The United Nations proclaimed 1981 as the International Year of Disabled Persons and called on governments to implement policies to promote the full participation of disabled persons in society. Along with combating prejudice, it hoped to provide opportunities for people living with disability to express themselves on their own behalf.

This clip, focused on wheelchair user Bruce Ellison, takes a warmhearted, day-in-the-life look at his experiences. It’s part of a series of short documentaries profiling individuals with disabilities. The clip prioritises Ellison’s voice: he narrates his love for sports, his experiences with prejudice and workplace discrimination, and his hesitations about starting a family. While he speaks, footage of daily recreational activities with friends and alone foregrounds his independence and sense of connection with the world.

At 27, Ellison is affected by muscular dystrophy and has survived longer than doctors originally expected. His condition will continue to deteriorate – hence the title On Borrowed Time. Despite the seriousness of his situation, the focus on Ellison's droll sense of humour and cautious optimism builds a full portrait of a person who so often feels invisible to society.

On Borrowed Time stands in opposition to earlier representations of people with disability, which primarily depicted them as objects of sympathy rather than people with their own agency.