Children of a Lesser God (film)

Children of a Lesser God
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Randa Haines
Screenplay by	Hesper Anderson Mark Medoff
Based on	Children of a Lesser God 1979 play by Mark Medoff
Produced by	Burt Sugarman Patrick J. Palmer
Starring	William Hurt Marlee Matlin Piper Laurie Philip Bosco
Cinematography	John Seale
Edited by	Lisa Fruchtman
Music by	Michael Convertino
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	October 3, 1986 (1986-10-03)
Running time	114 minutes
Country	United States
Languages	English American Sign Language
Budget	$10.5 million[1]
Box office	$101.5 million

Children of a Lesser God is a 1986 American romantic drama film directed by Randa Haines from a screenplay written by Hesper Anderson and Mark Medoff and based on Medoff's 1979 play of the same name. The film stars William Hurt, Marlee Matlin (in her film debut), Piper Laurie, and Philip Bosco. The film's narrative follows two employees at a school for the deaf: a Deaf custodian and a hearing speech teacher, whose conflicting ideologies on speech and deafness create tension and discord in their developing romantic relationship.

Children of a Lesser God premiered at the 37th Berlin International Film Festival, where it competed for the Golden Bear, while Haines received a Special Silver Bear. It was theatrically released on October 3, 1986, by Paramount Pictures to critical and commercial success. Reviewers praised Haines's direction, the screenplay, and particularly the performances of Hurt, Matlin, and Laurie. The film grossed $101.5 million worldwide on a $10.5 million budget. It received five nominations at the 59th Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actor (for Hurt), Best Supporting Actress (for Laurie), Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actress (for Matlin). At age 21, Matlin became the youngest Best Actress winner as well as the first deaf winner in Oscar history.^[2]