Let me start with a confession: I have learned new words and meanings and gained insight into neurodiversity. With the help of Wikipedia, I understand that the term refers to the idea that human neurologies differ. Therefore, it is wrong to view autism as a disease or a defect to be corrected. Instead, a prejudiced encounter with a person with a different neurology may be due to a lack of inclusivity and understanding on the part of society.
The title, which I first read as «The Swimming Pool,» is actually The Stimming Pool, an elegant subtlety. Stimming is short for ‘self-stimulation’, a natural and often repetitive action that can help to stimulate the senses and thus cope with challenging situations and environments.
Asking questions
The film is an experimental hybrid film that constantly challenges me in its narrative. First, I’m at a B-movie fan club screening of a zombie film where the audience is warned about the content. It’s hilarious. The next scene is also funny, almost laugh-out-loud. In a medical clinic waiting room, a young woman answers questions on a cognitive test. We see and hear her reading the questions as she comments on them: What is a normal conversation? And when asked if she is particularly good or bad at any tasks, she smiles and says aloud: «What is the task?»
She is told that the next task is an eye-tracking test to help you understand what attracts your attention. As an audience member, you can try it out for yourself. The test involves pictures of crowds of people and cars passing by. Red dots and lines show how the eye moves. I wonder what the result of the test will be. I think I also looked at the red dots.
it is wrong to view autism as a disease or a defect to be corrected.
Pushing the normative
We slip in and out of scenes with different characters, constantly pushing the normative. What do the office workers do when they come home to their flat after a long day at work and a train journey? They crawl on the floor, the sink, and the stairs. Perhaps this is part of the eye-tracking test. It’s not that important. What is important is that the audience is invited to think about how some people mask being autistic and feel isolated while others thrive within supportive communities.
The film is made by co-creation. It’s not new in itself, but co-creating a film about an underrepresented subject and involving a creative community of those who are underrepresented is a first. Films about autism are not underrepresented in the documentary genre, but they often show what it’s like to live with autism and follow one or more characters. The film is the first release from The Neurocultures Collective, collaborating with artist-filmmaker Steven Eastwood, also one of the producers. One of Eastwood’s previous films, Island, is about palliative care until the inevitable happens. Inspired by American documentary legend Frederick Wiseman, he follows four patients until death occurs. Eastwood seeks new film forms working inclusively with poorly represented communities and settings. This is his third feature film.
Just like in The Stimming Pool. At this point, I know that anything can happen in the film. Soon, the audience will experience how difficult it can be to be in a crowd, for example, in a bar where the noise level is high. Does hiding in the toilet help? Is that the only option? There is a lot of food for thought and new knowledge in the film, which is used creatively and, above all, in a non-prescriptive way. And, of course, the film ends with all the characters dancing in an empty swimming pool.
It’s a super interesting, creative, funny film that deserves to be seen at least twice.
