The directorial debut of Australian singer-songwriter Sia, a drama aptly named ‘Music’, has been heavily criticised by audiences for its insensitive depiction of autism.
The drama focuses on Music, an autistic teenager portrayed by Sia protégée Maddie Ziegler, (Ziegler features as a dancer in several of Sia’s music videos including ‘Chandelier’) who is left in the care of her older sister, aspiring yoga teacher and drug dealer Zu (Kate Hudson) following her grandmother’s sudden death.
Despite receiving a Rotten Tomatoes rating of a mere 11% and generally unfavourable reviews, it has nonetheless been nominated for two Golden Globes. In response to the widespread anger surrounding the movie’s representation of autism, a petition was launched on Change.org demanding these nominations be rescinded.
DCU student Ross Boyd believes more action than a petition is required to facilitate change for autistic actors and production staff. “The film industry should ensure to hire autistic people in films, making sure they feel properly represented and accommodated for and not ignored in conversations.”
The casting of Ziegler, a neurotypical actor, accounts for much of the frustration towards the production. Sia defended the casting choice on Twitter, saying that an autistic actor was initially hired but that the role was recast as she was not comfortable in the part.
CEO of AsIAm, Ireland’s largest autism charity, Adam Harris, believes the film risks long term damage to the community it claims to represent.
“It failed in its first starting point, which is to engage and involve us centrally in the putting together of the film. This is a problem because within the disability community there is the old adage of ‘nothing about us without us’,” says Harris.
Sia’s public response to the claim that many autistic actors would have been happy to step in to the role had they been asked was slammed. “Maybe you’re just a bad actor,” Sia retorted at a user, who identified herself as an autistic actress. The singer has subsequently deleted her Twitter profile due to the backlash against the film.
In addition to criticism of the casting, the depiction of physical restraint in ‘Music’ has also been labelled as highly problematic. During a scene in a public park, Ziegler’s character is forced face down onto the ground in what is known as a prone restraint to stop her mid meltdown. A prolonged overuse of this hold can potentially lead to serious injury or death by asphyxiation.
Harris maintains that showing this restraint in action risks promoting its use. “It encourages the belief that autistic people are at fault rather than exploring the need for those supporting a person to reflect on their own behaviour and engagement with someone who is in distress,” says Harris.
The absence of autistic voices is not only apparent on screen in ‘Music’, but behind it too. Melissa Stone, chairperson of ASPIRE (Asperger Syndrome Association of Ireland) cites its lack of inclusivity behind the camera as a major disappointment. ASPIRE’s own production team, a social enterprise run entirely by volunteers with diagnoses of autism or Asperger’s syndrome, strives to make the Irish media industry more inclusive.
“We do everything from filming conferences to animation work and graphic design. We have an incredibly talented group of people working with us at Aspire Productions. Nobody could convince me that they are any less capable than a group of neurotypical people,” she says.
One upside to the release of ‘Music’, she believes, is the discussion it has helped generate.
“The outrage the movie has caused in itself has hopefully educated some people who may not have otherwise been aware of its rights or wrongs,” says Stone.
The work Sia has coined as a ‘love letter’ to the autistic community may be more accurately described by some as a product of the poison pen. However, the widespread discussion of its absent merits is a clear indication of progress.