Why we do what we do: Welcoming learning disabled and autistic people to cinema

By cinema, we don’t only mean physical access to our building, which we have been able to significantly improve with our refurbishment, but also in our screening programme, our partnerships, and how we work together to support and engage with the widest range of audiences, staff, volunteers, films and filmmakers.

Accessibility to cinema is one of the most difficult, yet important aspects of why we do what we do.

We each of us have a myriad of interconnected and sometimes complicated needs, and our aim is to be welcoming to all individually, but preferably, bringing people together as one, which of all art forms, cinema is perfectly placed to do.

Amongst many other improvements since reopening, we have implemented relaxed Hyde & Seek family screenings, every Sunday, we've introduced audio description and increased captioned performances were available, and we are seeking to add further relaxed screenings as part of our new release programme.

But much as we’d like to be everything for everyone immediately, we understand the need for a careful, thoughtful and inclusive approach, of learning, self-education and adapting to change, for both ourselves and our audiences.

Working in partnership with organisations who have the experience, skills and knowledge to support this work is key to this and we’re delighted to have been able to connect with some of the best in Leeds and nationally.

For example, we have been privileged to have the support of the National Autistic Society, enabling us to employ staff and volunteers with autism and assisting with our staff awareness training.

We’re also part of a working group drawn from a number of independent cinemas, distributors, and a learning disability art organisation, Carousel, to bring together best practice, share experiences and ways of promoting access, particularly for learning disabled and autistic people. 

Carousel is an award winning organisation who work in partnership with learning disabled artists to provide training, production and leadership initiatives that enable those who are often overlooked by mainstream arts to develop and showcase their creative skills.

Whilst much of our work by nature goes on behind the scenes, it’s wonderful when it can burst out into our building and onto our screens.

This is why, through our connection with Carousel, we’re thrilled to present The Oska Bright Film Festival’s Short Film Showcase on Wednesday 13th March. This fantastic selection of eleven shorts represent the ‘Best of the Fest 2023’ - a touring calling card for this year’s Oska Bright Film Festival 2024. What's brilliant is the (typically) magnificent filmmaking and breadth of storytelling and styles on display - a mark of quality that any short film programme would be eager to include.

Tickets for this screening are pay what you can.  

Oska Bright Film Festival is the world’s leading festival for films made by, or featuring people with learning disabilities or autism and was founded in Brighton in 2004 by a group of learning disabled filmmakers frustrated at having nowhere to show their work. The festival is managed and delivered by a team of ten learning disabled artists, all passionate about film and exhibition.

With less than 5% of disabled people working in the UK film industry, Oska Bright is driven to make change happen. Working internationally with industry partners and funded by the BFI, they produce the festival itself, promote accessible screenings, run training for venues and develop skills for aspiring filmmakers.

Similarly, as part of our reopening celebrations we were able to host a workshop with the wonderful Leeds-based arts collective Pyramid who invest in people with a learning disability through the discovery, development and disruption of the arts.

This led to the cinema being involved in Leeds Access Cloaks, a project to get audiences to think about disabled people and their access to art and artistic spaces. Pop round the corner of the cinema to have a look. As of writing, we still have this artwork on display!

Your cinema is on a continuous journey of learning and improvement and we always welcome your feedback and support. You can get in touch via info@hpph.co.uk or 0113 275 2045, and you can also read our guide to access here.

Above all though, we’d love to welcome you to our Oska Bright Showcase, to see for yourself why we do what we do.