Temple Grandin is autistic… she is also an American doctor of animal science, a professor at Colorado State University, a bestselling author, and perhaps the best known scientist in the humane livestock handling industry

And that’s not because her name was mentioned 7 times in the last Grammy Awards.  Grandin believes it is her autism that provides her with a unique insight into the feelings of farm animals.

Born in 1947, Grandin was diagnosed as autistic at a young age due to her inability to speak or function socially like other children. Her life is the subject of the next Green Door Film Society screening at Greens N Grains Deli in Egg Harbor on Thursday, December 15.

Claire Danes, who plays Temple Grandin tells us before the credits start to roll that she’s, “not like other people.” Temple’s mother, played by Julia Ormond, explains in the movie that, “She is different, not less.”

It was not without great difficulty that Grandin went on to accomplish much more than a great number of “normal” folks, not to mention those challenged by autism. The doctor who diagnosed her at age 4 said she would never talk and she should be institutionalized. Her mother was told that it was a “lack of bonding” with her child that might have caused the autism. Grandin’s lack of social skills and sometimes violent reactions to the overstimulation in her environment made it tough to fit in.

“Danes, who is in nearly every scene of director Mick Jackson‘s film, is remarkable, embodying Grandin’s various idiosyncrasies (such as talking, too loud, too fast, and too much) without resorting to caricature,” says reviewer Sam Graham. “Jackson does a marvelous job of depicting not only her actual accomplishments, but also her more abstract talents, especially the extraordinary visual acuity that enables her to remember virtually everything she’s ever seen. This is mostly Danes’s film, but the whole cast is top-notch, especially Ormond, Catherine O’Hara as Temple’s aunt, and David Strathairn as one of the few teachers who saw Grandin’s potential. Captivating, compelling, and thoroughly entertaining, Temple Grandin is highly recommended.”

The film depicts how Grandin took the ‘squeeze machine’ created to ‘gentle’ upset cattle and adapted it for herself, using it to replace the hugs she never got as a child. Later on, she would revolutionize the systems used to prepare cows for slaughter, as well as the design of the slaughterhouses themselves.

Greens N Grains Deli hosts a natural and organic dinner special each evening before the Film Society screening. Enjoy a delicious soup specialty, salad, a fresh baked roll and a cup of tea for $7.50, available from 6 pm on. The Film Society screenings take place at 7 pm and there is no charge for membership but seating at screenings is limited to 30 people. Dinner and film reservations are requested. RSVP: 920.868.9999.

Greens N Grains Natural Foods and Deli is open daily from 10 am – 5 pm – except on movie nights when they will remain open until 9 pm – in downtown Egg Harbor at 7821 Hwy 42, and can be reached at 920.868.9999 or by email at info@greens-n-grains.com. The store’s Website features news and special monthly discount flyers at Greens-N-Grains.com.