There's so much to talk about in Loop, which is a short film by Pixar on Disney+ about
an autistic girl Renee who is also nonverbal and a non autistic boy Marcus who need to
find a way to communicate as they are together in a canoe. After talking about Float in my
last video, I am really excited to talk about Loop. Enough that I want to revisit it because
I don't think I can cover everything I want to in as much depth as I'd like in just one
video.
In this video, I want to explore how Marcus wasn't presented as a hero.
Before I do that, I want to mention a few of my other favorite details that maybe I'll
discuss in a future video.
For example, I like that the coach did not over share. He would have known Renee is autistic
but still didn't share that information with Marcus as it wasn't necessary.
[Coach] You're with Renee today
[Marcus] That girl that doesn't talk?
[Coach] Yeah, she loves canoeing too
[Marcus] Doesn't she always go with you?
[Marcus] How am I gonna-
[Coach] Just say hi
Marcus not only presumed competence when speaking with Renee,
but attempted to share in her experience.
And of course I have to mention the effort Loop made to provide good representation.
Working with the Autistic Self Advocacy Network to review the film. Getting a mostly nonspeaking
autistic woman Miranda to do the voice. Even going to a better environment to record for
Miranda.
So... why is it so important that Loop did nothing to hold Marcus up as if he was going
above and beyond?
Let me know if you've ever seen a headline like this in the news or shared on social
media. "Highschool boy makes autistic girl's day by inviting her to prom" Or "Person sits
down at lunch table with autisitc kid"
To make this easier to talk about when referring to these stories I'm just going to say the
boy in any of them is named Hiro. And the girl with disabilities is Sandy.
I also want to mention this definitely happens with other disabilities as well. I'm only
focusing on autism because it is what is presented in Loop and I'm more familiar being autistic
myself.
I assume the goal of these stories is to provide a break in the constant stream of negative
news because let's be honest things are getting pretty bad. And I mean, who doesn't like hearing
about a random act of kindness? And maybe they will inspire someone else to do good,
right?
But what if someone joined you for lunch or asked you out to the prom, would that be newsworthy?
I mean maybe you'd share that on Facebook but I bet even your aunt wouldn't and definitely
not a million others?
The reason these stories get shared is because Sandy is on the receiving end.
Often there isn't even an interview of Sandy included. There will be an interview with
Hiro. Maybe even a short bit talking to Sandy's mom.
So, instead of it being a story about Sandy, she becomes a prop. An object. All that matters
is how Sandy is treated and not what she thinks or feels.
Has Sandy and Hiro formed an actual connection? If yes, how is Sandy going to feel about the
news on this being broadcast?
If I were Sandy I think I'd be pretty embarrassed to know everyone was discussing my relationship,
especially by people who don't know me.
I might worry that Hiro just wanted to be nice but wasn't really interested in having
a relationship with me and they could now feel obligated to continue interacting with
me.
And that's not getting into the more negative side of the internet on these articles.
So if it's not about Sandy, what is the news actually about? The implication is that Hiro
has done something exceptional by treating Sandy like anyone else. But by doing what
exactly? Treating Sandy like a human being?
This feels so difficult to talk about because I hope when people hear these stories they
ARE reminded to show kindness to others. I don't think it is wrong to want to share that.
And I don't think anyone should feel bad for feeling inspired by them.
I'm not here to shame anyone personally.
At the same time, there's an important discussion to be had about why these stories garner so
much attention.
If we want better for disabled people then shouldn't we consider how Sandy will feel
and be impacted?
It's important to question what we consider normal currently and how we may contribute
to those norms.
So, what does this have to do with Loop? I guess what I'm struggling with is...
Is Loop kind of like Hiro? Am I so grateful for this film because of how great it is?
Or is it that my expectations have been set so low?
Honestly, I don't know.
Maybe it's both. I want there to be good representation like I see in Loop. AND I want us to have
higher standards.
[Marcus] Seriously?
And I want those standards to be higher with more than representation. We must be better
at considering how our decisions can and will impact those who are already more marginalized.
So, I guess...
I find a lot of promise in seeing something like Loop.
I just hope it's not a single event.
I hope that this is a sign that things are changing.
That new standards are being applied.
Because just like with Hiro...
What I want to see is for that to not be newsworthy
I don't want Hiro to make the news
I just want everyone to treat Sandy the right way
and I don't know how we get there
But I think we start by reflecting on these things
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