Outlyer Entertainment, the Differently Abled Entertainment Business, to Announce Industry Standard Ambitions at Locarno (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Marta Balaga Outlyer Entertainment, the differently abled entertainment business, is ready to make waves. The company – which forms part of The Outlyer Group, founded by singer and actor Emmanuel Kelly and Tim Lucas Allen in 2022 – is aiming to create an industry accreditation for film productions with the aim of achieving a new industry standard for the minimum level of differently abled cast and crew that are hired per production.Kelly, who will perform at the Locarno Festival, will join its Sunday panel on Disability and Inclusion in the Audiovisual Industry, where he will set out in more detail the standard.

The discussion, moderated by Danielle Turkov and also live streamed on the Festival website, will discuss the experiences of those working in the audiovisual industry with what is generally regarded as a disability, and explore new, enriching possibilities of inclusion.

The company will also be moving into production, commencing work on its first feature film this September, with differently abled talent making up 25% of the crew and over 35% of the cast.Outlyer is also developing its management division, dedicated to representing talent within the music and film industry.“And maybe even wider than that,” Lucas Allen told Variety.

Pointing out that while the company is thinking big, they want their clients to do the same. All the while repeating their mantra, ‘enabling the world, differently.’”“Part of the strategy here is for writers and directors to consider you not because you are disabled, but because you are right for the role.