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Railfan

2026 · 89 min

A gentle, affectionate look at fascination and city life that feels warm and quietly eye-opening.

Directed by
Ian Daffern
Genres
Documentary
Starring
Travis Huggett
Overview
A curious, heartwarming documentary following a photographer as he makes a portrait series of autistic kids who love New York City subways. While overlooked by many, subways retain a magic in their ability to transport us to the destinations of our choosing. For autistic children, they can mean so much more. Following a group of these unique kids in New York City, Railfan explores the deep fascinations that autistic people have (a.k.a. “special interests”) through gentle observation, and invites you into a secret world where imagination and urban geographies overlap.

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In the UKNo streaming, rental or purchase options known.
Directed by
Ian Daffern
Genres
Documentary
Starring
Travis Huggett
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
    Pacing
    measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
    Attention
    engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
    Themes
    • identity
    • isolation
    • art
    • family
    • friendship
    Places
    • big city
    Era
    contemporary
    Audience
    family
    Form
    • documentary
    • true story
    Content intensity
    • Gore none
    • Language none
    • Violence none
    • Sex none
    All scales, 0 to 10
    Scales, 0 to 10
    ScaleValue0 to 10
    Action1
    Horror0
    Humour2
    Realism9
    Romance0
    Tension1
    Darkness1
    Complexity3
    Emotional weight5

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    Where to watch in the UK

    No UK streaming, rental or purchase options are known.

    Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

    Details

    Genres
    documentary
    Directed by
    Ian Daffern
    Starring
    Travis Huggett
    Cinematography
    Joe Tomko
    Runtime
    89 min
    Languages
    English

    TMDB