Whoops!  It just occurred to me that it may be a pain in the neck for
people to go through subscribing rigmarole to get this article (like it
was for me before I upgraded my system!), so here it is copied and pasted.

Still looking for the info on how to get copies of the film.

Rayna

Standing room only for a thunderbolt in wheelchair

October 31 2002

Heather Rose Slattery, Writer and actress 1966-2002

Anyone passing the Heysen Chapel at Adelaide's Centennial Park on a
recent Friday might have believed there was a performance under way. It
was standing room only and there was laughter and applause. A band
played a special song but the tears were silent. The friends of
award-winning writer and actress Heather Rose were sending her off in a
manner which the diminutive charmer could well have scripted herself.

Born with severe cerebral palsy to an unwed mother whose boyfriend fled
around the time of her birth, her life was not destined to be easy. Her
good fortune was the dedication of her grandparents who nurtured her
through her life.

Having experienced institutional and foster care, Heather's choice was
to live independently. This didn't surprise those who knew her well. In
her teens and early 20s, she insisted on going to social events on her
own, despite being confined to an electric wheelchair. It didn't stop
her from going to pubs or flirting with men who would help her to gulp
down her brandy.

Men featured significantly in Heather's life. Whether it was her
vulnerability or her sheer presence that attracted them, they often came
to visit and more than one left wide-eyed after being groped during a
goodbye kiss.

Heather had a remarkable capacity for embellishing the truth, and the
stories of her conquests became legendary.

The true extent of these we will never know, but they contributed to
what was her greatest achievement. A small role as a featured extra in
Rolf de Heer's Bad Boy Bubby gave Heather the stimulus to focus her
driving ambition. In 1995 she made the following entry in her computer
diary:

"People see me as a person who has to be controlled. But let me tell you
something, people. I am not! And I am going to make something real
special of my life! I am going to go out there and grab life with both
hands!!! I am going to make the most sexy and honest film about
disability that has ever been made!!"

If we believe Roger Ebert, a foremost American film critic, she achieved
her goal. Ebert described Heather's film, Dance Me to My Song, as a
"thunderbolt".

It was never meant to be a disability movie. From the beginning the
intention was to create a drama that stood on its own merits.
Inevitably, however, with the lead role being played by Heather, it
became a landmark, not just in films about disability, but as a
statement about the normality of women whom much of society would rather
ignore.

Perhaps the most lasting achievement of Heather's life will not be the
triumphant standing ovation she received at the Cannes Film Festival,
nor the outstanding reviews by international and Australian critics; not
even the NSW Premier's Literary Award that she shared with her
co-writers. The remarkable feat is that the girl who dropped out of
school after year 9 and later took some TAFE courses spawned
international conferences on women's and disability issues. The
University of Hawaii was so impressed that the Pacific Rim Disability
Conference was convened to discuss the issues that arose in her film.
They called it the Dance Me to My Song Conference, and Heather was the
keynote speaker and won the communication award. Not bad for someone who
could only talk via a keyboard.

Heather died the day after her 36th birthday, but her legacy will
inspire others for another generation. Perhaps there was a foreshadowing
of her death in the last two verses of a poem that was in an early draft
of the script.

Whatever fate may thrust at me

I'll never be the same

I've had less fear of times to be

Since first I heard your name

I need to feel secure from harm

I will not keep you long

Please hold me tight within your arm

And dance me to my song.

Frederick Stahl

Frederick Stahl was a friend of Heather's and co-writer of Dance Me to
My Song.


Rayna wrote:
> Dear C-Palsy List,
>
> Rayna wants you to know about this story on http://www.smh.com.au.
>
> Personal Message:
> Here is a link to an article about Heather Rose - writer/actor of "Dance Me To My Song"
>
> Standing room only for a thunderbolt in wheelchair
>
> October 31 2002
>
> URL: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/10/30/1035683471529.html
>
> The online edition of The Sydney Morning Herald brings you updated local and world news, sports results, entertainment news and reviews and the latest technology information.
>
> Click here to sign up for early morning news alerts from The Sydney Morning Herald newsroom. http://www.smh.com.au/newsletters/subscription.html
>