Sia’s rocky road to tell autism story
The Australian singer and songwriter tells Jane Rocca she regrets a Twitter outburst, but defends her decision to make a controversial movie about disability.
Sia Furler, the Australian singer and songwriter behind some of the most catchy pop songs of our time, usually keeps to a simple rule: ‘‘I don’t do anything emotional past midnight.’’
But when the nine-time Grammy Award nominee was criticised for the representation of disability in her debut film Music, a musical drama about an autistic teenager to be released here later this month, she faltered.
‘‘Looking back, I should have just shut up; I know that now,’’ says LA-based Furler. ‘‘It was three in the morning, and even though I have a rule that I don’t do anything emotional past midnight, I f..... up this time.’’
When a trailer of the film was released last year, disability advocates criticised Furler for casting Maddie Ziegler, an actor without a disability, in the role of Music, a character who has autism. Kate Hudson plays Zu, a reformed drug addict who suddenly finds herself taking care of Music, her half-sister.
In a series of tweets, Furler defended casting Ziegler and urged her critics to see the film first.
Furler now says she feels deeply misunderstood. She approached a person on the autism spectrum to play the role, but says they found filming too distressing.
‘‘People functioning at Music’s level can’t get on Twitter and tell me I did a good job either,’’ Furler says. ‘‘I really just wanted to explain that I had tried all these different options and done my best.’’
Furler says one of the reasons the criticisms affected her was because of her protectiveness of Ziegler, who came into the public eye when she was 8 as a public stand-in for the pop star.
Ziegler has since been Furler’s substitute on stage, in live performances, and in her video clips.
‘‘Maddie is the reason the Twitter comments profoundly affected me,’’ Furler says. ‘‘She had researched her role for two years, we watched movies together, and I taught her the nuances and ticks I had observed from [a] friend [with autism].
‘‘We did this in the most sensitive and respectful way. She was worried people would make fun of her. I promised her I wouldn’t let that happen.’’
Furler, who has previously spoken about her drug and alcohol addictions, says she was inspired to make the movie after she met a 16-year-old named Stevie.
‘‘Stevie used to sit next to me in the front row at my AA meetings. He was low-functioning and on the spectrum with echolalia; he’s the reason I wanted to make this movie,’’ Furler says.
While she had long dreamed of making the film, it came at a price. In 2017, Furler, who has written hit songs for Beyonce and Rihanna, was diagnosed with complex PTSD and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
‘‘The stress of making the film clearly took its toll,’’ she says. ‘‘It was a rocky ride.’’
Furler has been back in headlines since: after FKA Twigs announced she was suing actor Shia LaBeouf for physical and psychological abuse, Sia tweeted that LaBeouf was a ‘‘pathological liar’’ who had hurt her emotionally and conned her into an adulterous relationship.
When it comes to Music, though, Furler is looking forward.
‘‘I am the first to admit that I was so fearful if this film wasn’t exceptional, that I’d be going to artist purgatory forever,’’ she says. ‘‘I had somehow convinced myself I would never be taken seriously ever again, and that I wouldn’t have done that community I love so much any justice.
‘‘I thought I would be perceived as a failure but in the end it takes family and friends to remind you that it’s not great to think like that.’’
Music will be in cinemas from January 28.