Easterseals Disability Film Challenge

The 2026 EDFC Awareness Campaign has officially begun! We had a record-breaking 144 films submitted! Support all these awesome #dramedy films by watching, liking, sharing, and commenting. You can view all the films on our Facebook page and YouTube channel. Congrats to all our amazing filmmakers! ID: montage of images from the 2026 dramedy film submissions. #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #eastersealssocal

Wishing long time EDFC participant and supporter Anna Pakman a happy birthday! Her 2026 film BACK TO THE DARK AGES won the BEST AWARENESS award and she discusses how important it was for her to make a film addressing the issue of long-COVID and to “give light to people who feel very much left behind by the world today.” ID: @annatated sits facing the camera wearing a multicolored shirt. B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

This Friday we can’t wait for the theatrical release of BEING HEUMANN! We are encouraging our disability community to show up at the theater to show support for this important film. We’ll be gathering at the Laemmle in NoHo 7 for a watch party of the 1pm show. Purchase your ticekts in advance for that show or wherever it’s showing at a theater near you. We want to make sure to support this movie as it honors Judy Heumann and the leaders of the disablity rights movement who made the right to access possible for us to be included in society. The film directed by oscar-winner @sianheder.director will also be released on @appletv beginning November 13th. Spread the word! ID: @nicnovicki a little person in a black suit speaks to camera from the red carpet of the BEING HEUMANN movie premiere. #edfc2026 #beingheumann #watchparty #laemmlenoho7

Actor Eileen Grubba and talks about the impact the film challenge has had on the industry and getting people with disabilites seen and heard. ID: @EileenGrubba stands in a purple dress while getting interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

AJ Murray, Co-Star and Co-Director of the film WILL YOU CARRY ME says the film challenge gives us a chance "to be in the driver's seat of telling our own stories." ID: AJ sits in his wheelchair wearing a black dress shirt as he gets interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from his film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

Thank you to the MyAbilities Network SoCal @NBCUniversal for hosting a watch party event with our EDFC 2026 winners! We had a blast doing a Q & A with our filmmakers and executives followed by a screening of the films. ID: gallery of screens with people smiling within Microsoft Teams platform. #edfc2026 #easterseals #disabilityfilmchallenge #disabilityinfilm

Actor Sharilyn Vera talks about her expeirnce participating in the film VIVIAN PROBZ and being amongst friends and filmmakers ID: @sharilyn_vera stands in a black dress while getting interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

We had a great time at the 2026 EDFC Winner and Finalists screening at the amazing Newport Beach Film Festival. We got to hear from the festival’s co-founder and CEO Gregg Schwenk about film distribution, had a Q&A with EDFC filmmakers, and watched the films. Congrats to the filmmakers and thanks to NBFF for hosting us! ID: people with and without disabilities pose for a group photo at the theater and @nicnovicki holds up a certificate from @newportbeachfilmfest

Let’s give a huge congratulations to EDFC alumni Jennifer Msumba for winning THREE awards at the 2026 Heartland Film Festival for her film The Fish Don’t Care When It Rains. Jennifer worked hard on this incredible film that began as a short for the film challenge and turned it in to a feature during her time in our Adobe alumni grant program. She’s now the recipient of Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary Feature, Documentary Audience Award and the Richard Propes Award from the Heartland Film Festival. We’re so proud of Jennifer and for the world to see this very important and powerful film. ID: Heartland Film Festival logo and THE FISH DON’T CARE WHEN IT RAINS winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary Feature. Heartland Film Festival logo and THE FISH DON’T CARE WHEN IT RAINS winner of the Documentary Audience Award. Heartland Film Festival logo and THE FISH DON’T CARE WHEN IT RAINS winner of the Richard Propes Award. Jennifer Msumba poses on the red carpet with festival runners and filmmakers at the Heartland Film Festival. @jennifermsumba @fishdontcarefilm @heartlandfilm #EDFCalumni #successstories

Filmmaker Stephanie Castelete-Tyrrell talks about her participation working on the Best Awareness nominated film INTERUPPTIONS and that the EDFC is accessible to disabled filmmakers around the world. ID: Stephanie sits in her wheelchair in a pink sweater facing the camera as B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

Founder and Director of the EDFC Nic Novicki shares his excitement for a record-breaking year of 144 film submissions and the anticipation of announcing the winners at the 13th annual awards ceremony from @sonypictures . ID: @nicnovicki a little person in a black suit, gets interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

Actor Marissa Bode (WICKED) and Best Actor nominee for the film DEAD WIFE MONTAGE loves that the Film Challenge gives disabled filmmakers the confirmation of knowing “that we are talented and we do belong in the entertainment industry.” ID: @marissa_edob sits facing the camera in a light pink shirt and black headphones. B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

