I'll Find a Way (1977)

Born with spina bifida, we now spend half an hour with the engaging nine year old Nadia DeFranco as she strives for an ordinary life. Though initially she protests that she can't be natural in front of a camera, this girl is exactly that. She's even a bit of a performer as we see her go through the most basic of tasks: her physiotherapy, swimming, playing basketball and she shows us a clear determination that this cheeky chatterbox of a lass will not to be limited any more than is absolutely essential with her aspirations. Her physio is quite jarring to watch at times. She's independently mobile, but her walking seems to put her hips at right angles to her legs, making her staying upright and balanced quite a challenge! What this documentary does try to do is illustrate that her disability is significant, but that her attitude is positive and she's refusing to let it define her future. There’s a little mischief here, too - I'm not sure her baby cousin will appreciate the images of her changing his nappy on-camera when he grows up! She's a charmer this girl, and though she's always going to need a degree of specialist accessibility and accommodation provision, she's certainly a fine ambassador for the glass half full approach to living and this film gives her a chance to be herself.