Film Obsessive
Celebrating 13 years of leadership advocating for disability inclusion in the entertainment industry, the 13th annual Easterseals Disability Film Challenge this year features the genre of “Dramedy.” Officially launched during this year’s Sundance Film Festival by actor, comedian, producer and disability advocate Nic Novicki, the Film Challenge has since its launch in 2013 featured more than 850 short films from nearly every state and from around the globe, including submissions from Austria, Bolivia, Canada, England, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Singapore, Timor-Leste and The Netherlands.
With the competition for this year now complete, each of the 144 entries has been made available to the public for free viewing on the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge YouTube channel. Registered filmmakers are given a span of five days over the designated timeframe to write and produce short films (one-to-five minutes), based on the year’s announced genre, which promote disability inclusion. Submitted films are judged in six award categories: Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Writer, Best Editor and Best Awareness Campaign.
According to the CDC, 25% of U.S. residents, more than 70 million people, have a disability, making it today’s largest minority population. Yet, according to a study released 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.
“Disability inclusion cannot be an afterthought,” said Novicki, who voiced Lego Spider-Man in Columbia Pictures/Sony Pictures Animation’s award-winning film Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and will soon be seen in two upcoming studio features. “True progress in the entertainment industry means ensuring that people with disabilities are part of the conversation at every level. The Easterseals Disability Film Challenge exists to do exactly that. Thanks to sustained industry support, we have been able to elevate new voices, launch remarkable talent, offer year-round learning opportunities and help filmmakers from around the world achieve meaningful success on both sides of the camera. We’re proud to serve as a trusted resource for Hollywood.”
Filmmaker and Challenge contestant Rachel Handler, who wears a prosthetic leg, became an amputee after a tragic car accident in 2012. Her short film “Work Trip” is her 10th entry in the Challenge: “When this year’s Disability Film Challenge was announced, I immediately knew I wanted to give my cast and crew the extra ‘challenge’ of shooting the whole film in one take, as a oner. I come from a theatre background, and my co-star, Pavar Snipe, is a standup comedian, so filming a oner felt like a no brainer! It’s what we’ve trained our whole lives to do.”
As a director, producer, and writer, Handler has won numerous awards, including the AT&T Underrepresented Filmmaker Award, Best Writer, Best Awareness, and Best Actor in the Disability Film Challenge, and Best International Film in Focus on Ability. “My entire cast and crew believe deeply in the power of stories to create social change and are passionate about healthcare and human rights, particularly within the disabled community.”
Previous Film Challenge winners and participants have gone on to land roles or direct segments of such popular films and TV shows as The Accountant 2, The Pitt, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Freakier Friday, Pulse, New Amsterdam, Superstore, The Good Doctor, Loudermilk, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, The Handmaid’s Tale, Marry Me, Moxie, Special, Good Trouble, Curb Your Enthusiasm, One Day at a Time, Dollface, So Help Me Todd, NCIS: Origins, NCIS: Hawai’i, NCIS: New Orleans, Dragons: The Nine Realms, Pupstruction, Not Quite Narwhal, Interview With the Vampire, Best Foot Forward, As We See It, Growing Up and Lucky Hank, among others.
Additionally, Challenge films have gone on to win awards at an array of other film festivals; participants have earned accolades and grants from prestigious organizations around the world (including admission to the Sony Pictures Television Diverse Directors Program and being presented the AT&T Underrepresented Award), given Ted Talks; and lectured about the experience at Harvard.
Film Challenge winners receive invaluable access to entertainment leaders and resources, opening the door to an industry notoriously difficult to enter and a variety of prizes to help them achieve their career goals, including:
- $2,000 cash prize awards to each winner.
- Dell Technologies computers.
- One-year IMDbPro Premium Membership, the essential resource for entertainment industry professionals.
- Screenings at Academy Award-qualifying festivals, including the Heartland Film Festival and HollyShorts Film Festival.
- Mentorship meetings with entertainment industry executives and talent, including Academy Award-winning filmmakers Phil Lord and Chris Miller (Project Hail Mary, Spider-Man™: Into the Spider-Verse, the Lego movies, 21/22 Jump Street), Sean Berney, Director of Film, Netflix; Film; Steven O’Dell, President of International Marketing & Distribution for Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group; Karen Noble, Director, Filmmaker & Content Strategies, Universal Film; Robert Baltazar, VP, TV Programming Inclusion for NBCU LAUNCH; Tiffany Smith-Anoa’i, Executive Vice President, Content Engagement, Partnerships & Strategy, CBS; and others to be announced.
The 2026 Film Challenge will be judged by a diverse group of influential entertainment industry talent, including: Nicole Castro, Managing Director, Hollyshorts Film Festival; director Kat Coiro (She Hulk, Dead to Me, Marry Me); Jerome Core, Head of Inclusive Content, Amazon MGM Studios & Prime Video; Col Needham, Founder & Executive Chair of IMDb; director and activist Jenni Gold (CinemAbility: The Art of Inclusion); Tim Gray, Executive Vice President of the Golden Globes; Stacey Wilson Hunt, Contributing Editor, The Hollywood Reporter; filmmaker and activist Jim LeBrecht (Crip Cramp, Battlefield Earth, Pitch Black); 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; journalist Lindzi Scharf (Los Angeles Times, Entertainment Weekly, WWD); Film Independent Nominations Director Jennifer Wilson; actor and comedian Danny Woodburn (Mirror Mirror, Jingle All the Way, Seinfeld); director Sheridan O’Donnell (Little Brother, Rising Phoenix: A New Revolution); writer and casting director Eric Ian Goldberg, and others to be announced.
The awards ceremony for the 13th Easterseals Disability Film Challenge will be held May 7. 2026 at Sony Pictures Studios.
