#129: Clare Baines, Disability Equality Lead at BFI

Best Girl Grip

This week’s guest is Clare Baines, the BFI’s first Disability Equality Lead.

Clare is a blind creative. Unable to recognise her own experience reflected in culture, she uses storytelling to create community and belonging for disabled people. Through comedy and joy, she challenges society's perception of disability, queerness, and all the joyful intersections in between.

She is the BFI's first Disability Equality Lead where she leads community-led action to tackle ableism within the industry, authentic on-screen representation, and advocates for Disabled talent and audiences.

Elsewhere she has recently written and directed her first short film, a rom-com called ‘Blind Date’ - funded by Roundhouse - that confronts the subject of ableism within dating through the eyes of a young visually-impaired woman.

We talk about Clare’s experience of becoming blind at the age of 15, her degree in biomedical engineering and working in tech before joining the BFI. In the context of her role there we talk about where you begin with creating equality and changing certain practices in the industry, finding kinship and community in the industry and how people who aren’t D/deaf, disabled or neurodiverse can be better allies to those who do identify as such.

Clare was a joyous guest to have on the podcast, she emanates hope and energy and passion and she’s someone that makes me glad to be a part of this industry, so I hope you enjoy listening.

SHOW NOTES

• UK Cinema Association
• CEA Card
• Screenskills mentorships
• Scope, a disability charity in the UK and the research piece Clare mentions
• Watch the short film ‘My Eyes Are Up Here’ on BFI Player
• BFI’s preferred terms for inclusive language
• Brazen Productions’ resources
• A list of companies who can provide audio description for films
• Watch the trailer for Ella Glendining's documentary 'Is Anybody Out There?'
• Listen to my episode of Best Girl Grip with the BFI's Industry Inclusion Exec Melanie Hoyes