''Deaf President Now!'' is a 2025 American

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

film, directed and produced by

Nyle DiMarco Nyle DiMarco (born May 8, 1989) is an American model, actor, and Deaf culture, Deaf activist. In 2015, DiMarco was the winner of The CW's reality television series ''America's Next Top Model'' in America's Next Top Model (cycle 22), season 22, be ...

and

Davis Guggenheim Philip Davis Guggenheim is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. Active in television and film's directions and productions since the 1990s, from 2006 Guggenheim has specialized in making documentaries, ranking the top 100 highest- ...

. It follows the 1988 student protest at Gallaudet University, when a hearing candidate was elected over other deaf candidates. It had its world premiere at the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

on January 28, 2025, and was released on May 16, 2025, by

Apple Original Films Apple TV+ is a global on-demand Internet streaming media provider, owned and operated by Apple Inc., that features a number of original programs that includes original series, specials, miniseries, documentaries, and films distributed under A ...

Premise

Follows the 1988 student protest at Gallaudet University, when a hearing candidate was elected over other deaf candidates. Bridgetta Bourne-Firl, Jerry Covell, Greg Hlibok, Tim Rarus and I. King Jordan appear in the film.

Production

In December 2024, it was announced

and

had directed a documentary revolving around

Deaf President Now Deaf President Now (DPN) was a student protest in March 1988 at Gallaudet University, Washington, D.C. The protest began on March 6, 1988, when the Board of Trustees announced its decision to appoint a hearing candidate, Elisabeth Zinser, over the ...

for

Release

It had its world premiere at the

on January 28, 2025. It also screened at the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival on March 11, 2025. It was released on May 16, 2025.

Reception

Critical reception

Daniel Fienberg of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' wrote, "A fine entry in the generally prolific 'Birth of a Movement' documentary genre, ''Deaf President Now!'' illustrates what is and was distinctive about the

Deaf rights movement The Deaf rights movement encompasses a series of social movements within the disability rights and cultural diversity movements that encourages deaf and hard of hearing to push society to adopt a position of equal respect for them. Acknowledgin ...

, but also the elements that connect it to many recent campaigns for visibility and recognition."

Matt Zoller Seitz Matt Zoller Seitz (born December 26, 1968) is an American film and television critic, author and filmmaker. Career Matt Zoller Seitz is editor-at-large at RogerEbert.com, and the television critic for ''New York'' magazine and Vulture.com, as w ...

of ''

RogerEbert.com ''RogerEbert.com'' is an American film review website that archives reviews written by film critic Roger Ebert for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and also shares other critics' reviews and essays. The website, underwritten by the ''Chicago Sun-Times ...

'' gave the film four out of four stars and wrote, "

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

famously described cinema as a machine that generates empathy. This movie is that machine: a relentless engine field by idealism and craft."

Accolades

The film is nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program and Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special at the

77th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards The 77th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards will honor the best in artistic and technical achievement in American prime time television programming from June 1, 2024, until May 31, 2025, as chosen by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences ...

References

External links

* {{Apple TV+ 2025 documentary films 2025 films American documentary films Documentary films about deaf people Documentary films about activists Films scored by Marco Beltrami Films directed by Davis Guggenheim Apple TV+ original films