If you’ve ever known a person who stutters, particularly an adult, you’ve no doubt seen a wickedly humorous, self-deprecating side to them. They have almost always endured years of ridicule and impatience, but if they can get to a certain place about how they feel, it’s a game-changer. No, it’s a life-changer.
The Stuttering Association for the Young (SAY) aims to help kids get to that point much sooner in life – a point of self-acceptance and fortified confidence. To that end, a camp has been set up by the association’s founder, Taro Alexander, who stutters himself, and is one of those with the aforementioned sense of humor. But also a sense of great compassion.
The documentary follows 5 kids, ranging from 9 to 18 years old, who have come to the camp to be with others who are like them. Some of the kids have shut down, afraid to reveal their stutter by speaking in class, unable to make friends. One girl, Julianna, is an amazing singer whose speech limitations disappear when she opens her mouth to sing. (on a personal note, I worked with a man at American Forces Radio whose stutter was a challenge every day…except for when he opened the mic to speak on the radio, at which point his Basso profundo voice and seamless delivery made him the envy of the other broadcasters). In the film are there are moving triumphs and stories that are heartbreaking, but an undercurrent of hope runs throughout.
Directed by Ryan Gielen and written by Steve Sander, My Beautiful Stutter uses the reliable device of letting us get to know a few people well, in order to understand many more people much better. It’s well worth seeing.
My Beautiful Stutter is streaming on Discovery+
