The Beauty and Benefits of Disability Inclusion

 

When you think of inclusion, how often do you consider disability? I'm Candace Block your host for this episode, and today I'm sitting down with Nas Seren Alka, an award-winning filmmaker with a passion and track record for illuminating too often overlooked and underrepresented voices. Her impressive portfolio spans not only an array of roles, but also varied subjects and subject matters.

Today she's here to discuss with us one of her latest motivations, disability inclusion. Welcome to the podcast, NAS.  Oh, thanks so much for having me. Um, my name is Narine. I use the pronoun, she, her and hers. Um, I'm speaking to you right now from Tongva.

I'm a multi heritage woman. Um, right now I am sitting in a gray chair. I have fitted black pants on with a t-shirt from Thunder Dome Era, Tina Turner printed on the front and, uh, purple and pink colors. Um, I have long brown hair. They're locks. They're very tightly round curl. Um, and those go down past my waist.

Um, I wear septum ring. Um, I have seven identities and six disabilities. The three I talk about the most, um, are my adhd, neuro divergent. Um, I have PTSD and I experience chronic pain every day. Hmm. Thanks for having me. No, of course. Welcome and, uh, to continue that as well cuz I love, uh, I love the way you include all different abilities and people that you know.

I know this is a podcast, um, and we don't have a visual element to it, but it is also great too to bring that in. So, um, I'm coming to you all from, uh, Northern Virginia as well, and I am a, uh, fairly petite, pale and freckled girl with brown hair . Um, so that is, Um, so yeah, I would love to know more about your journey and how you got started into media making and visual  storytelling to begin with.

That's a great question. I, I feel like I've been creating content and media making since I can remember. Uh, my father was an amateur photographer growing up in Kirkuk, Iraq. Um, and he always had a camera on him and he sort of, uh, brought. Tradition into our house. Um, I noticed, you know, manual cameras laying around and I like to tinker when I was a kid, so I generally always had a camera on me, um, and was always sort of playing with photography.

Um, I took photography in school and,  the process of creating an image I realized was so powerful and could reach such a far audience, an audience that I would. Necessarily have the ability  to, to interact with mm-hmm. . Um, that I knew that, you know, content creation was what I wanted to do when I grew up.

 but now, uh, if, if one were to look into everything you do, you have quite a variety of credits to your name, um, from, from roles like in art department to writing, editing, directing, and lots of cinematography.  so how do you feel this width and breadth of experience shapes you as a creator?

And also, do you have a favorite lane that you like to stay in or do you like, uh, still kind of tackling. Of the positions? yes. when it comes to film, I've, I've done pretty much  every single role you can think of because I started out in smaller productions where you had to wear multiple hats.

Mm-hmm. . Um, and that actually made me a better producer when I was a producer a number of years ago. Um, but if you look at my credits now,  I'm mostly.  a cinematographer and I am mostly a director. Mm-hmm. . And, um, that term, staying in the lane is so interesting cause I know  There's definitely a political meeting when you say like, what lane are you staying in?

Because, um, it has to do with socioeconomic backgrounds, it has to do with gender, it has to do with race. Um, and, and many people do not have the option to stay in a lane. Um, the way that, you know, colonial  mm-hmm.  the US is made up. Um, but for me personally, it, I found it very. Useful to know what a PA does.

Mm-hmm. , you know, what a producer does. Um, all of that, my, my art direction, all of that 

Led to a better understanding of how to run a film set and how to build a crew that could all work together seamlessly. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. It does seem that there's a, a, a really nice benefit from kind of having touched on the different roles as well, so that you kind of, you know where, where it's coming from and you can commiserate as well with people.

In those positions, even if you're in a different one on that project. Um, but yeah, it seems like you've been supporting, uh, women for a while, and that's kind of a passion of yours. Uh, just looking at some of the projects you've done, how has, um, that desire to support women helped you choose which projects that you pursue?

