Comedian Pamela Rae Schuller is relentlessly funny. Her observations on disability, mental illness, dating, family, and past misadventures have led to brutally honest confessions about what it’s like being 4 foot 6 (and a half) and having a whole lot of Tourette Syndrome.
An internationally known disability and mental health advocate and professional stand-up comedian, Pamela’s stories of growing up in a body she had no control over are engaging, powerful, a little bit heart-wrenching, and unapologetically funny.
Marc serves as the Director of both the statewide PAIMI, Protection & Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness, and PATBI, Protection & Advocacy for people with Traumatic Brain Injury Programs at DRNY. He has been with DRNY since 2017, and previously acted as Director of the PAIR Program. Marc has been committed to and practicing civil rights law for over 30 years. He lives and works with his family in Brooklyn.
Gabriel Lomas, Ph.D., is a Professor of Counseling and Director of Counseling Programs at Gallaudet University. During his career, he has won millions of dollars in federal and state grants to train in integrated healthcare and improve trauma and crisis training. Early in his career, he ran a private practice in Texas where he was a contractor with Child Protective Services, the Juvenile Justice system, Adult Probation, and other forensic agencies. He has done extensive work in the field of forensic evaluation and is a popular expert witness in court cases across the nation. Lomas has served as the co-editor for the Journal of the American Deafness and Rehabilitation Association, as well as on the editorial boards of numerous journals in counseling and psychology. He is an editor and contributor of the recently released, “Deaf People in the Criminal Justice System,” released in 2021 by Gallaudet Press.
Lisa Gonzales is the Statewide Deaf Access Specialist with the California Department of Developmental Services. Since joining the state service on July 1st, 2022, Lisa has engaged in advocacy, equity, and equality for individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. Lisa is an experienced leader with years of non-profit management experience, specifically in organizations providing services to deaf adults and children with intellectual and developmental differences. With the Department of Developmental Services serving 16,700 individuals with hearing loss, she is enthusiastic about working with the newly created Deaf Access Specialists in all 21 regional centers in making a positive impact on provisions of services and support by utilizing a whole person-centered approach along with advising executive staff on proposed policy and operational directives to create an equitable service delivery meeting the social, cultural and linguistic needs of the deaf plus community. She has served on various disabilities-related task force committees locally, statewide, and nationwide. Lisa has demonstrated an exceptional ability to assess organization-wide and individual deaf program needs in-depth and craft and implement effective short and long-term strategies to produce transformational changes.
Delbert Whetter, Delbert, a deaf producer born to three generations of deaf family members, is the Chief Operating Officer and Head of Business Affairs for Exodus Film Group. He served as the lead business affairs executive for numerous entertainment and digital content providers for nearly two decades. Delbert has negotiated talent and production agreements including acquisition, development, and film financing arrangements, and licenses of intellectual properties. He has worked on Exodus animated features, IGOR, The Hero of Color City, and Bunyan & Babe, receiving Co-Executive Producer credit on Exodus’ two recent films. Delbert earned his law degree from the George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C., and his MBA from Pepperdine University’s Graziadio School of Business and Management.
Delbert serves as Vice Chair on the Board of Directors of RespectAbility, a national non-profit organization that works with Hollywood to promote inclusion, representation, and authentic portrayals of people with disabilities in media. He also serves on the Disability Advisory Board of SFFILM. He was appointed in 2018 by the City of Santa Monica to serve a four-year term on its Disabilities Commission and currently serves as its Vice Chair.
Dr. Mei Kennedy has experienced navigating the justice system firsthand while supporting her Deaf father, who was incarcerated for seven and half years in a United States federal prison. She is a 3rd-generation Deaf parent and an advocate of a hearing son with autism. With a doctorate degree in Instructional Design for Online Learning. Dr. Kennedy provides strategic consulting services on integrating technology to improve the learning experience for Deaf students. Dr. Kennedy serves on the board of Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc (TDI) and Communication Service for the Deaf (CSD).
Tari Hartman Squire’s EIN SOF Communications is a leading disability-inclusive diversity media, business and disability strategic marketing firm. Since founding Media Access Office (MAO) in 1980, she consulted on hundreds of TV, film, marketing/advertising campaigns for AT&T, Apple, Bank of America, BBDO, CBS, Facebook, Fox Searchlight, Honey Maid, McDonald’s, Mattel, Microsoft, NBCUniversal, Nickelodeon, Spectrum, Universal, and established disability strategic marketing as a genre with its MY LEFT FOOT campaign. Lights! Camera! Access! builds on MAO success to increase employment in front of/behind the camera; improve portrayals across delivery genres, and ensure accessible media. EIN SOF specializes in creating mutually-beneficial strategic alliances with disability community, media, corporations, foundations and universities with its Disability Community Market Research Initiative like The Disability Collection with Verizon Media, Getty Images and National Disability Leadership Alliance creates authentic disability stock photos.
After discrimination in casting during a temporary disability, Squire and other disabled actors spearheaded SAG Committee of Performers with Disabilities. Squire was then hired as MAO Founding Executive Director (liaison between disability community and media industry) to build official casting clearinghouse, insure authentic casting, technical assistance and script consultation, media advocacy and produce Media Access Awards. She co-authored Ruderman TV Challenge issued to 151 TV series and pilots across 39 delivery platforms to audition performers with disabilities; co-authored Making News: How to Get Disability Rights Coverage, advised AP Stylebook on disability-savvy semantics and is conversant in American Sign Language.
Squire and Danny Woodburn are teaming up to produce and direct ADA30 Lead On.
Yesenia Torres, representing member of United Spinal Association.
Was in a car accident 26yrs ago, causing her a Spinal Cord Injury at level C4-5 incomplete. Works at the taxi and limousine commission as the Accessibility outreach Coordinator. Activist and advocate for the disability community, and accessibility in the city. Community Leader, Peer Mentor, Lecturer, Model, Holistic Life coach and Author of the Book ‘’Destined to be Reborn’’.
Studies:
Associates degree in Media Studies, LaGuardia Community College
Bachelor degree in Film Production with a minor in TV and Radio Brooklyn College
Awards:
- Women Make Movies Emerging Documentary Filmmaker Award for Achievement in Documentary, “Broken College’’
- Brooklyn college Film Department award for best Director in Documentary, ‘’Broken College’’
- The Colombian consul handed a certification of appreciation for Community Leadership
Jim LeBrecht recently found fame as the subject of the documentary Crip Camp, which he co-directed and produced with fellow BAFTA Breakthrough, Nicole Newnham, but he has a long history of working in the film industry as a sound designer and mixer.
His career started in the theater when he was the resident sound designer at the internationally renowned Berkeley (California) Repertory Theater for 10 years starting in 1978. He credits his time working on numerous Shakespearean classics over those years as important in his development as what he likes to call himself, a “sound artist.” His imagination and sense of sound as much more than a craft has served him well as he entered the world film. Rising within the ranks of the heady Bay Area post-production community, he honed his skills at Skywalker Ranch and the fabled Saul Zaentz Film Center. Eventually, LeBrecht turned his attention and heart to the extraordinary Bay Area documentary film community. Bringing his strong sense of how story could be supported and elevated with sound, he became a sought-after mixer and sound designer. To this date, he’s mixed well over 180 films for filmmakers all over the US and abroad.
– Bio from BAFTA
