"When there is truth in the cinema, the spectators connect with the story," explains Javier Fesser, director of 'Campeones' and its sequel, 'Campeonex'. His great achievement has been to achieve what has never been seen before: real social inclusion that has broken labels. "As a result of the film, I suddenly find a father who tells me: 'I have a Champion son.' He doesn't tell me 'disabled' or 'differently abled'”, says the filmmaker.
Inclusion. Visibility. Diversity. Fesser has managed to go further by placing people with disabilities at the center of her stories without this circumstance being the protagonist and without falling into the melodramatic or paternalistic. But how is such a feat achieved? The director sums it up by saying that no one's disability should be taken for granted. It is a new perspective that has deeply penetrated the public. The real acceptance of others is the powerful message of two films that have become a true phenomenon and have even changed forever how Spain treats, considers and relates to people with disabilities. Two stories full of humanity, joy and optimism thanks to which we have learned life lessons as valuable as these.
“Diversity is a capacity to approach life's challenges from a place other than the standard one”, explains the filmmaker. He opens our sights. It gives us new perspectives. It makes us more empathetic. Because thanks to the visibility of works such as 'Campeones' and 'Campeonex', we now know that people with functional or intellectual disabilities face challenges every day, contributing much more than expected.
Don't stay on the surface. Do not assume that a person is limited to do, to be. In short: see beyond.
Fesser explains it with an example that makes that look clear. Gloria Ramos, Collantes in 'Campeones' and 'Campeonex', explained what it was like to meet Brianeitor, the great star of this sequel. Brianeitor is nearly 90% functionally disabled by degenerative muscular dystrophy, and is physically confined to a wheelchair in which he always carries a respirator attached to his throat. But the actress saw none of that in him. The first thing she thought when she met her partner was that she was very impressed that she was from Almería, because she spends her summers in Almería. That was what Gloria highlighted about Brian. "In 20 seconds it counted more than the entire film of 'Campeones' and 'Campeonex'", reflects Fesser. “It's not so much learning from that very positive attitude in life, but rather unlearning so many things that you already know and that are not helping you, but limiting you,” she says.
Many times, to learn a new perspective and create true valuable connections, it is necessary to unlearn so many things that we take for granted. Prejudices and learned labels limit us. Accepting diversity and embracing difference is the first step to be able to build relationships between us in which we really bring out the best in ourselves and in each other. The second step is not to take any limitations for granted, not to assume that someone is not capable of doing something. It is, for example, what happens in the sequel to 'Champions'. Brianeitor enters the team, now athletics. The new member is in a wheelchair, and from his body he can only move his face and a little thumb. Well, this person has a role in the team and, without him, the team would be worse", explains the director of 'Campeonex'.
The main message of both films. Get out of prejudice and accept the other. Knowing that what makes us valuable is our different perspective. What do you think? What do you have to contribute? "How much you enjoy when you learn to be flexible," says Fesser, who explains that on the set of 'Campeonex' he knew that nothing was going to turn out exactly as planned; However, everything that happened was much better than he thought and expected. In plain sight: most of the cast of 'Champions' had never acted before. And his tenacity and illusion gave us credible and superb interpretations. And it is that when you accept the other, you are also accepting yourself. And that is being one step closer to happiness.
But it's not just about accepting: otherwise, it would be too easy. It is also about trust. The director explains it marvelously: “When I have been asked for something that I had not previously done, if I have noticed that someone trusted me, it is when I have tried the most, when I have demanded the most of myself. How important it is to feel that others trust you!”
And it is that, according to Fesser, we all have abilities for something. Finding someone to pave the way for you and to send you the message that you really can achieve anything you set your mind to is vital for any of us. Also for people with special abilities. This is a great learning that Fesser experienced directing these two films. “At first I was worried about the other's work, how he was going to respond to me. That was a very serious mistake and luckily I soon learned to do it differently”, he comments. “Many times we want to do the work of the other due to a lack of confidence in others and in ourselves. When that really disappears, and you trust people, in general the surprises are always pleasant and big.”
What we don't understand, we know and know, scares us. The difference scares us, when it is really necessary. For the filmmaker, "any different point of view that is added in a working group only enriches the perspective", and he states: "The social inclusion of different people is a great urgency".
Although there is always a tendency to look for something more standard, having people with intellectual disabilities in any work group is a plus. “If I had to give a message to someone who thinks that a team will work better because it is an intellectually and emotionally more homogeneous team, I would tell them to try something else, at least try it. In any work team, it is evident that the work of people who do not face any project in the same way is highly valuable,” says Fesser. And it is that people who see the world differently, contribute different ways of facing challenges, and that can be inspiring even in highly complex and demanding environments. Let's not forget that they are people, moreover, who know how to adapt to any situation because they are used to doing so in their day to day, fighting for integration in an increasingly competitive society.
When 'no' or self-restraint is replaced by 'let's go for it', 'this is an opportunity and I'm going to take it'. When we turn an impossible challenge into an experience that we are going to make the most of. When we joyfully accept ourselves and look on the bright side of things and inspire those around us with that energy. When we accept ourselves to do our best. That is having emotional capacity. That is what the protagonists of Javier Fesser's films teach us. And it is the first step to achieve incredible things.
The power of human connections, of people, is what makes us move forward, achieve, innovate and grow as a society. For this there is only one way: knowing how to connect with the other.
Inclusion makes us better. As Javier Fesser says, “We are all a team and the individual goes after the team. Gathering all points of view will make sure that society is better. How to do it is something that, without a doubt, the protagonists of 'Campeones' and 'Campeonex' teach us.
