Bus Stop Films launches the first Driving Change Summit
Announcing a bus load of speakers for the first Driving Change Summit, Bus Stop Films, the worldwide leader in inclusive filmmaking and advocacy for the employment of persons with disabilities in the screen business, is delighted.
Held over two days on Monday, 18 and Tuesday, 19 November, the summit will gather the disability and advertising, content production, and broadcasting domains to investigate the employment of people with disabilities across the screen industry, on both sides of the camera and above and below the queue.
The Summit will honour and celebrate the individuals and ideas behind policy, production, attitude, and narrative surrounding disability that drive progress.
The Summit, which will take place at Bondi Pavilion and is sponsored by ABC, Netflix, and Screen NSW, will include panels, foreign and local keynote speakers, and in-depth discussions addressing important industry challenges. Important speakers will emphasise the need for change in the sector, and the Driving Change Summit will foster more opportunities in the business by fostering an open debate and connecting creatives with legislators.
Internationally known disability activist Keely Cat-Wells, Founder and CEO of Making Space, will deliver a keynote lecture examining her work in challenging Hollywood employment rules and practices.
The following individuals have been revealed as speakers: the Hon Amanda Rishworth, Minister for Social Services; Leigh Sales AM, Australia’s most renowned interviewer; Dana Cadden, Global Head of Advertising Production at Unilever; Lisa Cox, inaugural Disability Affairs Officer at Media Diversity Australia, marketing consultant, and disability advocate; Louise Yates, a performer and the first individual with an impairment to appear frequently on Australian television; and Nas Campanella, the ABC’s National Disability Affairs reporter.
After its SXSW (USA) debut, the Summit will also show a sneak glimpse of the feature film Audrey, featuring novelist, playwright, and disability activist Hannah Diviney. Along with Michael Wrenn, Audrey’s producer, and General Manager of Job Access, Daniel Valiente-Riedl, Diviney will travel the path that resulted in her securing the position and the assistance provided to the production via Job Access, the federal government’s principal disability employment agency.
The commencement of the project delighted Tracey Corbin-Matchett, OAM, CEO of Bus Stop Films. She stressed the great collaboration among the many Australian film and advertising industries to respect the handicap community and look at methods in which these sectors may grow in terms of disability employment.
According to Corbin-Matchett, content is a main driver of change; the Summit intends to demonstrate how utilising deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent individuals can produce positive human rights, creative ideas, and financial outcomes. Appropriately dubbed “Driving Change,” she asked politicians, companies, artists, and officials to participate.
Hosted in association with Screen NSW, ABC, and Netflix, Bus Stop Films have also teamed with Unilever, a firm that is one of the world’s largest marketers and content creators.
Long supporting inclusive marketing to represent its varied customer base both in front of and behind the camera, Dana Cadden, Global Head of Advertising Production at Unilever, said Cadden pointed out that Unilever’s Inclusive Set Commitment and Playbook have helped them to see how diversity, equality, and inclusion enhance their works. She noted that increased representation and range of opinions and abilities behind the camera translate into stronger on-screen presence.
While Cadden stated there is always more to learn, production sets would provide incredible opportunities for people with disabilities and help the industry with their unique ideas and creativity.
MC’d by stand-up comic and disability representative Madeleine Stewart and body acceptance supporter April Helene-Horton (The Bodzilla), the Summit will explore a diverse array of topics, such as First Nations and Disability, Deaf Community and Culture, Casting and Disability, and Disability and Advertising, among others.
Under the programme guided by the intersectionality of the many advisory committees, it promises to be an educational event that will support ideas and change while honouring people making progress in the field.
The Driving Change Summit is scheduled to take place at Bondi Pavilion on November 18, 2024, both on Monday and Tuesday. The Welcome Reception, hosted by The Depot, Bondi Beach, on Sunday, November 17 at the North Bondi Surf Club, is included with all in-person tickets.
