— I think something that specifically stands out to me across the many individual points that Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick make in this article is the fact that considering disability in Film & Media Studies should never simply be reduced to demonstrating “our inclusivity,” but it should be “a fundamental turn away from normate media studies” (144). Considering disability in this field is so much more than just including it, but also decentering what is understood as normal bodies. This goes for everything on-camera and behind it. In the “Everyone Needs Access” portion of the article, Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick go further into how considering disability “can inform deeper analyses of the relationships among media content, interfaces, bodies, and circumstances that characterize any experience of media usage, production, or engagement.” I find this portion especially fascinating because it delves deeper into the consumers of media as well, thus placing a large focus on the idea of access in every sense of the word and how it can relate to Film & Media Studies. I, myself, have never even considered how disability could inform the way someone could be consuming media or, in the specific example of the article, watching TV, highlighting “normal” viewing positions and how there could be other ways of accessing media in this particular form.

Prompt #3 (Why is representation important for disabled people and other marginalized groups?):

— Representation of disability and other marginalized groups in art and media is especially important because of the fact that it simply forces people to take a closer look at numerous aspect of humanity and society as a greater whole through a much more diverse and nuanced lens. In Garland-Thomson’s “Disability and Representation” on page 523, she makes it clear that “Representation structures rather than reflects reality. The way we imagine disability through images and narratives determines the shape of the material world, the distribution of resources, our relationships with one another, and our sense of ourselves.” Part of what I love about art in all its various forms and why I create things myself is because of how confrontational it can be. If in the right hands, someone can say something truly profound and striking about quite literally anything in relation to representing minorities and/or many, many other issues. Representing marginalized groups is one thing, but it’s also important to consider how they’re being represented as well. As Garland-Thomson says, representation doesn’t necessarily reflect reality. There are tons of examples of awful representation in media out in the world, but despite that, representation is still incredibly necessary because it, at the very least, acknowledges minorities and gives them a space to be seen and/or heard. Without representation, it’s easier for them to get swept under the rug.

 523) which brings light to the issue that cultural expectations play a role in shaping self understanding and relationships. The way disability is represented in images, narratives or media determines how people are treated and what opportunities they have and even how they see themselves. If disability is seen as some type of tragic or horrific thing, society will continue to act in ways that can be seen as expulsion. However, if we were able to start looking at disability as a normal or even creative thing then it will start opening more space for equality. This can be see in through examples provided from public image. For example, a 19^th century blind pianist known named Thomas Greene Wiggins was never really recognized as an American composer during his time but with knowledge and changes found today about civil rights and disability rights, this helped develop his name from “Blind Tom” into a true  “American Composer” "( Garland-Thomson, 523). This example demonstrates how new representations can shift cultural meanings. By reimagining disability as valuable, society resists exclusionary frameworks and affirms variation as s part of human life. This work makes space for disabled people in art, politics, and everyday culture, moving beyond cure or shame toward inclusion.

2. Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick talk about how disability must be treated as a central analytic category in film and media studies. They emphasize that disability is “not the ontology of impairment” but “a primary way of signifying relationships of power” (Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick, 140). Put differently, disability operates like race, gender and class. It structures who counts as “normal” and who is marked as “different.” and ignoring it leaves media scholarship incomplete. The majority of the world which is seen as able bodied see those who are not able bodied as abnormal. This framework shapes everything from which characters appear on screen, to how stories are told, to who gets hired in the industry. By centering disability, scholars can question these assumptions and uncover how film and television often reinforce stigmas. Another thing worth mentioning is the important of access to those with disabilities. Decisions about which devices to design, which platforms to caption or which audiences to imagine reflect broader cultural values about whose participation matters. By recognizing these dynamics in film and media, scholars can see disability not as a niche issue but as central to understanding how media works for everyone. In this way, disability highlights that all audiences engage with media differently, and that equitable access benefits the entire field.

