TV/Movies Featuring SCI/D
Ironside (NBC, 1967-1975)
Ironside
Ironside is an American television crime drama that aired on NBC over 8 seasons from 1967 to 1975. The show starred Raymond Burr as Robert T. Ironside, a consultant for the San Francisco police who was paralyzed from the waist down after being shot while on vacation.
A different approach to farming (Bulletproof: Anita)
Anita Kendrick
At the age of 18, shepherd Anita Kendrick had a life changing accident on a quad bike which resulted in her becoming paraplegic. Eager to get back on the farm, Anita pushed herself through recovery to return to her job on a sheep and beef station in the King Country.
Adam
Adam Niskar (1972-2017)
Adam (on Amazon Prime), based upon the true story of Adam Niskar (Aaron Paul) a hardworking mortgage broker seemed to have it all; the successful career, a great family and friends. His perfect life suddenly changes when Adam’s boss (Jeff Daniels) gives him a big promotion at work. Feeling invincible and a bit intoxicated, Adam goes through a tragic diving accident that causes him to become a quadriplegic.
Africa with a Broken Neck
Claes Hulting
Claes Hultling, a physician, dived into the water two weeks before his marriage. He hit a rock and broke his neck. He was paralyzed from his chest down. His mission in life became to help other spinal cord victims. Now he wants to export his know-how and skills to help his wounded brothers and sisters in Africa. It is his biggest challenge ever
An Accidental Life
Quinn Brett
In the days and years following a near-fatal speed climbing accident that left her paralyzed, aimless and feeling as through she would never love again, Quinn Brett, the ambitious, record-setting athlete faces her most difficult challenge yet - how to move on and make meaning of tragedy.
Bumps in the Road
Rory A. Cooper
“Bumps in the Road” premiered in the fall of 2023 at the ReelAbilities Film Festival, which shows films by and about people with disabilities. Initially focused on Cybathlon technology, the directors shifted to highlight Cooper’s life as a researcher and his work leading a team of engineers at Pitt.
Coming of age and tetraplegia (Being Me: Cody Steps Up)
Cody Everson
The rugby accident that left Cody Everson a tetraplegic at age 15 hasn’t stopped him from stepping up to adulthood. The wheelchair rugby superstar owns his home at 23, and lives there with his girlfriend and two “kids” - Lyla the English bulldog, and Lorenzo the Frenchie. With the Paralympics in sight Cody’s taking his game seriously, all while balancing professional sport, a job, and a relationship.
Dani Izzie
Dani Izzie
Dani’s Twins documentary, currently in production, will provide a rare, intimate look into the topics of disability, pregnancy and adaptive parenthood, viewed through the lens of one woman’s personal journey. Within the context of this high-risk but joyful pregnancy and new parenthood adventure, the film’s thematic focus is on normalizing disability.
Heart of a Dragon
Rick Hansen (story based on)
In an instant their lives were changed forever. Now on an adventure half way across the world, four friends search for answers that will lead them to the Great Wall of China - pushing their friendships to the limits. To survive a journey that will save or destroy their lives will take the 'Heart of a Dragon'. Inspired by Rick Hansen's Man In Motion Tour.
His Handicap Accessible DIY School Bus Tiny House
Thomas Speer
Thomas was in a horrible car crash that left him paralyzed at the age of 18, but that didn't deter him from tackling living in a tiny home! He knew that he wanted to live off the grid and when the county he lived in wouldn't let him build a Yurt on his land, he decided a skoolie was the next best option. A school bus checked all the boxes for Thomas; a lift for getting his wheelchair in and out of his home, wide enough to have room for 360* turns, and plenty of space for storage! The wood design aesthetic used throughout his skoolie is beautiful, and the shower with slate tiles is huge! Not to be outdone by the wood design, the electronics and solar on this bus are amazing. Such an great tour and an even better dude.
Life Changes After a Spinal Cord Injury (Bulletproof: Ashley)
Ashley Treseder
In January 2019, 30-year-old Ashley Treseder dived off a pier at Shoal Bay in NSW, broke his neck, and became a C4 tetraplegic. After six months of rehabilitation, Ash is starting from scratch in his new home with the support of family and friends.
Love After War
Dr. Mitchell Tepper
Love After War will showcase the real stories of individuals and couples who are surviving and thriving after catastrophic combat-related injuries. In their own words these folks will share how they overcame relationship issues and restored emotional closeness and physical intimacy.
Matthew Sanford -- Volvo for life Awards Documentary
Matthew Sanford
Paralyzed from the chest down since a car accident at age thirteen, Matthew Sanford has become a pioneer in adapting yoga for the disabled. Founder of the nonprofit Mind Body Solutions, his innovative approach emphasizes the significance of healing even when a cure is out of reach.
