Smile Til It Hurts: The Up With People Story

Archival footage, photos, news clips, and interviews combine to offer a comprehensive overview of the clean-cut, buttoned-down singing youth group that attempted to change the world in the riotous 1960s. A true cultural phenomenon, Up with People performed in 47 languages to a global audience that included popes and kings; they even performed at the Super Bowl half-time show. As former members offer heartfelt reflections on their time with Up with People and what the group really mean to them personally, the viewer is presented with a thought-provoking glimpse into the cultural underbelly of politics, cults, and money.

The Punk Voyage

In December 2016 a remarkable chapter in music history was closed as the Finnish punk rock band Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät (PKN) retired. Punk Voyage is a feature length documentary film about the last years of the band, with all the ups and downs included. After becoming celebrities in Finland, this incredible quartet continued to conquer new fans around the World. In its seven years run PKN played nearly 300 gigs in 16 countries. In 2015 the band was selected to represent Finland in the Eurovision Song Contest, where they played to over 100 million television spectators. However, the busy traveling and success created a lot of pressure within the band: Kari struggled with the temptations and responsibilities brought by publicity; Sami extended his territory to politics and religion; Toni's and the band's roadie Niila's crush to the the same girl caused conflicts; and Pertti, tired of this all, decided to retire.

Down n'hi do - La càmera ballarina

Willowbrook: The Last Great Disgrace

A shocking exposé of the deplorable conditions and abuses from the Willowbrook State School for children with intellectual disabilities.

Danny and Nicky

This feature documentary offers a comparison of the care of two boys with Down syndrome. Danny lives at home with his brothers and sisters and attends a special neighborhood school for children with disabilities. Nicky lives in a large institution for persons with intellectual disabilities. This film clarifies common misconceptions about intellectual disabilities, and presents an intimate portrait of the families, staff, and communities that come together to assist Danny and Nicky in learning, playing, and living a fulfilling life.

Chef Antonio's Recipes for Revolution

A feature documentary following Antonio de Benedetto, an Italian chef on a quest to change the world with food. His apprentices are aspiring chefs with Down syndrome, who travel from across Italy to train and work in hospitality and take their place at the table of life and find their pathway to freedom and independence.

The Quality of Life

After 40 years of living in group homes, Jill Kohfield, an intellectually disabled woman, moves back in with her twin sister and mother.

Generation A: Portraits of Autism and the Arts

A documentary about young people with autism, and how arts and creative therapies help them to lead fuller lives.

Sam & Mattie Make a Zombie Movie

Documentary about the making of ’Spring Break Zombie Massacre.’

The Grown-Ups

A group of friends with Down Syndrome have been attending the same school for 40 years, and they are tired of being treated like children, they are grown-ups and want to live as such.

Jefftowne 2

Jeff Towne revisited four years after the release of the original film.

Jefftowne

jefftowne is a 1998 documentary shot and directed by Daniel Kraus and distributed by Troma Entertainment. It chronicles the life of Jeff Towne, a 40 year old Iowa City resident who suffers from Downs Syndrome, obesity, alcoholism, and circulation problems. Towne also enjoys pornography and lives with his 90-year-old adoptive grandmother.

Norm

Norm is a love story pure and simple. But there is nothing simple about it. A loving sister decides to take her older brother with Down syndrome into her home to provide the care and the sense of family she feels he has been denied since childhood. Like many aging adults living with Down syndrome, he begins to experience the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Her greatest fears have become a reality, "What if she can't keep him at home forever?"

Jerome Lejeune - To the Least of My Brothers and Sisters

To the Least of My Brothers and Sisters is a new documentary on the life of Jerome Lejeune, the Father of Modern Genetics that was made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his death. Filmed on two continents, it contains numerous interviews with former colleagues, families, current medical researchers, and others, all who express the importance of Jerome Lejeune in both the history of medicine and the defense of the dignity of human life.

Pennhurst

Segregation, abandonment, and the meaning of home are discussed by the people that lived in, worked at, and crusaded for one of the largest and oldest Intellectual and Developmental Disability Institutions in the United States. The facility, in its closing, challenged society's perception of those with intellectual disabilities and ultimately fought for better rights.

The 17%

Entrepreneur Collette Divitto, who has Down syndrome, transforms workplace culture through her successful cookie company. Addressing the 83% unemployment rate among disabled people, she builds an inclusive business model built on individual strengths rather than perceived deficits. The film follows Collette's unique approach to hiring and workplace culture, showcasing the ripple effects of her leadership throughout the business community.

If You Knew How I Feel: Brad's Learning Disability

Nobody's perfect. We've all got our strengths and weaknesses. Kristi knew her weakness and discovered Brad's -- dyslexia, a learning disability. She learned what a learning disability is, and about handicaps -- those you see and those you don't.

Vito-Man

Vito is a sweet little boy with Down syndrome, and this short documentary puts his energetic, jolly personality on full display as he interacts with his loving family. By showing Vito’s dignity and inherent value, Vito-Man tackles the difficult conversation that is the eradication of people with Down syndrome, proving that an extra chromosome should not be a death sentence.

Ableism in São Paulo

Through intimate stories and day-to-day routines we get a naturalistic glimpse into the lives of individuals with disabilities in the bustling urban landscape of São Paulo. The film captures personal moments and how modern societies confront (or fail to confront) ableism and inclusion.

Can't Stop Eating

This documentary follows a small number of British people with an incurable genetic disease called Prader-Willi syndrome. This rare disorder makes the sufferer unable to control their eating habits. Prader–Willi syndrome is a rare genetic disorder in which seven genes (or some subset thereof) on chromosome 15 (q 11-13) are deleted or unexpressed (chromosome 15q partial deletion) on the paternal chromosome. The film is set in Gretton House, near Kettering in England, which is a government-funded care home deliberately constructed to assist people with PWS. The film focuses on a new resident, Joe Blackburn, who is 21 and begins the documentary weighing over 30 stone (190 kg, 420 lbs) and with fears for his health. Resident Tamara Allwood is also featured, who was at one point close to death from overeating.