They challenge exclusion at every level of our culture, whether that’s by Access Coordinating TV and film productions, training other Access Coordinators through the Screenskills HETV Skills Fund, or defining best practice in the industry as partners of the TV Access Project (TAP).
Why is it important to promote greater diversity and accessibility for those that are learning disabled and autistic talent?
Our community has so many great stories to tell, and so many great experiences to share. But learning disabled and autistic people are often left out of creative conversations because they’re not accessible. This means that our culture is missing stories from and about a huge part of our society.
Promoting greater diversity brings better stories. And if they want to promote great diversity in our sector, they must make our processes more accessible for everyone. If they want to tell stories from all parts of our society, then they need to work accessibly so they can include learning disabled and autistic voices more often.
And when productions are accessible, they work better. Access All Areas company of Associate Artists have made work that’s been described as “A riotous upending of audiences’ preconceptions of disability and neurodivergence” (The Guardian on “Not F**kin’ Sorry”), “Leading the way for diversity in the arts” (Evening Standard), and “An immense achievement, a revelatory watch” (The Telegraph on “Imposter 22”).
How can the Film and HETV community become educated in this area?
The best way to learn about learning disabled and autistic life and work is from learning disabled and autistic people!
Access All Areas’ associate artists co-lead access training and consultancy that can teach you how to make TV and film processes more accessible.
Or you could also watch some of the behind-the-scenes from the programmes they’ve been involved in like “I Used To Be Famous” (Netflix) or “Dinosaur” (BBC). Have a look at our theybsite to see how they might help: www.accessallareasproductions.org.
What are some of the training and programme opportunities on offer?
Access All Areas offers a wide range of training sessions on neurodiversity awareness, accessible production environments, and communication tools like Easy Read - you can read more here.
This year, they ran Access Coordinator training with Triple C, DDPTV, C Talent and Brazen, for the Screenskills HETV Skills Fund - you can read more here.
They also offer a range of support for productions. they work as access coordinators, access consultants, and offer one-on-one support for talent - you can read more here!
How can AD Guild members learn more about your work, and get involved in your
initiatives? Get in touch with our Senior Producer Matt Maltby, on matt@accessallareasproductions.org, or check out our the website!
