About this Short Film
No description available for this film.
Film Details
Country:
Australia
State:
Victoria
Category:
Open Entrant Documentaries
Genre:
interview
Festival Year:
2026
Filmmaker:
Nevlin Anderson
Film Transcript
I kind of had something different about me growing up — being eccentric and alopement, running towards danger either in front of cars or just running towards things that other people would consider dangerous. As I grew, the whole thing for me was trying to build relationships, and growing up that was quite difficult.
When I was 17, I didn't have a lot of friends, I suppose, and I was kind of looking for meaningful connection. One girl came into my life for a few months who was a mutual friend of another friend I started dating. I don't think I kind of realised it at the time. I think I heard her in some ways; I wasn't really understanding that social dynamic. I was really naive, I think, and I was feeling guilty about it. I always had my guard up around people. I've always felt that, so to try and let someone in romantically has always been difficult.
Even now, getting heavily bullied a lot in high school and university and stuff like that is quite hard. It's easy to be taken advantage of when you are on the spectrum, and then it becomes more of a struggle as you go along, but you've got to be really persistent to overcome that adversity, and I feel that's what it is.
I work for a company, Nightmare Studios. They basically support and help people on the spectrum and give them social skills through video gaming — helping people get out of their shells, talking to them and giving them the confidence they need to socialise. I work with such a unique group of individuals every single day.
I think you really need to try and do what you love. There are a lot of people out there who want to do something but don't want to give it a go. There are a lot of people who are unhappy with what they're currently doing, but I'd say give it a go — try. You never know what's around the corner. There are so many people who have done that and they've got really [ __ ] successful careers in film now.
There is a lot of judgement and a lot of misunderstanding because we're always taught to fit in with other people, but they're never taught to fit in with us. I've felt a lot of responsibility to be that voice of inclusivity. Everyone always asks me, "What makes you so different?" and I'm like, "Well, what makes you so different?" I was always very drawn to people on the spectrum. Even though I am on the spectrum, I didn't know the people around me were on the spectrum too. I think the majority of the people in my life are on the spectrum, and I've never really understood that until now.
Filmmaker
Nevlin Anderson is the filmmaker behind this entry. See every Focus on Ability entry from Nevlin Anderson.
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