For the second consecutive year, IMDbPro is sponsoring the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge in collaboration with Easterseals Southern California.
The weeklong filmmaking contest gives filmmakers – with and without disabilities – the opportunity to collaborate to tell unique stories that showcase disability in its many forms, inviting aspiring storytellers to creatively write, produce and complete short films.
The challenge will be judged by a wide selection of influential voices within the entertainment industry, including IMDb Founder and CEO Col Needham.
Finalists will be announced on Thursday, April 29, with the virtual Awards Ceremony set to take place on Thursday, May 6, a media release from Easterseals Southern California and IMDb explains.
IMDbPro provides winners with a 1-year membership and the opportunity for their film to be featured in a video playlist on IMDb’s homepage. As in previous years, the winning and finalist films and creators will have the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge listed as an “Award” on their IMDb and IMDbPro name and title pages.
IMDbPro Discover
IMDbPro and Easterseals have hosted sessions with entertainment professionals in the disability community to be sure they are optimizing their IMDb profiles and taking advantage of all available features. For example, IMDbPro empowers entertainment industry professionals with the option to self-identify as a member of the disability community, as part of a suite of tools to manage and showcase their IMDb profile, including selecting their primary images and the credits they are best “known for.”
Additionally, using the new IMDbPro Discover tool (currently available in beta mode for all IMDbPro members), members can find other professionals to hire and collaborate with, including talent who have self-identified as a member of the disability community as well as those who were finalists and winners of the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge. IMDbPro Discover will continue to be optimized based on feedback provided by Easterseals and other professionals in the disability community, the release continues.
“We are so thrilled to continue our work with the IMDbPro team. It is so important to have collaborators like IMDbPro who understand the importance of visibility for underrepresented communities and are taking the necessary steps to highlight those who have not been seen or heard as often as they should. We hope that by utilizing the new IMDbPro Discover tool and other powerful IMDbPro features, creators will be able to more authentically portray the disabled community by hiring the incredibly talented wealth of actors, writers, directors and others who know the experience firsthand.”
— Nic Novicki, founder of the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge
“By making it easier for decision-makers to find talent from the disability community and other under-represented groups, IMDbPro provides opportunities to accelerate the entertainment industry’s push for greater diversity, equity and inclusion. We are pleased to continue collaborating with Easterseals Southern California and are grateful for their ongoing commitment and leadership in supporting entertainment professionals in the disability community.”
— Matt Kumin, Head of IMDbPro
IMDbPro Discover is a new service that empowers members to find people based on a variety of key IMDb data, experience and expertise. The information resource can be used by decision-makers such as casting directors, producers, directors, showrunners, department heads, execs and others hiring a team or building talent and crew lists, and much more. It includes advanced features to customize, export and share lists.
For more information and to become a member, visit IMDbPro.
[Source(s): Easterseals Southern California, IMDbPro; Business Wire]
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