The Inevitable Foundation is calling on Hollywood decision makers to hire people with disabilities to ensure more authentic representation in television and film. (Disability Scoop)
New data suggests Hollywood could get a big boost if movies and TV shows paid more attention to how they portray disability.
A survey of more than 1,000 people (half with disabilities and half without) found that 66% of viewers are dissatisfied with the current portrayal of disabilities and mental illness on screen — and these sentiments are influencing people’s decisions about what to watch and which streaming services to subscribe to.
The findings were published this week in a report by the Inevitable Foundation, a nonprofit that works to support writers and filmmakers with disabilities.
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More than a quarter of people surveyed said they thought nearly all portrayals of people with disabilities they had seen in the past year were unnatural, and a similar number said such harmful portrayals would cause them to cancel their streaming services.
Conversely, 20% of survey respondents said they would subscribe to a streaming service and go to more movies if the film featured authentic depictions. Similarly, 40% of viewers said they would be very likely to recommend a movie or show to a friend if it accurately portrayed a disability or mental illness.
According to the report, approximately 20 million U.S. households have at least one person with a disability. The survey also found that people with disabilities are already big consumers of media, with 35% of people with disabilities saying they watch 20 or more hours of television per week, compared to just 25% of people without disabilities.
“People with disabilities are an incredibly loyal and engaged audience that Hollywood has largely neglected to invest in,” said Richie Siegel, co-founder of the Inevitable Foundation. “But given the intense competition for people’s attention and entertainment dollars, the audience and opportunity are too big to ignore. We hope this report shines a light on this opportunity so that people with disabilities can get the entertainment options they deserve.”
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