Is Disability a Dirty Word in Film & TV?
In the big wide world of diversity, there are many details to navigate on our journey to fully appreciating the different facets of human identity.
Progress is slow, but as we at Cinegirl dive deeper into various intersections of the diverse universe, we are forced to face some of our own unconscious biases and really open up to other peoples lived experiences in this wacky industry. This interview with Deaf & Disabled People in TV’s (DDPTV) Caroline O’Neill is a must-read if you want to know more about the epic things going on behind the scenes with diversity in the disability space.
STATS
20% of the population are disabled.
YET only 8.2% of on-screen talent is disabled and a meagre 5.8% of people who work off-screen (behind the scenes) identify as disabled.
Caroline – where does this huge disparity stem from?
Unfortunately, popular perception of disability and disabled people is rooted in our portrayal in mainstream media; people see it as being vulnerable, broken and in need of help. This isn’t necessarily reflective of the wider disabled community, which is messy and opinionated and fabulous – much like any other community. When I was growing up, I rarely saw deaf people like me within mainstream programming. We did have programmes like the BBC’s See Hear, but I didn’t learn to sign until I went to secondary school, so I didn’t actually see myself represented on-screen. Then of course, there are well-meaning but morally offensive shows, which portray non-disabled people swooping in to help a ‘poor disabled person’. This does nothing to help shake up perceptions of disability.
The disabled people that I know are ballsy characters with attitude and panache. And they are more resilient than you could ever know. At DDPTV we are working really hard to steer people away from wishy-washy depictions of disabled characters and give audiences a more authentic picture of disability, as well as ensuring the off-screen crew mirrors this.
I also believe if we’re to get more disabled professionals in the industry, we need more senior level disabled representation in television. Senior representation is incredibly problematic and we need people to step up, open the door, and leave it open for future generations of disabled talent to follow.
Who are DDPTV?
DDPTV is a Facebook group of over 800 deaf and disabled people who work in TV, from entry level to the upper echelons. I run DDPTV with three other people: Charlie Pheby (Executive Casting Producer), Shari De Silva (Production Manager) and Bryony Arnold (Drama Producer). We have different disabilities and different lived experiences, both personally and professionally. Together we make a formidable foursome.
DDPTV has existed for three years. It was set up by an astonishing campaigner called Benetta Adamson, who does a lot of work in the disability / television space. Benetta felt it would be better for authentic disability campaigners to take ownership, so she handed over the reins to us. Our first action was to remove the non-disabled people from the group and to create a private space where deaf and disabled people could find jobs, schemes, seek advice and peer-to-peer support, and be open about disability related industry issues with no fear of repercussion from non-disabled industry professionals. The group has now gone from a place where people would be complaining at 2am to a very positive and upbeat thriving group full of opportunities. We still whinge – but we’re much more solution-based now!
DDPTV is run on a voluntary basis and is driven by passion and a desire for change. The co-directors are working hard behind the scenes to raise awareness and help change the narrative for deaf and disabled people both on and off screen.
One of our biggest achievements was a survey, Disability by Design: Representation in TV. This will be used to create a disability campaign coming later this year. We partnered up with BECTU, Equity and Bournemouth University, and the data we have gathered will help inform best practice, recruitment, disclosure, and disability discrimination in Film & TV. It should enable us to address core industry issues with fact-based focus and authenticity.
Is it crass to ask what disabilities your co-directors have? Or is it important to help shift negative perceptions our audience may have about what people with disabilities can or can’t achieve?
Never ask someone invasive questions about their disability. It’s up to them if they want to disclose and how much they want to share. I’m very open about being deaf and speaking about how I make the workplace adapt to me, but as someone who has worked in the industry for over twenty years and has had considerable ableism directed at me, it has taken me a long time to get to the point where I feel confident to be straight-up about the adjustments I need.
I would encourage people to look up the social model of disability to help reframe how you think of disabled people. At DDPTV we encourage ‘identity first’ language. We don’t say people with disabilities – we say disabled people.
I don’t think it’s for non-disabled people to decide what disabled people can or cannot do. I’m a deaf woman with no residual hearing and I’m working on a music programme right now. I’ve worked on fast turnaround shows where I’ve been in the edit up to the last minute. Restrictions are usually imposed on us by non-disabled people and their ableist way of thinking. I’d suggest shaking that off and thinking outside of the box.
Access to Work is a government scheme which funds adjustments in the workplace. I work with a team of sign language interpreters and there are no cost repercussions for the companies I work for. Ultimately all I want to do is turn up and work on a brilliant mainstream show, with no questions and no judgements – I just want to do my job!
