary, 82:39)
Certain Proof: Student with Disabilities Fight for Inclusion in Public Schools
With an introduction by Academy-Award winning actor, Chris Cooper, this feature-length documentary is about three children living with significant communication and physical disabilities struggling against the public schools in an emotional battle to prove their worth. (Documentary, 60:00)
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution by Netflix Youtube
On the heels of Woodstock, a group of teen campers are inspired to join the fight for disability civil rights. This spirited look at grassroots activism is executive produced by President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. - Netflix (Documentary, 106:42)
Facial Difference
For many with facial difference life can be very hard. Often with no other disability they still face discrimination and prejudice. The people we meet in this episode open the audience's heart and eyes to what it's like to live with a face that looks different. (Documentary, 22:00)
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf by Oz Scott
This is a performance of Ntozake Shange's For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow Is Enuf directed by Oz Scott. Each of the women portray one of the characters represented in the collection of twenty poems, revealing different issues that impact women in general and women of color in particular. - Container (Theatre, 80:00)
Intelligent Lives
Stars three pioneering young American adults with intellectual disabilities – Micah, Naieer, and Naomie – who challenge perceptions of intelligence as they navigate high school, college, and the workforce. Academy Award-winning actor and narrator Chris Cooper contextualizes the lives of these central characters through the emotional personal story of his son Jesse, as the film unpacks the shameful and ongoing track record of intelligence testing in the U.S. (Documentary, 70:00)
Invitation to Dance - Disability in 21st Century America
Invitation to Dance is an eye-opening insider's account of disability in 21st century America. Simi Linton's story forms the narrative backbone of the documentary. The film traces both her personal growth as a disabled woman, and the larger historically significant developments around her over the past 40 years. Simi serves as navigator and tour guide to a world largely unknown, generally isolated, and commonly dismissed. (Documentary, 86:00)
Margarita with a Straw
An honest, sensitive portrait of disability and the sexual awakening of an adventurous young woman, MARGARITA WITH A STRAW has garnered praise around the world, and caused social waves in India upon release for its compassionate portrayal of taboo subjects rarely seen on screen. Featuring a remarkable and critically acclaimed lead performance from international actress / Bollywood star Kalki Koechlin. Indian writer/director Shonali Bose (director of the internationally renowned film AMU) beautifully portrays the story of a luminous Indian teenager with cerebral palsy who leaves her homeland to study in New York, falls in love with a young blind woman, and begins a remarkable journey to self-discovery and independence. Bose was inspired to write this humane story by her cousin's experience with cerebral palsy. Official Selection at the **Toronto International Film Festival**. (Documentary, 101:00)
My Name is Gennet: Mi Nombre en Gennet
Based on a true story, the film tells the life of Gennet Corcuera, from her childhood before being abandoned in a reception center in Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia, until she became the first Deafblind person who got a university degree in Europe. (Documentary, 84:00)
Sins invalid : An unshamed claim to beauty in the face of invisibility
Sins Invalid witnesses a performance project that incubates and celebrates artists with disabilities, centralizing artists of color and queer and gender-variant artists. Since 2006, its performances have explored themes of sexuality, beauty, and the disabled body, impacting thousands through live performance. Sins Invalid is as an entryway into the absurdly taboo topic of sexuality and disability, manifesting a new paradigm of disability justice. (Documentary, 33:00)
Stand Tall (Kū Kanaka): A Native Hawaiian Leader
This documentary profiles the late Kanalu Young whose dive into shallow water at age 15 left him quadriplegic. Angry and defiant, he begins to change when he discovers an untold story of Hawaiian history which fires him up to become a leader of his people. (Documentary, 27:00)

IUB DVD/Video Films

To check out media items, you must have a valid IU crimson or borrower's card. Be sure to check with Media Services for hours. Some titles may be exclusively shelved at the Indiana Institute on Disability located at 1905 N Range Rd, Bloomington. 812-855-9396.

