Language Arts

It’s 1993, and high school Language Arts teacher Charles Marlow, (Ashley Zukerman) has spent decades shrinking from life, hiding from the failures that have trailed him. When his student, Romy, (Aishe Keita) proposes a photojournalism project documenting collaborations between autistic youth and senior dementia patients, Charles tailspins into his past, and through a series of interlocking timelines, confronts the errors of his youth. In a 1962 Seattle classroom, young Charles (Elliott Smith) befriends an autistic child, Dana (Lincoln Lambert), with shocking consequences. In the 1980s, Charles and his wife Alison (Sarah Shahi) struggle to comprehend their own child’s autism. Now, as his student confronts the reality of working with neuro-diverse people, Charles sets about repairing his own story. Inspired by his student’s art, Charles learns to see the world around him anew, to make peace with the past, and to incorporate new ways of listening and connecting with the people he loves.