If You Could Say It in Words

Last updated
If You Could Say It in Words
If You Could Say It in Words FilmPoster.jpeg
Directed byNicholas Gray
Written byNicholas Gray
Produced byNicholas Gray
Katharine Clark Gray
Adam Eisenstein
StarringAlvin Keith
Marin Ireland
CinematographyRichard Sands
Edited byAriel Roubinov
Music byDavid Goodrich
Distributed byVanguard Cinema
Release date
  • October 8, 2008 (2008-10-08)
Running time
112 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

If You Could Say it in Words is a 2008 American romance film written and directed by Nicholas Gray (The Paper Store). It focuses on the relationship between two disparate individuals. The film played at multiple American film festivals in 2008-09. It has also been screened in connection with autism "awareness" programs in Nebraska in 2009 and by the Dutch Ministry of Health's during Autism "Awareness" Week in 2010. The film will be distributed on DVD in North America by Vanguard Cinema in November 2010.

Contents

Plot

Nelson Hodge is a lower class painter with undiagnosed Asperger syndrome who is immersed in completing a triptych of emotion paintings. Sadie Mitchell is attempting to get her life back in order while sacrificing in most areas of her life. The two meet by chance and engage in an awkward romance that starts to bring their flaws to the surface.

Cast

Critical reception

Alex Plank, founder of the Wrong Planet community for autism and autism spectrum disorders, first discussed the film on the organization's website with a February 2008 interview with actor Alvin Keith and director Nicholas Gray. [1] In September 2008 he wrote a review in which he described his appreciation for the film's three-dimensional and unexaggerated interpretation of the disorder, calling it "...the most authentic portrayal of an autistic person I've ever seen in the movies." [2]

New York Film Critics Circle member, Mike d'Angelo, gave special praise to actress Marin Ireland, calling her work "...one of the most stunning performances I've seen in the past couple of years — easily my top Best Actress pick for various polls and surveys, at this writing, should the film get a New York commercial release." [3]

Awards and nominations

The film was named Best Feature and Best of Festival at the 2008 Derby City Film Festival in Louisville, Kentucky.

The film's West Coast premiere was at the 2009 Method Fest in Calabasas Ca, near Los Angeles. Method Fest is named after the famous "Method" school of acting, showcases breakout acting performances in character and story-driven films. At this festival the film was presented by award-winning writer Dennis Lehane and earned nominations for Outstanding Achievement in Low Budget Filmmaking and for Best Actress (Marin Ireland). [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sadie Frost</span> English actress and producer

Sadie Liza Frost is an English actress, producer and fashion designer. Her credits as an actress include Empire State (1987), Diamond Skulls, also known as Dark Obsession (1989), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), The Krays (1990), Magic Hunter (1994), Shopping (1994), A Pyromaniac's Love Story (1995), Flypaper (1997), Final Cut (1998), Captain Jack (1999), Love, Honour and Obey (2000), Beyond the Rave (2008), Molly Moon and the Incredible Book of Hypnotism (2015), and A Bird Flew In (2021).

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to autism:

<i>The Great Debaters</i> 2007 film by Denzel Washington

The Great Debaters is a 2007 American historical drama film directed by Denzel Washington from a screenplay by Robert Eisele and based on a 1997 article for American Legacy by Tony Scherman. The film follows the trials and tribulations of the Wiley College debate team in 1935 Texas. It stars Washington, Forest Whitaker, Denzel Whitaker, Kimberly Elise, Nate Parker, Gina Ravera, Jermaine Williams, and Jurnee Smollett.

Steve Little is an American actor, comedian and writer, best known for his roles on the shows Camp Lazlo, The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack, Eastbound & Down, Adventure Time, The Grinder, and Haters Back Off. He also used to co-star on the Adult Swim series Neon Joe, Werewolf Hunter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fantastic Fest</span> Annual film festival held in Austin, Texas, US

Fantastic Fest is an annual film festival in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2005 by Tim League of Alamo Drafthouse.

Social Stories were devised as a tool to help autistic individuals better understand the nuances of interpersonal communication so that they could "interact in an effective and appropriate manner". Although the prescribed format was meant for high functioning people with basic communication skills, the format was adapted substantially to suit individuals with poor communication skills and low level functioning. The evidence shows that there has been minimal improvement in social interaction skills. However, it is difficult to assess whether the concept would have been successful if it had been carried out as designed.

