WEBVTT - Interview - Andie Poetschka - Raise The Platform 0:00:01.070 --> 0:00:04.250 Acknowledges and pays respect to the people of the Woiwurrung 0:00:04.790 --> 0:00:08.840 and Boonwurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin nations on 0:00:08.840 --> 0:00:14.120 whose Unceded lands the SYN office and studio stand. SYN media 0:00:14.120 --> 0:00:19.520 respectfully acknowledges their ancestors and elders past, present and emerging. 0:00:20.329 --> 0:00:25.220 SYN media also acknowledges the traditional custodians and ancestors of 0:00:25.220 --> 0:00:28.880 the lands and waters across Australia where our content reaches 0:00:29.180 --> 0:00:34.400 and on which SYN partner organisations stand. Sovereignty has never been ceded. 0:00:34.580 --> 0:00:38.300 It always was and always will be Aboriginal land. 0:00:38.600 --> 0:00:41.900 So today we have an interview with Andy Poetschka , 0:00:41.900 --> 0:00:47.779 who uses she/her pronouns, has Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy and uses a walking stick to get around. 0:00:48.140 --> 0:00:51.020 She lives on the central coast of New South Wales, 0:00:51.020 --> 0:00:54.860 has a bachelor's degree in communication majoring in journalism from 0:00:54.860 --> 0:00:58.370 Newcastle University. His passion for radio has her own show 0:00:58.370 --> 0:01:01.370 called Thank andie it's Friday on her local community station, 0:01:01.700 --> 0:01:06.260 Coastal FM 96.3. Her dream is get into the commercial sector one day. 0:01:06.440 --> 0:01:06.810 So you. 0:01:08.130 --> 0:01:09.800 Yes. Nice to meet you. 0:01:10.310 --> 0:01:13.790 And you have a bachelor's degree in communication majoring in 0:01:13.790 --> 0:01:17.420 journalism from Newcastle University, Australia. And you also work in 0:01:17.420 --> 0:01:20.390 radio and you have your own show called Thank Andy, 0:01:20.390 --> 0:01:23.600 It's Friday on the local community station. Most of them. 0:01:23.630 --> 0:01:24.800 Yes, that's right. 0:01:25.100 --> 0:01:28.190 And you plan on going into the commercial sector one day? Yes. 0:01:28.970 --> 0:01:31.309 So you have community radio and have your own show 0:01:31.310 --> 0:01:33.290 on local station. Tell us about your show and what 0:01:33.290 --> 0:01:34.310 you love about it. 0:01:34.520 --> 0:01:40.520 So my show, it started when I was about 14, 0:01:40.520 --> 0:01:43.730 when I moved to the Central Coast from Sydney and 0:01:43.730 --> 0:01:48.500 I didn't have any outlet. So basically I started volunteering 0:01:48.500 --> 0:01:50.600 at the station and did all the training and then 0:01:50.600 --> 0:01:54.110 eventually I got into doing. Thank you, Andy. It's Friday, 0:01:54.110 --> 0:01:59.000 which is basically it's pop culture based. The station was 0:01:59.000 --> 0:02:01.700 very sort of easy listening, but after 6 p.m., which 0:02:01.700 --> 0:02:07.670 is when my shift is it caters to different audiences. 0:02:08.120 --> 0:02:12.049 And so mine, my show is basically pop culture based. 0:02:12.050 --> 0:02:16.850 It's about, you know, the newest emerging artists, things that are, 0:02:18.580 --> 0:02:24.850 you know, top 40, so celebrity news movies, you know, 0:02:24.860 --> 0:02:29.330 things that people sort of 18 to 35 would really enjoy. 0:02:29.330 --> 0:02:32.330 And above that as well. I just love it because 0:02:32.330 --> 0:02:37.669 it allows me to be creative. And, you know, they 0:02:37.910 --> 0:02:40.160 my listeners know I have a disability, but I don't 0:02:40.430 --> 0:02:44.810 talk about it too much and I can just be myself. 