Accessible Film Studies Program popular in Wollongong now nationwide as enrolments open

A program that’s long allowed those in the Illawarra living with intellectual disabilities or autism to gain real-world filmmaking experience is now being rolled out nationally.

Enrolments are open for Bus Stop Films’ award-winning Accessible Film Studies Program in Wollongong, as the program expands to include all states and territories for the first time.

Bus Stop Films will run 24 film classes in 16 locations across Australia, including three new sites – Cairns, Darwin and Hobart.

However, it’s not a new program for Wollongong, having started in the Illawarra in 2018 and now involving Saturday classes at the University of Wollongong.

Using filmmaking to make the world more inclusive, the not-for-profit social enterprise began in Sydney in 2009 and has steadily grown over the past 15 years, with participants hailing its transformative impact.

Bus Stop Films CEO Tracey Corbin-Matchett OAM said she was thrilled it now had a fully national footprint.

“Our expansion is driven by a demand for our impactful programs and the rights of people with disability to have access to creative programs which can enhance their lives,” Tracey said.

“Bus Stop’s strong network of program partners means people with disabilities can now engage in a film school experience in a nurturing and supportive environment.”

One of Bus Stop Films’ most recent Illawarra projects was sponsoring and commissioning a movie for the inaugural Creative Wollongong Short Film Festival, which centred on capturing the theme of water.

Among the films was Skull Hunters, written and directed by Bus Stop Films’ tutor Angela Blake.

Angela shot the film at Berkeley with the three main characters from that area, sharing that “I love Berkeley as a suburb, all the beautiful old houses”.

“We were so lucky to have Lake Illawarra as our setting. You can’t go wrong; you just have to hold up the camera and it looks beautiful,” she said.

Bus Stop Films also ran a pop-up showcase in May in Warrawong to share films produced and directed by those in the region.

Accessible Film Studies Program’s expansion coincides with the growing demand for diverse voices in the film industry and a desire to create more inclusive workplaces.

Its expansion ensures students with disabilities can access a film school experience, with the opportunity to make short films and gain real-world, on-set experience.

During the 40-week program, participants visit film production companies and work with professional filmmakers, gaining theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience.

Films created through the program have been showcased at Oscar-qualifying festivals in the US, Canada, Japan and New Zealand, and have even aired on television.

Participants have had the chance to learn from and work alongside industry experts on and off camera, including director Kriv Stenders (Red Dog), performers Chloe Hayden and Dylan Alcott AM, and Bus Stop’s ambassador, celebrity chef Miguel Maestre.

In addition to gaining industry experience, students enhance their social, communication and job-ready skills.

Many graduates, with the support of Bus Stop Employment, have gone on to work on major projects such as Anyone But You, starring Sydney Sweeney and Glen Powell; Marvel’s Thor: Love and Thunder; and commercials for brands such as Bonds, nib and Optus.

In 2025, Bus Stop will make its first feature film.

Those interested in filmmaking, aged 17+ and who live with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities or autism, are invited to find out more information and enrol in the program, which runs from February to December.