| Normal People Scare Me | |
|---|---|
 Cover of DVD | |
| Directed by | Keri Bowers Taylor Cross |
| Written by | Joey Travolta Jeff Less |
| Produced by | Joey Travolta |
| Starring | Taylor Cross |
| Cinematography | Richard Bluth Keri Bowers |
| Edited by | Richard Bluth Chad Dahlberg Eric Jean |
| Music by | Taylor Dayne |
Production company | Normal Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 90 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Normal People Scare Me: A Film about Autism is a 2006 American documentary film about autism, produced by Joey Travolta.[1] The project began as a 10-minute short film co-directed by an autistic teenager named Taylor Cross, and his mother Keri Bowers. Travolta first met Cross at a program Travolta led teaching the art of filmmaking to children with special needs. He mentored Cross, and the documentary was expanded into a feature-length film.
It includes interviews with 65 people, including those who are autistic as well as friends and family. Cross asks them about their experiences with autism and how they feel about it, and elicits multiple insightful responses from his subjects.
The short version was shown at a student film festival at Chaminade High School in West Hills, California in April 2004, and co-director Cross won multiple awards at the festival. In November 2004, Cross was honored at a gala benefit dinner for the Bubel-Aiken Foundation in Los Angeles, California; the foundation's co-creator is Clay Aiken of American Idol. The feature-length film was released on April 1, 2006, with special screenings at the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival in October 2006, and the Staten Island Film Festival in 2007. The documentary received positive reception in the Daily News of Los Angeles, New York Daily News and the Tri-Valley Herald.