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The Darcy Awards - Rules & Regulations

These are the official rules and regulations for the 2026 Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards (The Darcy Awards).

Please read the rules and regulations in their entirety prior to filling out the submission form.

Final interpretation of all rules, regulations and eligibility of submissions shall be made by the Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards Nominating Committees and Film Independent.

You may contact the Nominations Office for clarifications and questions via email:

NOMINATIONS STAFF

Drea Clark, Nominations Producer, dclark@filmindependent.org

IMPORTANT DATES

Submissions Open: June 16, 2026
Early Deadline: June 22, 2026 / Fee: $25 
Regular Deadline: July 3, 2026 / Fee: $50 
Final Deadline: July 14, 2026 / Fee: $75

Nominations Announced: Week of August 23, 2026

2026 Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards: October 10, 2026

MISSION

The Disability Arts and Culture Awards (DARCYS) honor excellence in representation and inclusion across the full spectrum of disability in film, television, digital and emerging media. We celebrate storytellers and changemakers who are reshaping narratives, eliminating stereotypes, and setting the standard for disability inclusion across the entertainment industry.

VISION

The Disability Arts and Culture Awards (DARCYS) strives for authentic disability representation and inclusion as a driving creative force in all forms of media.

CORE CRITERIA

For all categories, Nominating Committees will utilize the following criteria in shaping their selections. Submissions must possess these criteria to qualify for consideration.

  1. Accurate Representation: Content must showcase authentic casting and representation of disabled talent in front of and/or behind the camera. Nominated content ideally brings authentic, multi-dimensional representation of disability to the forefront irrespective of the plots and/or themes of the content.
  2. Impact: Content ideally has reached new audiences or sparked dialogue to provide significant impact for disability arts and culture.
  3. Overall Quality and Inclusion: High quality content that embodies uniqueness of vision, original/provocative subject matter and inclusion of people with disabilities both in front of and/or behind the camera.

RULES FOR ELIGIBILITY 

FILMS

  1. All submitted films must be at least 70 minutes long.
  2. Between May 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026 films must have played either:
    1. Theatrical release (minimum 7 days) in the U.S.; AND/OR
    2. Commercially available streaming platform/VOD release in the U.S.; AND/OR
    3. As an official selection of a film festival in the U.S..
  3. All nominations go to American productions. The DARCYS define an “American production” as:
    1. A film in which U.S. citizens or permanent residents are credited in at least two of the following categories of responsibilities: director, writer or producer. This can be fulfilled by one person with multiple duties or by separate individuals; OR
    2. The film is set in significant part in the United States and/or has significant American content.

TV

  1. All submitted series must have at least two episodes airing/streaming in the U.S. during the window of May 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026.
  2. Episodes must be at least 18 minutes in length and a minimum of two (2) episodes must have been broadcast, transmitted or available via a commercial streaming platform within the eligibility window. Series must be available via network, basic cable, pay cable, pay television, pay-per-view, interactive cable, broadband, or digital distribution through streaming platforms.
  3. Disability inclusion must be present throughout a show’s season (i.e. tied into multiple episodes, or series regular talent).

SOCIAL CREATORS

  1. Creators must have related content posted on social media between May 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026.
  2. Content (video and/or text-based) must reflect disability representation by virtue of its creator and/or in the subject matter.
  3. Creative content from TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, YouTube, BlueSky and/or X considered as part of Social Creator’s overall impact.
  4. Total reach, partnerships, and collaborations with disabled creators and advocacy organizations also under consideration.

CATEGORY INFORMATION

The final categories for which a film may be nominated are at the sole discretion of the Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards Nominating Committees and Film Independent. For the purposes of this submission form, all fiction films are referred to as "narrative.” Nominees in each category shall be listed as their credits appear on the screen.

Best Feature: All narrative films are eligible for Best Feature. Award is given to the writer(s), director(s) and producer(s). Story by, co-producers, executive producers, associate producers and line producers are not eligible.

Best Documentary: All documentary films are eligible for Best Documentary. The award is given to the director(s) and producer(s). Co-producers, executive producers, associate producers and line producers are not eligible.

Best Performance in a Feature: Must be a person with a disability in either a lead or supporting role in a narrative film.

Best Scripted Series: All narrative series are eligible for Best Scripted Series. Award is given to the showrunner(s), creator(s), executive producer(s) and co-executive producer(s).
Co-producers, associate producers and line producers are not eligible.

Best Unscripted Series: All unscripted series are eligible for Best Unscripted Series. Award is given to the showrunner(s), creator(s), executive producer(s) and co-executive producer(s).
Co-producers, associate producers and line producers are not eligible.

Best Performer in Series: Must be a person with a disability in either a lead or supporting role in a scripted series.

Social Creator: All social media with related content and/or created by a person with a disability is eligible for Best Social Creator. Award is given to the content creator (individual or duo) who hosts the affiliated account.