In the article Disability and Representation, the author Rosemarie Garland-Thomson tries to make people start to reimagine disability. The article started by giving us examples of how disabilities have started making their presence known in society today. For example, as stated in the article, a Deaf Miss America reigned, the FDR Memorial in Washington, DC, got a new statue of Roosevelt using his wheelchair, and Barbie came out as a wheelchair user. The article even stated well-known movies that have all won Oscars that have a main character with a disability, like “Shine, Born on the Fourth of July, A Beautiful Mind, Finding Nemo, and Million Dollar Baby.” But the question to ask yourself, is back in the day what does a disability mean to society? It seems like a disability was labeled as a charity case, someone who was helpless and would not make it in the world without major help. A big example of this is Veterans who sacrificed their lives and came back as an amputee. Most of the time they left their homes with a job and unfortunately after the tragedy they would come back and lose their jobs because they are deemed incapable of performing the work as an able-bodied person. But this article tries to make you reimagine what a disability means. The author wants the readers to make disabilities seem as a form of diversity rather than a defect or tragedy. The article ends by stating “In the last ten years, disability studies has become a major field of academic study. Many people are responsible for this happening?People with disabilities, family members and partners, activists and supporters.” Which shows just how far society has come. 

Representation is important with disabilities because most people are unaware of what some people are going through. A great example of this is a real instagram that I watched. It had nurses that would often work with older people who have trouble moving like what they used to. So to help them better understand they had a suit that they would put on that would restrict their movements. To show them how much the elderly range of motion has been restricted. This exercise would help the nurses realize what the elderly patients were going through. It would spread awareness so that if they would ever get frustrated because the patient couldn’t do something easily then they can look back on this exercise. But sometimes it is too hard to understand what a person may be going through. Something that stood out to me was in the article Studying Disability for a Better Cinema and Media Studies. It stated that “when nondisabled actors play (and commonly win awards for playing) disabled characters, it limits opportunities for disabled actors and affects the work in a range of problematic ways (analogous to nontrans* actors playing trans* characters).” This point makes me think about how when this happens we do not get a true insight of what the disability they are portraying affects a person. But if it is an actor with the actual disability the viewer will get to grasp the plot of the movie and what the character is facing. 

Prompt #3 – Representation is incredibly important and vital for disabled people and other marginalized groups because it helps it become something to be proud of, and to be respected instead of something to get pity for, and to make other people feel shame for having. As a little girl, my favorite characters in books, movies, or dolls would always be the character that looked like me, sounded or acted like me. Going through the isles at the toy store I was able to find plenty of pale brown-haired dolls across the store. But thinking back in my memory, it was difficult to find one of a different skin color, or with an amputated leg, or even a wheelchair. Most girls want a doll that looks like them, and off they cannot find one, it perpetuates the image that they are made wrong and spreading that ideology around until they might face bullying because they look different from other girls. A common trope I haveI have noticed with disabled character in media is they are used as expendable representation. They serve the purpose of representation, just to leave the series early on, be used as comedic relief, or die tragically as a plot point. Sitting here writing this, I cannot think of more than 5 (5 being a stretch) where a main character is disabled and it is not seen as their entire plot, arc or story, and instead as something just accepted as part of their character, enabling them to have a story completely unrelated to their disability. The only character that comes to mind is Peeta Mellark from The Hunger Games, but the second the movies came out, they scrapped that plot point of his, therefore losing the significance it had, and is now forgotten by most fans. It is disappointing to see, especially since this narrative that the thing that is different about them is the only thing that is relevant to their character, such as token black characters, or the typical gay best friend. It makes the entire point of included diverse character seem like an afterthought, or something not important, thrown in there for the sake of saying that they had diverse characters in the show. Showing that disability does not make these characters less, just something a part of them, along with their brown eyes or tan skin, can revolutionize the way the entire world views disability. As Ellcessor Kirkpatrick said in their article, “ We are not simply looking for ‘The cripple in the text’, we are interrogating the dynamics of power and normalization that produce certain kinds of bodies, sensoriums, and cognitives as ‘able, normal, better’, and others as ‘disabled, abnormal, worse’”. This shows that even the language used to describe characters in media can reveal how the authors feel about the character, or the minority they are representing at the time, showing bias they might not even realize, making true and honest representation more important.

