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By H. Alan Scott
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Known as the “Mother of the Disability Rights Movement,” Judith Heumann dedicated her life to fighting for the equality and accessibility of disabled people and helping develop and implement landmark legislation, including what is now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. A pivotal part of her journey is the basis for the new Apple Original film Being Heumann, directed by Siân Heder, the filmmaker behind the Best Picture Oscar-winning film CODA.
"I think people are hungry to see something that's real and new, and they can see themselves in it," Heder told Newsweek. "Which is so interesting because it is incredibly specific but it taps into a sense of what it is to actually be human and try to make it through this world."
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The film follows activist Heumann, played by Ruth Madeley, as she organizes the 1977 Section 504 sit-in at the Department of Health, Education and Welfare's San Francisco offices, protesting delays in implementing federal antidiscrimination regulations for disabled people. The sit-in lasted for nearly a month, is the longest occupation of a federal building and remains a key moment that helped pave the way to passing the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990.
"People in the building described it like, ‘I could crawl on the floor if I needed to,’” Heder explained of the occupation, noting the relief the freedom activists felt being around other disabled people who wouldn’t judge them. “[They said] ‘I could get out of my chair and move my body in some way which the world might've looked at as oh no that's too much.’ There was incredible freedom in the building, and they didn't wanna leave when it ended."
For Mark Ruffalo, who plays Joseph A. Califano Jr., the former secretary of HEW who initially opposed the 504 regulations, the project was personal.
"My best friend is a paraplegic, so I understand that world very well, " Ruffalo shared, referring to how oftentimes, when you are disabled or love someone who is, you look at the world differently. "I know I have to carry, we have to get up those stairs. And how are we gonna get around this and getting in and out of the car, and just it's just part of our lives."
In many respects, the film serves a purpose similar to the goals Heumann dedicated her life to, getting the message of accessibility out to as many people as possible. That’s kind of why the film being made available on Apple so exciting, it’s widely accessible.
"Anytime I was in [the] hospital from [the time I was] really small, films for me were my escape," Madeley said. "I hope somebody can watch what I do, and I'm part of that storytelling, someone is gonna be watching from wherever they're most comfortable or wherever their body will allow them to be. That for me is so powerful."
And for Madeley, who has had spina bifida since birth, starring in the project goes beyond fulfilling an activist goal. It also realizes a lifelong dream for the actress.
"This kind of role at this level of Hollywood just has not been done with a disabled person playing that role," Madeley noted. "This was always my dream, my goal to lead a Hollywood movie. So to have this as my first of that [type], it doesn't get more precious than that for me because of who I was playing, the character I was playing and the impact she had on me as a disabled person."
While the film succeeds in championing disabled actors, such casting still isn’t happening as often as it should in Hollywood.
"I think her dedication before she died, she wanted to change Hollywood," Madeley said of Heumann's legacy. "That was her next mission. So for me to have that alignment with Judy in that way and be able to carry that forward until I'm literally dragged off every set, I will be saying it until my lungs give out."
In the end, while the film delivers a lofty and important message, it is also rich with humor.
"When you can make people laugh, they drop their guard," Heder concluded. "It is an incredibly important tool for me and I think it's a part of everything in life. It always lives alongside the darkness."
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