Sia’s Movie “Music” Will Come With A Disclaimer At The Suggestion Of Autism Activists
Based on the initial reaction to the trailer for Sia’s directorial debut, Music, you might think the disclaimer at the beginning of the movie would be: “Are you SURE you want to watch this? There are other movies you know.”
Since the moment the Music trailer was released, disability activists and persons with Autism or who are neurodiverse have been calling Sia out for…well, pretty much everything about Music. It stars Maddie Ziegler, a neurotypical person, playing a teen with Autism, in a movie that feels like it definitely should have been workshopped with a few more Autism advocacy groups. But one of the more egregious scenes in Music features Maddie’s Music being restrained as a means to calm her down. According to many Autism activists and allies, that’s a big no-no, and they want to make sure people know this before they watch the scene. According to Variety, Sia heard their concerns, and a warning has been added to the film.
This comes a day after Music was nominated for two Golden Globe awards. Usually being on the receiving end of a high-profile film award nomination will raise the profile of a movie, and increase its chances of being seen by a larger audience. That might happen when Music is finally released on February 10. But when it is, nobody will be able to confuse it for Sia’s high-budget attempt at creating some kind of Autism training manual. As explained by the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, the scene in which Music is restrained in a prone position is not simply just an incorrect way to calm a neurodivergent person down, but it can actually result in death.
ASAN and other disability organizations condemn the movie MUSIC, which promotes deadly restraint practices. This film should never have been made, and it shouldn't be shown. Read our joint statement here:https://t.co/luU9zhrMF9
— Autistic Self Advocacy Network (@autselfadvocacy) February 3, 2021
Sia addressed the concern over the restraining scene on Twitter Tuesday night, saying that she’s been listening to the criticisms and the concerns people have. And as such, she’s making the right changes to the movie, to ensure that no one is fed misinformation. via Variety:
“I promise, have been listening. The motion picture MUSIC will, moving forward, have this warning at the head of the movie,” Sia tweeted, followed by the warning, which reads: “MUSIC in no way condones or recommends the use of restraint on autistic people. There are autistic occupational therapists that specialize in sensory processing who can be consulted to explain safe ways to provide proprioceptive, deep-pressure feedback to help w meltdown safety.” Sia then simply tweeted, “I’m sorry,” an apology presumably aimed at the members of the autism community who have been vocal about their disappointment in the film’s casting and portrayal of autism.
That’s much less problematic than the last time she addressed the criticism (aka 100% less use of the word “fuck” and zero cyberbullying). Sia added that she will be removing the restraint scenes from all public screenings of the film, and threw some anonymous people under the bus by saying that she “listened to the wrong people” while making Music. But the point here is, Sia has been listening. She’s committed to listening. Just on another platform, apparently. Because a few hours after she tweeted her apology and the news of the disclaimer, Sia deleted her Twitter account. Her Instagram account, however, still remains active. So for all other complaints, comments, criticisms, impromptu movie reviews, or to ask Sia to free Maddie Ziegler from whatever 200-year contract she signed, please visit Sia on Instagram.
Seeing how quickly Sia bolted from Twitter tells me that maybe she wasn’t ready to hear all the things people wanted to say about Music. If it’s any consolation, she should be relieved that she’s getting a small mountain of crap. The crap mountain could have been much bigger. After all, she did originally cast Shia LaBeouf in Music.
Pic: YouTube