RespectAbility Entertainment Professionals Lab, Summer 2022
Kimberly Manky
Kimberly Manky (she/her) is a writer based in Vancouver, Canada, on the unceded lands of the the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Kimberly has written for ABCmouse, Rakuten, Nickelodeon, and Disney, working on several streaming series and creating shareable content and quizzes like, “Which Golden Girl Are You?” (Dorothy, FYI).
Her comedic TV pilots, specs, and screenplays have placed in numerous screenwriting competitions, and she was a finalist in the Nickelodeon Writing Fellowship and a semifinalist in The Academy’s Nicholl Fellowship in Screenwriting.
She studied Screenwriting at Oxford, Contextual Theology at St. Mellitus College, and received a Master’s Degree (Honors) from the University of London in Screenwriting and Narrative Fiction. Kimberly has also taken Sketch Writing at Upright Citizens Brigade and Improvisation with the Groundlings.
Kimberly writes stories that are full of hope, heart and humanity. She aims to facilitate change and combat public stigmas and self-stigma around mental health and disabilities, and hopes that her writing can bring awareness and understanding to these common human experiences.
She is a Fellow of RespectAbility’s Lab for Entertainment Professionals with Disabilities and the RespectAbility + Netflix Children’s Content Lab.
Learn More
After an extensive search and interview process, 18 individuals and one writing duo were invited to participate in the Virtual Cohort of RespectAbility’s 2022 Entertainment Lab taking place August 16 – September 22, 2022. This 6-week, 18-session Lab aims to further develop and elevate the talent pipeline of diverse professionals with disabilities working behind-the-scenes in television, film, and streaming. Participants include people with physical, cognitive, sensory, mental health, and other disabilities ranging in age from people in their 20’s through their 50’s. The Lab is a recipient of The Roddenberry Foundation Impact Award.
The Virtual Cohort of the 2022 Entertainment Lab is made possible with support by:
- Platinum Sponsors: Murray/Reese Foundation and Netflix
- Gold Sponsors: The Harnisch Foundation, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and The Walt Disney Company
- Silver Sponsors: Hollywood Foreign Press Association Charitable Trust, the National Endowment for the Arts, and NBCUniversal
