Matan Koch met with Rabbi Charles Sherman of Melrose B’nai Israel Emanu-El, a small congregation in Pennsylvania with a dedicated Disability Inclusion Committee. Rabbi Sherman asked intriguing questions that prompted Matan to share about his disability, his experience as a Rabbi’s son, and his journey through the world of Jewish inclusion.
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Attendees heard from some of our Jewish rising stars in the Disability Training & Speakers Bureau and got their free copy of RespectAbility’s new Jewish Disability Inclusion Toolkit. [continue reading…]
Join Sinai Temple and RespectAbility for a conversation about Jewish disability inclusion! Hear from filmmaker and actor Aaron Wolf and poet Erika Abbott about their experiences as Jews with disabilities. Following their reflections, there was a Q&A session led by Rabbi Erez Sherman from Sinai Temple.
Have you seen DreamWorks Animation’s Madagascar: A Little Wild on Hulu or Peacock TV yet? For six seasons, RespectAbility Vice Chair Delbert Whetter, along with Jevon Whetter and Justin Maurer, consulted on this series, which includes a deaf character who uses sign language; the character’s sister also signs. Chimpanzee siblings Dave and Pickles are breaking barriers and are part of a movement changing the landscape of disability representation in children’s television and streaming content. Dave and Pickles have a meaningful story arc throughout the entire series and Dave is not defined by his deafness.
New this season, a little girl named and modeled after deaf actress Shaylee Mansfield trades cards with Dave at the zoo. She was animated by using a video reference of her performing the role. In what is possibly a first for deaf performers, she is credited alongside the “audible” voice actors for her “sign over” performance in the episode “‘Gloria’s Got ‘Em All.”
Learn from the team’s ASL consultants as well as Executive Producer Johanna Stein and Actress Shaylee Mansfield on how they worked together to bring about dynamic deaf characters. [continue reading…]
Navigating the Entertainment industry can be a daunting and overwhelming experience for anyone. And when you’re a person with multiple underrepresented identities, disability included, the feeling of burnout can become real very quickly. This event was a conversation between RespectAbility Entertainment & News Media team members, Tatiana Lee & Lesley Hennen. They shared their experiences and tips for navigating advocacy as disabled creatives, and how to handle the inevitable burnout that comes with it. [continue reading…]
When we think of diversity in the arts, do we consider the 1-in-5 people who live with a disability? Due to a lack of accessibility and stigma, artists with disabilities rarely get to take the stage to tell their own stories. This event featured a conversation with industry leaders about writing for disabled voices. [continue reading…]
For many folks who are looking to start a career in the Entertainment industry, whether in development, writing, production, marketing, and everything else in between, the starting point is film school. Since the best way to improve on-screen representation of people with disabilities is to hire more disabled people in all aspects of the storytelling and filmmaking process, how can film schools ensure full accessibility for disabled students and faculty? This event was a conversation with RespectAbility Summer Lab alumni and current working Entertainment professionals, Laura Alsum, Michael Dougherty, Tyler Hoog, Andrew Reid, and Faith Strongheart. We discussed their lived experiences as disabled individuals who have navigated film school, and shared some best practices for schools to ensure accessibility for all.
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At L.A. ComicCon, we hosted a panel on disability inclusion in film and television. Attendees learned how inclusion can positively impact their bottom line and stretch their marketing dollars for their feature film or television project. [continue reading…]
Jewish Funders Network hosted an exclusive presentation and facilitated discussion that covered the results of three major new studies on Jewish disability inclusion in the workforce. They discussed:
The federal government is actively working to capitalize on the accessibility gains made by remote work and striving to implement policies to promote the safety of workers in diverse sectors of the economy. This webinar featured three key high-level federal leaders reflecting on their work, their priorities and their hopes for the months ahead. [continue reading…]
