I'll Find a Way

Nine-year old Nadia Di Franco was born with disabling spinal bifida, a malformation of the backbone. In this touching little documentary she shares her life, her feelings, and her private thoughts. She considers herself an ordinary person but she is extraordinary indeed. At the time this film was made Nadia and her family lived in Toronto. This award-winning tribute to bravery and optimism was produced by the National Film Board of Canada.

Beverly Shaffer's Academy Award-winning "I'll Find a Way" focuses on Nadia DeFranco, a girl in Toronto who suffers from spina bifida (an incomplete closure of the backbone). Nadia has no mental or speech impairments, but has trouble walking. The documentary makes clear that despite this disability, Nadia is managing to live a normal life. She attends a school for people with disabilities.

I've seen a couple of documentaries focusing on disabilities, whether mental or physical. I've liked them all, including this one. These works deserve more recognition, especially if we seek to expand our understanding of the disabilities and help the people who have them.

In 1999, Shaffer released a sequel that revisits Nadia as she is about to get married. I've never seen it, though.

Born with spina bifida, we now spend half an hour with the engaging nine year old Nadia DeFranco as she strives for an ordinary life. Though initially she protests that she can't be natural in from of a camera, this girl is exactly that. She's even a bit of a performer as we see her go through the most basic of tasks, her physiotherapy, swimming, playing basketball and she shows us a clear determination that she will not to be limited any more than is absolutely essential in her aspirations. She's quite a cheeky chatterbox too! Her physio is quite jarring to watch at times. She's mobile but her walking seems to put her hips at right angles to her legs, making her staying upright and balanced quite a challenge! What this documentary does try to do is illustrate that her disability is significant, but that her attitude is positive and she's refusing to let it define her future. I'm not sure her baby cousin will appreciate the images of her changing his nappy when he grows up, either! She's a charmer this girl, and though she's always going to need a degree of specialist accessibility and accommodation provision, she's certainly a fine ambassador for the glass half full approach to living and this film gives her a chance to be herself.