RespectAbility Entertainment Professionals Lab, Summer 2023
Nancy Pickett
Nancy Pickett is a disabled filmmaker with a focus on documentary and nonfiction content. She independently produced her first feature-length film, a documentary about pediatric cancer, in high school. The Golden Truth is available for streaming on Amazon Prime. Her short films, which cover a range of topics from human trafficking to arts education, have been recognized by film festivals across the country and the News and Documentary Emmy Awards, where she received the prestigious Mike Wallace Memorial Scholarship for her coverage of US healthcare reform in Is Healthcare a Human Right? which used her personal experience with chronic illness to explain the Affordable Care Act.
Thanks to generous support from the National Association of LGBTQ Journalists Facebook Journalism Scholarship, AAPD/NBCUniversal Tony Coelho Media Scholarship, and others, Nancy graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in telecommunication from the University of Florida Online. She is now pursuing her master’s degree in Public Interest Communication, where she is learning strategies to ensure that her films go beyond raising awareness to create tangible social change. Her next project, a docu-series about disparities in healthcare, will include a curriculum for medical students to learn about implicit bias and a resource hub to help patients navigate complex medical systems.
Learn More
After an extensive search and interview process, 20 individuals were invited to participate in the Virtual Cohort of RespectAbility’s 2023 Entertainment Lab taking place August 14 – September 21, 2023. This 6-week Lab aims to develop and elevate the talent pipeline of disabled entertainment professionals working behind-the-scenes in television, film, and streaming, while connecting them with industry professionals and creatives. Participants include people with physical, cognitive, sensory, mental health, other disabilities, and multiple disabilities ranging in age from the 20s through the 50s. The Lab is a recipient of The Roddenberry Foundation Impact Award and is made possible with support from The Harnisch Foundation and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association Charitable Trust.