2.     It is necessary and important to consider disability is Film and Media Studies, because the disability perspective isn’t just about representation, it is about rethinking the stories that are told, the writers and the actors being hired for films, and the politics about accessibility and representation (p. 140). The reading highlights a few different ways on why disability is important in Film & Media Studies, the first one is that disability is everywhere. When students start to view disability as a category for analysis, then there will be more positive insights into film and media (p. 141). Disability also offers new objects of study, the authors give us an example of disability perspectives can help lead to the thoughts of medical media, and diagnostic media, that can explore how things are done medically and also how diagnosing people works (p. 143). Also, they have invented things like closed-captioning, audiobooks, and other ways that disabled audiences can enjoy films and media (p. 143). When we open our minds to start studying disability more often, we make it known to students with disabilities there is a place for them in the field being studied, and make it know that we are trying to understand and create more things that are inclusive for disabled people.

According to Rosemarie Garland - Thompson’s article people with disabilities make up the biggest minority group in the U.S. which is about 20% of the population. She also said this group is growing due to aging baby boomers. She referenced that “According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 11% of college undergraduates reported having a sensory, mobility, or other disability.” This is a big portion of our society. In the past most people with disabilities did not actively participate in society.They were kept at home or placed in nursing homes. This is not the case now-a-days. People with disabilities are represented in movies, advertisements, television shows, and in theater. There are also more people with disabilities entering the workforce. Because people who have disabilities are now more out in the open people are more accepting and have become bigger advocates for helping them and making sure they are represented positively. She talks about the importance of recognizing their accomplishments instead of focusing on their disabilities or weakness. One example of this was the composer Thomas Greene Wiggins who was commonly known as “Blind Tom” most people did not know him by his formal name. Garland - Thompson emphasized how important disability studies is because it helps focus on people as individuals and not on their disabilities. Because people with disabilities are more present the social stigma is not as common. The author referenced how the media has helped make people with disabilities more inspirational and not just pathetic.

Why is representation important for disabled people and other marginalized groups? 

In my opinion it is important for everyone to feel represented. Just because someone is different because of a disability, their race, gender, religion, or socioeconomic status does not mean that they should be thought less of because of their differences. Today people are more inclusive and are represented more in the media and other outlets. For example there are now advertisements featuring people with disabilities. There are TV shows featuring gay couples and minority families. This was not the case many years ago. Because of this these minority groups now see themselves represented in movies and tv shows. This helps them feel represented and gives them something to relate to and helps empower them. It also makes other people see that people who are different are still people with feelings and are similar to the majority in a lot of ways. Teaching people about differences helps create understanding and allows people to see things from a different perspective. The more people with disabilities are featured in movies and the media. The more people will see their true abilities. Awareness of disabilities helps people have new perspectives. This is also the case with other groups like African Americans, and the LGBTQ populations. Many companies are also making the work place more inclusive by providing more adaptive technologies. All of this things will help minorities feel more confident and comfortable and will help with independence and success.

Kenzie Riley

According to Rosemarie Garland-Thomson, how does reimagining disability perform important cultural work?

Based on the article written by Rosemarie Garland-Thomson, reimagining disability performs important cultural work by allowing us to further explore the key differences among people and the feeling of being accepted into society. Thomson states “Our society emphatically denies vulnerability, contingency, and mortality” We must understand that as a society, we have to be welcoming in our communities by viewing disabilities as a significant aspect of life and accepting people for who they are, instead of what they look like. Having access to resources of literature, art, media, and fashion grants is a privilege to our society that allows us to have a deeper understanding of how to define a disability. Throughout the article Thomson provides examples which include; “Disability permeates our national culture and conversation. A Deaf Miss America reigned; Superman became quadriplegic; Barbie came out as a wheelchair user.” These resources are key to sharing the experiences of those diagnosed, promoting that they are just as important and meaningful as everyone else. As a community we need to shift the stereotypes of disability and recognize that we are all creative in our own unique ways and everyone is equally important. No one should ever feel unworthy.

Why is it necessary and important to consider disability in Film & Media Studies, as discussed by Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick?

Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick state that it is both necessary and important to learn about disabilities in Film and Media Studies, as it gives us the knowledge and courage to understand that society labels people with disabilities instead of taking their personality into consideration. The media is an essential problem, as it makes the characters seem portrayed as normal. People have begun to study disabilities further and it has shown throughout the article that these expectations are challenged. If we do our part, we can create more movies that feature disabled characters as the key element. Having a disability should not be considered rare or separate from our world, as we see films featuring disabilities as depiction of the characters specification or ability. Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick state “Disability raises fascinating new questions, offers intellectually and compelling new perspectives, and reveals exciting new insights about media and society.” The workplace of media is still excluding people with disabilities, whether that be hiring, casting, or production. The viewing of disability studies shows that we need to make change, and that change is hiring people with disabilities because everyone matters and is special in their own unique ways. Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick state “But our work is not done, and disability is an important new frontier. For example, when non-disabled actors play (and commonly win awards for playing) disabled characters, it limits opportunities for disabled actors and affects the work in a range of problematic ways.”

Rosemarie Garland-Thomson explains why reimagining disability performs important cultural work by listing three points. Firstly, disability is a human experience. Everyone will encounter disability in some way. Secondly, knowing that it is a human experience we can accept that it is. Lastly, accepting and knowing that disability is a part of a human experience then we can accept that as our culture and history and not as something different or separate (p. 524). Rosemarie Garland-Thomson gives examples that explain how reimagining disability can perform important cultural work, for example, the story about Monet and Close, whose disabilities shaped the way they created their art. Their disabilities did not change them in a negative way or as an obstacle that they had to overcome, but as an “artistic evolution” in their case (p.523-524). Another example given of reimagining disability are two New York Times magazine covers. One cover captured model Matushka, and another cover captured Harriet McBryde Johnson (p.526). Both covers represent disability as real and valued, not someone who wants to be cured, different, or looking for normalcy. Rosemarie Garland-Thomson also discusses Nancy Eiesland argument that real social change can only happen if we shift the way we portray disability (p. 525). Disability is not something negative and reimagining disability can perform cultural work as it can help include those with disabilities and correctly represent them.

Why is representation important for disabled people and other marginalized groups? 

Representation is important for disabled people and other marginalized groups because it affects how society sees them, how they see themselves, and if they feel included. In many instances, these marginalized groups are shown in movies or media through stereotypes, or sometimes they are left out completely. This kind of misrepresentation can cause harm and continue certain sterotypes. On the other hand, positive and correct representation can challenge these problems and create change. For example, Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick explain that including a disability perspective in film, media, and industries is necessary. When non-disabled actors play disabled characters, it not only shows disability in the wrong way or create something problematic but also takes away acting jobs from disabled people who could have these opportunities (p.143). By giving these opportunities to disabled actors new and more meaningful stories can be shared. Additionally, Rosemarie Garland-Thomson points out that rethinking disability through representation does important cultural work. It shows that disability is a normal and natural part of human life, not something different or wrong. Reimagining helps society accept disability as part of everyday life (p. 524). Overall, positive representation helps people feel like they belong, encourages social change, and can make society more inclusive/understanding.

Reimagining disability perform important cultural work because it shows how disability is more than the stigmas and stereotypes that the world believes about them. Growing up, we are grown to believe that disability is a tragedy, rare, and gross. This is portrayed through our society and how we view disability through the media. If we can shape people’s minds into the lies about disability through media, we can shape people’s minds into the reality of disability. “First, it shows disability as a significant human experience that occurs in every society, every family, and most every life” (Garland-Thomson, 2021). With this reimagining, society can do better. It is not the disability that inhibits people, it is the way our world and society have been brought up. A great example Garland-Thomson mentioned, is how sometimes there is only stairs as an option to get into a building as opposed to a ramp. That person was able to get themselves to the building, but now are unable to gain access to the building because there is no accommodation. Even when talking about people with disabilities, we for some reason always must mention that they are so-and-so with something. They can never just be their name or title; the disability always must follow. While it is inspiring to others to know who they can relate to, it also can be demoralizing to their self worth if all they are known for is their disability instead of what they are great at. By doing and installing all of these simple things, we can reimagine disability so it can finally become un-tragic, finally learned as the majority, and beautiful (as everyone and everything has beauty).    

 2. Why is it necessary and important to consider disability in Film & Media Studies, as discussed by Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick?

