Accessibility Consulting
Events, Film Festivals, and Panels
I've noticed a growing trend over the past few years after attending various events, film festivals, and panels. No one working with photographers to set up proper lighting for these events, and for film festivals, no one is pre-screening the films that have been accepted into these festivals for photosensitivity issues, and it raises a huge risk of someone in the audience having a seizure or sensory issue during a screening or an after-party event.
Not only that but films that screen at festivals that have elements of suicide, language (mainly homophobic or racial slurs), graphic violence, sexual assault, or other triggering topics can leave audiences distraught. Filmmakers want to make the audience walk out of the theater and appreciate the projects they have spent so much time on.
If a company doesn’t prioritize this in-depth assessment process for an event, film festival, or panel setting, it elevates the chance that this could happen anywhere.
Every event uses flash photography today, which shouldn’t be the norm. Even people without photosensitive issues often complain of strobe lights from photographers at step and repeats (red carpets) during events, and that shows that it’s an issue that affects almost everyone. Too many episodic projects and films in recent times have strobe lights, opposite colors flashing, and even lightning strikes that can trigger someone with that condition or even a new audience member with no history of epilepsy/photosensitive issues.
Accessibility consultations help prevent these triggers for attendees, whether about lighting or subject matters in film projects, and create a better experience for everyone.
All photos below were taken without flash photography at the Climate Film Festival in New York City (2024)
By having a photosensitive person with a high tolerance for flashing lights and epilepsy like me screen the accepted films of any festival (before they are formally announced to the press or online), it will eliminate the liability of someone having a sensory overload, seizure or dying from SUDEP during a screening or event. This is also a way for events, festivals, and panels to decrease the risk of injury from their insurance companies and potentially deduct money from their insurance policy.
And this will be an added benefit to an event, film festival, or panel as you would be able to list me, a disabled, queer woman, as a consultant on the festival website. Intersectionality is everything today, and if a festival has a diverse team the public and press take note.
To give some insight as to what an Accessibility Consultation entails, please see a breakdown of the process below:
Events and Panels
An initial Zoom meeting with the event, film festival, or panel “team” is needed to establish contact and discuss the consultation requirements. This meeting can occur in person if the event, film festival, or panel is based in New York.
After the introductory call, the client will assess the event or panel (duration, number of attendees, number of photographers on staff, venue layout, point person on site, etc.) and send a summary to me.
A Zoom meeting with the “team” will take place to review any specific questions.
Once the call is complete, I will send a list of action items for the event staff to make their event more accessible (including signage suggestions, brief training with photographers, etc.)
Any additional questions will be answered via Zoom, as some things are lost in translation via email.
Film Festivals
An initial Zoom meeting with the event, film festival, or panel “team” is needed to establish contact and discuss the consultation requirements. This meeting can occur in person if the event, film festival, or panel is based in New York.
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The “team” will provide access to the accepted episodic projects, short films, and feature films via FilmFreeway. While this type of access is usually given to screeners and programmers, I would only be using it to watch the films and assess whether they need trigger warnings or not
I will pre-screen each project individually, check off the films that do not have photosensitivity, sexual assault, suicide or other trigger warnings, and note the ones that do have problems within a Google an Excel or Sheet. If requested, I can also note the time code of the triggering scene(s).
Once the document is complete, I send it to the film festival contact and recommend the cautionary measures that should be taken for the photosensitive projects. This includes suggestions for warnings on the website for the specific short film block, episodic and feature film screenings with photosensitive scenes, and verbiage on the individual episodic/film landing pages. Not to mention signs for the theater to post for those particular projects, volunteer training on how to answer if someone has a question (ex: if the event has a Q&A after a screening or if there is a panel discussion, will there be photographers with flashes in attendance), and how to take care of someone if they have a seizure.
A final Zoom/in-person meeting to answer any questions and ensure the proper steps are implemented. If it is a New York-based film festival, a final walkthrough prior to the festival can be arranged.
Here are some facts about epilepsy, photosensitivity, and sensory issues:
1 in 26 people in the United States alone live with epilepsy
1 in 10 people who have never experienced a seizure before will have one within their lifetime
1 in 1000 people die from SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy) every year
Photosensitivity does not just affect those with epilepsy but also those with sensory issues caused by neurodivergence, autism, ADHD, and ADD. Which is becoming more and more common every day.
Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) is a condition that affects how your brain processes various stimuli. This can be triggered by smells, large crowds, loud noises, and unnecessary flashing lights.
At the end of the day, these consultations mitigate the risk that film festivals and events take by not preparing for these scenarios. Especially as accessibility and disability are finally being given the consideration that they should have had all along.
If you are interested in speaking about Accessibility Consultations, please email me at:
carolineparkerboyd@gmail.com