Off The Crutch Podcast

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Disney's Out of My Mind will be released on Disney+ tomorrow, and I had the opportunity to interview the director, Amber Sealey, on today's podcast. The film is about a sixth grader, Melody Brooks, who has cerebral palsy, is nonverbal, and uses a wheelchair. As Melody navigates the ups and downs of being in the classroom, she eventually shows that what she has to say is more important than how she says it.

Amber Sealey is an award-winning filmmaker whose most recent film, Out of My Mind (Disney/ Participant/Big Beach), premiered at Sundance 2024 to multiple standing ovations. Based on the best-selling YA novel of the same name, it stars Rosemarie DeWitt, Luke Kirby, and Judith Light, with Jennifer Aniston voicing the lead's inner life.

Projects she has in development include two of her original scripts — the comedy feature COMING OF AGE and the romantic comedy BODICE RIPPER. Her feature NO MAN OF GOD (SpectreVision/Company X/XYZ Films/RLJ Entertainment), starring Elijah Wood and Luke Kirby, was theatrically released in 2021 to rave reviews.

She has been supported by Sundance, Film Independent, and Women in Film. She is a fellow of the AFI Directing Workshop for Women and has written scripts for Duplass Brothers/Donut Productions. She was selected for Ryan Murphy’s Half Initiative, the NBCUniversal Directors Initiative, the WeForShe DirectHer program, Film Independent’s Directing Lab, and their Fast Track program.

Her short film, HOW DOES IT START, world premiered at Sundance and (among other awards) won Best Narrative Short at Sarasota FF, and is being turned into a feature film. Her feature NO LIGHT & NO LAND ANYWHERE was theatrically released by Factory 25 and won a Special Jury Award at the LA Film Festival. Her second feature, HOW TO CHEAT, won Best Performance at LAFF, and won both Best Narrative and Best Acting at BendFilm. Her first film, A PLUS D, was released by IndiePix.

Sealey has a BA in Theatre Arts and Modern Dance from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and an MA from The Central School of Speech and Drama in London. She studied Shakespeare at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London.

She was born in England and lives in Los Angeles with her family.

Be sure to check out the movie Friday!

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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I can't get enough of Austin! Last month I went back and visited, but this time, it was for the Austin Film Festival. My guest today is Allison Norlian, who I met at the festival. Allison Norlian is a three-time Emmy-nominated journalist, filmmaker, and co-founder of BirdMine, a production company dedicated to amplifying the voices and stories of people with disabilities and other underrepresented communities. Through BirdMine, Allison writes, directs, and produces short- and long-form documentaries and narrative films that aim to shift perceptions and inspire social change.

Currently, Allison is in post-production for Meandering Scars, a documentary she co-filmed, wrote, and produced. She also wrote and co-directed Thirteen, a short film that has screened internationally and was an official selection at festivals including the Austin Film Festival, Austin Jewish Film Festival, California Women's Film Festival, and Independent Shorts Awards.

Allison's career as a journalist and filmmaker has always been fueled by a desire to champion the voices of those too often unheard, including her profoundly disabled sister. Her work has consistently highlighted critical issues affecting people with disabilities and other vulnerable communities. Recognized for her impact, Allison received a Catalyst for Change award from the ARC of Virginia and earned an Emmy nomination for an investigation that exposed abuse in an assisted living facility.

With each project, Allison’s goal remains the same: to shift the way the world views disability, bringing dignity, depth, and humanity to these stories.

You can check Allison's work out at https://www.birdmine.com/

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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In honor of National Disability Employment Awareness Month, my guest is Myles Wallace, Disability Inclusion Partner for Peak Performers, a disability staffing agnecy in Austin, TX.

Are you disabled and looking for employment? Peak Performers can help.

They help anyone with a disability regardless of location. From Administraion roles, to C-Suite, their aim is to place people with disabilities in high level positons.

To learn more, go to https://www.peakperformers.org/ or e-mail Myles at [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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I recently came back from an eight day solo travel trip to Austin, Texas. Anyone who uses a wheelchair knows that traveling is hard. It was a learning experience and I decided to share the top five disability experiences I had on my journey. Big shout out to all the people I met and who made the experience so memorable.

This episode is about growth, connection, and learning from your past.

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutchpod or e-mail me at [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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Something I enjoy regularly is giving talks to physical therapy students about cerebral palsy. In today's episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing three physical therapy students in a class I spoke in last year. 

This episode is unique because all four of us, Aly West, Cameron Samrai, and Dillon Werner, were together in one room. We had an hour-long conversation that included their reflections on that class, questions about cerebral palsy, and my honest views on how physical therapy impacts me.

I also wanted to let you know that this month, I've been involved in a fundraising campaign for United Cerebral Palsy, a national non-profit that provides services and programs to individuals with disabilities. The campaign ends at the end of next month, and if you would like to donate, please check out the link below.

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Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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You can now send me fan mail! Right above 👆 is the link to send me a text message. You won't be spammed or put on a list. Let me know how I'm doing! I would love your feedback.

It's another international episode of OTC! One of the things that I love about doing my podcast is interviewing people from all over the world. There are amazing people outside the US who are making their mark in the disability world. One man in particular is Martyn Sibley. 

Martyn works at the intersection of business, technology and leadership to drive change for a fully inclusive world. Starting one of the first lived experience blogs in 2009, he's created high quality content, built online communities and started multiple businesses.