It's National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM) and we celebrate the value and talent workers with disabilities contribute to workplaces and the economy. We're so proud of all our Film Challenge participants who are getting jobs in the entertainment industry and making a difference. Check out our 2026 awards show recap and watch the full show on our YouTube channel which highlights some of the best disabled filmmakers in the industry ! ID: recap video of clips from our awards show held at @sonypicturesstudios #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #DisabilityFilm #DisabilityStories #filmmakers #DisabilityRepresentation

We’re thrilled to announce that our 2026 winners and finalists will be screened at this year’s Newport Beach Film Festival on Monday, October 19 at 4:00pm. Tickets are available on the @newportbeachfilmfest website. We look forward to seeing you in Newport Beach where we get to reunite there since our 2026 finalist announcement! ID: Newport Beach Film Festival above a photo of a group of people with and without disabilities at the Lido theater under a marquee that reads “EDFC 2026, FINALIST ANNOUNCEMENT, NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL” the date October 19 @ 4pm overlays the image. #edfc2026 #newportbeachfilmfestival #disabillityfilmchallenge #eastersealssocal

Neurodivergent actor Ana Sharp is starring in the feature Rise And Shine alongside Rachel Bay Jones and Danny Burstein. The cast features a number of disabled actors in pivotal roles including Jordan Walker Ross, Analesa Fisher, and Jordan Nichole Wall. Rise And Shine will screen in AMC Theatres nationwide during National Disability Employment Awareness Month and will be available to stream on Angel soon after. riseandshinefilm.org/ ID: Stills from the film including… 1.Poster art from Rise and Shine film with a young girl with a backpack and her mother two embracing in a doorway to a colorful school theme environment. 2. A young woman talking to a man at a school. 3. Girl dancing with another at a school dance. 4. Close up of Ana sharp wearing glasses. 5. Three girls posing together in prom dresses. #edfcalumni #disabilityrepresentation #disabilityinfilm #riseandshinefilm

Congratulations to EDFC alumni Jennifer Msumba! Her film The Fish Don’t Care When It Rains which won our 2020 Best Film Award has been turned into a feature documentary! She used the Adobe EDFC Grant along with additional grants to complete a feature documentary, which will have its WORLD premiere during the Heartland Film Festival! We can’t wait for the world to see this incredibly impactful and important film! ID: 35th @heartlandfilm October 8-18 above movie poster of @fishdontcarefilm featuring @jennifermsumba looking off into the distance. #edfc2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #filmmaking #autism

Actor Kiersten Kelly (Jurassic Word: Chaos Theory) talks about her experience participating in the film VIVIAN PROBZ and the positive environment of the awards ceremony ID: @kierstenkelly stands in a black dress while getting interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

We’re excited for our 2026 winners and finalists to be screened at this year’s #oscar qualifying Heartland Film Festival on Sunday, October 12 at 7:00pm. Tickets are available on the @heartlandfilm website. Looking forward to seeing you in Indianapolis! ID: image of @heartlandfilm festival logo above a spotlight of Easterseals Disability Film Competition with the date and time #edfc #heartlandfilmfestival #disabillityfilmchallenge #eastersealssocal

Congratulations to Vincent Rutley and Chrissy Marshall, two EDFC winners who were selected from thousands of applicants into the highly competitive Sony Pictures Television Elevate program! Vincent did a fantastic acting job in his role last night and Chrissy was chosen to direct his scene which was screened for an audience of industry executives. We are so proud of our alumni and grateful to our partners at @sonypictures who push for disability representation within the entertainment industry. ID: 1. @chrissymarshall_ @vincentrutley @nicnovicki smile at the camera in front of the Sony Pictures logo at the Elevate Program showcase. @vincentrutley sits in his wheelchair on stage as he gets interviewed at the Elevate Program showcase. 3. @david.radcliff @thetalanderson @chrissymarshall_ @nicnovicki smile together at the camera in front of the ELEVATE Sony program sign. #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #DisabilityFilm #DisabilityStories #DisabilityInclusion

Actor Jo-Marie Lawrence from the Best Film nominee ZIPTIED shares why she participated in the film challenge for a 3rd time and how her community has grown from the experience. ID: @jomarielawrence sits in her wheelchair in a blue floral dress as she gets interviewed at the awards show. B-Roll images from her film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow

Filmmaker Juan Arce from the Best Director and Best Awareness nominated film THE SHOOT was excited to make his film to spotlight actors with disabilities and to bring more awareness about the community to Mexico. ID: Juan sits in a gray shirt facing the camera. B-Roll images from his film and the awards show are interspersed throughout. #EDFCAwards #EDFC2026 #disabilityfilmchallenge #easterseals #awardshow