0:02:44.810 --> 0:02:47.450 And and that's a really great thing. It's just me 0:02:47.450 --> 0:02:51.860 connecting with people on a really personal level and just 0:02:51.860 --> 0:02:53.780 having fun. I get to go to I go to 0:02:53.780 --> 0:02:56.150 concerts and sort of, you know, take a few photos 0:02:56.150 --> 0:03:01.100 and review the concert and talk about what's going on 0:03:01.100 --> 0:03:03.590 in the world. And I just really love it. 0:03:03.590 --> 0:03:07.010 And it says, you know, well, this is a community 0:03:07.010 --> 0:03:09.350 radio show you're doing, but it says you wish to 0:03:09.770 --> 0:03:13.489 go into the commercial sector one day. The commercial sector, 0:03:13.490 --> 0:03:15.620 of course, is not as friendly as a lot of 0:03:15.630 --> 0:03:18.320 community broadcasting as I have found out. And I had 0:03:18.320 --> 0:03:22.130 actually been knocked back a few times. Do you find 0:03:22.130 --> 0:03:25.280 the commercial sector is going to be a very big 0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:27.500 jump for you? Do you think the commercial sector is 0:03:27.500 --> 0:03:29.090 going to be accessible? Do you think they're going to 0:03:29.090 --> 0:03:31.700 put in what they can to make it accessible for 0:03:31.700 --> 0:03:33.859 you and to take on your skills? 0:03:34.790 --> 0:03:38.330 I would really hope so. I've done a couple of 0:03:38.930 --> 0:03:43.130 like work experience things. As you know, as a result 0:03:43.130 --> 0:03:47.390 of uni, I went and did a work experience in 0:03:47.390 --> 0:03:50.390 Newcastle at a commercial station. I think it will be 0:03:50.390 --> 0:03:52.820 a big jump. I think it will be difficult and 0:03:52.820 --> 0:03:55.550 I'm not really sure whether they will. Hopefully they will 0:03:55.550 --> 0:03:58.220 make it accessible, but if they don't, I'm happy to 0:03:58.220 --> 0:04:00.260 really fight for it because it's been a dream of 0:04:00.260 --> 0:04:04.670 mine for the last ten years to eventually get into 0:04:04.670 --> 0:04:07.310 the commercial sector. It's not going to be easy. It's 0:04:07.310 --> 0:04:11.120 going to be really hard. But you know, I'm no 0:04:11.120 --> 0:04:14.480 stranger to adversity, so I'm happy to keep fighting to 0:04:14.480 --> 0:04:17.270 get what I want. I would like to be eventually. 0:04:17.390 --> 0:04:21.080 And so in the commercial sector, where do you actually 0:04:21.080 --> 0:04:24.980 wish to be? What would be your absolute dream and goal? 0:04:24.980 --> 0:04:27.710 What would be the ultimate role for you in the 0:04:27.710 --> 0:04:31.340 commercial sector that would bring you? You've done it. 0:04:31.910 --> 0:04:35.600 My ultimate goal would be on would be breakfast radio 0:04:35.600 --> 0:04:41.310 and being one of those personalities. I mean, I am 0:04:41.330 --> 0:04:45.289 one of my absolute idols is and Marciano in the 0:04:45.290 --> 0:04:49.760 radio industry and to be able to, you know, have 0:04:49.760 --> 0:04:52.340 a show of of me and a couple of other 0:04:52.339 --> 0:04:54.980 people just bouncing things off each other and having a 0:04:54.980 --> 0:05:00.170 really great time, you know, it's going to be early hours. 0:05:00.170 --> 0:05:05.510 But the absolute ultimate dream would be breakfast radio and 0:05:05.510 --> 0:05:10.099 having people wake up every morning and tuning in, as 0:05:10.220 --> 0:05:12.620 well as a little bit of a pep in their 0:05:12.620 --> 0:05:16.099 step for the day. That would be my absolute dream, really. 