The disability and film-making community in film practice-as-research: the case of we make film

In an era of burgeoning digital video and Internet access, anyone who wants to make a film should be able to make one. However, the nature of access and creative expression can be severely restricted, particularly for historically marginalized communities, such as people with disabilities (PwDs). In the Indian context, much is left to be done to ensure the complete participation of PwDs as creative contributors to the ever-growing media and film industry, given the barriers such as negative cultural attitudes, inaccessible spaces, education and technology. In this piece, I discuss the above questions and themes, through my reflections on the research and film process undertaken for my PhD project We Make Film. The project sought to understand and support the work of filmmakers with disabilities in contemporary urban India via an interdisciplinary film practice methodology. In this chapter explore how the intersectional approach (Crenshaw, 1989) can help understand disability and d/Deaf identity and community in deeper ways and how this can then help identify barriers facing FwDs which are specific to the d/Deaf and disability community. I also explore how an engagement with multiple identities (by the film-maker participants, researcher and crew) can provide common starting points of access ‘into’ each other’s communities and build solidarity across film-making approaches and practices