This time we want to render tribute to a popular institution that, in one way or another, has always stood apart for raising awareness of the issue of the disabled. We are talking about the Oscar Awards.
Everybody is aware of the interest that the Oscars have always shown for those with disabilities. For decades, it was one of the main vehicles for a somewhat soft and paternalistic vision of disabilities, but little by little it figured out how to correct its lukewarm portrayals with more and more accurate productions. The path runs from the overly-sweet Belinda to the powerful My Left Foot.
Less well known is the Academy's relationship with short films dealing with disabilities. And it is here that one can see the most examples that were ahead of their time, some of which are not lukewarm at all. Especially in documentary film, full of nominations and winners treating the issue. Here we are offering one of the best, King Gimp. Those who could enjoy its long-past broadcast on TV will remember it as an indelible experience.
Not only documentaries. This series also includes two other recent Oscar-winners in fiction and animation. In fiction, this year's Oscar, Le Mozart des pickpockets, a charming story about pickpockets that take on a deaf student. In animation, a true masterpiece, Harvie Krumpet, deals with a character with a mental disability, whose life is full of characters for whom disabilities are always present.
The three films together make up a joyful series and an overall vision of what Hollywood can achieve for spreading information on the issue of disabilities. It has its mistakes, but it has been right multiple times as well.
| Title | Type | Length | Color | Thematic | Year | Nacionality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Type | Length | Color | Thematic | Year | Nacionality |
| HARVIE KRUMPET | BETACAM SP | 22’ | COLOR | ANIMACIÓN ANIMATION | 2003 | AUSTRALIA |
| KING GIMP | BETACAM SP | 40' | COLOR | DOCUMENTAL DOCUMENTARY | 1999 | EE UU USA |
| LE MOZART DES PICKPOCKETS | BETACAM SP | 30' | COLOR | FICCIÓN FICTION | 2006 | FRANCIA FRANCE |