0:05:16.130 --> 0:05:19.490 And do you think that your disability has created barriers 0:05:19.490 --> 0:05:20.240 to get there? 0:05:20.810 --> 0:05:27.330 And I think it has it has created barriers in 0:05:27.550 --> 0:05:32.150 in life. I'm not entirely sure if it has created 0:05:32.150 --> 0:05:34.850 barriers in the radio industry. I think there will be 0:05:35.150 --> 0:05:38.330 because I think as applying for any job, there are 0:05:38.330 --> 0:05:42.410 times where people see my disability before they see the 0:05:42.410 --> 0:05:48.740 brains and the rest of me um m Yeah, I 0:05:48.740 --> 0:05:51.830 think that probably will be. I can't really pinpoint what 0:05:51.980 --> 0:05:57.320 they what they are. I think it'll just be a 0:05:57.320 --> 0:06:00.169 matter of seeing, you know, the person as opposed to 0:06:00.170 --> 0:06:03.680 the disability, which when it comes to jobs, in the 0:06:03.680 --> 0:06:07.010 past I've struggled, I've struggled. But I think, you know, 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:10.820 the radio industry is very difficult for anyone to get into, 0:06:11.520 --> 0:06:16.460 you know, able bodied or disabled. So will my disability 0:06:16.460 --> 0:06:18.650 make it harder? I think it will be it will 0:06:18.650 --> 0:06:21.979 make it harder. But I'm again, still really willing to 0:06:21.980 --> 0:06:24.680 fight to get there, essentially. 0:06:24.740 --> 0:06:27.650 So you have cerebral palsy and a passion about being 0:06:27.650 --> 0:06:29.510 a voice of the community. What do you want other 0:06:29.510 --> 0:06:30.230 people to know? 0:06:31.339 --> 0:06:34.500 Well, cerebral palsy. I want them to know that it 0:06:35.000 --> 0:06:40.490 doesn't mean that people with cerebral palsy can't live very 0:06:41.120 --> 0:06:47.960 fulfilling lives. I was always taught to, you know, be treated. 0:06:48.380 --> 0:06:50.900 I know the word normal isn't really a thing anymore, but, 0:06:52.490 --> 0:06:55.849 you know, to approach life as, you know, if you 0:06:55.850 --> 0:06:59.539 can't do things one way, you can do things another way. And, 0:06:59.540 --> 0:07:02.360 you know, just because we have cerebral palsy doesn't mean 0:07:02.839 --> 0:07:06.440 we don't have the same aspirations, the same dreams as 0:07:07.730 --> 0:07:10.520 as an able bodied person. You know, we can still 0:07:10.550 --> 0:07:16.280 be loved. You know, we can still have meaningful relationships 0:07:16.280 --> 0:07:21.620 and partners. And we are very employable. We want to work. 0:07:21.620 --> 0:07:27.770 We want to contribute to the community. And if we 0:07:27.770 --> 0:07:30.650 want help, we'll tell you, you know, but but we 0:07:30.650 --> 0:07:35.210 are regular people , you know, on the inside. Just 0:07:35.210 --> 0:07:38.840 because our bodies may not work the same way as 0:07:38.840 --> 0:07:44.090 everybody else's, we can still live very fulfilling lives and 0:07:44.090 --> 0:07:46.220 do whatever we want to do. We just may have 0:07:46.220 --> 0:07:48.830 to find a new way of doing it to get 0:07:48.830 --> 0:07:51.440 around our limitations, essentially. 