The Best Actress Oscar race is going to be exceptionally tight this year, with too many possible contenders to list here. But there’s one that I hope won’t get overlooked and it’s Ruth Madeley, who shines as trailblazing disability rights activist Judith Heumann in Being Heumann, the latest film from CODA director Sian Heder.
Being Heumann is based on Heumann’s memoir, Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist, published just three years before her death. The film will chronicle Heumann’s efforts as a disability rights activist beginning in the 1970s, often challenging the administration of President Richard Nixon. In 1977, Heumann took part in the 504 Sit-In, leading over a hundred disabled people in a 28-day sit-in at the San Francisco Federal Building, the longest sit-in at a federal building. The protestors vowed to stay until the government enforced Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, requiring accessibility for all federal programs or activities.
It’s that 504 Sit-In that serves as the basis of the film. Heder and Rebekah Taussig co-wrote the screenplay.
Joining Madeley in the cast is Mark Ruffalo as Joseph Califano, who was the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare for the Jimmy Carter Administration. Califano often stood against the demands of the disability rights movement.
Also in the ensemble are Dylan O’Brien, Will Brill, Michael Patrick Thornton, Antwan Tolliver, Rein Barcel, Charlie Rush-Reese, D’Arcee Charington Neal, Andrew Pilkington, Rio Finnegan, Daniel Durant, Russell Harvard, Matthew August Jeffers, Jon Beavers, Roberta Colindrez, Siena Rafter, Ray Fisher, Rob Delaney, and Madeline Delp.
Being Heumann will open in select theaters on November 6th, then move to Apple TV on November 13th. It’s also playing this week at the Middleburg Film Festival (tickets here), so don’t miss your chance to check it out. You can also find my early review here.
