Uploaded June 2024 | Updated September 2026, 40 minutes ago
Joeita speaks to scriptwriter and disabled TV producer Ophira Calof about the Disabled Producers Lab, a new program designed to teach production skills to disabled women and trans creators. This is part 1 of a 2 part series. #disability #filmproduction
Highlights
• Disability Stereotypes - Opening Remarks (00:00)
• Introducing Ophira Calof – Writer, Performer & Facilitator (01:54)
• Cripping the Script (04:00)
• Shifting Our Structures (05:00)
• The Role of the Storyteller (06:51)
• Representation & Disability Narratives (10:18)
• Disabled Producers Lab (12:46)
• Addressing Barriers, Ableism & Broader Structural Issues (19:50)
• Increasing Disability Representation in the TV Landscape (23:07)
• Disabled Producers Lab Application Process (25:17)
• Show Close (27:01)
Guest Bio - ophira.ca
Ophira Calof (pronouns: they/she) is a multi-award winning Disabled writer and performer who is drawn to character driven stories that combine humour and heart while subverting narrative tropes and works to “crip the script,” centring disability knowledge and experience. Their recent credits include One More Time (CBC), Rubble and Crew (Treehouse TV), PUSH (CBC), Shelved (CTV), Dino Dex (Amazon Prime), Welcome Series (Titan1Studios), and their solo show Literally Titanium, which has been featured in both academic and performance spaces as a case study in accessible production.
Ophira is also the creative director for the Accessible Writers’ Lab, a national initiative presented by AMI, RAFFTO and sponsored by the Canada Media Fund and Telefilm, to experiment with what an accessible tv writers’ room might involve. Ophira was the accessibility process lead for AccessCBC, and the curatorial committee lead for the 2022 ReelAbilities Film Festival Toronto. They have taught workshops and provided mentorship internationally on storytelling, writing, music, accessibility and disability narratives, and created the courses Sketch Comedy with Ophira Calof and Crip Storytelling, a series in partnership with Centre of Independent Living Toronto and the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre.
The Disabled Producers Lab is a part-time, online program designed as a space for disabled producers marginalized by gender across Canada including, but not limited to, transgender women, cisgender women, transgender men, non-binary people and many other gender identities.
Up to five participants will enter the lab with a completed short film script (up to 10 minutes or 10 to 11 pages) and be paired with an industry mentor to support them in developing a comprehensive production binder for the film featuring a realistic schedule, budget, accessibility plan and pitch package.
This lab aims to strengthen the skills and knowledge required to be a successful producer and create systemic change within the production industry by fostering an environment where accessibility is at the forefront of production practices, challenging and reshaping industry norms.
For more on the Disabled Producers Lab and for the Application Form: nsi-canada.ca/programs/disabled-producers-lab or email dpl@nsi-canada.ca for more information.
Disability Screen Office: dso-orphe.ca
The Disability Screen Office is a national, not-for-profit organization that works with the Canadian screen industry to eliminate accessibility barriers and foster authentic and meaningful disability representation throughout the sector.
We are excited to help make the Canadian media industry more inclusive, and look forward to amplifying the voices of people with disabilities across the Canadian media landscape.
About The Pulse
On The Pulse, host Joeita Gupta brings us closer to issues impacting the disability community across Canada.
Joeita Gupta has nurtured a life-long dream to work in radio! She's blind, moved to Toronto in 2004 and got her start in radio at CKLN, 88.1 FM in Toronto. A former co-host of AMI-audio's Live from Studio 5, Joeita also works full-time at a nonprofit in Toronto, specializing in housing/tenant rights.
Find Joeita on Twitter: x.com/JoeitaGupta
The Pulse airs weekly on AMI-audio. For more information, visit ami.ca/ThePulse/recent_episodes
About AMI
AMI is a not-for-profit media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians who are blind or partially sighted. Operating three broadcast services, AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English and AMI-télé in French, AMI’s vision is to establish and support a voice for Canadians with disabilities, representing their interests, concerns and values through inclusion, representation, accessible media, reflection, representation and portrayal.
