American Masters announced the Visibility, Inclusion and Accessibility (VIA) Initiative, building upon American Masters’ commitment to presenting programming for, by and about disabled communities. The initiative, announced in honor of Disability Employment Awareness Month, will include Renegades, a new digital series about disabled cultural icons; an innovative incubator for disabled filmmakers; and expanded accessibility features for programming distributed by American Masters.
Kitty O’Neil in a racecar made by Ky Michaelson. Image credit: Ky Michaelson.
American Masters has previously enhanced the digital viewing experience of its films Becoming Helen Keller, Renegades Pilot: Kitty O’Neil, Elsa, and Protactile: A Language of Touch with onscreen ASL interpretation and audio description, and created websites designed with D/deaf, blind and DeafBlind audiences in mind. With the VIA Initiative, the series will continue to advance pathways within public media for stories that champion visibility, inclusion and access for all.
The American Masters VIA Incubator aims to provide opportunities for disabled filmmakers in the public media system, with the goal of improving diversity and representation in front of and behind the camera. Working with Coordinating Producer Amanda Upson, currently the Interim Director of FWD-Doc, an organization which champions disabled media-makers, the American Masters team will host multiple convenings starting November 2023 with public media stations and organizations, filmmakers and accessibility experts to guide the creation of the incubator.
In October 2024, American Masters will debut its new digital series Renegades, showcasing the lives of diverse American historical figures with disabilities. Renegades is produced by members of the disability community, including writer/director and series creator Day Al-Mohamed, who served as Director of Disability Policy at the White House, and Series Producer Amanda Upson. Renegades will be executive produced by Charlotte Mangin, who also produced American Masters’ Unladylike2020.
Beginning with the premiere of HOPPER: An American Love Story in early 2024, American Masters will create accessible online versions of each new program and its accompanying trailer, with extended audio description, open captioning and onscreen ASL interpretation.
Major funding for the VIA Initiative is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Additional funding for the VIA Initiative is provided by Anderson Family Charitable Fund, Rosalind P. Walter Foundation, The Marc Haas Foundation, Sue and Edgar Wachenheim III and The Philip and Janice Levin Foundation.
Jelica Nuncio (L) with Rebecca Alexander (R)
“There is a broad and diverse audience hungry for this content,” said Michael Kantor, Executive Producer of American Masters. “Thanks to steadfast support from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and other partners, we look forward to working closely with Day Al-Mohamed and Amanda Upson to expand and deepen our commitment to stories for, by, and about people with disabilities.”