0:07:59.690 --> 0:08:06.050 So my Internet, my thing just unplugged. So accessibility in 0:08:06.050 --> 0:08:10.250 the media industry is a very big topic. And you're 0:08:10.250 --> 0:08:14.120 specifically going into radio, which a lot of people think 0:08:14.120 --> 0:08:18.320 to be a dying industry. How would you view radio 0:08:18.320 --> 0:08:21.170 as an industry that is probably not going to be 0:08:21.170 --> 0:08:24.860 around in the next maybe even ten, 20, 30 years? 0:08:25.700 --> 0:08:30.260 I, I think I understand why they think it's dying, 0:08:30.470 --> 0:08:34.340 but I think it's more of a changing industry as 0:08:34.340 --> 0:08:36.920 opposed to dying. We may not do it the same 0:08:36.920 --> 0:08:41.300 way in ten, 20, 30 years, but now we have podcasting. 0:08:42.380 --> 0:08:47.000 I think I think it's changing from the sort of analog, 0:08:47.000 --> 0:08:50.210 for lack of a better word, into the digital age. 0:08:50.540 --> 0:08:56.390 So we have Spotify, we have podcasting, we have, you know, 0:08:56.420 --> 0:08:59.550 lots of different avenues to go on. And, you know, 0:08:59.809 --> 0:09:04.310 a lot of radio's they have apps to access. You know, 0:09:04.910 --> 0:09:07.010 for my radio show, for instance, I have a lot 0:09:07.010 --> 0:09:09.349 of people who are in Sydney. And so when I 0:09:09.350 --> 0:09:11.180 listen to you, but I can't get you when I say, 0:09:11.179 --> 0:09:15.230 you know, go to go to the apps in or 0:09:15.230 --> 0:09:18.140 any sort of radio app, I think I think it's changing, 0:09:18.140 --> 0:09:22.699 but I don't think it will ever die because, you know, 0:09:22.700 --> 0:09:26.059 advertising is still going to be a thing. So people 0:09:26.059 --> 0:09:28.490 are going to still need voiceovers. They're still going to 0:09:28.490 --> 0:09:33.860 need people to voice their ads. Music is something that 0:09:33.860 --> 0:09:38.929 will never, ever die. And and topics that need to 0:09:38.929 --> 0:09:41.510 be talked about are not going to die. So people 0:09:41.510 --> 0:09:43.400 are still going to get behind a mic. It just 0:09:43.400 --> 0:09:47.420 may not be in a studio or in the traditional 0:09:47.420 --> 0:09:50.480 way that we that we know it. I think, you know, 0:09:50.480 --> 0:09:53.300 I think it's changing into the digital age. But is 0:09:53.300 --> 0:09:55.610 it going to die? I really hope it won't. And 0:09:55.610 --> 0:09:57.440 I don't think it will. I think it's just going 0:09:57.440 --> 0:09:59.869 to change into a different being, for lack of a 0:09:59.870 --> 0:10:00.770 better way of putting it. 0:10:01.490 --> 0:10:04.250 So how do you feel about the accessibility of the 0:10:04.250 --> 0:10:07.790 media industry as a disabled young person? Do you find 0:10:07.790 --> 0:10:11.090 that the media industry is accessible to you, particularly the 0:10:11.090 --> 0:10:12.200 radio industry? 0:10:12.920 --> 0:10:16.910 The radio industry? I feel is very at the moment 0:10:16.910 --> 0:10:23.210 it is accessible. In especially in the community sector, you know, 0:10:23.450 --> 0:10:26.449 I was always welcomed and I always feel like when 0:10:26.450 --> 0:10:28.699 I get behind that, Mike, I can be myself. I 0:10:28.700 --> 0:10:35.000 can see how the media industry, you know, it can, 0:10:35.330 --> 0:10:37.790 it can, it can seem like it isn't accessible. And 0:10:37.790 --> 0:10:40.579 I think there are there is there are improvements to 0:10:40.580 --> 0:10:44.390 be made, But I think we'll get there. I think 0:10:44.630 --> 0:10:48.260 I think every industry has has parts that are inaccessible. 