Bus Stop Films is launching a dedicated employment service to connect people with disability to work within the film, TV and media industries.
The business unit, to also focus on employment preparation and training, will be headed by producer and disability support coordinator Sarah-Jane Johnson as general manager.
Part of the founding team at Bus Stop Films, Johnson has helped to produce its projects such as I am Black and Beautiful and Not A Wallflower.
“I am excited to be back on the bus in such a new and exciting role,” she said.
“I am thrilled to combine my experience in both production and employment to open meaningful employment pathways for people with disabilities in the screen industry”.
Bus Stop Employment, which has been funded with support from Westpac and the Snow Foundation, will not only support participants of Bus Stop’s Accessible Film Studies Program, but also the broader disability community.
As part of its work, it will also manage the Inclusive Crewing Project, which the Federal Government has backed with a $448,400 grant. The project supports multiple paid employment opportunities for people with disabilities on a major project that Bus Stop will shoot in 2023.
In addition, it will see the development of department-specific resources for building the confidence of heads of departments to employ people with disabilities on their projects and in their teams. These will focus on nine key areas: director/assistant director; producer; camera; sound; lighting; hair and makeup; production design; wardrobe and costume, and editing and VFX.
The Inclusive Crewing Project is designed to extend the impact of Bus Stop’s Inclusion in Action training and The Inclusive Filmmaking Toolkit.
Yesterday the Screen Diversity and Inclusion Network (SDIN) released screen industry demographic data captured by The Everyone Project that found people living with disability were vastly under-represented in the screen industry. While around 1 in 5 Australians has a disability (SDIN used a population benchmark of 17.7 per cent), they were found to make up only 8.9 per cent of roles on screen and 5.3 per cent of roles behind the camera.
Bus Stop CEO Tracey Corbin-Matchett said it recognised the importance of employment of people with disability in the screen industry.
“Through Bus Stop Employment we’ll offer a professional, inclusive and sustainable service for both people with disability seeking work in the screen industry and for production companies wishing to hire people with disability in their teams and productions.”