Hollywood Inclusion

Dakota Johnson appears in CHA CHA REAL SMOOTH by Cooper Raiff. Courtesy of Sundance Institute.

Los Angeles, Jan. 27 – In the first big buy of the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, Apple has purchased Cooper Raiff’s Cha Cha Real Smooth for $15 million. This feature film, which premiered at the festival, is noteworthy in many ways. The first word that comes to mind when describing Cha Cha Real Smooth is “honest.” Other reviews agree. For example, IndieWire’s David Ehrlich called this film a “disarmingly honest indie about feeling lost in your own life.” Truthfulness emanates from every character. The film follows Andrew (Raiff), a charismatic Bar Mitzvah party starter who quickly befriends Domino (Dakota Johnson) and her middle school-aged autistic daughter, Lola (Vanessa Burghardt). Burghardt was authentically cast; this is her first professional production. [continue reading…]

In some African countries, a complete skeleton of albinos can be exchanged for up to $75,000.

Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Moïse Togo.

Los Angeles, CA, Jan 24 – “$75,000” is a 14-minute short film that immediately captivates the viewer. Spoken in rhythmic first-person voice overs in the languages of Bamabara, Fon, and Yoruba with English subtitles, the narration is based on actual testimonies collected by writer/director Moïse Togo.

Focusing on the physical and moral conditions of people living with albinism in Africa, Togo said he was touched by the story of a 5-year-old girl with albinism who was kidnapped and killed.

“I felt the need to express myself on this phenomenon,” he said during a Q&A following the international short documentary’s premiere at 2022 Sundance Film Festival. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, CA, Jan. 21 – With one-in-five people having a disability in the U.S. today, the lack of representation – just 2.3 percent of characters in the 100 top-grossing films of 2019 and 8 percent in family films – means that millions of people are unable to see themselves reflected in media.

The 2022 Sundance Film Festival (January 20 – 30) will provide an opportunity for audiences with various disabilities to see themselves represented – all from the comfort of their homes through the virtual festival site. This year, several films feature disability in the plot, including 892, 75,000, Cha Cha Real Smooth, Chilly and Milly, I Didn’t See You There, and Sharp Stick, among others. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, CA, January 13 – When filmmaker Jeremy Hsing set out to create his first short film in the wake of the pandemic, his goal was to create a film that amplified underrepresented voices and destigmatize mental health after a year of unprecedented hate toward the AAPI community. With a majority POC cast and crew combined with a tremendous labor of love, Hsing wrote, directed, and brought Iridescence to life.

Iridescence tells the story of a nuclear Chinese-American family. At the center is Christian, the teenaged son with anxiety who experiences his first panic attack after an argument with his father. As the events unfold, the audience learns that like Christian, his father also experiences anxiety, shedding light on the intergenerational mental health trauma often seen in first-generation AAPI families, yet rarely goes acknowledged. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Jan. 6 – While the Golden Globes will not air on television this year, it is important to note that several disability-inclusive films and television series have been nominated.

As the Hollywood Foreign Press Association continues to overhaul its bylaws, making changes addressing ethics and code of conduct, diversity, equity and inclusion, governance, and membership following criticism of the organization’s lack of diversity, this year’s program will showcase the organization’s philanthropy work. Grantees, including RespectAbility, have been invited to attend.

With one-in-four adults having a disability in the U.S. today, the lack of representation – just 3.5 percent of characters on TV and 2.3 percent on film  – means that millions of people are unable to see themselves in media today. This makes it so important that several of the nominations this year feature disabled individuals. This includes a focus on deaf and ASL representation with the nominations of “CODA” and “Only Murders in the Building.” [continue reading…]

Aria Mia Lobreti as self in All the Light We Cannot See. Cr. Ryan Collerd/Netflix © 2021

Los Angeles, Dec. 9 – Following a a worldwide search for blind and low vision actresses, Aria Mia Loberti will make her acting debut in the bestselling Pulitzer Prize winning adaptation of “All the Light We Cannot See.”

Loberti will play Marie-Laure, a blind teenager, whose path collides with Werner, a German soldier, as they both try to survive the devastation of World War II in occupied France. While she has no formal acting training, she beat out thousands of submissions.

She also is an advocate for people with disabilities, especially those who, like she, are blind or low-vision. These efforts have taken her from her small Rhode Island hometown to global forums like the United Nations, UN Women, TEDx, the Thomson Reuters Foundation, and beyond. [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Dec. 9 – Zeno Mountain Farm continues to welcome honors following the production of award-winning feature film Best Summer Ever, an inclusive musical featuring eight original songs and a fully-integrated cast and crew of people with and without disabilities. At the 2021 Media Access Awards last month, Zeno Mountain Farm won the SAG – AFTRA Disability Awareness Award, an annual award presented to an individual or organization for their work advancing the public awareness of the vast potential of disabled Americans.

The Media Access Awards honors people in the film and television industries who are advancing the accurate portrayals and employment of people with disabilities. This annual show, done in partnership with Easterseals Disability Services, honors entertainment industry professionals who have advanced authentic disability-related narratives and employment in fields of writing, producing, casting, performance, and directing. [continue reading…]

Lauren Appelbaum

Los Angeles, Nov. 24 – In March 2018 I was diagnosed with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD), now classified as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS), which is a form of chronic pain that usually affects an arm or a leg. With just 200,000 people in the U.S. diagnosed with CRPS in the U.S., most people have not heard of CRPS, which is classified as a “rare disease” with no cure. Therefore, the month of November is CRPS Awareness month.

Since acquiring this disability, I have had the privilege of creating pipeline programming for nearly 100 other disabled individuals. During the 2021 RespectAbility Entertainment Lab for Disabled Entertainment Professionals, we were pleased to have award-winning independent film director and editor Jennifer Valdes as one of 30 Lab Fellows. Like me, Valdes is living with CRPS.

“I used to feel that living life with complex regional pain syndrome wasn’t a life worth living,” she said. “I devalued myself as a human. I felt ashamed of my disability. Disclosing it felt like I was revealing a big secret. I felt isolated and alone. Living with a disability is not the life I planned for, but It’s the only one that I have.” [continue reading…]

Los Angeles, Nov. 24 – November is Native American Heritage Month, or as it is commonly referred to, American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month. It is important to celebrate rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories and to acknowledge the important contributions of Native people, including those who also are members of the disability community.

Alaqua Cox

Actress Alaqua Cox exemplifies this intersection. Marvel Studios’ latest episodic series Hawkeye premiered November 24 on Disney+, featuring Cox as Maya Lopez, who is the second deaf character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In addition to being deaf and an amputee, Cox is Native American (Menominee and Mohican Nation).

“I believe kids deserve to see inclusivity and accurate representation,” Cox said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “It will make kids with all types of cultures and disabilities feel like our dreams can break free from limitations.”

RespectAbility’s Senior Entertainment Media Associate Tatiana Lee, who is a disabled woman of color with Native American heritage who also is an actress, international model and activist, pursued a career in the entertainment industry because she did not see herself reflected on screen. At RespectAbility, Lee is the lead consultant on various TV and film projects and conducts training for studios and production companies including NBCUniversal, Netflix, and The Walt Disney Company, and assists with RespectAbility’s Lab for Entertainment Professionals with Disabilities.

“I went through many struggles of sense of self and identity because I didn’t see myself represented,” Lee said. “You feel like an outcast, a unicorn, but sometimes not always in a good way. I try to embrace the unicorn thing, but other times it feels isolating.” [continue reading…]