Move Me
Kelsey Peterson
At 27, Kelsey Peterson dove into Lake Superior as a dancer and emerged paralyzed. But within the spinal cord injury (SCI) community, she found allies in her quest to discover who she is now and to dance with disability. When a cutting-edge trial surfaces, it tests her expectations of a possible cure. She finds herself both scared it might not work—and scared that it might.
Ocean Therapy
Bruno Hansen - (subject)
Ocean Therapy is the story of an unknown hero, Bruno, surfer, skipper bound for living on the ocean, navigating and discovery. Bruno’s dream falls apart when at 24 years old, he is victim of an accident and loses the use of his legs. After a deep period of depression and 2 suicide attempts, Bruno will reconnect with life through his passion for the Ocean.
Penguin Bloom
Sam Bloom (Story based on)
Based on the incredible true story, Penguin Bloom follows Sam Bloom (Academy Award® nominated Naomi Watts), a young mother whose world is turned upside down after a near-fatal accident leaves her unable to walk. As she learns to adapt to her new life, she finds hope in an unlikely hero, a small bird named Penguin.
Renovation for College Student Paralyzed in Ski Accident
Rebecca Koltun
Rebecca Koltun is known for her adventurous spirit and a beautiful heart. With her whole life ahead of her, a tragic skiing accident left Rebecca with a devastating spinal cord injury and learning to live life as a quadriplegic. Rebecca’s family home in Plainview, NY requires a renovation that would make it accessible – that's where George Oliphant and George to the Rescue stepped in!
SENSIBLE RIDERS part #1
Francisco Homblr (featured)
Exclusive worldwide first airing of my new mini series. In the first part we get to know the protagonists. Active people who suffered paralysis in tragic accidents. It doesn't stand in the way of an athletic life. On the contrary, they want to learn kitesurfing.
Spinal cord injury doesn't hold back Tim (Bulletproof: Tim)
Tim Young
After finishing university, Tim Young was on the trip of a lifetime in Canada when a freak snowboarding accident left him a tetraplegic. Ten years on, Tim’s found a soulmate, and business success designing educational games for Kiwi kids.
Team Everest
Team Everest
"Team Everest: A Himalayan Journey" chronicles a remarkable group of trekkers on an expedition to the world's highest mountain. If they succeed in their quest, the team will be the largest group of people with disabilities ever to reach Mount Everest Base Camp. Five men in wheelchairs and their teammates-representing a range of disabilities-trek 21 days through the high Himalaya.
7 Yards
Chris Norton
7 YARDS is a feature-length documentary that explores the resilience and perspective of Chris Norton. In October 2010 at age 18, Chris suffered a debilitating spinal cord injury during a college football game. Doctors gave him just a 3 percent chance to ever move again. But he defied that diagnosis.
Boundless
Kirk Williams
Boundless is the tale of chasing your passion. Kirk Williams takes a look into three different adaptive sports athletes minds to figure out what makes them tick. As the film unfolds one common truth begins to arise. The trick to living a fulfilling life comes down to finding what your passionate about and doing it.
Cain (2012+)
Cain
Frédéric Caïn is a police officer in the rank of a captain, who sits in a wheelchair since a self-inflicted motorcycle accident. He is a cynical man with a black sense of humor, who likes to be on the verge of legality in his investigations and who attracts many people with his style.
Date Me
Kristin Beale
Date Me, Kristin's second book, is about the struggles of dating in a wheelchair, and it's being turned into a streaming series. Follow @dateme.show on Instagram, and consider throwing them a few dollars on Patreon (www.patreon.com/dateme) to fund the rest of season 1.
Dr. Dinesh Palipana
Dinesh Palipana
Dinesh Palipana was a young medical student with a promising career ahead of him, when a car accident left him with C6/7 spinal cord injury and facing life with tetraplegia. The abrupt change saw Dinesh lose friends and family, and battling an attempt to prevent students with disabilities from attending medical school in Australia and New Zealand. With persistence and support from colleagues, mentors, and his mother, Dinesh completed his course to graduate as a doctor — and now works in Australia’s busiest emergency department at Gold Coast University Hospital.
Farming from a wheelchair (Being Me: Jack)
Jack Brown
2015 was a tough year for Jack Brown, and at just 18 years old he made a decision that would put him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Waking up in hospital, Jack was faced with a choice: to live in the past, or move forward with his life. Four years on he is still learning, but he has hope for the future.
One Revolution
Chris Waddell
1Revolution cinematically captures Chris Waddell’s very human journey to dare greatly and ultimately to live fully. This film chronicles the heart and spirit behind an extraordinary achievement as it documents the first, almost entirely unassisted, paraplegic ascent of 19,340-foot Mt. Kilimanjaro.
