The Neurocultures Collective and Steven Eastwood present a world perceived through autism in this wonderfully experimental, hybrid endeavour.
A B-movie aficionado introduces a gruesome animated horror at a packed screening; an office worker navigates the world while masking their autistic nature; people are measured and tested in an eerie warehouse laboratory. And watching over these tonally, stylistically diverse scenes is a mysterious spirit animal, sprung from the pages of a picture book.
The Stimming Pool, a hybrid film co-created by the Neurocultures Collective (a group of five neurodiverse artists) and artist-filmmaker Steven Eastwood, takes an experimental approach to capturing what it’s like to be neurodivergent in a world not made for those who are different. Aiming to go beyond being straightforwardly ‘about’ the autistic experience, the film instead formally reflects that experience. The creators employ an ‘autistic camera’, which drifts between various characters and environments and across the boundary between documentary and fiction, lending the film its shapeshifting quality.
Beautifully shot by Aftersun cinematographer Gregory Oke, the film pulls from a deep well of references – the collective have cited Richard Linklater’s Slacker, its exquisite corpse structure, as an inspiration for the floating focus of The Stimming Pool. Its creators, similarly, wanted to resist conventional, neurotypical approaches to filmmaking. In its oblique, non-linear style, The Stimming Pool is quite unlike anything else out there. So – mission accomplished.
Published 27 Mar 2025
Formal experimentation, collective creation, schlock-horror gore… we’re in.
A unique, enchanting experience.
The film’s innovative approach finds a new, resonant way to tell neurodiverse stories.
The Barbican’s programme includes a diverse selection of work that puts neurodiverse voices front and centre.
By Chloe Smith
Ben Lewin’s 2017 film allowed me to better understand my condition and myself.
Ben Affleck’s latest thriller shows that mainstream cinema still hasn’t moved on from the days of Rain Man.
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