0:10:48.260 --> 0:10:51.079 But I think especially with the digital age and there's 0:10:51.080 --> 0:10:54.739 so many different ways that people can can access it. 0:10:55.700 --> 0:11:01.940 And I think I think because especially people don't see 0:11:01.940 --> 0:11:04.729 my disability because they just hear my voice, whether it 0:11:04.730 --> 0:11:08.030 be I think, you know, I wanted to be in 0:11:08.030 --> 0:11:10.460 the TV industry when I was younger. I think that 0:11:10.460 --> 0:11:14.300 would be a more difficult industry to get into because 0:11:14.300 --> 0:11:18.920 I am disabled and I walk different. And you know, 0:11:19.070 --> 0:11:21.260 there are parts of me like I look a little 0:11:21.260 --> 0:11:23.030 bit different when I walk and I think that would 0:11:23.030 --> 0:11:24.709 freak people out a bit if I jumped on the 0:11:24.710 --> 0:11:28.510 TV on the TV. I would love to see, you know, 0:11:28.610 --> 0:11:31.820 a news anchor or a, you know, reporter or something 0:11:31.820 --> 0:11:34.609 who who did have a disability because that was something 0:11:34.610 --> 0:11:35.720 that I always wanted to do. 0:11:36.410 --> 0:11:43.690 Have you ever considered going into maybe podcasting or voicing 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:49.040 voiceovers or something that is lost similar skills to radio, 0:11:49.040 --> 0:11:50.960 but not actually radio? 0:11:51.970 --> 0:11:56.200 Yes, I have. I would love to do. But I've 0:11:56.200 --> 0:12:00.490 actually done a couple of commercials for for my local 0:12:00.490 --> 0:12:03.010 community station that I that I have my show on. 0:12:04.120 --> 0:12:09.189 And I have done a couple of courses in voiceover. 0:12:09.790 --> 0:12:12.910 I think podcasting is fabulous. I would love to do that. 0:12:13.330 --> 0:12:15.340 That's something that I just have to get the courage 0:12:15.340 --> 0:12:18.190 up to start doing, essentially. But I would love to 0:12:18.190 --> 0:12:18.520 do that. 0:12:18.970 --> 0:12:23.800 So I'm also in community radio and I have been 0:12:23.800 --> 0:12:27.520 for about four years now. I have attempted to break 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:33.160 into the the commercial and public funded broadcasting for the 0:12:33.160 --> 0:12:39.640 ABC and SBS and also some commercial shows like KISS 0:12:39.640 --> 0:12:44.410 and the whatnot. Every time I've attempted, I actually have 0:12:44.410 --> 0:12:46.300 not been able to get a job. I had one 0:12:46.630 --> 0:12:48.939 graduate job that I tried, but I didn't get into it. 0:12:48.940 --> 0:12:52.860 Even though the actual media major is not radio or 0:12:52.870 --> 0:12:55.120 media at all, it's actually theatre. 0:12:55.470 --> 0:12:56.380 Oh, that would be awesome. 0:12:57.309 --> 0:13:01.090 Yeah, that's also another industry that I feel much like. 0:13:01.090 --> 0:13:06.640 Radio is also changing a lot and has been sort 0:13:06.640 --> 0:13:10.450 of making itself more appear more accessible, but in reality 0:13:10.450 --> 0:13:13.480 is still preferencing people who are not disabled. A lot 0:13:13.480 --> 0:13:17.349 of jobs now ask for accessibility requirements and in my 0:13:17.350 --> 0:13:20.410 opinion that is just a big thing to say, oh, 0:13:20.710 --> 0:13:23.729 disability accessibility and then just going to throw away application. 