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Stand Clear of The Closing Doors

Directed by Sam Fleischner

107 Min | English/Spanish | US | 2013 | Narrative
autism,family,mexico,new york city,subway,undocumented immigrant | Feature | Open Captions
Adventure

Ricky, a 13-year-old boy with autism, lives in Rockaway Beach with his sister, father and his mother, Mariana, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico. Mariana works long days cleaning houses while Ricky, deeply imaginative but painfully isolated, struggles to cope. Mariana watches in helpless frustration as Ricky’s difficulties separate him further from the world around him. One day Mariana yells at Ricky for skipping school and, in a panic, he escapes into the NYC subway system. Overwhelmed by his surroundings, he loses track of space and time in the massive, underground labyrinth. Ricky embarks on an odyssey of self-discovery, observing scenes of urban pathos and oddity while his body weakens from hunger.

Disabilities featured:

Autism

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