RespectAbility Entertainment Professionals Lab 2024
Kimberly Spire-Oh
Kimberley Spire-Oh is a documentary filmmaker and activist whose work centers on fighting discrimination against people with disabilities—especially children—and securing resources to meet their needs. Her films tell the stories of those with disabilities and their families in order to help the public see them as members of the general community instead of misunderstood “others” who pose a possible threat to society or drain on taxpayers. Spire-Oh’s goal is to catalyze change in public policy affecting individuals with disabilities by educating viewers on critical and timely issues and suggesting solutions that work for all stakeholders.
Inspired by her battles to help her twice-exceptional son receive an appropriate education, Spire-Oh opened a special education law practice through which she has represented hundreds of students across Florida over the past 13 years. She believes being diagnosed with epilepsy at age 14, followed by multiple autoimmune conditions in subsequent years, helps her relate to many of her young clients because she understands what they are going through.
Spire-Oh also has worked as a writer, legal editor, mediator, and Congressional aide. She has served on numerous nonprofit boards and government advisory committees relating to disability and educational equity—often in leadership roles. She also is involved in local and state legislative activism, championing the rights and highlighting the concerns of the disability community. All of these experiences inform her film work.
Dividing her time between South Florida and Northern California, Spire-Oh lives with her husband, cat, dog, and two turtles.
Learn More
After an extensive search and interview process, 5 individuals were invited to participate in an intensive session for disabled creatives working in the documentary and unscripted spaces, taking place July 29 – August 1, with additional virtual sessions taking place in partnership with the virtual cohort, May – September 2024. Participants include people with a variety of disabilities ranging in age from the 30s through the 50s. This intensive elevates disabled creatives, focusing on building community, networking, and career advancement. This intensive is in collaboration with Bunim-Murray Productions, National Geographic, and NBCUniversal.
