From extreme joy to heartbreak Life, Animated will open your heart and mind to the challenging and beautiful life of Owen Suskind.

A thriving toddler, Owen suddenly went silent at the age of three, losing all ability to connect with the outside world. It wasn’t until his parents discovered that they could communicate with him through classic Disney animated films that Owen started to show improvement. Through repeated viewings of The Little Mermaid and The Lion King, Owen gained an understanding of social cues and began to reconnect with the world around him.

Owen on bed

Directed by Academy Award winner Roger Ross Williams, Life, Animated weaves together home videos with present-day cinéma-vérité footage and Disney films to tell Owen’s story, who is now a young adult and ready to take his first steps toward independence.

Suskinds_birthday_02

His story adds insight and depth to the continuing conversation about autism. There are no words that can do justice to the remarkable life that Owen has built for himself or the obstacles that he’s overcome. Whether he’s a neurological wunderkind or patient zero in a new approach to treating autism remains to be seen, but it doesn’t change the magnitude of his triumph.

WATCH the trailer below…maybe grab a tissue:

CONTEST! 

We have 10 double passes to give away for the Vancouver promo screening, taking place on August 3rd at 8:15pm in Vancity Theatre.

To enter on Twitter, RT:

“Hi @Shedoesthecity, I’m so inspired by Owen’s story, please send me to the Vancouver screening of @LifeAnimatedDoc! #LifeAnimated”

Winners will be announced Monday, August 1st by 4pm EST.

Life, Animated opens in Vancouver on August 5th.