“A work of cinematic alchemy.”
The Reason I Jump
by Jerry Rothwell • 2020 • 82’ • UK / USA
Credits
Director:
Jerry Rothwell
Producers:
Jeremy Dear
Stevie Lee
Producer:
Al Morrow
Based on the bestselling book by Naoki Higashida, THE REASON I JUMP is an immersive cinematic exploration of neurodiversity through the experiences of nonspeaking autistic people from around the world. The film blends Higashida’s revelatory insights into autism, written when he was just 13, with intimate portraits of five remarkable young people. It opens a window into an intense and overwhelming, but often joyful, sensory universe.
Acutely observed moments in the lives of each of the characters are connected by passages from Naoki’s writing, in which a young Japanese boy journeys through an epic landscape, gradually discovering what his autism means to him, how his perception of the world differs, and why he acts in the way he does: the reason he jumps.
The film distils these elements into a sensually rich tapestry that leads us to Naoki’s core message: not being able to speak does not mean there is nothing to say.
Awards & Festivals
Audience Award Winner
– Sundance Film Festival 2020 [World Premiere]
Impact Award Winner • Audience Award Winner
– Vancouver International Film Festival 2020
Best Sound Winner • Best Documentary Winner • Best Music [Nominee]
– BIFA
Best Feature [Nominee] • Best Director [Nominee]
– IDA
Best Cinematography for Ruben Woodin Dechamps [Nominee]
– Critic’s Choice
Outstanding Achievement in Music for Nainita Desai [Nominee]
– Cinema Eye Honours
Public Award Winner
– Festival Atmosphères 2020
Winner Sorriso Diverso Award
(Best Foreign Film)
– Rome International Film Festival 2020
Segundo Premio Winner
– Seminici Valladolid: TIEMPO DE HISTORIA
Maysles Brothers Award for Best Documentary Winner
– Denver Film Festival
Best Sound in a TV Show, Film or Game Winner
– Sound of the Year Awards
Special Mention – Best Documentary Competition
– Dublin International Film Festival
Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Feature Documentary
– MPSE Golden Reel Awards
Best Sound Design [Nominee] • Best Original Score Winner
– Music and Sound Awards
Award for Exceptional Cinematic Achievement
– LUCAS Film Festival
Best Documentary [Nominee]
– Rose d'Or Awards
Outstanding Cinematography [Nominee] • Outstanding Sound [Nominee] • Outstanding Music Composition [Nominee]
— TV & Documentary Emmy Award 2022
One World Film Festival 2020
HotDocs 2020
AFI Docs 2020
DokuFest 2020
Millenium Against Gravity 2020
Mammoth Lakes Film Festival 2020
DocVille Film Festival 2020
Lemesos Int'l Doc Festival 2020
DMZ International Film Festival 2020
Athens International Film Festival 2020
Haifa International Film Festival 2020
Academia Film Olomouc 2020
BFI London Film Festival 2020
Hot Springs Film Festival 2020
Valladolid IFF - Semici 2020
Denver Film Festival 2020
Chicago Int’l Film Festival 2020
Ashland Indie Film Festival 2020
Bright Lights Film Series 2020
Milwaukee Film Festival 2020
Montclair Film Festival 2020
Tallgrass Film Festival 2020
Denver Film Festival 2020
DOC NYC 2020
EnergaCameraimage Int’l Film Festival 2020
Ajyal Film Festival 2020
SOLIDARITY Tel Aviv Human Rights Film Festival 2020
Istanbul Film Festival IKSV 2020
Hamptons Docs Film Festival 2020
New British Film Festival 2020
Brain Film Festival 2021
Borderlines Film Festival 2021
BOFA Film Festival 2021
Revelation Perth International Film Festival 2021
Gold Coast Film Festival 2021
Melbourne International Film Festival 2021
Mental Health Arts Festival 2021
New Zealand International Film Festival 2021
Verzió International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival 2021
#LabMeCrazy! Science Film Festival 2022
Pärnu Film Festival 2022
Doha Health Week 2022
EU Film Festival Lebanon 2022
EU Film Festival Jordan 2022
Autism Movie Festival 2022
Press
★★★★★
“Sensitive and creative.”
— The Guardian
★★★★
“Informative, illuminating and quietly moving.”
— The Times
★★★★★
“Riveting and intensely atmospheric… will make you want to jump for joy.”
— Evening Standard
“The Reason I Jump will change how you think, and how many films can say that?”
— Screen Daily
“A work of cinematic alchemy.”
— The Hollywood Reporter
“As emotionally piercing as it is beautiful to behold.”
— Variety
Filmmaker’s Biography
Jerry Rothwell is a filmmaker whose work includes the award-winning feature documentaries: THE SCHOOL IN THE CLOUD, about radical educationalist and TED Prize-winner Sugata Mitra; HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD, about the founders of Greenpeace; SOUR GRAPES (co-directed with Reuben Atlas) a film about a wine counterfeiter; TOWN OF RUNNERS, about two girls in an Ethiopian village who aspire to be athletes; DONOR UNKNOWN, about a sperm donor and his many offspring; HEAVY LOAD, about a group of people with learning disabilities who form a punk band; and DEEP WATER (co-directed with Louise Osmond), about Donald Crowhurst’s ill-fated voyage in the 1968 around-the-world yacht race. His work has won numerous accolades including two Grierson Awards, a Sundance Special Jury Prize, an RTS Award, the IDA Pare Lorentz Award, and a BAFTA nomination.
Executive Producers:
Stewart le Maréchal, Jonny Persey, Peter Webber
Jody Allen, Paul G. Allen
Rocky Collins, Jannat Gargi, Ruth Johnston, Carole Tomko
Lizzie Francke
