Matthew Watson is a musician, performer, and frontman of punk band Ultimate Thunder. He is on a mission to show the world what people with learning disabilities can achieve when given the chance. Tomorrow, Matthew and his bandmates share their story with global audiences as a documentary following their journey premieres at Sheffield DocFest, the UK's leading documentary festival.
Music as expression
For Matthew, music is not just a hobby but his favourite form of expression, a way to build connections and share his creativity. 'I love being in the band and I am really excited about our story being featured at Sheffield DocFest,' he said.
Ultimate Thunder comprises musicians with learning disabilities and autism. Their music is improvised, energetic, and entirely their own. Over the past three years, independent filmmaker Ben Brown has documented the band through rehearsals, performances, setbacks, and successes.
The resulting 98-minute documentary has been selected as one of just 70 films from over 3,000 submissions to be screened at the festival.
Matthew's journey
At the heart of the story is Matthew, who has received support from national learning disability charity Hft for more than a decade. The documentary began as a short film exploring his life as an artist but quickly evolved into a larger narrative about a talented group of musicians creating, performing, and challenging expectations about who gets to be seen, heard, and celebrated.
Filmmaker Ben Brown said: 'Ultimate Thunder are proof that learning disabled musicians are some of the most creative, exciting, and talented artists out there. We can't wait for audiences to fall in love with them like we have. Their journey also shows just how important access to the arts and creative opportunities really is. When people are given the opportunity to pursue their passions, incredible things happen.'
Significant platform
The festival attracts filmmakers and organisations from around the world, including Netflix, the BBC, Amazon Prime, Channel 4, BAFTA, and Sky, providing a significant platform for the band's story. The screening comes ahead of Learning Disability Week, starting on Monday, whose theme this year is 'Do You See Me?'
Hft, established in 1962 by a group of visionary parents, supports more than 2,800 learning disabled adults in England and Wales.
Access in live music
Music charity Attitude is Everything is seeking input from deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent audiences, artists, and professionals about their experiences in the live music sector. Findings from the charity's State of Access survey will inform its Live Events Access Charter and work with grassroots venues and festivals. For more information, visit www.attitudeiseverything.org.uk.
Deaf people are demanding better quality subtitles, which they say often ruin their enjoyment of TV and stage shows. Deaf-led charity Stagetext research shows that 63% of respondents said subtitles need to be as close to perfect as possible to understand what is being said. Stagetext chief executive Melanie Sharpe said: 'Deaf, deafened, and hard of hearing people are resoundingly telling us that poor quality subtitles equals poor access and are a source of frustration. What the research reveals is that quality is the most important thing for audiences, and we encourage venues and organisations to consider this when providing text-based deaf access. For some users, poor quality subtitles provide worse access than no subtitles at all.'