It is extremely important to consider disability in Film and Media Studies. Disability is the biggest minority group and is the only one that we can join at any point in your life. It is also widely seen in movies, tv-shows, and other media. Whether it be mental-health, physical, and/or cognitive/intellectual disability. When we are studying Film and Media, standing for and accurately portraying these things are important. It is part of how we shape society’s minds about disability. “Awareness of disability and the technologies, dedicated distribution and exhibition channels, and grassroots ameans by which people have engaged with media opens up new histories and new perspectives from which to consider canonical versions of film and media studies” (Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick, 2019). An important thing to note when studying and producing films and media with disabilities, it has to be accurate. Doing correct research and gaining feedback from the disability community is important. You cannot complete a project about disability without consulting with people with disabilities. Another huge factor that needs to be added with Film and Media study, is that you hire people who have these actual disabilities if possible. There are plenty of actors/actresses that have wide ranges of disabilities that would love and need to play those roles. Getting the most exact representation of disability in films and media is the only way that we can progress as a society.

Trying to comprehend context throughout this designated reading I found myself engaged with the text more then I thought. The key factors behind why encouraging disability in films should be normalized and not a study or research project. Learning first hand experience and watching be taken from an idea to a cutting edge production. Encouraging our world not only focus on romantic or comedic movies but real feel, life changing films and that would happen with disability and mental illness films being normal. Not only is it important to designated social group that they are recognized but as well to their families. The self satisfaction to show media the real experiences individuals face or seeing a day in their life through tik tok, snapchat, or youtube. This specific audience having a social media platform to be seen and heard by their peers and friends. Even though some experiences are not pleasant to see and it can be frustrating and irritating there’s a light at the end of the tunnel to see the hard working mindset behind individuals. With an opportunity to visually see an experience of someone life as disabled or challenged in physical ways, it is an outlet for a different perspective on life. Expanding this genre of film “has so much to offer each other and much to contribute” (pg 7.) onto the screen.

3. Why is representation important for disabled people and other marginalized groups? 

Not to make them feel normal/ included but to feel seen and they are not opposite from anyone. They are not a negative presence or social group, that our society makes them out to be. Films do not need to be someone in wheelchair or have a physical disability but the everyday life of someone with Down syndrome and seeing a day in their shoes on film has a positive or warm feeling film. Representing disabled people is relevant to our lives now a days and we need to normalize it as a community so they are shared with the world. Create a safe space in films that this designated group of people can be seen as role models on how they take on their day or all of the negative allegations they have to face or stereotyped about themselves. Influence a positive feedback not only negative, and through representation of films and social media we have the power to change the stereotype. Allow for people to see them as powerful compared to week. Their social group is striving in the world compared today and we need to let their success be seen.

According to the reading, Rosemarie Garland-Thomson talks about how disability studies also helps to highlight the accomplishments of people of color who were also discounted for their appearance and cultural bias as well as disability. Garland-Thompson also mentions how the narrative of disability is changing from a medical disorder to a more inclusive word. It is also mentioned how the ideal body in societal norms is considered abled but also white, skinny and pretty for women. Representation of disabilities started to appear in magazines, for example a women with mastectomy scars appeared on the New York Times which was viewed as grotesque by some but still spread awareness and forced the audience to except that everyone is different and has different circumstances. Another example of reimagining disability on cultural norms is the American composer formerly known as “Blind Tom”. Due to the civil rights movement and disability rights movement the blind singer known as “Blind Tom” was now known as his real names Thomas Greene Wiggins which is far more respectful and changed how he was viewed in history. In concluded the reimagining of disability also directly affected the cultural bias’ of people of color.

Why is it necessary and important to consider disability in Film & Media Studies, as discussed by Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick? In “Studying Disability for a Better Cinema and Media Studies” (2019), Elizabeth Ellcessor and Bill Kirkpatrick argue that disability must be considered as a central category in film and media studies because it both enriches scholarship and advances ethical commitments within the field. Disability is not a frequently discussed topic, but it appears persistently in film, television, and other media, whether through stereotypical characters, metaphors of impairment, or stories of cure and overcoming. Reading/watching these representations reveals the cultural values and power dynamics that shape ideas about bodies, productivity, and belonging, much like studying race, gender, or sexuality does. Incorporating disability also complicates and expands archetypes central to media studies, and it also reshapes how we understand being an audience by acknowledging diverse experiences, reframing media technology through the role of accessibility tools like captions and audio description. On the negative side of this media also tries to represent disabled people with abled body actors taking away from the meaning and point of the film, for example the live action snow white not using actors with dwarfism to play the dwarfs reading also mentions how more woman and people of color are getting into film studies when they included more questions of gender and race in films and media which they relate to more.

