Nonprofit Vet Cassidy Dimon To Lead FWD-Doc: Filmmakers With Disabilities, Org Dedicated To Championing Disabled Media-Makers And Ending Able-ism

deadline.com:

Nonprofit leader Cassidy Dimon, a film industry accessibility and inclusion veteran, has been named the inaugural executive director of FWD-Doc: Filmmakers with Disabilities.

Dimon assumes her role immediately, leading an organization founded in 2020 that describes itself as “a global, intersectional community of over 1200 disabled creators and allies working in media to build a more inclusive, accessible, and equitable entertainment industry.” Dimon takes over from FWD-Doc’s interim director Amanda Upson, who now joins the nonprofit’s board alongside FWD-Doc founders author-filmmaker Day Al-Mohamed, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Jim LeBrecht (Crip Camp), Emmy-winning producer Lindsey Dryden (Unrest, Trans In America) and Emmy-winning filmmaker Alysa Nahmias (Art & Krimes by Krimes, Wildcat), and advising member Kyla Harris, a filmmaker, writer, and activist. “I am beyond excited to join FWD-Doc as its inaugural Executive Director,” Dimon said in a statement. “Having worked alongside the organization since its inception, I have seen first-hand how FWD-Doc drives equity in our field.

I look forward to working with the board to support our organization and its members through this exciting new phase.” Dimon previously served as director of programs & accessibility at Full Spectrum Features, a Chicago-based nonprofit arts organization and independent film company with a mission of “uplifting the stories of women, LGBTQ+, disabled, and BIPOC communities through film production, exhibition, and field-wide initiatives.” She is one of the co-creators of the Film Event Accessibility Scorecard launched in 2022, an initiative created by FWD-Doc in partnership with Film Event Accessibility Working Group. “On behalf of the Board, I