| Crip Camp | |
|---|---|
 Official release poster | |
| Directed by | |
| Written by |
|
| Produced by |
|
| Cinematography | Justin Schein |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Bear McCreary |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Netflix |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 108 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution is a 2020 Americandocumentary film directed, written, and co-produced byNicole Newnham andJames LeBrecht.Barack andMichelle Obama served as executive producers under theirHigher Ground Productions banner.[1]
Crip Camp had its world premiere at theSundance Film Festival on January 23, 2020, where it won the Audience Award. It was released on March 25, 2020, byNetflix and received acclaim from critics.[2] It was nominated for an Academy Award forBest Documentary Feature.[3]
Crip Camp starts in 1971 atCamp Jened, asummer camp in New York described as a "loose, free-spirited camp designed for teens with disabilities".[4] Starring Larry Allison,Judith Heumann,James LeBrecht, Denise Sherer Jacobson, and Stephen Hofmann, the film focuses on those campers who became activists in thedisability rights movement and follows their fight for accessibility legislation.[5][6]
The idea to make the film about Camp Jened started "with an offhand comment at lunch."[7] LeBrecht had worked with Newnham for 15 years as a co-director.[7] LeBrecht was born withspina bifida and uses awheelchair to get around. He had never seen a documentary related to his "life's work as a disability rights advocate".[7] At the end of the lunch meeting, LeBrecht told Newnham, "You know, I've always wanted to see this film made about my summer camp", and she replied, "Oh, that's nice, why?" Newnham toldThe Guardian, "then he completely blew my mind" explaining why he wanted to make this film.[7] Newnham said:[8]
What Jim and I always felt is that we wanted the film to bring people into the world of Camp Jened, to give them that experience themselves: arriving at camp, checking out the scene, maybe feeling a little bit uncomfortable, not sure what's going on, not sure if they speak the language. Then, over time, they'd come to feel like this is a world that is fun and joyous and liberating for them as viewers, just like it was for Jim. Jim's personal story would bring you into that.
The film was executive produced byBarack andMichelle Obama under theirHigher Ground Productions banner.[1] Disability rights activistStacey Milbern, who had previously served on thePresident's Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities under Barack Obama, was an impact producer on the film.[9]
Crip Camp had its world premiere at theSundance Film Festival on January 23, 2020.[10][11] The film was released on March 25, 2020, byNetflix.[12] It was set to be released in alimited release the same day, but the theatrical release was canceled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[13]
Onreview aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film holds anapproval rating of 100% based on 99 reviews, with an average rating of 8.5/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "As entertaining as it is inspiring,Crip Camp uses one group's remarkable story to highlight hope for the future and the power of community."[14]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, assigned the film a score of 86 out of 100, based on 29 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[5]
Peter Travers ofRolling Stone wrote, "this indispensable documentary defines what it means to call a movie 'inspiring'."[15]Justin Chang wrote forThe Los Angeles Times that the film "delivers an appreciably blunt message".[16] Benjamin Lee ofThe Guardian wrote, "this impactful film shines a light on a forgotten fight for equality".[4] Daniel Fienberg ofThe Hollywood Reporter wrote, "My only hope is that the confrontational title and the Obama branding don't scare some viewers away from a story that is truly non-partisan, humane and significant".[17] Peter Debruge wrote forVariety that the film "proves to be the most educational for those born into a post-ADA world, a world of self-opening doors and accessible bathroom stalls and ramps that take wheelchairs into consideration".[6]
Richard Lawson ofVanity Fair wrote, "The spirit of revolution—righteously angry yet full of bonhomie, demanding but generous in its reach—is alive and well in the film. As, one hopes, it is everywhere else".[18] Carlos Ríos Espinosa ofHuman Rights Watch wrote, "The film made me realize the importance of building spaces for people with disabilities to organize".[19] Katie Rife ofThe A.V. Club wrote, "[the film] will serve as an enlightening look at how much has changed in the past 50 years".[20] Jake Coyle writing forThe Washington Post wrote, "[the film] has a specific starting point but it unfolds as a broader chronicle of a decades-long fight for civil rights—one that has received less attention than other 20th century struggles for equity".[21]
| Year | Award | Category | Result | Ref(s). |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Sundance Film Festival | Audience Award | Won | [22] |
| Grand Jury Prize | Nominated | |||
| Miami International Film Festival | Best Documentary | Nominated | [23] | |
| Zeno Mountain Award | Won | |||
| Critics' Choice Award | Best Documentary Feature | Nominated | [24] | |
| 2021 | International Documentary Association | Best Feature | Won | [25] |
| Hollywood Music in Media Awards | Best Original Score in a Documentary | Nominated | [26] | |
| Independent Spirit Awards | Best Documentary Feature | Won | [27][28] | |
| Academy Awards | Best Documentary Feature | Nominated | [29] | |
| Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award | Won | [30][31] | ||
| Austin Film Critics Association | Best Documentary | Nominated | [32] | |
| Peabody Awards | Documentary honoree | Won | [33] |
