Awards from the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge (EDFC)—which is celebrating 11 years of leadership advocating for diversity, equity and inclusion in the entertainment industry—were presented last night at an orange carpet-event on the Sony Pictures Studios lot.
Celebrity attendees/presenters included Two-time Oscar-winning writer, producer and director Peter Farrelly (Ricky Stanicky, Loudermilk, Greenbook, Something About Mary, Dumb and Dumber), Grammy®-nominated comedian Nate Bargatze, Academy Award®-winner Siân Heder (CODA, Orange is the New Black), Caterina Scorsone Grey’s Anatomy), Sheaun McKinney (The Neighborhood, Snowfall), Rick Glassman Not Dead Yet), Jillian Mercado (The L Word: Generation Q) and Heather Morris (Glee).
Winners selected from among 135 films submitted from nearly every state and from around the globe, included: Best Film (presented by Sony Pictures Entertainment) Audio Description – Lee Pugsley; Best Director (presented by NBCUniversal) The Case of the Obsidian Muskrat – Chase Chambers; Best Actor (presented by IMDbPro) Emergency Contact – Kiersten Kelly; Best Writer (presented by Netflix) Call the A.D.A. – David Radcliff; Best Editor (presented by Adobe Foundation) The Case of the Obsidian Muskrat – Chase Chambers; and Best Awareness Campaign (presented by Amazon MGM Studios) Out of Reach – Sawsan Zakaria.
Also presented were 12 $15,000 seed fund/film finishing grants, provided by the Adobe Foundation, to selected EDFC finalist/winning submissions—including Alumni Grants to participants from previous years—to further develop their short film and/or to accelerate the development of their projects into feature films or episodic series.
Here is a video of some orange carpet interviews provided by NEWS OUTLET STRINGOUT:
Here are a few photos on the orange carpet:
Said EDFC founder, comedian and actor Nic Novicki, “People who are disabled comprise 25% percent of the population and we are ready to see ourselves authentically represented in Hollywood. Disability continues to be frequently overlooked in D&I discussions and we need to be part of that conversation. We had 135 films made by and starring disabled artists and that number is only growing each year, a testament to the talent in our community.
Adds Novicki, who most recently voiced Lego Spider-Man in Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Animation’s award-winning film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, “As we continue to strive to build a more diverse and inclusive workplace in Hollywood, we have made advancements, but there is still much work to be done.”
According to the CDC, 25% of U.S. residents, more than 61 million people, have a disability, making it today’s largest minority population. Yet, according to a study released last summer by USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, the number of speaking characters with a disability in a major film was just 1.9% in 2022. GLAAD also published a report in 2022 which found that only 2.8% of series regulars on primetime broadcast TV (22 of 775) were characters with disabilities. And per the most–recent Ruderman Family Foundation study, about 95% of characters with disabilities in Hollywood’s top films
and TV shows are played by able–bodied actors.
Commented Mark Whitley, President and CEO of Easterseals Southern California, “Hollywood has only begun to tap into the power of inclusion and to showcase this significant segment of our society. The Easterseals Disability Film Challenge gives filmmakers, actors and their crews an opportunity to change the way we all experience and understand disability.”
- Winners receive invaluable access to entertainment leaders and resources, opening the door to an industry notoriously difficult to enter, as well receive as a variety of prizes to help them achieve their career goals, including:
● $2,000 grants to each winner.
● One $15,000 seed fund/film finishing grant, provided by the Adobe Foundation, to further develop the winning short film and/or to accelerate the development of their project into feature films or episodic series.
● Dell Technologies computers.
● Sony Cinema Line Camera FX30 including lens, microphone and memory card.
● One-year premium membership to IMDbPro, the essential resource for entertainment industry professionals.
● Screenings at Academy Award-qualifying festivals, including the Heartland Film Festival,
HollyShorts Film Festival, ReelAbilities LA, and NewFilmmakers LA.
● One-year subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud, the world’s best platform of creative apps and services, empowering you to make anything you can imagine, wherever you’re inspired.
● Mentorship meetings with entertainment industry executives and talent, including
Emmy–nominated actor Ryan O’Connell (Special, Queer as Folk); Ivana Lombardi, Director of Film, Netflix; Karen Noble, Senior Manager, Creative Talent and Content, Global Talent Development & Inclusion, Universal Filmed Entertainment Group; Steven O’Dell, President, Sony Pictures Releasing International; Gena Desclos, EVP, HBO & HBO Max Post Production, and Tiffany Smith–Anoa’i, Executive VP, Entertainment Diversity & Inclusion, West Coast, Paramount Global, among others to be announced. - The 2024 Film Challenge was judged by a diverse group of influential entertainment industry talent, including: entertainment executive Nicole Castro; director Kat Coiro (the upcoming CBS Matlock reboot starring Kathy Bates, She Hulk, Dead to Me, Marry Me); Jerome Core, head of U.S. & Worldwide DEIA Content at Amazon MGM Studios; director and activist Jenni Gold (CinemAbility: The Art of Inclusion); casting director Eric Ian Goldberg; Tim Gray, EVP of the Golden Globes; Andraéa LaVant, disability inclusion expert and founder of LaVant Consulting; Stacey Wilson Hunt, Contributing Editor, The
Hollywood Reporter; filmmaker and activist Jim LeBrecht (Crip Cramp, Battlefield Earth, Pitch Black); actor, producer and activist; Col Needham, founder and CEO of IMDb; actress, model and activist Jillian Mercado (The L Word: Generation Q); three–time Emmy nominated journalist Allison Norlian; actor Mark Povinelli, President, Little People of America; journalist Richard Propes, The Independent Critic; journalist Cara Reedy, CNN, NPR, The Guardian; Gil Robertson, President, African-American Film Critics Association; Juliet Romero, founder of Slamdance UNSTOPPABLE; actor, choreographer and Deaf
advocate Shaheem Sanchez; journalist Lindzi Scharf, Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, WWD; actor Sue Ann Pien (As We See It); Film Independent Nominations Director Jennifer Wilson; actor and comedian Danny Woodburn (Mirror Mirror, Jingle All the Way, Seinfeld); and disability advocate, entrepreneur and content creator Tiffany Yu.
About the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge:
As someone with a disability, actor, comedian and producer Nic Novicki launched the Disability Film Challenge in 2013 in response to the under-representation of talent with disabilities both in front of and behind the camera. Novicki created the challenge to give aspiring filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their work and provide them with meaningful exposure. In 2017, Novicki joined forces with Easterseals Southern California—the nation’s leading nonprofit supporting people and families with disabilities—to expand the event, now known as the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge.
Learn more at: www.DisabilityFilmChallenge.com
About Easterseals Southern California:
Easterseals is leading the way to full equity, inclusion and access through life–changing disability and community services. For more than 100 years, we have worked tirelessly with our partners to enhance quality of life and expand local access to healthcare, education and employment opportunities. Easterseals Southern California provides essential services and on-the-ground supports to more than 18,000 people each year—from early childhood programs for the critical first five years, to autism services, daily and independent living services for adults, employment programs and more. Our public education, policy and advocacy initiatives positively shape perceptions and address the urgent and evolving needs of the one in four Americans with disabilities today. Together, we’re empowering people with disabilities, families and communities to be full and equal participants in society. Learn more at: https://www.easterseals.com/southerncal
Join the Inclusion Conversation …
www.DisabilityFilmChallenge.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/DisabilityFilmChallenge
Twitter: https://twitter.com/disabilitychall
IG: https://www.instagram.com/disabilityfilmchallenge/
