RespectAbility Labs for Entertainment Professionals with Disabilities – 2024

Headshots of 20 RespectAbility 2022 in-person Entertainment Lab Participants

2022 Los Angeles Cohort

NOTE: This is an archived page from the 2024 Lab. View www.respectability.org/lab for the current year’s Lab information and application.

6th Annual Entertainment Lab

Since 2019, the Disability Belongs™ Entertainment Lab elevates disabled creatives, focusing on building community, networking, and career advancement.

We are excited to announce some new changes to our Lab programs for 2024! Please read all details carefully below before applying, as timing and formats have changed from previous years.

2024 Entertainment Lab Dates:
Virtual Lab: May – September 2024 (Tuesdays)

In-Person Intensives in Los Angeles:

Writing for Adult Animation: May 13-16, 2024
Writing for Children’s Animation: May 20-23, 2024
Physical Production: May 21-24, 2024
Writing Drama: June 20-28, 2024
Writing Comedy: June 20-28, 2024
Documentary and Unscripted: July 29 – August 1, 2024

diverse group of summer lab participants with disabilities posing for photo on Walt Disney lot

2019 Entertainment Lab Alumni visiting The Walt Disney Company Lot in Burbank, California

We will be expanding the 2024 Virtual Lab to a five-month program (May – September 2024) where up to 25 Fellows will meet once per week, replacing the previous 6-week virtual program. This will allow Lab Fellows more time in between sessions to put the information they are learning into practice, while building community with each other outside of Lab sessions.

The Disability Belongs™ Entertainment Lab is for disabled creatives working in development, production and/or post-production, and careers as writers, directors, producers, cinematographers, animators, and other production roles. This is not a program for actors.

During the Lab, Fellows will enjoy:

Interactive presentations, roundtables, and other workshops with high-level executives and talent from major studios, networks, and production companies
Informal networking with your cohort and alumni from previous cohorts
Opportunity to pursue an independent creative pursuit (script, short film) and receive feedback through mentorship, project workshops, and table reads

In addition, our 6-week in-person Lab in Los Angeles, CA will be replaced with five new in-person intensive sessions geared toward Fellows who are looking for more advanced career opportunities in specific creative areas. These intensives will be hosted in Los Angeles by Disability Belongs™’ various industry partners for cohorts of up to 5 Fellows each. They will take place between May – November 2024 and will be open to both new applicants and Lab alumni.

Since 2019, the Disability Belongs™ Entertainment Lab has been achieving two goals:

Create an ecosystem of disabled creatives supporting each other by developing and elevating a community of disabled entertainment professionals working behind-the-scenes in television, film, and streaming.
Connect disabled creatives to studio executives and other decision makers who will provide mentorship leading to higher employment rates among the talent pipeline of alumni. No one should have an excuse that they could not find a disabled writer, director, producer, or any other creative professional.

Summer Lab participants seated around a table listening to a lecture

2019 Summer Lab alumni learning from Jonathan Murray

Lab alumni currently are working at Disney, Netflix, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and more.

View previous speakers by viewing past years’ programs on the Entertainment Lab 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019 pages.

Disability Belongs™ provides ASL interpreters and captioning for all events, and welcomes other accommodations requests. For questions pertaining to the Entertainment Lab, please contact Isabella Vargas at Lab@DisabilityBelongs.org or 323-315-5718.

Important Details for Lab Applicants

Fellows should exhibit leadership skills to complete their own projects.
A bachelor’s degree is not required.
Commit attendance for all Lab sessions, with exceptions for medical reasons.
The value of this Lab is thousands of dollars. However, there is no cost to apply for or participate in this competitive program.
While people at all income levels are encouraged to apply, extra consideration will be given to people on SSI, SNAP, and TANF.
Up to 25 candidates will be selected for the Virtual Lab. Up to 5 candidates will be selected for each LA-based intensive.
Your application materials will be evaluated by Disability Belongs™ staff members as well as industry advisors who are experts in each field.

Disability Belongs™ Labs are supported in part by:

Coverfly, Final Draft, Golden Globe Foundation, The Harnisch Foundation, Murray/Reese Foundation

Recipient of The Roddenberry Foundation Impact Award

Entertainment Lab Programmatic Team


Lauren Appelbaum SVP, Entertainment & News Media, Lab Founder	Lawon Exum Entertainment & News Media Director	Lesley Hennen Senior Associate of Entertainment Pipeline Programming, 2020 Lab Alumna	Isabella Vargas Entertainment Media Coordinator, 2022 Lab Alumna

