Son-Rise: A Miracle of Love (1979)

Directed by

Glenn Jordan

Genre

drama film, docudrama

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 17m

Rating

6.3 of 10 from 7 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

A couple refuses to institutionalize their young son after he is diagnosed with autism. They create a home-based program to connect with him and help him develop.

heartfelthopefulinspirationalfamily-centeredemotionalearnestdeterminedwarm

What happens

Son-Rise: A Miracle of Love is a televised docudrama film that aired on NBC in 1979 and is adapted from the nonfiction book Son-Rise (currently Son-Rise: The Miracle Continues) by Barry Neil Kaufman. It is the real-life story of Raun Kaufman, whose parents claim fully recovered from autism, a lifelong and incurable developmental disability. The film was directed by Glenn Jordan, and the teleplay was written by Stephen Kandel, Samahria Lyte Kaufman, and Barry Neil Kaufman. The film tells of Bears and Suzie Kaufman and their young son, Raun. By the time he was eighteen months old, Raun was diagnosed with autism—which, at the time, was classified as a form of childhood schizophrenia—and mental retardation. Accordingly, "although advised to institutionalize Raun, his parents...instead created an innovative home-based, child-centered program in an effort to reach [him]." Subsequently, Raun allegedly became neurotypical and earned his master's degree from Brown University. The film went on to receive the Humanitas Prize award. The therapeutic, distraction play therapy progressed into a controversial teaching model called The Son-Rise Program. By 1983, Bears and Samahria Kaufman founded The Option Institute and the Autism Treatment Center of America in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Raun, his family and other staff members served on the board of directors. The Option Institute and the Autism Treatment Center of America were permanently shuttered in 2025 and 2026, respectively. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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