Picturehouse Blog

An avant-garde take on exploring autism, The Stimming Pool sees a collective of neurodiverse artists break the boundaries of traditional cinema. This experimental film was an unpredictable somersault of sensory overload. Interconnected narratives touch on an array of scenarios: an eye-tracking test, a masking office worker, a B-movie club host discussing a lost animated horror film, and a children's book depicting a hybrid of dog and human observing people with disabilities. The thread that connects them all is 'The Stimming Pool' – a sanctuary, a place of acceptance of all differences.  

Isaac says...

There is no other film quite like The Stimming Pool; an immersive, and at moments all-too-real, deep dive into the neurodivergent experience. From overstimulation in bars to masking in the office, the collective of directors represents aspects of neurodiversity with an experimental flair that doesn't explain itself to its audience.

For neurodiverse viewers, the portrayal of disability through snippets of various environments may click immediately, as it is apparent whilst viewing that this hybrid-fiction documentary was created by neurodivergent people and for neurodivergent people, rather than as an educational tool. Even if it takes longer to fully digest the film's commentary, the patterns formed through the ordering of scenes are entrancing, making it impossible to look away.

The sweeping camera movements, scenes of a shape-shifting dog and animated sequences portray the distinct artistry that autistic folk bring to cinema, reinforcing why projects such as this matter. All film is collaborative, but here it is particularly apparent – each subject has their moment to present their world view with a richness not often seen in films portraying neurodiversity.

Caitlin, 24 

Caitlin Mulvihill has recently moved to Scotland from Los Angeles, where her raincoat has finally seen the light of day. A political history graduate with a deep passion for film and its ability to transform and transport us, she's always at the cinema and thinks you should be too.

Caitlin says...

The host of a B-movie film club recounts the decision to screen a long-lost, incomplete horror film. "Why not give others a chance to see it?" he shrugs.

This question is foundational to the ethos behind The Stimming Pool, a film that defies convention and encourages its audience to do the same. There is no traditional, linear plot to be followed, no personified antagonist to look out for. Instead, there is a feeling to be enveloped in, a sensorial experience that reflects the lived experiences of the film's co-creators, the Neurocultures Collective. Alongside co-director Steven Eastwood, this group of autistic directors have put to screen a neurodivergent sensibility, one that doesn't stop and turn back to explain itself, but is permitted to simply exist on its own terms.

Aftersun cinematographer Greg Oke realizes the camera not as an observational tool, but as a living, breathing, active participant in each scene. The filmmakers have created an "autistic camera," one that masks and stims alongside its subjects, its gaze independent of, yet symbiotic with each character.
The film takes its myriad of cinematic inspirations, from the fluid structure of Richard Linklater's Slacker to the pattern generation of Jacques Tati's Playtime, and contextualizes them in a neurodivergent filmic language, one where these elements are inherent in its way of thinking.

For the form of filmmaking, The Stimming Pool offers a new way forward. For neurodivergent audiences, it is an affirming, gratifying experience. Why not give yourself a chance to see it?

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