It gives disabled people the platform to be seen as more than their disability. It could transform the way that people see their own disability. Disability because something that doesn’t hinder someone, but instead it can add another layer of uniqueness to the person and realize how intergraded disability is and can be into our society. Garland-Thomson mentions Thomas Greene Wiggins, an American composer who was once only known as “Blind Tom” who before being talked about on a National Public Radio music review, the author never heard his real name or him being referred to as an American composer (Garland-Thomson, p.523). This shows how reimagining disability gives more credit to this man was a disabled, black man. The review gave him more than a nickname that he was only known for. It expanded the knowledge of his character and gave more knowledge about who he was and gives him the proper title of “American composer. Garland-Thomson states that reimagining disability gives us the idea that disability is a significant part of society that we need to accept. It’s something that with we need to integrate our knowledge of experience and history in a way to be able to integrate disabled people into it (Garland-Thomson, p. 524).

Why is representation important for disabled people and other marginalized groups? 

Representation is important to give people a character that they can relate to. It’s a way to have people in those groups have someone they can relate to on the screen, and to help them feel like their experience in the world is a normal human experience. Speaking of normal human experience, having this representation can show people that are not in these groups what their experiences are like, and broaden the definition of normal. The current representation that we have of disability often has exclusionary and oppression instead of it being shown to natural and appropriate (Garland-Thomson, p. 523). Film is a power tool as it helps us determine how we see the world. The way that movies decide to show groups of people is that way the masses will start to see different groups of people. If we have people in disabled and marginalized groups being integrated into the plot in a way that they are a part of the group and they are not being outcasted, villainized, and/or being shown in an oppressive way but instead being portrayed like any non-disabled or marginalized group then it would help to shift our view to a more open and accepting mindset.

Firstly, Garland-Thomson's reasoning about how reimagining disabilities performs important cultural work is very important. She is showing throughout her article that disability has changed throughout time, how disability was used for the weak and how disability could be “cured”. Garland-Thomson states, “ Until the civil rights understanding of disability opened the door to political action and consumer culture, the only public images of people with disabilities were medical photographs and public charity campaigns” (Page 525). Having this quote explains that disability has been only shown as a negative thing, as something that can be used to persuade others in ways such as political ways. Reimaging disability  performs important cultural works to those who are disabled to show us “normal” people what life is like for disabled people. How we use disabled people for our own benefits to showcase how we are better.

Lastly, For marginalized groups  representation challenges misrepresentation or underrepresentation, which results in invisibility and discrimination. Seeing one’s community reflected in positive, authentic ways can strengthen identity, build self-esteem, and foster a sense of belonging. It also educates others with an outside perspective, expanding the cultural understanding and breaking down that no one is “normal”. Ellcessor and Kirkpatrick states, “ A disability perspective, then, is about recentering the physically and cognitively “normal” character, the “normal” viewer, the “normal” producer, and so on; this has profound consequence for the study of media texts, industrial practices, social relations, media policies,…” (Page 140). This quote explains that everyone has some sort of idea of “normal” and anyone with a difference becomes disabled. Having people that are considered “normal” makes things harder only because we don’t different because we can't control differences. This being the way we are programmed makes disabled people more invisible, also makes them get the point across way more harder. 

In conclusion, Rosemaire Garland-Thomson believes that reimagining disability performs cultural work is important because it shows how disability has evolved through time. That disability is a part of difference, such as race, gender, and more. We still use it to persuade others onto our side but not as obviously. Gives “normal” people an understanding on what disability people go through with their reality. While representation for disabled people and other marginalized groups gives them a voice. Representation gives the disabled a chance not to be invisible but to be seen,which is something truly magical because it can give again “normal” people an understanding about what disabled people go through.