‘As We See’ Is Not A Typical Autism Depiction


With the three actors playing characters on the spectrum, there would be moments when the lines between real life and the fictional world of the show became blurred. There were scenes where Pien’s character Violet had a nervous breakdown and Rutecki would have wanted to break the character to come and calm her down, Pien said. Another time, in between shots, Rutecki clasped her hands to her ears to silence the loud noises on set; Pien came and covered his ears with his own hands in solidarity.

“I had so many great experiences on set,” Rutecki said.

In some scenes, Glassman used her own triggers (like her dislike for loud chewing noises) to get into character.

“My dad chews loudly and it drives me crazy,” she said. “So I asked the director if we wanted the person next to me to chew loudly because I had to be crazy on stage and I knew listening to this guy chew would drive me crazy.”

At first, Katims wondered what challenges could be posed by having so many cast and crew members on the spectrum. Does the production have to work, say, different hours, or does it have to create countless new protocols on set? “We didn’t,” he said. “And those three tips came very well prepared. There are a lot of actors I’ve worked with on other shows and I wonder if they’re just as prepared.”

While Katims is already starting to think about new stories hopeful for a second season, the cast is hopeful that their performance will make it easier for more neuro-diverse actors to enter movies and TV shows.

“I don’t want to stand on this hill and just say that people with autism should play with people with autism,” Glassman said. “But I think the pendulum needs to swing a little bit, and TV shows like this throw light on the idea that they can, uh, look, do that.”



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