Keiko Matsuzaka is a Japanese actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blake Ritson</span> British actor

Blake Adam Ritson is an English actor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jenny McCarthy</span> American actress and model (born 1972)

Jennifer Ann McCarthy-Wahlberg is an American actress, model, and television personality. She began her career in 1993 as a nude model for Playboy magazine and was later named their Playmate of the Year. McCarthy then had a television and film acting career, beginning as a co-host on the MTV game show Singled Out (1995–1997) and afterwards starring in the eponymous sitcom Jenny (1997–1998), as well as films including BASEketball (1998), Scream 3 (2000), Dirty Love (2005), John Tucker Must Die (2006), and Santa Baby (2006). In 2013, she hosted her own television talk show The Jenny McCarthy Show, and became a co-host of the ABC talk show The View, appearing on the program until 2014. Since 2019, McCarthy has been a judge on the Fox musical competition show The Masked Singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adam Wingard</span> American filmmaker (born 1982)

Adam Wingard is an American filmmaker. He has served as a film director, producer, screenwriter, editor, cinematographer, actor, and composer on numerous American films.

<i>Stephanies Image</i> 2009 American film

Stephanie's Image is a 2009 American drama film directed by Janis DeLucia Allen, written by J.P. Allen and featuring Melissa Leo in the title role.

<i>Grabbers</i> 2012 Irish-British monster film by Jon Wright

Grabbers is a 2012 monster horror comedy film directed by Jon Wright and written by Kevin Lehane. A co-production of Ireland and the United Kingdom, the film stars Richard Coyle, Ruth Bradley, Bronagh Gallagher and Russell Tovey among an ensemble cast of Irish actors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Plank</span> American actor

Alexander Plank is an American autism advocate, filmmaker and actor. He is known for founding the online community Wrong Planet, working on FX's television series The Bridge, and acting on The Good Doctor. At the age of 9, Plank was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. Plank started Wrong Planet at the age of 17 in order to find others like him on the Internet. After the popularity of Wrong Planet grew, Plank began to be frequently mentioned in the mainstream media in articles relating to autism, Asperger's, and autism rights.

<i>Words Upon the Window Pane</i> 1994 Irish film

Words Upon the Window Pane is a 1994 Irish drama film directed by Mary McGuckian and starring Geraldine Chaplin, Ian Richardson, and Jim Sheridan. McGuckian directorial debut, it is based on William Butler Yeats' one-act play of the same name. Pat O'Connor was billed to direct the project but he personally offered McGuckian, who was writing the screenplay at the time, the opportunity to also direct. The film received its US premiere on 10 June 1994 at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts as part of the largest retrospective of Irish film ever shown outside Ireland. In September that year, the film was screened at the 51st Venice International Film Festival.

Autism-friendly means being aware of social engagement and environmental factors affecting people on the autism spectrum, with modifications to communication methods and physical space to better suit individual's unique and special needs.

<i>A Brony Tale</i> 2014 documentary film

A Brony Tale is a 2014 Canadian-American documentary film directed by Brent Hodge. The film explores the brony phenomenon, the adult fan base of the children's animated show My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic that arose shortly after its premiere in 2010. The film is structured around the journey of Ashleigh Ball, one of the principal voice actresses for the show, including her initial reactions to learning of this older fanbase, and her travel as a Guest of Honor to one of the first fan conventions BronyCon held in New York City in 2012. Hodge, a close friend of and previous collaborator with Ball, was curious as she was as to this phenomenon and opted to film her travel and appearance at the convention for the documentary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathy Searle</span> American film and theater actress (born 1981)

Kathy Searle is an American film and theater actress. She is best known for her role in My Man Is a Loser. Searle starred in several TV series including Body of Proof, Blue Bloods, Gossip Girl, and Lipstick Jungle.

Richard Butchins is a British filmmaker. He has worked as presenter and director of arts and current affairs documentaries, and as an investigative filmmaker, for television programmes such as BBC One's Panorama, Channel 4's Dispatches and ITV's Exposure. Having had an arm paralysed by polio as a child, and through also being neuro-diverse Butchins "uses his own experience as a disabled person to make work which addresses disability".

Masking Threshold is a 2021 English-language Austrian horror film directed by Johannes Grenzfurthner, and produced by art group monochrom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Independent Film Festival</span> Annual festival held in San Francisco, California, U.S.

The San Francisco Independent Film Festival, known as IndieFest, is an annual film festival, held in January or February, that recognizes contemporary independent film. It is run by SF IndieFest, a non-profit organization, and based at the Roxie Theater in the Mission District.

References

  1. WrongPlanet.net interview, February 10, 2008
  2. WrongPlanet.net review, September 11, 2008
  3. "Listen Eggroll: A heartfelt but nonetheless semi-objective plug". 2009-03-18.
  4. "Home".