2024 Industry Advisors


Aisha Becker-Burrowes Disability Belongs™ Advisory Council Co-Founder, FEMINIST	Christine Cadena Disability Belongs™ Board Vice Chair DEIA Expert	Stacie de Armas Disability Belongs™ Advisory Council SVP, DEI, Diverse Insights, Intelligence & Initiatives, Nielsen

Nicole Go Disability Belongs™ Advisory Council DEIA Content & Production Manager, Amazon MGM Studios	Karen Horne Disability Belongs™ Board Member Senior Executive/Diversity Equity + Inclusion Pioneer/Expert	Noriko Louison Sr. Research and Curriculum Manager, 9 Story Media Group

Kristen McGregor Showrunner / Director / Writer of Kids and Family Content	Deirdre Morales Children’s Media Writer / Supervising Producer at The Loop Lab	Roc Su Head of Cultural Consulting, Gold House

Nathan Varni Disability Belongs™ Advisory Council Executive Director of Current Programming, ABC	Delbert Whetter Lab Co-Founder & Disability Belongs™ Board Vice Chair COO & Head of Business Affairs, Exodus Film Group	Toby Wong Disability Belongs™ Advisory Council Marketing & Business Executive

Alexander Yellen Director, Daruma, and Director of Photography

Virtual Cohort Speakers

Adrienne Fishbein, Associate Product Manager at Studio System by Gracenote
Adrienne Thomas, Manager, Development Content & Strategy, Disney General Entertainment Content
*Alaa Zabara, Director / Cinematographer
*Alex Howard, Accessibility Consultant / Podcast Host
Alexa Economacos, Sundance Episodic Program Coordinator, Sundance
*Alys Murray, Screenwriter
*Amelia Swedeen, Writer
Anita Surendran, Partner and co-chair of Granderson Des Rochers
*Andrew Reid, Director / Creative Executive, Artists Equity
Andrew Rogers, Studio Enterprise Sales Associate, Final Draft
*Annie Hayes, TV Writer
*April Caputi, Associate Production Manager, Casting at Lucasfilm Animation
*Ariel Baska, Founder & Festival Director, Access Horror
Ariel Simms, President and CEO, Disability Belongs
*Ashley Eakin, Writer/Director
*Ayla Harrison, Writer
Bryan Bravo, Outreach Specialist, Creative Talent Development and Inclusion at Disney General Entertainment
*Cashmere Jasmine, Director
Cheryl Bedford, Founder/Executive Director, Women of Color Unite
*Chrissy Marshall, Writer/Director
Delbert Whetter, Producer & Chief Operating Officer/Head of Business Affairs at Exodus Film Group
*Diana Romero, TV Writer
DMA, President of Planet DMA
Etan Frankel, Writer/Showrunner
Erica Spates, Writer/Development Exec
Fanshen Cox, DEIA Initiative Manger, California Film Commission; Owner, TruJuLo Productions
*Gisselle Legere, Writer
Grace Moss, Vice President, Warner Bros. Discovery Equity + Inclusion Programs
*Heather Taylor, Writer/Director
Isaac Zablocki, Festival Co-Founder; ReelAbilities Film Festival: New York Director
*Isabella Vargas, Entertainment Media Program Coordinator, Disability Belongs
Jamie Hernandez, Program Manager, Warner Bros. Discovery Equity + Inclusion Programs
Jandiz Cardoso, Director of the Sundance Institute Episodic Program, Sundance
*Jay De La Jara, Producer, Narrative Film
Jenna Conte (Accardi), Senior Recruiter Talent Acquisition, Paramount
*Juliet Romeo, Founder and Captain of Slamdance Unstoppable program
Kaitlyn Herring, Program Manager, Warner Bros. Discovery Equity + Inclusion Programs
Kelli McNeil-Yellen, Writer/Producer
Kevin McCloskey, Senior Director of Leadership and Workforce Development, Disability Belongs
*Kiah Amara, Producer and Production Accessibility Coordinator
Lauren Appelbaum, SVP, Entertainment and Media, Disability Belongs
Lauren Grimshaw, Producer, SeriesFest
Lawon Exum, Director of Entertainment and Media, Disability Belongs
*Lesley Hennen, Senior Associate of Entertainment Pipeline Programming, Disability Belongs
Lissa Khoshbakhti, Disney Launchpad Manager, RISE · The Walt Disney Studios
Manon de Reeper, Co-founder, Deviant Minds Productions; Director/Writer/Producer
*Matt Opatrny, TV, podcast, and theatre writer
Mary Lou Belli, TV Director
Michele Spitz, Sole Proprietor, Woman of Her Word
Michelle Cash, Director Talent Acquisition, Paramount
Michelle Wolf, Executive Director at JLA Special Needs Trust & Services
*Nasreen Alkhateeb, Cinematographer, All Media Storytelling
Natasha Viadero, HR Generalist, NBCUniversal
Nathan Varni, Executive Director of Current Programming ABC
Noa Porten, Podcaster / Aspiring Marketing Specialist
*Peter Lee, Writer
Phillip Domfeh, Launchpad, Producer at The Walt Disney Company
*Roque Renteria, Screenwriter
*Shea Mirzai, Writer
*Sheridan O’Donnell, Writer/Director
Soraya Giaccardi, Senior Researcher, Media Impact Project at Norman Lear Center
Stephanie Ugo, Manager, Content Advisement at The Walt Disney Studios
Tammy “TS” Botkin, Producer
Tristan Snyder, Executive Producer Audio, Imagination Storybooks
Vanni Le, Senior Manager of Entertainment Partnerships, Disability Belongs
Will Schnabel, Program Manager, Warner Bros. Discovery Equity + Inclusion Programs
Xavier Stiles, Writer, Disney Launchpad Alum