Christopher Reeve Emerging Talent Award: Created by Christopher Reeve, this award is presented to an up-and-coming disabled actor in support of their career in entertainment. The performer must be living with paralysis. Talent is presented with an award at the DARCYS and given a $5,000 cash grant from the Christopher Reeve Foundation.

Achievement in Casting Ensemble Award: All narrative features and scripted series are eligible for Best Achievement in Casting Ensemble Award. Honoring a Casting Director that, in collaboration with the Director and Cast, goes above and beyond to authentically cast disabled talent and/or in roles not originally conceived and scripted as a person with a disability. Award is given to the Casting Director, Director, and Main Cast.

NOMINATING GUIDELINES

The DARCYS nominations and winners are determined by two (2) committees: Film & TV and Social Creator. These committees, which are assembled by Film Independent, consist of passionate, working members of the film community. Committees typically include a mix of film critics, programmers, producers, directors, writers, previous Media Access Awards winners and industry members. No less than 70% of committee members are people with disabilities. Film Independent staff are not voting members of any nominating committees.

The DARCYS will also present a Legacy Award, whose awardee will be determined by the Disability Advisory Committee and demonstrate a significant and sustained impact on the entertainment industry through groundbreaking work and advocacy that has transformed how disability is represented and included. This includes advancing authentic on-screen representation, influencing industry practices and opportunities for disabled talent, using their platform to drive meaningful change, and creating lasting cultural and community impact that continues to shape the field and inspire future generations.

REQUIRED MATERIALS

The 2026 Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards have both a submission form site (submittable.com) and a screener upload site at Vision Media.

Submission Form Site (Submittable)

In addition to contact information, production details, and credits, the submission form site will require the following.

FILM

  • Representative production stills from the film (JPEG, TIFF, PNG)
  • Film Synopsis (100 words or less)
  • Names of actors with disabilities to be considered for Performance categories 

TV

  • Representative production stills from the film (JPEG, TIFF, PNG)
  • Series Synopsis (100 words or less) / Episode Synopsis (100 words or less)
  • Names of actors with disabilities to be considered for Performance categories
  • A full, complete and official list of credits 

SOCIAL CREATOR

  • Representative headshot/photo of content creator(s)
  • Biography of content creator(s)
  • A PDF containing links to a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 15 relevant posts, as well as any relevant organizational sites (personal or business websites of content creator(s))
  • Creator statement on intention of content, both artistically and in regards to impact; details on partnerships and collaborations with disabled creators and advocacy organizations to be included if applicable

Screener Upload Site (Vision Media)

  • A screener of your submission will need to be uploaded in its entirety to our partner screening portal, Vision Media. Third party links will not be accepted. Please format file names: TITLE (Film) and TITLE_Episode Name (TV). The Vision Media portal will open for screener uploads on June 16, 2026.
  • For TV submissions, a single representative episode must be submitted for either Best Scripted or Best Unscripted consideration. One additional episode may be submitted for individual performance consideration.
  • You are invited to upload your screener before your submission form is completed, provided the titles are identically listed in both submission and upload. You must upload screener to Vision Media within 48 hours of form submission for title to be in consideration.
  • Captioning and audio descriptions are essential for media to be reviewed by committee members. Vendors may be recommended to provide this service upon request. If you’d like more information on providers or have questions regarding providing captioning and audio descriptions, please reach out to dclark@filmindependent.org.

To upload screener, please login with this email/password, NOT personal Vision Media login: 

URL: https://thedarcys.visiondigital.io/
Email: dasubmissions
Password: DARCYS2026

Confirmation text will appear onscreen once your screener has successfully uploaded. Please keep your browser open until the confirmation text appears.

Tech Specs for Screener:

  • Container: MP4
  • Video Type: H.264
  • Size/Ratio: 1920x1080 (16:9), 1280x720 (16:9) 1280 x 960 (4:3)
  • Video Bitrate: 3136kbps (low motion e.g. news desk reporter) or 5928kbps (high motion)
  • Key Frame Interval: minimum every 6 seconds
  • Audio Type: AAC
  • Audio Sample Frequency: 44.1kHz
  • Audio Bite Rate: 192kbps

SUBMISSION PAYMENT

Payment can be accepted via credit card or ACH for the required submission fees. You can pay via credit card per individual submissions on the Submittable submission form platform.

Payment can be accepted via credit card or ACH for the required submission fees. You can pay via credit card per individual submissions on the Submittable submission form platform.
If you have multiple submissions that you’d prefer to pay in bulk via ACH, please select “I Have Multiple Submissions” in the Payment section of Submittable; Film Independent will follow up with an invoice. The Easterseals Disability Arts & Culture Awards invoice number MUST be included in ACH payment, and all invoiced payments are due by August 1 for titles to remain in consideration.

Early Deadline: June 22, 2026 / Fee: $25 
Regular Deadline: July 3, 2026 / Fee: $50
Final Deadline: July 14, 2026 / Fee: $75

NOMINEES

A materials request for assets required in production of DARCYS live ceremony will be sent to all Nominee primary contacts by August 25, 2026 once Nominations are announced.