Autismus – Das rätselhafte Spektrum

Recognizing a smile, enjoying a touch, understanding a casual gesture - often impossible for people with an autism spectrum disorder. Facial expressions, gestures and touch seem like a foreign language to them.
More and more people, especially children, are being diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and yet many autistic people still remain undiagnosed.
This is because autism is a very complex neurological developmental disorder - with very different manifestations: Some sufferers lead a largely normal life, others are dependent on care for the rest of their lives. But it is not only the different manifestations that make autism difficult to understand. The causes are also a mystery. Scientists around the world are trying to find answers to the question of why the brains of people on the autism spectrum develop differently in order to enable reliable diagnoses and tailored therapies.

“Autism - The enigmatic spectrum” shows what ‘living on the autism spectrum’ means. For those affected and their environment. A team from Radio Bremen accompanied autistic people into their world. The documentary shows the challenges of their everyday lives and lets them tell their personal stories. They accompany the two renowned autism researchers Tony Attwood and Prof. Tebarzt van Eltz and dispel the clichéd image that most people have of autistic people. Because no two autistic people are the same.
The film takes an exclusive look at the current state of autism research in Prof. Knoblich's genetic laboratory in Austria.

A Dokness production commissioned by Radio Bremen for ARTE 2025.