Marlee Matlin addresses the audience at the SXSW screening of “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” on March 11, 2025. Credit: Wendy Goodman 

By Wendy Goodman 

At this year’s South by Southwest Film & TV Festival, the world got a closer, more personal look at Jewish Hollywood actress Marlee Matlin whose voice has resonated far beyond the screen. “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore,” directed by Shoshannah Stern, made its SXSW Texas premiere to a packed and emotional audience—many of whom already knew Matlin as the first deaf actor to win an Academy Award, but not necessarily her complex story. 
 
The documentary traces Matlin’s journey from a suburban childhood in Illinois to her historic Oscar win at just 21 years old for “Children of a Lesser God.” The film takes a vulnerable look at what it means to live and thrive as a deaf woman in an industry built around sound. 
 
With Stern behind the camera, the film benefits from a unique kind of intimacy that is a deaf director telling a deaf story. Through candid interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and personal archives, the documentary shows Matlin not just as an actress, but as an activist, mother, partner, and cultural icon who has spent her life expanding what representation can mean. 
 

Director Shoshannah Stern and Marlee Matlin on stage at the SXSW screening of “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore” on March 11, 2025. Credit: Wendy Goodman

One of the quieter moments in the film offers a glimpse into Matlin’s personal life, including her Jewish identity and her Jewish wedding to Kevin Grandalski. The scene is brief, but it’s part of the mosaic that makes up her story. 
 
What emerges from the film is not just the story of Matlin’s success, but a broader reflection on resilience, advocacy, and the ongoing fight for representation. Matlin has been a champion for accessibly in media, including playing a pivotal role in the widespread adoption of closed captioning on television. Matlin continues to break barriers for the deaf community and beyond.