0:13:23.740 --> 0:13:27.220 That's how I feel. We actually do these interviews completely live. 0:13:27.880 --> 0:13:30.250 Oh wow. Do you do live broadcasting or do you 0:13:30.250 --> 0:13:34.510 do pre-recorded broadcasting mainly live? 0:13:34.540 --> 0:13:36.699 I mean, if I know that I can't be there 0:13:36.700 --> 0:13:39.160 one night, then I might do a pre-record. But very 0:13:39.160 --> 0:13:41.800 rarely will I do a pre-record. Most of the time 0:13:42.820 --> 0:13:47.920 I will do live. But I'm also part of I 0:13:47.920 --> 0:13:52.510 thought this might be cool too. I'm part of the show. 0:13:52.780 --> 0:13:55.750 I'm I'm a guest on a show that is dedicated 0:13:55.750 --> 0:13:59.410 to use and disability on on the station as well, 0:13:59.440 --> 0:14:03.130 which that's pre-recorded, but my show is predominantly live. 0:14:04.090 --> 0:14:07.870 Do you feel that pre-recorded broadcasting is going absolutely change 0:14:07.880 --> 0:14:11.679 the landscape because during the pandemic almost all the shows 0:14:11.679 --> 0:14:15.010 were pre-recorded. Do you think that that is something that 0:14:15.010 --> 0:14:18.819 you believe should be kept? I found pre-recording much more 0:14:18.820 --> 0:14:23.260 accessible for a lot of our guests and also convenience 0:14:23.260 --> 0:14:25.120 as well, because they don't have to come to the 0:14:25.120 --> 0:14:27.160 studio at a certain time. They can do it in 0:14:27.160 --> 0:14:30.610 their own time and should not go with their schedules. 0:14:31.990 --> 0:14:35.470 I think I think it makes it more accessible. And 0:14:35.470 --> 0:14:38.800 it also probably would make the guests feel a bit 0:14:38.800 --> 0:14:41.380 more comfortable. I know when I've been a guest on shows, 0:14:41.380 --> 0:14:43.780 if I know it's pre-recorded, then I go, okay, I 0:14:43.780 --> 0:14:48.130 don't have to justify my mistake. Then I don't have 0:14:48.130 --> 0:14:52.750 to stress as much, but I really enjoy live as well. 0:14:53.020 --> 0:14:55.410 So I think that that I think that, you know, 0:14:55.480 --> 0:14:57.910 I really wish that I hope that that live is 0:14:57.910 --> 0:15:02.680 kept as well. But during the times that we're in, 0:15:03.700 --> 0:15:05.470 you know, if you'd asked me this three years ago, 0:15:05.470 --> 0:15:09.610 I would have said live is 100% better. But in 0:15:09.610 --> 0:15:15.760 the climate that we're in, I think pre-recorded is is 0:15:15.760 --> 0:15:19.930 a very valuable asset to to have and it does 0:15:19.930 --> 0:15:24.370 make things a lot more accessible. I'm not a big 0:15:24.370 --> 0:15:26.860 fan of it myself in terms of my show because 0:15:26.860 --> 0:15:30.880 I'm terrible at audio editing. But, but it does make 0:15:30.880 --> 0:15:34.120 things a lot more accessible and, and, you know, probably 0:15:34.120 --> 0:15:36.460 makes the guests feel a little bit more comfortable and 0:15:36.460 --> 0:15:40.090 the people presenting as well. But I think it will 0:15:40.090 --> 0:15:41.950 be kept. I think I think it will be kept, 0:15:41.950 --> 0:15:48.130 especially with the climate working with isolations and garbage that 0:15:48.130 --> 0:15:50.410 kind of stuff. I think it's very useful for things 0:15:50.410 --> 0:15:52.960 like that. But then I also really enjoy live as well. 0:15:52.960 --> 0:15:54.700 So I think both of them have their place. 0:15:55.540 --> 0:16:00.130 So when you apply for jobs, your disability is a 0:16:00.130 --> 0:16:03.640 visible disability. So people, you know, you walk into the 0:16:03.640 --> 0:16:06.760 job interview, people can tell that you are disabled, but 0:16:06.790 --> 0:16:10.330 someone like me, I if I wanted to, was I 0:16:10.330 --> 0:16:13.090 personally said it was there to be a visible disability. 