Indy Film Fest -- Only I Can Hear

A powerful documentary that takes viewers inside the world of CODAs, Children of Deaf Adults, and showcases the triumphs and struggles they endure.

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Debuting Saturday, June 18 at the 2022 Indy Film Fest, “Only I Can Hear” by director Itaru Matsui is a powerful documentary that takes viewers inside the world of CODAs, Children of Deaf Adults, and showcases the triumphs and struggles they endure.

“Only I Can Hear” provides an eye-opening look at three Midwestern teens struggling to find their place as they live lives between two worlds - the hearing and the deaf. Nyla, MJ and Jessica are all CODAs and each is searching for their place in their world. To them, the ability to hear makes them feel like outsiders and each has their own unique fears that fuel their daily lives.

Jessica fears losing her knowledge of sign language as she ages, and Nyla fears she’ll never be part of the world she desires to be part of. MJ fears she’ll never be able to be herself as her anxiety increases from the stress of being a CODA. Most of all, each wants to feel a sense of normalcy, but the duality of living life as a CODA makes that seem almost impossible.

The film also follows Ashley Ryan, a sign-language interpreter and fellow CODA. She advocates for other Children of Deaf Adults and must confront her own worries. She is pregnant and doesn’t know if her child will be part of the deaf or hearing community.

“Only I Can Hear” is a powerful documentary that clocks in at just under an hour but packs quite a punch. I found the stories of Nyla, Jessica and MJ, as well as their families, emotional and something I’d never considered before the film. It was surprising and eye-opening to find the three teens felt most at “home” when at a CODA camp they visited just once a year. The rest of their time was spent trying to find a balance between two worlds.

Director Matsui crafts a powerful film that brings to life the world of CODAs and their struggles to find belonging in two worlds that pull at them from different directions.