Growing up with a physical disability, he's faced many personal challenges, and successfully chased down many dreams! From working in London, to driving a car with his hands, scuba diving, and being married to his soul mate. His mantra is 'Everything is possible'!

After gaining a degree in economics and a master's in marketing, Martyn started his career at a charity for disability rights. Following his love of blogging and social media, he quickly became a disabled influencer (voted regularly in the UK's disability power 100 list), plus working in media and tourism for social change.

He's a published author (Everything is Possible - travel memoir), an international speaker, media spokesperson, appeared in the LinkedIn TV advert in 2021, and has published many blogs, vlogs and podcasts. In particular he livestreamed 'The Daily Sib' for 4 straight months in the first months of the pandemic, interviewing a wide range of disabled people and disability ally's.

Disability Horizons was the first disability magazine to utilise online content and social media. Created alongside his friend Srin Madipalli, its given a voice to disabled people like never before. For 12 amazing years it published educational and entertaining information by disabled people, for disabled people.

Accomable, also co founded with Srin, disrupted the accessible accommodation industry and was acquired by Airbnb in 2017.

Most recently in partnership with the Goat agency (global leaders in influencer marketing) Martyn started the already award winning Purple Goat agency. In just three years they're working with multinational companies and the best disabled content creators. Giving representation to disabled people in advertising like never before.

You can find Martyn at @martynsibley, https://www.purplegoatagency.com/

Follow me at @offthecrutch or email [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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It’s been a little while because I got sick again, darn! Thankfully, I’m all better. We’re right in the middle of Mental Health Awareness Month and thought it would be appropriate to have on a mental health expert, Melody Wilding. 

Melody Wilding is the best-selling author of Trust Yourself: Stop Overthinking and Channel Your Emotions for Success at Work and an executive and leadership coach for smart, sensitive high-achievers who are tired of getting in their own way.

Through her coaching programs, talks, small-group workshops, and articles, she can help you break free from self-doubt and overwhelm, master your emotions, and use your sensitivity as the superpower that it is.

Recently named one of Business Insider’s “Most Innovative Coaches,” Melody coined the groundbreaking idea of “sensitive striving.” She has helped CEOs, leaders, and top performers at the world’s most successful companies, including Google, Facebook, JP Morgan, Verizon, and more. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Oprah Magazine, NBC News, and dozens of other high-profile publications.

Melody is a Sensitive Striver herself, a licensed social worker with a Masters's degree from Columbia University, and a former researcher at Rutgers University. She is a professor of human behavior at Hunter College and a contributor to Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Business Insider.

In addition, she has over 7 LinkedIn Learning courses from “Overcome Overthinking” to “Making Hard Career Choices.

You can find more information about Melody at:
https://melodywilding.com/

Her TEDx Talk:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4OTf35doZPM

Her LinkedIn Learning courses:
https://www.linkedin.com/learning/instructors/melody-wilding

Follow me on social media @offthecrutchpod
E-mail me at [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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This week is pretty mighty! My guest today is Mike Porath, Founder and CEO of The Mighty. 

The Mighty is powered by the shared experiences of 3.5 million members, whose stories have been shown by Harvard researchers to improve health outcomes as a first-of-its-kind bibliotherapy. Mike’s experience raising a daughter with a rare disease, Dup15q syndrome, taught him the impact of community and inspired him to create the company.

Mike has become a leading voice for patient-centered healthcare, speaking at events around the world and collaborating with healthcare leaders on a number of initiatives. He serves on the board of directors for the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) and Dup15q Alliance, the non-profit that supports people with his daughter’s disease. 

For his work leading The Mighty, Mike was named one of the Top 5 Consumer HealthTech Executives in 2021. He was also named one of the world’s top 50 philanthropists by Town & Country, which cited the impact The Mighty has had on millions of people.

Prior to launching the company, Mike was a journalist and digital media executive at ABC News, NBC News, The New York Times and AOL, where he served as editor in chief. His reporting in Kosovo was awarded with the top prize in online journalism. Mike graduated with honors from The College of William and Mary. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and four children.

Check out The Mighty at www.themighty.com

Follow me @offthecrutchpod or e-mail me at [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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It's March, which means it's Cerebral Palsy Awareness Month! Last April, I had the fortunate  opportunity to speak at the United Cerebral Palsy Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV. I shared my story of reslience and how I live my life with cerebral palsy.  Because this month means so much to me, I thought it would be appropriate to have on CEO and President of United Cerebral Palsy, Armando Contreras to share about the organization and how it helps people with disabilities.

Armando has been the CEO for the past 7 years and under his leadership, the organization has seen the highest grown during its upcoming 75th year. Enjoy!

To learn more about United Cerebral Palsy, go to https://ucp.org/

Follow me @offthecrutch or e-mail me at [email protected]

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]

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After a year-long hiatus, I am finally back! I talk about my 2023 entrepreneurial journey, launching a Rush Bowls franchise, and the insights gained from small business ownership Before talking to Rayne Clarkson, the Commodity Business Manager for Applied Materials in Austin, TX. 

Rayne shared her path of resilience after a life-changing accident, emphasizing the role of yoga in her recovery and the importance of seeing abilities rather than disabilities. We delve into societal perceptions of disability, the value of independence, and the impact of societal norms on mental health. This conversation sheds light on overcoming adversity, embracing individual strengths, and the significance of genuine connections.

Reach out to me by e-mailing  [email protected] or on social media at @offthecrutchpod

Follow me on social media at @offthecrutch, or e-mail me at [email protected]