0:16:13.090 --> 0:16:15.400 There is no doubt about it being visible. It is. 0:16:15.670 --> 0:16:18.610 I'm very personal on that issue of being what disability? 0:16:19.060 --> 0:16:23.260 If I were to have kept the secret walk into 0:16:23.260 --> 0:16:26.740 job interviews would is completely change my life. It'll be 0:16:26.740 --> 0:16:32.140 a completely different people wouldn't even know. But I don't 0:16:32.140 --> 0:16:34.780 really feel safe keeping it under wraps. I think that 0:16:34.780 --> 0:16:36.730 it is important for me to tell people that I 0:16:36.730 --> 0:16:40.600 have skills. I just don't feel comfortable going around perpetuating 0:16:40.600 --> 0:16:43.960 the idea that autism must be kept secret. How do 0:16:43.960 --> 0:16:48.490 you feel about going into job interviews? You tell people 0:16:48.490 --> 0:16:50.830 that you have autism or do you keep it a secret? 0:16:51.730 --> 0:16:52.110 Um. 0:16:53.980 --> 0:16:57.820 Okay. Tell people you have cerebral palsy or do you 0:16:57.820 --> 0:16:58.810 keep it a secret? 0:16:59.830 --> 0:17:04.180 Well, I, I tend to tell people straight away simply because, 0:17:04.180 --> 0:17:06.340 I mean, you can say it straight off. So so 0:17:06.700 --> 0:17:11.200 I mean, I'm very lucky to be in the current 0:17:11.200 --> 0:17:15.429 job that I'm in because I'm very, you know, I'm 0:17:15.430 --> 0:17:20.200 very accepted. And and, you know, that didn't really it 0:17:20.200 --> 0:17:24.070 wasn't an issue. But I have had job interviews in 0:17:24.070 --> 0:17:27.790 the past where people have looked me up and down 0:17:27.790 --> 0:17:30.520 and I write and I put it on my resume. 0:17:30.520 --> 0:17:33.520 So it's not staring them in the face. But when 0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:37.570 I come up to the job interview, you know, they'll 0:17:37.570 --> 0:17:40.659 see it. And then I will say, you know, okay, 0:17:40.660 --> 0:17:44.229 you know, you've noticed that I have a walking stick. 0:17:44.230 --> 0:17:47.860 This is because I have cerebral, cerebral palsy. And it 0:17:48.430 --> 0:17:52.810 it you know, it doesn't stop me. My brain is 0:17:52.810 --> 0:17:56.109 still very switched on. I'm very intelligent. But I wanted 0:17:56.109 --> 0:17:58.320 you to know I have cerebral palsy because, you know, 0:17:58.570 --> 0:18:01.990 when people first meet me, they can be quite confronted. 0:18:01.990 --> 0:18:07.390 And I have had people kind of there was one 0:18:07.390 --> 0:18:10.150 job interview I had years ago that I walked in 0:18:10.150 --> 0:18:12.040 and the guy looked me up and down and I 0:18:12.040 --> 0:18:17.670 wanted to walk straight out because his reaction was, Oh. Oh, okay. 0:18:17.880 --> 0:18:23.160 You know, he was really shocked. So. So I don't 0:18:23.160 --> 0:18:27.200 put it on my résumé. Because I don't feel like 0:18:27.200 --> 0:18:30.170 I should have to. But when I have a job interview, 0:18:30.170 --> 0:18:34.220 I will say straight up, unless it's unless I'm applying 0:18:34.220 --> 0:18:37.639 for something in the disability sector, which I have done before, 0:18:38.750 --> 0:18:40.790 that I will put on my resume. Look, I've had 0:18:40.790 --> 0:18:47.360 lived experience with disability as I have CP. So it's 0:18:47.900 --> 0:18:52.430 so it actually becomes