My neurodiversity story.
I’m a lifelong educator, writer, and media-maker with a deep passion for exploring different ways of being in the world. While doing research for a film about ADHD, I discovered the concept of neurodiversity—the rich spectrum of cognitive variability that defines us as human, including ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and beyond. Different ways of being in the world, indeed.
My previous films shared stories from diverse indigenous cultures—more specifically from individuals and communities who often felt unseen, misunderstood, and marginalized. I soon realized that individuals who think and learn differently experience similar feelings of invisibility and exclusion.
That reality became deeply personal when my daughter started struggling in school, was diagnosed with ADHD, yet tested too high academically to receive any support or accommodations. We were left with a problem and no solution.
So began the merging of work and life—ultimately leading me to become the Director and Producer on The Future of Normal. The film reaches into the fundamental structures of American society to examine the nature of human intelligence, the myriad ways that our brains can learn, and the rationale for embracing a new definition of normal. At its core are neurodivergent individuals and the amazing parents, educators, scientists and advocates who support them. Together they are challenging and changing the systems that have stigmatized millions. Their stories are profoundly disheartening, fiercely inspiring and powerful enough to spark a movement.
