Now, I know it presents an unusual version of disability, showing people deliberately displaying their deformity in a challenging and confrontational way, but it's also a road trip that a rather unlikely group of protagonists take along America's west coast, performing and carousing as they go.

The Last American Freak Show is a documentary about a bunch of young disabled people and their able-bodied friends who decide to confront society's cozy and patronizing views of what the disabled can and can't do, by using the vehicle of a traditional freak show. In the past, the only time it was acceptable for disabled people to be seen in public (particularly in the USA, which once had a set of laws forbidding "ugly" people from going out in public) was through sideshows and circuses. Surely, the irony was not lost on Bafta that this group of men and women have chosen this way to get their stories across?

The "freaks" had set the show up and invited me to tour with them. They took me to their hearts and because I was not associated with any media organization (they are not keen on the mainstream media - I wonder why?). They trusted me and I have been able to make a film that shows disabled people as real humans with the flaws, faults, strengths and virtues that all humans have. Entertainment is a great way to slip a serious point into peoples minds and that's what my film documents. And it is a documentary - I was filming what really happened.

Excerpt from Guardian Unlimited - Film Blog to read the full article click here