When Monica and David Martinez got married five years ago, they were not your average bride and groom — both have Down syndrome. Deeply in love and committed to each other, their union nonetheless put the couple among a minority of people with developmental disabilities walking down the aisle.
Filmmaker Alexandra Codina — who is Monica’s cousin — followed the couple through their wedding and first year of marriage. The resulting documentary “Monica & David” captures the couple as they adjust to life together and struggle to define their own independence.
Ahead of the premiere of “Monica & David” on HBO Oct. 14, Codina spoke with Disability Scoop.
Disability Scoop: Why make a movie about Monica and David getting married?
Alexandra Codina: It was a very instinctive, almost emotional reaction a few weeks before Monica and David’s wedding. I realized even though no one was openly objecting to the wedding, there seemed to be this unspoken feeling that they were still children.
Disability Scoop: Why did they want to be married?
Alexandra Codina: As Monica’s cousin I watched her fall in love with a few other men before David and I watched her have her heart broken. When she started dating David, it was a very balanced relationship. They were right for each other. I think they wanted to get married because they were and still are very much in love but they also wanted to share their life together.
http://www.disabilityscoop.com/2010/10/07/monica-david-premiere/10566/