A Beautiful Mind by Ron Howard, Brian Grazer
The true story of a troubled Princeton mathematician who is able to overcome years of suffering from schizophrenia to win the Nobel Prize (Feature, 136:00)
The Big Picture Rethinking Dyslexia by James Redford, Windy Borman & James Redford
"... provides personal and uplifting accounts of the dyslexic experience from children, experts and iconic leaders ... the film not only clears up the misconceptions about the condition, but also paints a picture of hope for all who struggle with it." -- container. (Documentary, 52:00)
CinemAbility by Jenni Gold, Jeff Maynard
A thoughtful and entertaining look at the history of disability portrayals in the media, and how these portrayals have impacted societal inclusion. Go behind-the-scenes with some of Hollywoods A-List Stars, Directors, Producers, and Studio Heads as we explore the history of disability portrayals in the media and the impact honest media characterizations have on real life inclusive opportunities for marginalized minority groups. (Documentary, 97:00)
GriGris by Florence Stern, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
Despite a paralyzed leg, Grigris, 25 year old, dreams of being a dancer. A challenge. But his dreams are dashed when his uncle falls critically ill. To save him, Grigris resolves to work for petrol traffickers. (Feature, 101:00)
I Am Sam by Jessie Nelson
Sam Dawson has the mental capacity of a 7-year-old. He works at a Starbucks, is obsessed with the Beatles and has a daughter with a homeless woman who abandons them. As the daughter reaches age 7, Sam's limitations start to become a problem. When the authorities take his daughter away, Sam shames a high-priced lawyer into taking his case pro bono. In the process, he teaches her a great deal about love, and whether it's really all you need. (Feature, 134:00)
Lars and the Real Girl by Craig Gillespie, Sidney Kimmel, John Cameron, Sarah Aubrey
Lars is a sweet but shy guy who has a hard time talking with his family, coworkers, and neighbors. Although his family fears the worst when Lars brings home a life-sized companion doll who he thinks is a real girlfriend, named Bianca, a doctor encourages them to play along with him so that he can work through his delusions. The whole community rallies to his support, and Lars begins to deal with all of his emotions. He even begins to develop feelings for Margo, an attractive co-worker, in what becomes "a hilariously unique love triangle." (Feature, 106:00)
Pathways to employment The Arc [of] Indiana by a Ken Oguss film.
Six short documentaries featuring the different paths of employment taken by 6 unique individuals who prove that employing people with developmental disabilities is "Good for business, good for people & good for the economy." (Documentary, 38:00)
Ray by Taylor Hackford
The story of one of America's true musical geniuses, Ray Charles, from his humble beginnings in the South through his meteoric rise to the top of American musical charts. (Feature, 153:00)
Right Footed by Nick Spark, Mona Lisa Yuchengco.
This award-winning documentary chronicles Jessica's long struggle to become fully independent and licensed as the world's first armless airplane pilot--flying with one foot on the yoke and the other on the throttle. (Documentary, 82:00)
Still Alice by Richard Glatzer, Wash Westmoreland
Alice Howland, happily married with three grown children, is a renowned linguistics professor who starts to forget words. When she receives a diagnosis of Early-Onset Alzheimer's Disease, Alice and her family find their bonds thoroughly tested. Her struggle to stay connected to who she once was is frightening, heartbreaking, and inspiring. (Feature, 101:00)
The Theory of Everything by James Marsh
"The story of renowned astrophysicist Stephen Hawking, who falls deeply in love with fellow Cambridge student Jane Wilde. Once a healthy, active young man, Hawking received an earth-shattering diagnosis at 21 years of age. With Jane fighting tirelessly by his side, Stephen embarks on his most ambitious scientific work, studying the very thing he now has precious little of: time. Together, they defy impossible odds, breaking new ground in medicine and science, and achieving more than they could ever have dreamed." -- Back of container. (Feature, 124:00)
The United States of Autism by Richard Everts, Sugey Cruz-Everts
A couple, Richard Everts and Sugey Cruz-Everts, parents of a child with autism, travel the United States to make a film to help their family and others affected by the condition. Along the way, they meet people from a broad cultural spectrum who discuss how autism has affected them. (Documentary, 90:00)
You Were Never Really Here by Lynne Ramsey, Pascal Caucheteux, Rosa Attab, James Wilson, et. al.msay ; a film by Lynne Ramsay
A traumatized veteran, unafraid of violence, tracks down missing girls for a living. When a job spins out of control, Joe's nightmares overtake him as a conspiracy is uncovered leading to what may be his death trip or his awakening. (Feature, 90:00)