Deaf advocate and actress Millicent Simmonds hosted the Media Access Awards last week, in partnership with non-profit disability service provider Easterseals.
The annual ceremony which was broadcast virtually on ExtraTV.com/MediaAccessAwards and mediaaccessawards.com was founded by Norman Lear and now under the direction of Deborah Calla and Allen Rucker since 2010, honors those in film and television who include characters and disabled actors. The event pays tribute to the individuals, series and films who have redefined the on-screen representation of the disability community, while advancing the representation and employment of people with disabilities in Hollywood.
The winners of the evening were selected by the diversity committees of their professional guilds with awards from the Casting Society of America (ASC), Producers Guild of America (PGA), Screen Actors Guild (FALLING–AFTRA) and Writers Guild of America (WGA).
For the first time, IMDbPro, the essential resource for professionals in the entertainment industry, presented the IMDbPro | Media Access Award for Excellence in Directoring, honoring a creative and revolutionary luminary whose career as a director has left an indelible mark on the entertainment industry and illustrates his commitment to the inclusion of the disabled community. The award, which was presented to John Krasinski of A Quiet Place, builds on IMDbPro’s nearly 20-year history of enabling entertainment professionals to discover and learn more about talents and projects , and on its continued commitment to supporting and working collaboratively with organizations and events that create and celebrate greater diversity, equity and inclusion in the entertainment industry.
This year’s winners include:
IMDbPro | Media Access Award for Excellence in Directing: John Krasinski (A Quiet Place II)
Visionary Award: Selma Blair (Introducing Selma Blair)
Lifetime Achievement Award: Marlee Matlin (CODA)
FALLING–AFTRA: Troy Kotsur (CODA)
FALLING–AFTRA Disability Awareness Award: Zeno Mountain Farm
George Sunga Producers Guild of America Award: Andrea Warren (Luca))
Casting Society of America Award: Deborah Aquila, Lisa Zagoria, Tricia Wood (CODA)
Writers Guild of America West Evan Somers Memorial Award: Ryan O’Connell (SPECIAL)
Acting Christopher Reeve Scholarship: Jamie Nieto (Olympic Double High Jumper)
Viewers were treated to impressive performances by Rex & Friends, a group of autistic and blind musicians and singers led by Rex Lewis-Clack, a musical scholar who was featured on CBS’s 60 Minutes, and by Kinetic Light Company, which creates and occurs at the intersections of handicap, dance and race. Other celebrity appearances include Lauren Ridloff, Jimmy Kimmel, Russell Crowe, Keah Brown, Jim Parsons, Zac Efron, Meredith Scott Lynn, Jacob Tremblay, Wilmer Valderrama, Sian Heder, Shoshannah Stern, Jamie Brewer, Zack Gottsagen, Michael Patrick Thornton and more …
The 2021 Media Access Awards in partnership with Easterseals were sponsored by Platinum sponsors IMDbPro and Friends producer Kevin Bright; Gold Sponsors ViacomCBS, Comcast and NBCUniversal; and Silver Sponsors Bunim / Murray, Sony Pictures, the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, Legendary Films, Woman of Her Word and Disney General Entertainment Services. The 2021 Media Access Awards is a Calla Productions, EP by Deborah Calla and written by Allen Rucker.
