Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards Honor ‘The Pitt’, PBS Docuseries ‘Renegades’, ‘Facts of Life’ Trailblazer Geri Jewell & More

The inaugural Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards (DARCYS) celebrated its first competitive class of winners Saturday, marking a new chapter for an awards program formerly known as the Media Access Awards, established in 1979. Co-produced by Easterseals Southern California and Film Independent, the ceremony recognized achievements in authentic disability representation across film, television and media, honoring the performers, filmmakers and storytellers working to reshape narratives in entertainment.

Hosted by comedian and cerebral palsy advocate Tina Friml, the ceremony took place at The Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, combining humor with pointed calls for the film and television industry to invest more in recruiting disabled talent. Among the evening’s winners were PBS docuseries Renegades and HBO’s The Pitt, while Facts of Life star Geri Jewell received the inaugural DARCYS Legacy Award and Vincent Rutley took home the Christopher Reeve Emerging Talent Award.

Film Independent President Juan Devis, who took over in April this year, replacing acting president Brenda Robinson, who took over the role after the passing of Josh Welsh in January 2025, said that he was happy to continue the organization’s relationship with Easterseals, which has spanned more than a decade. “What we have been fighting for, for 42 years, is access and representation and pushing for the entire ecosystem to understand the value of what we bring,” Devis told Deadline. “Each year I think it becomes more evident that these types of events are just part of who we are.”

Friml established the afternoon’s tone with an opening monologue that humorously described the gathering as a “truly mass disabling event.” Explaining the DARCYS acronym, she offered her own interpretation of the Y: “Yeah, you’re a good person for watching this.”

The comedian also aimed at the healthcare industry, referencing The Pitt, one of the ceremony’s nominees. “The only way to get healthcare [these days] is by going to a fake hospital,” she said, before adding, “I’m still on a payment plan with Doc McStuffins, and that ended six years ago.”

Among the biggest laughs of the ceremony came during Friml’s take on an awards-show in memoriam. Instead of honoring industry figures who had died, she eulogized disability tropes onscreen, including “Characters That Would Rather Die Than Be Disabled,” “The Miracle Cure,” “Cripping Up”—the practice of casting non-disabled actors in disabled roles—and “Teary Eyes.”

On the first trope, Friml joked, “Sure, your career as a boxer may be over, but have you tried telemarketing?” For “Teary Eyes,” she delivered another punchline: “I don’t want Michael B. Jordan crying because a puppy is dead. I want him crying because a hot woman is still alive.”

The humor gave way to a more urgent industry appeal when Amanda Upson, series producer of Renegades, accepted the award for Best Unscripted Series. The five-episode PBS short-film docuseries, hosted by award-winning musician and disability rights advocate Lachi, highlights the lives and cultural contributions of lesser-known historical figures with disabilities.

Upson said the project grew into a vision shared by more than 50 disabled filmmakers, emphasizing the value of employing disabled talent both behind and in front of the camera.“We prove that empowering disabled talent behind the camera yields nuanced storytelling that outperforms traditional programming. Please check out their work and hire them,” she said.

Upson also called on studios, streamers and foundations to provide more funding for disabled creators, citing approximately $45 million in funding cuts under the current administration and warning of the consequences for disabled artists and their ability to tell their stories. “In the face of near-invisible onscreen representation in this onslaught of systematic erasure, we need allies,” she said. “Studios and foundations, it is your turn to show up and invest mightily in us.”

The Pitt won Best Scripted Series and Best Achievement in a Casting Ensemble, with cast members and casting director Cathy Sandrich using their acceptance speeches to highlight the importance of authentic representation. Tal Anderson, who appeared alongside fellow cast members Taylor Dearden, Jessica “Limer” Flores, Christopher Thornton and Diana Elizabeth Jordan, thanked Easterseals, HBO Max and Warner Bros. before recognizing the work of the series’ cast and crew.

“Authentic representation is very, very important,” Anderson said. “And The Pitt has done such an amazing, spectacular job when it comes to authentic stories and representation.”

