Geek Girl’ Star Emily Carey, ‘A Kind of Spark’s’ Lola Blue Lead Autistic-Centered ‘The Birth of a Mall Goth’ (EXCLUSIVE)

According To The variety Two prominent autistic actors, Emily Carey (“Geek Girl“) and Lola Blue (“A Kind of Spark”), topline the short film “The Birth of a Mall Goth,” marking a rare project where neurodiverse talent controls the creative process both on-screen and off. Writer-director Samantha Locock developed the script around her fascination with goth subculture, though she didn’t realize until after receiving her autism diagnosis that the story reflected her own neurodivergent experience of seeking understanding in an often confusing world. “When I wrote this script, I don’t think I fully understood why I was so deeply intrigued by why people suddenly become goths,” Locock said. “Now, I see the film as the autistic need to try and make sense of the world around you — you can’t always take things at face value. Sometimes you have to keep searching until you find answers that make sense for you, even if it’s about something silly.” The project highlights an ongoing representation challenge: Ruderman Family Foundation research shows that less than 5% of autistic characters are portrayed by actors who are actually autistic. Carey discovered an immediate connection to Locock’s script, which deepened after learning about the filmmaker’s neurodivergence. The “House of the Dragon” actor stars in the Netflix adaptation of Holly Smale’s “Geek Girl,” itself created by an autistic writer. “Generally speaking, an autistic perspective offers a unique attention to detail and a lack of inhibition when it comes to creativity,” Carey said. “This short is so brilliantly silly and yet also meticulously crafted. To work alongside like-minded neurodivergent people on this was so refreshing and I do think we made something magical.” “It’s an honor to play autistic characters, written by autistic people as an autistic person,” Blue said. “This role felt like a wonderful chance to explore the struggle of ‘finding yourself,’ through the lens of the female autistic experience, without it explicitly just being a film ‘about autism’ (although those are important too).” Producer Poppi Knight, who previously collaborated with Locock, connected with the material through personal memories of teenage subculture transformations before understanding her own neurodivergent perspective. “I was drawn to the project initially for nostalgic reasons,” Knight said. “I remember this era in my early teens when everyone went from being an everyday kid to goth or emo, seemingly overnight, which is as curious to me now as it was back then. However, like Samantha, I wasn’t diagnosed until later in adulthood, and as the story of ‘Mall Goth’ unraveled to become one about this neurodivergent curiosity, it felt like one even more empowering to tell.” The film operates under the Primetime banner, Victoria Emslie’s production company dedicated to amplifying underrepresented voices across disability, gender, and sexuality spectrums. Emslie recently premiered “Truckload” at Tribeca, another project centering disabled performers. “Nuanced representation is not a checkbox exercise; it is a cultural, economic and social responsibility,” said Emslie. “This film is a window into an unseen world explored with authenticity, which is what happens when we invest in people who tell their own stories.” The short will screen at Newport Beach Film Festival this October.