We do a lot of work with recruiters and talent managers on language, interview questions, job specs, reasonable adjustment, disclosure, and so forth. A lot of this is linked to reassurance on what you can and can’t say and we really believe that if you’re comfortable talking about disability, this creates a safe space where people feel able to disclose. One thing we’re keen to push forward is making the inclusion of questions about reasonable adjustment / access requirements a standard part of emails offering interviews or jobs. You’d be surprised how few companies do this or they have a little disclaimer at the end of the email. We are not an afterthought. Build it into the body of your email and make it standard practice. Make us feel seen and included in the conversation and this will be a small part of a greater culture shift.
Can you name any companies that have been particularly bad / or really good at building diverse teams for their projects?
I have heard some shocking stories over the years and have war stories of my own, but at this stage it does not feel constructive to name and shame. Disability is so far behind and there is a lot of work to do. Right now I feel like the way forward is to educate and be kind and empathic. I know a lot of people won’t agree with me on this, but I really believe that you attract more flies with honey than vinegar. We have a lot of work going on behind the scenes. Awareness has been raised and now people and companies need time and space to evolve and make changes before we can say who is or isn’t doing well.
We are part of the COALITION FOR CHANGE – an industry led committee organised by Adeel Amini of The TV Mindset. The coalition is made up of representatives from all the major broadcasters (BBC, ITV, C4, C5, Viacom and Sky, to mention a few) as well as industry groups like BECTU and PACT. We meet up quarterly to address the pressing issues faced by freelancers in the industry today. This includes, but is not restricted to bullying & harassment, industry training, mental health, and racism.
This July, the Coalition meeting will be focussing on both Race & Disability. DDPTV is taking the lead on disability. We held a sub-committee group meeting consisting of authentic disability leaders from the community to identify what is going wrong and what would be best-practice going forward. We will be presenting this to the broadcasters to hopefully help them shape policies which will ideally trickle down to indies.
“The best creative content will come from an industry that puts people first, celebrates difference and enables us all to thrive.” - Coalition For Change
How do I tap into the Disabled Talent pool?
DDPTV are not an agency, so we don’t manage the talent in our network. We encourage broadcasters, companies and other industry stakeholders to get in touch with us to funnel through jobs, opportunities and schemes. We will also happily partner up with organisations to help them create schemes for disabled people, and we do ask companies about their accessibility before we share things in the group. It’s not a good look if your researcher rocks up on the first day and can’t get past reception…
If you are hoping to tap into our talent pool, it’s important to be mindful about how you word your job specs. For example, ‘must drive’ has become an automatic addition to job descriptions. Being able to drive and owning a car is such a privilege, and it also locks out people from low socio-economic backgrounds. We need to be mindful as an industry of all the extraordinary talent we are excluding.
We are also keen to see flexible working, work-from-home, and job-sharing embraced by the industry. Covid has taught us that this is possible and we need to maintain this going forward.
I’d also love to flag up the amazing Triple C, who also go by the name Disabled Artist Networking Community (DANC). They have literally just launched a talent database where people can go to look for on and off-screen scripted talent. It’s still early days but this is going to be a phenomenal resource and the excuse, “but I don’t know where to find disabled talent” will no longer be valid.
Lastly, please name a few disabled people you know in the industry who inspire you!
I’ve been privileged to meet some absolutely incredible disabled people. The co-directors of DDPTV obviously have a very special place in my heart. Kate Ansell (former BBC commissioner for documentaries and daytime, who now EP’s at Firecrest Films), is also one of my biggest inspirations. She is an extraordinary person with such a dry sense of humour. She cares incredibly deeply and really wants to see change happen and if I need a reality check, she’s the person I go to.
The other person I’d love to mention is The TV Mindset’s Adeel Amini. The TV Mindset was set up in response to the growing mental health crisis in the broadcast industry. I was introduced to Adeel by a mutual friend at the start of the pandemic. After we met, he made sure that access was front and centre of all his TV Mindset sessions. He makes it seem so effortless and we need more people like him in the industry. Adeel constantly challenges me and pushes me to be a better person. When I feel like giving up and throwing in the towel, he is the person I turn to. He’s also a great source of film and television series recommendations, which is always a bonus!
This interview with DDPTV’s Caroline O’Neill was a bit of a revelation. Many of us struggle to talk about disability as much as we struggle to talk about race. But by having honest conversations like this one we are going to get better at talking about it and also become more mindful of the things we can do on our projects to really make a difference. Filmtopia is not just a dream after all.
For news and updates you can connect with DDPTV via Twitter: @DisabledInTV – and on Instagram: @DeafAndDisabledPeopleInTV
