SXSW 2025: "Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore" explores life, career of Oscar-winning deaf actress

AUSTIN, Texas - A new documentary about Marlee Matlin, the first deaf performer to win an Oscar, is part of the SXSW 2025 Film & TV Festival.

"Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore", directed by fellow deaf actress Shoshannah Stern, explores Matlin's life and career, including around and after her Academy Award-winning role in "Children of a Lesser God."

The film originally premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival in its U.S. Documentary Competition.

'Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore'

What we know:

The synopsis of the film on the SXSW schedule is as follows:

"Marlee was born into a hearing family, like roughly 95% of Deaf people. Growing up in Illinois, she faced episodes of isolation and abuse. Marlee became a star at the age of 19 playing the lead in Children of a Lesser God opposite William Hurt. A tumultuous relationship marked by domestic violence and substance abuse ensued. After winning the Academy Award for best actress Marlee channeled her sudden rise to fame into advocacy towards accessibility. She staged a long career in television and insisted deaf actors be cast in 2022's Oscar winning film CODA. For the first time in her own language, Matlin will reflect on her life, and reclaim her story."

Many people from Matlin's life and who were impacted by her work are featured in the film, including actor Henry Winkler, screenwriter and director Aaron Sorkin, actor and performer John Maucere, director Randa Haines, Matlin's longtime friend and interpreter Jack Jason, director Sian Heder, actor Troy Kotsur, actress Lauren Ridloff, and members of her family. 

The documentary incorporates American Sign Language (ASL), spoken English, captions, background sound and music, and utilizes a mix of archival and contemporary footage and images from and of Matlin and her friends and family, interview segments with subjects, and film/TV footage from Matlin's many credits.

Who is Marlee Matlin?

The backstory:

Marlee Matlin was born in 1965 and became deaf at 18 months old. She was a performer from a young age, appearing in children's theater productions.

Matlin says in the documentary she was inspired to become an actress by watching the 1939 film "The Wizard of Oz."

Her first major film role came in 1986 as Sarah Norman in "Children of a Lesser God," the film adaptation of Mark Medoff's Tony Award-winning play. She had previously performed in a production of the play which caught director Randa Haines' eye.

She was only 19 while filming, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress when she was 21. She is also the youngest winner in the Best Actress category in the history of the award, according to Time Magazine.

She has had many film and television credits to her name, including Emmy-nominated roles in "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," "The Practice," "Seinfeld," and "Picket Fences". She is also well known for her roles in the ABC Family drama series "Switched at Birth", the NBC political drama series "The West Wing," and the Oscar-winning film "CODA".

She has also championed and advocated for accessibility for the deaf community, partnering with organizations like the National Captioning Institute and the National Association of the Deaf to push for closed captioning on televisions and streaming services, in movie theaters, and on in-flight entertainment.

What's next:

The film will have a second screening on Saturday, March 15 at 11:30 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency Austin.