IMPORTANT UPDATE
After posting this video and hearing some of the concerns of the Disabled Community I posted the following:
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Hello, it has come to my attention that 2 of my recent videos depicting disabled characters were not well received by the disabled community. As a filmmaker, I try to do my best to create relatable content for many different communities to enjoy, but by doing so I also risk venturing into areas where I may not always have immediate, first-hand experience.
For those who watch my content, you know that my videos are often centered around imperfect people who need to learn important lessons. Sometimes, such as in this situation, I'm that imperfect person learning a valuable lesson. So I would like to apologize to the disabled community. I should have learned more about the disability justice movement and consulted with members from that community before creating content that strives to represent their struggles. I also should have given acting opportunities to members within that community.
Not only am I sorry for my missteps, but I’m also committed to making positive changes moving forward. I’ve been discussing with my team and here are the specific actions we are taking:
- We have deleted the 2 videos depicting characters with disabilities from all social platforms
- We will hire consultants from the disabled community to better educate my team and I
- We will strive to always hire actors from the communities that we try to represent
- We will donate $10,000 to a non-profit organization supporting the disabled community
- We will have recurring dialogue within our team on how we can keep improving to better represent all communities
I really strive to make my channel a place for all of us to come together and feel comfortable. I apologize that I may not always get every topic right, but I promise that I will always be open-minded and willing to admit to, learn from and grow through my mistakes. Thank you for your continued support (and patience)!
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After deleting the videos I realized knockoff videos were circulating everywhere, so I did a poll on KZfaq asking the following:
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Hello I have a question for you! Recently I deleted 2 videos that depicted people with disabilities because after educating myself more I realized they weren't the best representations. Since deleting, I've seen pirated copies of the video all around the Internet so they're still getting viewed without benefitting the Disabled Community at all.
So I'm wondering, should I RESTORE them on my channel but use them as opportunities to say what I could've done better in the captions AND donate ad money from the videos to help the Disabled Community?
Or should I KEEP DELETED and do my best to remove pirated content?
I want to do the right thing so your feedback is greatly appreciated!
P.S. I'm also working on lots of positive changes so we can continue to not just telling great stories but also ones that are representative of the real struggles various communities are facing! I'll be talking about the changes we're making more in the coming months- super excited about this!
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And 94% of the community responded to RESTORE the video. That's why I'm bringing this video back. Please note that it is now setup as a FUNDRAISER to help raised funds for the Disabled Community and I donated the first $10,000. Thank you for all of your support!
There is no greater disability in life than the inability to see a person as more.
💥 NEW VIDEOS every TUESDAY, THURSDAY and SATURDAY at 5pm (PST) 💥
CHAPTERS:
00:00 Sister Ashamed Of Her Disabled Brother, She Instantly Regrets It
05:59 Recommend Video To Watch Next
CREDITS:
Writer: Kat Davila and Dhar Mann
Idea: Kayla Skipper
Director: Ruben Ortiz, Rushikesh Bhadane
Editor: Grant Swanson
Composer: Tyler Hindsley
Casting Associate: Mikayla Miller, Daniel Carrera, Lauren Parsons
Project Managers: Nix Villarubin, Hope Mueller
Production Assistant: Carlos Orellana, Byrrh Bryant
Sound: Noel Palacios
Actors:
Kelsey - Sofia Chicorelli Serna
Popular Girl 1 - Kiarra Beasley
Popular Girl 2 - Leah Mei Gold
Grant - Ayden Mekus
Dad - Colin Borden
Young Kelsey - Maya Marquez
Young Grant - Brady Carville
Doctor - Sean Harris
Student 1/Cameron - Yared Ricaldi
Student 2/Eric - Preston Newsome
Student 3/Bryce - Christian Ware
Student 4/Tanya - Dayana Ricaldi
Student 5/Stephanie - Kylie Ware
#DharMannFam #LiveYourBestLife #Inspirational