Sandrich, accepting on behalf of the casting team, credited creators John Wells, R. Scott Gemmill and Noah Wyle with a commitment to telling stories that reflect the world and communities that have too often been underrepresented on television. “It was an enormous thrill for all of us to cast a disabled actor in a role that had not originally been conceived or written as a character with a disability,” she said.

Sandrich also spoke about the importance of audiences seeing themselves reflected on screen, saying that the series’ commitment to authentic casting extended to changing a character’s gender to get the casting right. She praised the performances of Anderson, Thornton and Flores, and noted that the writers had also created roles specifically for disabled actors.“Their talents are undeniable,” Sandrich said. “We feel incredibly lucky to be given such extraordinary material, and we know that our writers, producers, and directors will continue their commitment to reflecting the truth and complexity of our world.”

Rutley, recipient of the Christopher Reeve Emerging Talent Award, noted that the ceremony fell on his 41st birthday and offered encouragement to actors still waiting for their breakthrough. “I want to say today is my 41st birthday and I want to give a shout-out to all of the actors whose career didn’t blow up until after 40. I’ll see you on set,” he said. “It’s not a matter of if. It’s a matter of when. Your number will be called. Your name will be called. Today is my day. Tomorrow may be yours. Let’s ride. Love you.”

Jewell, meanwhile, reflected on her career and the support of Norman Lear, who cast her in The Facts of Life after seeing her stand-up comedy routine. Jewell recalled meeting Lear in 1980 at the second annual Media Access Awards, where her friend, producer Fern Field, introduced them. “He said, ‘You’re real funny, kid, but you’re way before your time.’ I said, ‘So wait a couple months.’ He waited two months, and then he cast me on The Facts of Life,” Jewell said.

Accepting the Legacy Award at age 70, the comedian reflected on the significance of the recognition and encouraged others to believe in themselves. “I just want to say believe in yourself always, no matter what anybody else believes about you, because anybody who has believed negative confidence or what they think you can’t do, that’s not going to carry you in life. What’s going to kill you is what you believe about yourself, and never underestimate the power of the human spirit. Thank you, and God bless you.”

Among those in attendance were Marlee Matlin, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Lisa Whelchel, John Ortiz, Marissa Bode, Cesily Collette Taylor, Scoot McNairy, Abby Elliott, Karen Pittman, Jamie Brewer, Victoria Mack, Daniel Monks, Jessy Yates, Matthew Reeve, Devis and Lynell Davis of Easterseals Southern California.

The Inaugural Winners Are:

Best Feature

Horsegirls

Director/Writer: Lauren Meyering

Writer/Producer: Mackenzie Breeden

Producers: Alix Madigan-Yorkin, Michael Sherman

Featured Talent: Lillian Carrier, Matthew Schwab

Best Performance in a Feature

Anna Sargent, Take Me Home

Best Documentary

The Haunting of Pennhurst

Directors/Producers: Mike Attie, Katarina Poljak, Nathan R. Stenberg

Producer: Daniel J. Chalfen

Best Scripted Series

The Pitt

Creator/Executive Producer: R. Scott Gemmill

Executive Producers: Simran Baidwan, Michael Hissrich, Erin Jontow, Joe Sachs, John Wells, Noah Wyle

Featured Talent: Tal Anderson, Jessica “Limer” Flores, Victoria Mack, Christopher Thornton

Best Performance in a Scripted Series

Daniel Monks, All Her Fault

Best Unscripted Series

Renegades

Creator: Day Al-Mohamed

Series Producer: Amanda Upson

Executive Producers: Michael Kantor, Carrie Lozano, Charlotte Mangin

Best Achievement in Casting Ensemble

The Pitt

Creator/Executive Producer: R. Scott Gemmill

Casting Directors: Erica Berger, Cathy Sandrich Gelfond

Featured Ensemble Cast: Tal Anderson, Jessica “Limer” Flores, Diana Elizabeth Jordan, Victoria Mack, Christopher Thornton