Visiting Filmmakers Series: Alex Plank, with Ezra (2024)
Tuesday, October 22, 2024 4:30 PM to 7:00 PM EDT
Johnson Center, Cinema
We're thrilled to welcome Alex Plank back to George Mason University, to show and discuss his film, Ezra.
Directed by Tony Goldwyn, Ezra follows a stand-up comic Max (Bobby Cannavale), living with his father Stan (Robert De Niro) while struggling to co-parent his autistic 11-year-old, Ezra (William Fitzgerald) with his ex-wife Jenna (Rose Byrne). When Max takes Ezra on a cross-country roadtrip, everyone learns life lessons. The film features a number of excellent performances -- by Whoopi Goldberg, Rainn Wilson, Vera Farmiga, and Alex Plank as a child psychologist -- as it asks viewers to see complexities and nuances, and consider questions without easy answers.
Ezra won Best Feature Film at Boulder International Film Festival (2024) and Best Performance in a Film for Bobby Cannavale and the Audience Award at the Sun Valley Film Festival (2024).
Read Anne Borden King's review of Ezra in The Thinking Person's Guide to Autism.
Our screening will be followed by a Q&A with Alex Plank.
Alex Plank is an actor, filmmaker, and autism advocate. He graduated from George Mason University in 2010 with a BA in Film and Video Studies.
He's a cofounder of WrongPlanet.net, an online community designed for individuals with Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome, ADHD, PDDs, and other neurological differences, as well as parents and professionals looking for resources. Wrong Planet's discussion forums contain millions of messages.
Both Alex and Wrong Planet have been featured by CNN, the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Good Morning America.
Alex lives in Beverly Hills, California. He's a consultant and actor on FX's The Bridge and a guest star on ABC's The Good Doctor.
Noncompliant interview 2024:
Listen to the podcast here.
ReadWatch Alex here: "You don't look autistic."
Watch The Spectrum Planet Show, the first autism talk show / variety show.
Read Jade Budowski, "Autistic Voices, Community Members, And Experts Look Back (And Forward) At Autism Representation On TV," Decider, Aug 18, 2017.
See Alex's interviews for Wrong Planet and Autism Talk TV ("the best TV on TV"): "Autism Talk: Be Different" and "Diane Kruger - The Bridge - Interview about Sonya Cross & Asperger's."
See Alex's short documentary: "Autism Reality" (2010)
This event is presented by Visiting Filmmakers Series; College of Visual and Performing Arts; Film and Video Studies; CVPA's Office of Belonging, Inclusion, and Inclusive Engagement; College of Science; College of Humanities and Social Sciences; English Department; Screen Cultures; Inclusive Arts Collaborative at Mason; and University Life.
– George Mason University is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodations in its services, programs, and activities. Please make accommodation requests related to a disability by contacting Ronae Jones rjones62@gmu.edu, at least one week prior to the event.
#VisitingFilmmakersSeries #FilmAtMason #Ezra #WrongPlanet
For more information:
Ronae Jones rjones62@gmu.edu, Marketing and Events Coordinator, Film and Video Studies
Cynthia Fuchs cfuchs@gmu.edu, Director, Visiting Filmmakers Series at George Mason; Director, Film and Video Studies