The Best of Men
The Best of Men
The Best of Men tells the story of one remarkable doctor who revolutionized the care of paraplegics. Arriving at England's Stoke Mandeville hospital in the middle of World War II, Dr. Ludwig Guttman transformed the lives of his patients and staff. Indefatigable, charismatic, and entertaining, he refused to accept the idea that a broken back was a terminal condition. Having overcome extraordinary challenges in his own life, he insisted his patients do the same. He expected them to have relationships,
The Ex (2016)
The Ex
When Sofia (Amanda Peet) decides to be a stay-at-home mom, Tom (Zach Braff) moves the family to Ohio to work for his father-in-law. His new boss Chip (Jason Bateman) happens to still carry a torch for Sofia from their high school days. Each time Tom gains some ground at the firm, Chip wheels in and steals his thunder. Dirty tricks and sabotage abound creating an atmosphere of fierce paranoia that eventually may threaten Tom and Sofias relationship.
7 years recovering from spinal cord injury (Bulletproof: Amanda)
Amanda Lowry
Seven years ago, Amanda Lowry was enjoying a day out on her kite-board with a friend at Mt Maunganui, when a shallow dive left her paralysed below her collarbone. Not only was it life-changing for Amanda, but also for her partner Gemma and their young family. With a newborn and a four-year-old, Amanda and Gemma have had a long road to find a new normal.
Breathe (2017)
Robin Cavendish (based on)
For his directorial debut, Andy Serkis brings to life the inspiring true love story between Robin and Diana Cavendish, an adventurous couple who refuse to give up in the face of devastating odds. When Robin is given only a few months to live, Diana plots a daring escape from the hospital and they seek a full and passionate life together — raising their young son, traveling and devoting their lives to helping others.
Claire Freeman
Claire Freeman
A spinal injury at 17 didn't stop Claire Freeman achieving her dreams of completing a design degree, Masters and now PhD in the powerchair. Despite ticking things off her bucket-list, she was severely depressed. In a bizarre twist of fate, it was a mishap in a routine operation, which forced her to pause and address her issues… nearly two-decades after her car accident.
Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot (2018)
John Callahan (1951-2010)
The last day Portland slacker John Callahan is able to walk, he wakes up without a hangover — because he’s still drunk from the night before. That night at a wild party he meets a wisecracking drinking buddy (Jack Black), who insists they leave for an even better party he knows about. But when his new friend dozes off at the wheel, John wakes up confined to a wheelchair with only partial use of his arms.
Firehouse
Jay Molina
Fire Through Dry Grass uncovers in real-time the devastation experienced by residents of a NYC nursing home during the coronavirus pandemic. Co-Directors Alexis Neophytides and Andres “Jay” Molina take viewers inside Coler, on Roosevelt Island, where Jay lives with his fellow Reality Poets, a group of mostly gun violence survivors.
Henry Poling
Henry Poling
Rancher and Wheatland REA consumer Henry Poling was slammed into a gate by a yearling in the fall of 1993. The strike to his midsection left him with crushed vertebrae and a life in a wheelchair. He told his physical therapist, "My life is still going to go on." Twenty-five years later, Henry is running his ranch along with selling pies, jams, and jellies that he makes.
Never Say Can't: The Bruce Cook Story
Bruce Cook
This is the story of how Bruce Cook, a rising FMX star, suffered a catastrophic injury that would have ended most riders' desire to ever want to ride again, let alone continue an FMX career. Bruce broke his back and became paralyzed while attempting to land the first-ever double frontflip on a motorcycle. .
Silver Linings: The Amazing Journey of Jessy Nelson
Jessy Nelson
In August 2016, Troy Lee Designs/Red Bull KTM star Jessy Nelson suffered a paralyzing injury during a round of the AMA Pro Motocross series. Silver Linings chronicles Jessy’s journey through the most difficult challenge of his life, and his newfound racing motivation in the form of professional UTV racing
Take a Look at This Heart
Take a Look at This Heart
A film about love, sexuality, and the human bond within the disabled community. The film takes you on a journey into the lives of 17 very unique people; some with disabilities and the partners who love them, others struggling to get by in a world that seems to often overlook them.
The Good Wolf
Mino Solomon
Collegiate football player and competitive Crossfit athlete Mino Solomon was paralyzed from the waist down in 2015 - yet in just two years he'd somehow found the strength to return to the gym. Go skydiving. Canoeing. Get his MBA. Pretty much do allllll the things...and for the first time, Mino's sharing exactly how he fought to not let that half-a-second accident define his life.
The Movement: One Man Joins an Uprising by Rick Finkelstein
Rick Finkelstein (2013)
In 2004 Rick Finkelstein was paralyzed in a ski accident on Aspen Mountain. With a severed spine and severe internal trauma, he wasn't expected to live. Six years, nine surgeries, and a lifetime of rehab later, cameras captured his dramatic return to Aspen.