Learn more at AMI.ca
Connect on Twitter @AccessibleMedia
On Instagram @accessiblemediainc
On Facebook at @AccessibleMediaInc
On TikTok @accessiblemediainc
Email feedback@ami.ca
Joeita speaks to scriptwriter and disabled TV producer Ophira Calof about the Disabled Producers Lab, a new program designed to teach production skills to disabled women and trans creators. This is part 1 of a 2 part series. #disability #filmproduction
Highlights
• Disability Stereotypes - Opening Remarks (00:00)
• Introducing Ophira Calof – Writer, Performer & Facilitator (01:54)
• Cripping the Script (04:00)
• Shifting Our Structures (05:00)
• The Role of the Storyteller (06:51)
• Representation & Disability Narratives (10:18)
• Disabled Producers Lab (12:46)
• Addressing Barriers, Ableism & Broader Structural Issues (19:50)
• Increasing Disability Representation in the TV Landscape (23:07)
• Disabled Producers Lab Application Process (25:17)
• Show Close (27:01)
Guest Bio - ophira.ca
Ophira Calof (pronouns: they/she) is a multi-award winning Disabled writer and performer who is drawn to character driven stories that combine humour and heart while subverting narrative tropes and works to “crip the script,” centring disability knowledge and experience. Their recent credits include One More Time (CBC), Rubble and Crew (Treehouse TV), PUSH (CBC), Shelved (CTV), Dino Dex (Amazon Prime), Welcome Series (Titan1Studios), and their solo show Literally Titanium, which has been featured in both academic and performance spaces as a case study in accessible production.
Ophira is also the creative director for the Accessible Writers’ Lab, a national initiative presented by AMI, RAFFTO and sponsored by the Canada Media Fund and Telefilm, to experiment with what an accessible tv writers’ room might involve. Ophira was the accessibility process lead for AccessCBC, and the curatorial committee lead for the 2022 ReelAbilities Film Festival Toronto. They have taught workshops and provided mentorship internationally on storytelling, writing, music, accessibility and disability narratives, and created the courses Sketch Comedy with Ophira Calof and Crip Storytelling, a series in partnership with Centre of Independent Living Toronto and the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre.
The Disabled Producers Lab is a part-time, online program designed as a space for disabled producers marginalized by gender across Canada including, but not limited to, transgender women, cisgender women, transgender men, non-binary people and many other gender identities.
Up to five participants will enter the lab with a completed short film script (up to 10 minutes or 10 to 11 pages) and be paired with an industry mentor to support them in developing a comprehensive production binder for the film featuring a realistic schedule, budget, accessibility plan and pitch package.
This lab aims to strengthen the skills and knowledge required to be a successful producer and create systemic change within the production industry by fostering an environment where accessibility is at the forefront of production practices, challenging and reshaping industry norms.
For more on the Disabled Producers Lab and for the Application Form: nsi-canada.ca/programs/disabled-producers-lab or email dpl@nsi-canada.ca for more information.
Disability Screen Office: dso-orphe.ca
The Disability Screen Office is a national, not-for-profit organization that works with the Canadian screen industry to eliminate accessibility barriers and foster authentic and meaningful disability representation throughout the sector.
We are excited to help make the Canadian media industry more inclusive, and look forward to amplifying the voices of people with disabilities across the Canadian media landscape.
About The Pulse
On The Pulse, host Joeita Gupta brings us closer to issues impacting the disability community across Canada.
Joeita Gupta has nurtured a life-long dream to work in radio! She's blind, moved to Toronto in 2004 and got her start in radio at CKLN, 88.1 FM in Toronto. A former co-host of AMI-audio's Live from Studio 5, Joeita also works full-time at a nonprofit in Toronto, specializing in housing/tenant rights.
Find Joeita on Twitter: x.com/JoeitaGupta
The Pulse airs weekly on AMI-audio. For more information, visit ami.ca/ThePulse/recent_episodes
About AMI
AMI is a not-for-profit media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians who are blind or partially sighted. Operating three broadcast services, AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English and AMI-télé in French, AMI’s vision is to establish and support a voice for Canadians with disabilities, representing their interests, concerns and values through inclusion, representation, accessible media, reflection, representation and portrayal.
Learn more at AMI.ca
Connect on Twitter @AccessibleMedia
On Instagram @accessiblemediainc
On Facebook at @AccessibleMediaInc
On TikTok @accessiblemediainc
Email feedback@ami.ca
