West Grey resident Joschi Shea took on a new role for the 2026 Easterseals Disability Film Competition - he got to be the camera operator, allowing him to show the world what he sees. (image via Steven Morel)
A West Grey resident and his caregiver have once again created a short film for the Easter Seals Disability Film Challenge.
With this year’s challenge being focused on short films that are classified as a combination of comedy and drama, Joschi Shea immediately knew what his film would be about.
Caregiver and collaborator Steven Morel explained to Bayshore News that coming up with a script was a collaborative effort.
“Joschi is not very verbal. He can speak, but it’s very quiet. It’s very hard to hear him in real life, let alone pick him up on a film. So, we talked about ideas for a dramedy and I asked him what in his life has created drama, as well as make him laugh a bit. And he came up with the idea of the bath. And [he] told me some stories and his mom told stories, and we just created an idea centered on that, and looking for a different way that Joschi could participate, so he basically was a cameraman this year.”
When conceiving how best to film this year’s dramedy, the pair were vexed on how best to let Shea, who has cerebral palsy, shoot the footage. They had a GoPro at their disposal, but there were questions of how best to equip it.
Morel explained that previously, a camera had been mounted to Shea’s wheelchair, but that didn’t explain how best to manoeuvre it. They knew that they would film the entire journey for Shea from his bed to the bathtub, but guidelines said that everyone within the film had to be fully clothed, which gave them a narrow scope for what could be captured.
For Shea to be transferred to the bath, he is put into a lift with a sling, then rolled to the bathroom, then put onto the lift that is anchored to the bathroom ceiling and lowered into the tub.
Shea’s father, Geoffrey, who is also the editor for the short, offered the suggestion of having Shea wear a hockey helmet, with the GoPro attached. This gave the film the ability to show what only Shea sees — the world from his perspective.
“When I hit on the whole idea of him wearing the camera, he liked that idea. He’s worn a camera, in terms of we had two cameras… he’s had a camera attached to his chair, I think in one of the films he did with his dad, but never on his head. I think that having something new is fun for him.”
With Shea wearing the camera, we get a view of Morel helping him into the transfer sling, then wheeled into the bathroom, and finally lowered into the bath.
The rest of the film is a voiceover by Morel, narrating a monologue based on the brainstorming conversations that the pair had earlier.
It was those same conversations that gave this year’s film its title – “I’m Drowning! Get the Coffin!”
Morel explained that according to Shea’s mother, it was something that Shea had said when he was in the tub at around five years old. While in the bath, Shea was slipping underwater and yelled out to his mother that line exactly. It’s not only funny, and something unexpected to come from a child, but perfectly combined drama and comedy.
The entire film with a runtime of 4 minutes, 14 seconds, took a total of three hours to film. That time included two full trips for Shea between his bed and the bathtub.
It also includes re-shoots for the shots that involve balloons and a calendar, which were required in this year’s challenge.
Morel shared that Shea’s entries are necessarily about winning a big prize, but it is nice to see the shared experience of the participants who live with a disability, particularly since they can also have a platform that allows them to create art in their own way.
Participants for this year’s challenge had to have their submissions in by March 29th, and finalists in the competition will be announced on May 3rd.
Winners will be announced for Best Film, Best Director, Best Editor, Best Actor, Best Writer, and Awareness Campaign Award on May 9th.
2026 Winners will receive:
– $2,000 cash prize awards to each winner.
– Dell Technologies computers.
– One-year IMDbPro Premium Membership, the essential resource for entertainment industry professionals.
– One-year membership to Film Independent provide by the Golden Globe Foundation
– Screenings at Academy Award-qualifying festivals, including the Heartland Film Festival and HollyShorts Film Festival.
– Mentorship meetings with entertainment industry executives and talent, including Academy Award-winning filmmakers