I mean, most of the work  that I work on now when I'm considering like putting my energy into a project, it has to be a project that will shift our culture in some way. Um, it has to be content that will help evolve, where we're at, which is, you know, we have so many broken systems mm-hmm.

socially in the States and other countries.  so a lot of. Focuses on racial inequity, gender inequity, disability inequity, religious inequity. Mm-hmm. . Um, and it's intersectional. Um, you know, growing up  I was always asked like, what are you? And people expected one answer back. And the reality is, I'm a multihyphenate.

I've always been, I was born that way. Um, and I always try to choose like the right, the right one identity that would like help me get the job or mm-hmm.  help me get into a social club. Um, and what's so nice now as an adult, as a woman, um, I'm no longer looking through that. Lens of choose one thing.

Mm-hmm.  like, what are you, you're fighting for women's rights. Are you fighting for black and brown women's rights? Well, fighting for both. And they're the same thing actually. Exactly. So let's you can be all things at once. . Exactly. Um, being a multihyphenate shouldn't, you know, like being a, a daughter of, uh, an immigrant, being a daughter of Muslim parents, Being queer, like all of these things do not have to be separate from one another.

Mm-hmm. , they can, they can be in, in one thing. Um, oh, for sure. And I, I mean, as, as we know, most people, if not every single person is not just one thing. They, everyone, uh, does not fit into one tiny little box. Everyone is very multifaceted as well. And so I love that you are, Expanding the world of, of media and everything to, to make sure people are comfortable with not having to choose one like it was in the past.

So much. So I, I really admire what you're doing. like the, the, the, this idea that you're one thing, it's so very limiting. Mm-hmm. , um, and. Me being me in a room, I don't think changes much, but the fact that other people in the room are more curious now mm-hmm. , um, and are actually like pausing and considering like, oh, okay.

What if this part of, if, you know, if you were disabled growing up, how did that impact your lens? Now, now there's like a, there's like an authentic interest mm-hmm. , which is so exciting, right? Yeah. I mean, yeah. People's uniqueness is what makes them interesting. Otherwise, There's nothing, you know, that's, that's what makes things interesting, the differences.

 Um, so what then moments in your personal story, I guess then have helped you? Um, you were starting to talk about your, your personal perspective and direction, um, and it seems like you do that, a lot, but this disability stuff has come up more recently. Is there anything in your personal story that helped you focus onto what you're,  focusing on a lot more now with the disability inclusion as.

Oh, sure. Yeah. I got hit by a car  that, that'll do it. That definitely, um, brought, brought me to fruition, um, in terms of my identity. Um, and it also gave me some insight into how I see and experience the world and, and who I choose on my teams when I'm building out a project. Mm-hmm. , um, the disability community, um, really.

Welcomed me with open arms and let me see, uh, another option in terms of filmmaking.  there was about two years where I was like relearning how to walk and trying to figure out how to be on set because the culture that we've, that we've nurtured over the last hundred years has made a you.

Filmmaking set not accessible. Mm-hmm.  to a lot of people, disabled or not. Um, working a 15 hour day on your feet with very few breaks mm-hmm. , um, is actually like not great for a lot of people's health.  people often don't think of things until it's from their perspective as well. Um, and I love that you are helping remind people that there's more perspectives and lenses out there all the time, and we can all benefit from considering more of them than we currently do. Absolutely. 

Um, not only could we benefit from them, but they're like super interesting. The disability lens is just, a very interesting lens to look through. Um, and you know, most of what we see on television, you know, actors without disabilities play more than 95% of all characters that are portrayed as someone with that disability.

Correct. So if the information that we've received is so narrow because the person playing. The role doesn't understand all the nuances, hasn't lived with that experience. Mm-hmm. , um, then, then how we see disability today has everything to do with how we've seen it on screen.  a lot of the social changes we've seen, uh, start with being able to see it, you know, and that's what's so important about media in general and, and storytelling and filmmaking and all of that as well.

And how much, when you hear stories of people saying how, Wonderful. They feel when they finally see a version of themselves represented. And this is so great to expand into other things cuz there are so many, uh, types of disability and a lot of them are also not even, uh, visible, so that's, that's another thing to consider.