Writing Adult Animation Intensive Speakers

Amanda Miller, Animation Producer
Frank Ochoa, Vice President, Adult Animation at Sony Pictures Television
Jerred North, Director, Writer, and Animator
Julianne Yang, Assistant to Vice President, Adult Animation at Sony Pictures Television
Katie Petrachonis, Director, Adult Series, Warner Bros. Animation
Mette Norkjaer, Vice President of Development, BOOM! Studios
Shaleen Desai, SVP Adult Series, Warner Bros. Animation
Tsvetelina Zdraveva, Director, Animator

Writing Children’s Animation Intensive Speakers

Brian Roberts, Co-Executive Producer at DreamWorks Animation
Craig Gerber, Executive Producer at Disney Television Animation
Doug Bensimon, Vice President, Disney Television Animation
Emily Carson, Creative Development Manager at Disney Television Animation
Jason Caparaz, Vice President, Development & Production, DreamWorks Animation TV
Jackie Nkansah, Executive Assistant, Disney Television Animation
Jeremy Shipp, Staff Writer at Disney Television Animation
Kristina Ulukpo, Manager, Current Series, Disney Television Animation
*Peter Forbes, Writer/Director
*Peter Lee, Staff Writer at Nickelodeon
Sarah Wallendjack, Senior Director, Content Development at PBS KIDS
Zamyr Rivera, Executive Assistant, Current Series, Disney Television Animation

Physical Production Intensive Speakers

*Alaa Zabara, Director and Cinematographer
Andrea Mereles, Director of Photography
Andrew Nelson, Amazon Studios
*Kiah Amara, Production Accessibility Coordinator, IndieVISIBLE
Lily Niu, Scripted, Amazon Studios
Guy McVicker, Panavision
Heather Curtis, Amazon Studios
Malon Murphy, Amazon Studios
Marissa Thompson, Amazon Studios
Stephen Richards, Amazon Studios

Comedy Writing Intensive and Drama Writing Intensive Speakers

Amanda Mercedes, The Rookie
Averie Huffine, Roll With The Punches Productions
Brynn Malone, The Rookie
Chelsea Urech, The Rookie
Christina Farestveit, Manager, Drama Development, ABC
Christina Smith, VP, Current Programming, ABC
Dickie Copeland, Manager, Comedy, ABC
Frank Valentini, General Hospital
Garrett Werner, ABBOTT Elementary
Jackson Deakins, The Rookie
Jenny Lynn, The Rookie
Jo DiSante, VP, Current Programming, ABC
Kate Peterman, ABBOTT Elementary
Katherine Beattie, NCIS: New Orleans
Madeleine Coghlan, The Rookie
*Marc Muszynski, Dexter: New Blood
Michelle Schultz, Coordinator, Drama Development & Current, ABC
Moira Kirland, The Rookie
Natalie Callaghan, The Rookie
Nathan Varni, Executive Director, Current Programming, ABC
Nick Hurwitz, The Rookie
Ricardo Martinez, Executive Director, Comedy, ABC
Scott Williams, NCIS
Steve Rosenberg, General Hospital

Documentary and Unscripted Intensive Speakers

Atin Mehra, Director, Producer, and DP of Being Michelle
Delbert Whetter, Producer, Loud Love, Being Michelle, and Flash Before the Bang
Jake D’Onofrio, Director, Creative Development; Editor for The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson
Mae Thornton Mehra, Producer of Being Michelle
Melanie Sams, National Geographic
Rit Saraswat, Executive Producer, The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson
Sasha Alpert, Producer of Autism: The Musical, Autism: The Sequel, Valentine Road, and Transhood
Tenaja Williams, Sr. Director, Unscripted Development, NBCU Entertainment