Today, Apple Original Films announced the groundbreaking new documentary film “Deaf President Now!,” featuring the landmark Gallaudet University protests, from Academy Award-nominated producer, co-director, and fourth-generation Deaf advocate Nyle DiMarco (“Deaf U,” “AUDIBLE”) and Academy Award-winning producer and co-director Davis Guggenheim (“STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie,” “An Inconvenient Truth,” “Waiting for Superman”).
“For far too long, the disabilities stories that have shaped the United States have been conspicuously absent from the history we tell,” said co-director and producer Nyle DiMarco. “This film not only preserves a pivotal moment in civil rights history but also celebrates the resilience of my Deaf community, whose triumphs deserve to be recognized, celebrated and remembered.”
“It was shocking to me that most people, including myself, had never heard of this moment in Deaf history,” said co-director and producer Davis Guggenheim. “So, Nyle and I felt it was so important to work with all of our Deaf and hearing collaborators to do justice to this important story.”
The story of the greatest civil rights movement most people have never heard of.
“Deaf President Now!” recounts the eight days of historic protests held at Gallaudet University in 1988 after the school’s board of trustees appointed a hearing president over several very qualified Deaf candidates. After a week of rallies, boycotts and protests, the students of Gallaudet University triumph as the hearing president resigns and beloved dean Dr. I. King Jordan becomes the university’s first Deaf president. The protests marked a pivotal moment in civil rights history, with an impact that extended well beyond the Gallaudet campus, and paved the way for the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). “Deaf President Now!” features exclusive interviews with the five key figures of the movement, including the Gallaudet Four – Jerry Covell, Bridgetta Bourne-Firl, Tim Rarus and Greg Hlibok – alongside I. King Jordan, as well as archival and scripted elements. The film also incorporates an experimental narrative approach called Deaf Point Of View, using impressionistic visual photography and intricate sound design to thrust the audience into the Deaf experience.
Accessibility, cultural and communication considerations were at the forefront at every stage of production. Deaf Lens Producer Wayne Betts Jr. came on during production to help create the visual language DiMarco coined “Visual Noise” and worked closely with the directors to ensure everything from the acting to the way the camera moved was authentic to the Deaf experience. A priority for DiMarco was that the portrayal and interpretation of the predominant language of the film, American Sign Language (ASL), was done with the utmost care in every frame.
The team brought on consultants Jonaz McMillan as well as Lindsey Dryden from FWD-Doc to ensure the Deaf lens was conveyed accurately, inclusive hires were made, and resources for accessibility and communication needs were planned for. Ultimately, over 40 Deaf or Hard of Hearing subjects, cast, and crew participated in the making of the film. “Deaf President Now!” isn’t just a story; it’s a movement that empowers Deaf creatives in an industry that has long overlooked them.
“Deaf President Now!” is produced by Concordia Studio, with Guggenheim, DiMarco, Michael Harte (“STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie,” “Beckham,” “Three Identical Strangers”), Jonathan King (“Spotlight,” “Roma,” “Green Book”) and Amanda Rohlke (“Stormy,” “Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones”) serving as producers.
“Deaf President Now!” marks the latest collaboration between Concordia Studio and Apple TV+, following “STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie,” which swept the Critics Choice Documentary Awards this year with five wins, alongside four Emmy Award wins; the Emmy Award-winning documentaries “Girls State” and “Boys State,” political coming-of-age stories that follow young leaders as they navigate an immersive experiment to build a government from the ground up; and, BAFTA Award-nominated docuseries “The Enfield Poltergeist,” featuring the story of a terrifying 1977 haunting in London.