Exactly.  the spectrum of disability is vast. It's there, you know, um, the, the way that the US law defines a disability, and a lot of people don't know this. My friends and family include. , um, it's an impairment that limits one or more life acts like speaking or breathing, learning, walking, uh, or just manual tasks.

Hmm. So if I think about my, the chronic pain from my migraines that I experience, um, you know, So often. Mm-hmm. , that is a disability and a lot of people, we've been sort of programmed to think like only people with a visible disability have a disability. And that's not the case. I think  if more of us understood what the actual definition of disability is, and actually I realize that they themselves identify as someone with a disability.

Mm-hmm. . The way that our systems and structures are designed would be much more universally designed. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. Cuz there's also, I mean, and you might know better, correct me if I'm wrong, but there's, it's about like 15% of the world's population that's living with a disability of some sort. Um, no so much.

So much more. But I mean more than, oh wow. It's 25%. And that, if you think about, so, so women who have been harassed or raped, think about how often. Women who, who are harassed or raped actually come forward. Those numbers. Mm-hmm. . Yeah. And then the women that you know personally, right. Who'd never come forward.

So if you think about those numbers, because of the shame and all the things that are attached to that, because that also is another system that's broken. Mm-hmm. , um, people with disabilities might not even realize that they are someone with a disability. So that number, that one in four number is for people who.

Already know, like, yeah, okay. My asthma limits me from doing certain things. Mm-hmm. , I was disabled for these nine months I was pregnant, or I am disabled because, you know, I have adhd and so my approach to work is so much different than everyone on my team that I have to create ways in which I can function.

ADHD is a disability. Mm, mm-hmm. . Um, but there's so much shame and stigma attached to it. A lot of people don't want to identify, so I would argue the number one in four 25% of the world is actually much larger, and we're all, you know, a lot of people are just trying  to be the best version of themselves, and they don't think that identifying as disabled can.

Make their life better and it can, yeah, they could be af afraid cuz of all the stigma to, to even realize it or to, to report it or accept it or say that they are. Um, what benefits do you see from, uh, coming from people realizing that this is a valuable, underutilized resource of all these people that they might be overlooking if they do say that they have a disability?  disabled people generally are often overlooked, but we know from Nielsen that the disability market is worth well over a trillion dollars.

So if you think about that and, so much of what motivates our film and television industries is money, then that's a, a completely untapped. That has yet to be tapped. Mm-hmm. . Um, and the more people see themselves represented on screen, the more we see direct correlation with laws that protect us.

Mm-hmm.  with systems and mechanisms that are designed for us. So if I was learning to walk again and still welcomed on set, then there would've been mechanisms for me to help me be there. Mm-hmm. . It's not just for people who, who have two legs and walk. Right. That, that, that shouldn't necessarily be the case.

, if one in four people that we know of have disabilities, then one in four people on set should have a disability openly mm-hmm.  and feel like they're supported and welcomed there.  And also, um, when it comes to representing them in, in these,  roles and po I mean, there's behind screen as well, but also in front of screen.

 I personally love it and  I'm sure you also,  do, when, when a role is played by somebody with a disability, like a visual one for example, But the role is not about that disability. Um, I think it's really important to make sure that, you know, characters are shown of all different shape, sizes, abilities, you know, uh, backgrounds.

But it doesn't always have to be that that's the plot point. You know, , it's like you can have someone who is, uh, this particular person and has, you know, one prosthetic limb or something, or, or whatever. And it doesn't have to be a topic. It could just be not talked about as well, just shown exactly. . I love it when that happens in film.

Like, um, you know, Marvel's, Eternals, um,  Lauren Rid Off's, portrayal of Macari had everything to do with her intellect. Um, and her tenacity and her personality, that's what, what drew me to that character.

Mm-hmm. , um, you know, the, the, the lead character in Lady Parts, peacocks, lady parts, um, so much of her disability, um, changed the direction of the narrative, but it wasn't a focus and it. It wasn't actually, um, it didn't need to be talked about because she was just another character in part of a scene with many other characters.

