Auggie's Journey to Acceptance

Tonight on TV, Wednesday, April 23, Rai 1 airs in prime time 'Wonder', the film directed by Stephen Chbosky, featuring the young Jacob Tremblay (Room) as the protagonist August 'Auggie' Pullman, a child with Treacher Collins Syndrome (a congenital craniofacial development disorder) about to attend fifth grade in a local public school. Let's see the plot, cast, and curiosities about the film. Auggie Pullman is ten years old, wants to become an astronaut and go to space because he's convinced that up there no one will object to his appearance; due to a rare syndrome, he looks very 'different'. His family is loving and spoils him, but it's time for him to attend middle school: nothing will be easy. Previously forced to study at home due to numerous facial surgeries, it's the first time August joins a class of peers, eats in the school cafeteria, or goes camping with classmates. Despite the worries of mom Isabel and dad Nate, he faces the curious and skeptical looks of the students with pride and dignity, entering the public school like a superhero, or rather like an astronaut determined to plant his flag in a distant and unexplored world. While his family, new classmates, and everyone around him strive to accept him, Auggie's extraordinary journey will unite them all, proving that you can't blend in when you're born to stand out. After a year filled with difficult, funny, and beautiful moments, Auggie and everyone around him find themselves changed by the things that matter most: friendship, courage, and the daily choice to be kind to everyone you meet along your way. The film was shot in Canada. The scenes set in the school that Auggie attends in Wonder were filmed at Heritage Woods Secondary School in Port Moody. But the main star of the film is the city of Vancouver. It's in Vancouver that the amusement park (Playland) is located, where the roller coaster scene is shot, as well as Robson Square, where we see Auggie and Jack playing outside. Playing the protagonist of Wonder, Auggie, is Jacob Tremblay, a Canadian actor who, despite his young age, has already worked in several films, including Room, The Book of Henry, The Death and Life of John F. Donovan. His parents are played by Hollywood stars Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson. The cast of Wonder also includes Mandy Patinkin, Izabela Vidovic, Daveed Diggs, Sonia Braga, and Danielle Rose Russell. Treacher Collins Syndrome (TCS), also known as Franceschetti syndrome or mandibulofacial dysostosis, is a congenital disorder caused by anomalies in the development of the first branchial arches, segmented embryonic structures that appear around the 4th week of the embryo's life. Treacher Collins Syndrome, as stated on the Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital website, is named after two doctors who first described the syndrome in two patients in the 1900s. It is estimated that one in every 10-50,000 individuals is born with Treacher Collins Syndrome. The disease is characterized by hypoplasia or underdevelopment of the facial bones, cheekbones, and jaws, anomalies or total absence of the ear, cup-shaped ear associated with fistulas or appendages just in front of the ear, and anomalies of the lower eyelids. Treacher Collins Syndrome can be caused by mutations: Of the TCOF1 gene located on the long arm of chromosome 5 and mutated in 78-93% of individuals with this disease; Of the POLR1C gene, located on the short arm of chromosome 6; Of the POLR1D gene located on the long arm of chromosome 13. Mutations of the POLR1C and POLR1D genes are found in 8% of Treacher Collins Syndrome cases. Wonder is based on a true story: the author, in fact, stated that she was inspired by the story of a girl she met in a bar who had a severe facial deformity. Jacob Trembley, the actor chosen to play young Auggie, had to undergo the installation of facial prosthetics to resemble the protagonist of Wonder, but this did not disturb him and instead allowed him to get closer to his character, both psychologically and emotionally. Wonder is the film adaptation of the bestselling novel by R.J. Palacio, which became a literary phenomenon worldwide in just a few weeks.