Disability simulation documentary premiering at the Iowa City Public Library

In 2017, Sujit Singh had an idea. He thought of it as his chance to create something that would start a conversation on disability. Singh envisioned a piece that would help people see a disabled individual not for their disability, but as a person first.

With help from the community, his idea has blossomed into a piece titled Through My Eyes, a “disability simulation” documentary that will be premiering at the Iowa City Public Library on June 23 at 3 p.m.

Singh, who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy, has used his experience as the driving force behind his film.

“Throughout my life, I have experienced everything from sympathetic looks, to people telling me they know how it feels, to being bullied because I was different,” Singh said.

In Through My Eyes, four able-bodied participants volunteered to experience what it is like to be a person with a disability. Participants were paired with a disabled individual and were asked to spend the day dealing with the challenges that those with that particular disability may face. Through My Eyes focuses on a person who is blind, a person who has had a traumatic brain injury, a person with a form of mutism and a person who is a quadriplegic.

Each able-bodied participant was interviewed before the simulation to get an idea of what they thought the obstacles may be for their chosen disability. Participants were then interviewed following the experience to see if their preconceived notions had changed. Participants ranged from two current students at the University of Iowa, a state representative and the current ADA coordinator for the City of Iowa City.

“My ultimate wish for this documentary, other than starting the conversation on disability is to have the community recognize that persons with disabilities are capable of doing everything that an abled-bodied individual can do,” Singh said. “Their disability doesn’t define them, but it makes them the person that they are.”

Singh is a University of Iowa alumnus, a production specialist at Public Access Television in Iowa City and an advocate for individuals with disabilities.

Public Access Television not only helped provide the equipment used to create the documentary, they are also a sponsor of the project. Area filmmaker Keaton Fuller collaborated with Singh on this project as the editor of “Through My Eyes.”

Admission to the Saturday, June 23 screening at the Iowa City Public Library will be free and open to the public.