 I think, uh, Hulus, uh, only murders in the building has a character in a wheelchair that they never mentioned that she's in a wheelchair has having to do with anything. You know, it's just, She's just a character. Um, and, uh, yeah, and also going back to, to Marvel too.

It's great to see such big, big, uh, projects get that as well. Cause I know there's also from, um, the Hawkeye show, there was a character, uh, who was also deaf and she had a prosthetic limb. And there was, uh, something I saw recently. Someone really loving seeing, um, roads, uh, wearing leg supports when he was, uh, learning to after he was, um, paralyzed.

And so it's things where it's like, you know, you don't have to make it a topic, but to see somebody wearing that and existing in a, in a meeting is, is great for people that have to deal with that as well. Normalizing disability has everything to do with like removing that stigma mm-hmm.  and removing the, any kind of shame that one might feel, um, if they actually identify that way.

 Are there, um, are there particular, I mean we've just mentioned a few roles here that are, or projects that are more well known. Are there any particular like media makers that you're aware of that are also pushing hard for this disability? I. Absolutely. Um, Tatiana Lee is the first accessibility lead at a major studio.

She's at Apple. Mm-hmm. . Um, and it's her job to make sure  that not only are disabled people included in front of the camera, they're also included behind the camera. Mm-hmm. . Um, and the fact that, you know, this is happening in 2022 is so exciting because she's the. There'll be more. Um, day Mohamed is the first director of disability policy at the White House.

Mm. Um, and her being in the position she is, um, being a woman of color, um, being part of LGBTQ like, like existing in the, in the framework of the White House, means that we have the ability now to finally, Enact some change. Mm-hmm. , um, that will make it more safe for us to exist in all areas of life. 

um, Natalie? Patrice Tucker is the senior accessibility lead at Spotify. She's been making the internet accessible for 20 years. These are all. Women of color trailblazers. . So I'm super excited about that. Yeah. Those are some great news. People should check them out more, learn more  and people should become these advocates and trailblazers as well.

  When people think of inclusion, you're very rarely, unfortunately at this point, uh, thinking about differences that might need to be considered on, on sets and things like that. People just think of, you know, Race, gender, you know, orientation, things like that. Um, so I, I love that this is, uh, a conversation about expanding that as well to include even more. Um, but also with the, with respect to the things of people on set, I'm sure.

That you've understood from personal experience as well and being an advocate in this arena. Um, what are some of the most common concerns that people might have if they're taking on crew or talent that have these different leads? Do you think that they think it might cost more to make these concessions or, or, or adjustments or like maybe put in a ramp or a several separate space or anything?

Honestly, I. That is a misconception. Um, okay. And feel free to use the word disability. Disability is not a bad word. I know there are other words that people feel more comfortable using, but actually using the term disability is covered and protected by our laws. Mm-hmm. . So it's actually a form for me.

It's a form of empowerment to use the word disability. Mm-hmm. . And yeah, there are a lot of misunderstandings when it comes to the, this, this idea of accommodating mm-hmm. . Um, when I worked at nasa, all of the animators, um, worked with the lights off. Um, and that was really, I, I used to have lunch in that room because it was much easier for my eyes to adjust mm-hmm.

and because I was interacting with screens so much. Fluorescent lights actually was a trigger of my migraines. And so trying to work when you have a migraine, I don't know if you've ever had a migraine before, but, um, it's, it's like a, a small elephant like sitting on your head. Um, it's not comfortable and.

 Accommodations can mean something as simple as just turning lights off. Mm-hmm.  and using floor lamps. So if, if you look at that from a cost perspective, what is that? A $20 lamp? Mm-hmm.  and, you know, You actually find out a lot of people that don't even identify as disabled agree and don't want to use systems that don't work for them.

There were a lot of people in that editing and producers room that didn't like the overhead fluorescent lights, and so we just turn them off. Mm-hmm. . So I think when people think about accommodations, For folks that are like scared that it might like send the cost through the roof. It doesn't, if you're thinking about it at the very beginning.

