SCREEN TIME
DISABILITY HISTORY MONTH
Cambridge University’s Disabled Staff Network will be holding a special screening this month of a film which calls for social change – Miriam Balanescu finds out more A s we ready ourselves to celebrate the festive season, this month brings another important fixture that often network was founded as a social space for those with disabilities in the city. Interweaving the different voices of Lights, Camera, Activism!
Grab some popcorn and cosy up with these film picks to finish the year
those who attended a groundbreaking summer camp for disabled teens – before many of them went on to become part of the disability rights movement in the US – Crip Camp brings untold narratives about living with disability to light. “It is a great, joyful film,” insist Anna and Alison. “It tells an empowering story of young disabled people who lived together, had fun and sex, shared experiences of oppression and organised politically. By coming together, these young people realised that it was not their impairments or disabilities that prevented them from participating in society as full and the thick of the pandemic in 2020. “The moment had a particular significance as physical closeness was not an option for many of us – and especially many disabled people,” Anna and Alison tell us. “However, the online launch as well as the virtual discussions about the film and disability activism gave a sense that we can always do more together. “The film invites us to amplify voices that often don’t get heard and to build community. This is why we wanted to organise this event and make it open and hybrid, so that more people can join and reflect about a better future for disabled people – and our societies as whole.” That hybridity comes in the form of an open discussion after the screening, enabling attendees to share their thoughts and experiences. The event also aims to be as accessible as possible. Anna and Alison conclude: “Community – as the film shows – is what makes our everyday lives more humane and joyful, but is also what makes social change possible.” equal citizens, but the barrier was the unjust society itself.” Also poignant was the timing of the film’s original release, coinciding with
goes under the radar. With a special screening of Netflix documentary Crip Camp , Cambridge University’s Disabled Staff Network will be marking Disability History Month. “We decided to organise the screening because we appreciate the way the film tells one of the many empowering stories of the disability rights movement,” explain Dr Anna Gkiouleka, who will be convening the event, and Professor Alison Dunning, co-chair of the Disabled Staff Network’s organisational
Legendary director Hayao Miyazaki goes out on a high – his final feature has all the vivid imagination of his best-known films and poignantly explores themes of climate change and grief. Where to Watch: UK cinemas When: 26 December THE BOY AND THE HERON
committee. “The screening offers an opportunity to reflect on the long history of disability activism, but also to meet each other and
Community makes our everyday lives more joyful
feel the warmth of community among disabled people both inside and outside the university.” The event will be the network’s first collaboration with CRASSH, the Cambridge-based Centre for Research in the Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities, and a celebration of two years since the
A drag queen wreaks revenge in this spiky thriller that tests the boundaries of desire and gender. Where to Watch: UK cinemas When: 1 December FEMME
ANYONE BUT YOU
Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell are sworn enemies in this punchy rom com set in Australia. Where to Watch: UK cinemas When: 26 December
HAPPY CAMPERS Crip Camp nabbed a best documentary feature Oscar nomination in 2021
26 DECEMBER 2023 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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