Jacob Nossell, 24, though whip-smart, hardly fits into the concept of a “normal” life.
Because he has cerebral palsy, his movement and speech are noticeably challenged.

With his intellect intact in an unwieldy body, Jacob embodies the strangling limitations of the concept of normalcy: he is too disabled to be accepted as normal and too normal to accept his fate.

Taking action, Jacob puts on a theatre play to once and for all set things straight. Tracking Jacob, Christian Sønderby Jepsen in The Natural Disorder confronts our idea of what’s “normal” and asks the ultimate question: Does someone like Jacob have the right to live?

We follow Jacob as the play comes together and bear witness to the sometimes painful realizations Jacob has along the way.

“A lot of people support diversity, but very few people want to bring children into the world and have them suffer from a disability. We all want to be unique, but within certain limits.”

“It’s a film that starts from our prejudices. ‘Look, it’s the Elephant Man.’ But the Elephant Man is only interesting for 10 minutes. Then you leave, because he’s boring you. We, on the other hand, take you behind the curtain where things are more complex.”

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Moving Documentary
“We’re all abnormal in one way or another. If you can suspend your prejudices for a moment, I hope the film can inspire others to see their own lives in a bigger perspective and change how they see the world, even if it’s only a little bit.”
Christian Sønderby Jepsen

Awards

IDFA Audience Award – 9th Place – Amsterdam International Documentary Film Festival 2015
Winner – Grand Jury Award – Budapest International Documentary Festival 2016
Winner – “Let them be normal” section – Budapest International Documentary Festival 2016
Winner – Zwierciadlo Award – Millenium Docs Against Gravity 2016
Winner – Viktor Award – Munich International Documentary Festival (DOK.fest) 2016
“The film the Jury has selected is as powerful and eloquent in its subject as in its cinematic storytelling. The story unfolds through masterful editing of layered and nuanced elements to reach a powerful emotional climax.”