Mm-hmm. . So if you're choosing locations with an elevator, with an accessible bathroom, um, with spaces that are at least, you know, that have four feet of turning radius or that have spaces for a ramp. And  thinking about different departments that actually use ramps. So ramps aren't just utilized by people with wheelchairs.

That's true. Um, curb, curb cuts were created for disabled people, but guess who use curb cuts every day, all day. Everyone. Yeah. Texting was designed for disabled people, but guess who uses texting every day? Exactly. People. So that's really, that's really great to think about as well. Actually, that's wonderful to, to remind people that, you know, we're all gonna benefit from being more inclusive of everyone.

Absolut. . Um, so can you, can you talk to us about a few of the recent projects that you've been working on, um, that you're really proud of? Cause now that you, um, I know you, you have a current sort of like, passion for this disability inclusion and, and, um, bringing awareness to it. Yeah. I mean, being a disabled creator means that by default I'm always creating projects with disability in mind.

The same way I'm always creating projects with gender and race in mind. Mm-hmm. . one of the projects I'm working on  is focusing on a new generation of disabled space explorers.

Um, and, you know, shining a light on the fact that  disabled people have been part of.  NASA's history for the last 62 years. Mm-hmm. . Um, we just finished filming a, uh, zero G flight that included 12 disabled people,  of different disabilities. Mm-hmm. , and proved that it was possible for, for us to exist in that space safely.

Um, that sounds really exciting. I'm very, I'm cur, I'm intrigued. I know. I wanna see it. Totally. Um, NPR was also, on that flight and New York Times also did a little feature on it, so feel free to check those out  if you're curious. And obviously there's more to come. As we are, we are currently filming.

 the name of the project is Star Climbing. Nice. Um, and then another project that I'm working on, um, is called Coding Accessibility. Um, and it focuses on applications that help non-disabled.

People communicate with disabled people. Wonderful. So people that are disabled and either are contributing to the development of the coding or actually creating the code themselves. Mm-hmm. . Um, so that's really exciting. And, and we're, we're focusing on three stories internationally. Um, Oh wow. Yeah. It sounds like you've got some really great projects, uh, in the works.

Um, do you have, uh, any just overarching kind of future goals for pushing out this message of disability? Being a positive force and perspective and, and helping to let people more and more people see that. Um, and are there any particular milestones even that you'd like to,  reach? Like are there any specific indicators of progress in.

Uh, subject that you'd like to see?  I think the more that people realize the shame that is attached to disability is not their own. That it was taught to them that it was programmed. Mm-hmm.  the same way  racism is programmed the same way, um, misogyny is programmed. Um, the more people start to separate from that idea that disability has anything to do with shame, I think.

We'll start to see more people who are already in the public sphere come out and say, Hey, I am disabled. These are all the things I've been able to accomplish with my disability. Um, perhaps we're looking at disability through a lens that is not helpful.  . So I think I'm excited for when that starts to happen more.

and people start to realize that we're a much bigger community and we exist in all face. Of life.  we're your daughters. We are your mothers. We are your teachers. Um, we are your presidents.  Yeah, I was gonna say our current president has not been shy about the fact that he grew up with a stutter.

 And so that's, uh, I, I like that he's making that known to the world cuz there's a lot more people like him. And you can be the president  if you, you know, it's, it's clearly not limiting, uh, it doesn't have to be limiting

Exactly.  I love the work that you are doing. Um, I think it's an absolutely fantastic message. Thank you so much for talking with us today about it. Um, if people wanna learn more about you and your work, where can they find out? Oh, thank you so much for having me. Um, it was a pleasure to speak to you and thanks for making some safe space to, to unpack some of these ideas.

Um, my website is all media storytelling.com, and I'm on, um, ig, uh, Instagram as content director and uh, Twitter as director content. Okay, excellent. We will definitely put all that stuff in the show notes as well so people can get there easily. Um, and thank you so much. I mean, honestly, everyone go check it out and I hope you all think of, uh, inclusion and disability and all of that with,  a new lens as well because as, as you have also said, you have a project even called disability is a beautiful lens and it's true.

It really is . So thank you again so much for joining us. Thank you, Candice.