something that is beneficial for the job. But, 0:18:52.850 --> 0:18:54.860 you know, I don't put on my resume, but when 0:18:54.859 --> 0:18:57.640 I go in there, I will briefly touched on it. 0:18:57.650 --> 0:18:59.600 I don't talk about it too much because I don't 0:18:59.600 --> 0:19:02.990 want it to be the only thing they se. But 0:19:02.990 --> 0:19:05.330 that's the issue that I've had in the past, that people, 0:19:05.900 --> 0:19:07.850 once they, you know, they think my résumé and my 0:19:07.850 --> 0:19:09.980 cover letter is great. And then I get there and they 0:19:09.980 --> 0:19:12.140 see me and they sort of you can tell that 0:19:12.140 --> 0:19:15.500 they're internally having a little bit of a panic because 0:19:15.500 --> 0:19:18.800 they've obviously never employed someone with a disability before, and 0:19:18.800 --> 0:19:20.959 I don't know how to handle it, which I really 0:19:20.960 --> 0:19:25.280 wish that would change because we are very willing to 0:19:25.280 --> 0:19:29.810 work and very willing to go above and beyond and 0:19:29.810 --> 0:19:33.640 do the job. And we're intelligent people. So, you know, 0:19:33.680 --> 0:19:37.690 that's something that in the employment sector, I think that 0:19:37.880 --> 0:19:39.619 that needs to become more accessible. 0:19:41.330 --> 0:19:44.980 I like to boast that I have a the Bachelor of Arts and Monash University, amazing theatre, and 0:19:44.990 --> 0:19:47.120 then also in history and also in Minored in German. 0:19:47.480 --> 0:19:51.920 I am probably more qualified than most able bodied people 0:19:51.920 --> 0:19:54.560 and that's all I want to say to the world. 0:19:55.190 --> 0:19:58.460 That exactly, that's the thing. When they, when they wanted 0:19:58.460 --> 0:20:01.190 to chuck in sort of a maccas job years ago, 0:20:01.190 --> 0:20:03.290 and I'd sit there and go, I have a bachelor's 0:20:03.290 --> 0:20:07.640 degree in communications, I'm probably more qualified than most of 0:20:07.640 --> 0:20:10.340 the other clients. You're like, you know, give me a 0:20:10.340 --> 0:20:14.900 job that's going to stimulate me and and help me 0:20:14.900 --> 0:20:17.510 use my brain, you know, because I want to use 0:20:17.510 --> 0:20:18.800 it and I want to work and I want to 0:20:18.800 --> 0:20:21.200 make a difference in the world. And I'm finally in 0:20:21.200 --> 0:20:25.300 a job where I could do that. But it took 0:20:25.300 --> 0:20:29.470 a long time to get there because people just was like, okay, 0:20:29.470 --> 0:20:31.780 she's got a disability. We'll put we'll put her in a, 0:20:32.410 --> 0:20:35.139 you know, call center or a Macca's Job job or a 0:20:35.140 --> 0:20:38.830 drive thru job or a shop assistant or something. And 0:20:38.830 --> 0:20:41.980 I'd sit there and I'd go, I've studied for years 0:20:41.980 --> 0:20:46.570 at university. I've done all the courses. You know, I, 0:20:46.930 --> 0:20:52.600 I have a lot of qualifications and I want to 0:20:52.600 --> 0:20:54.850 make a difference. Look, a meaningful difference in the world. 0:20:54.850 --> 0:20:57.609 I don't want to just fade into the background and 0:20:57.609 --> 0:20:59.889 I never have, you know, ever since I was a kid, 0:20:59.890 --> 0:21:02.590 I always used to be in the spotlight on the stage, 0:21:02.590 --> 0:21:09.480 doing theater, doing singing, doing whatever. But that. Dream of 0:21:09.480 --> 0:21:13.350 being in theater or an actress. That would be another 0:21:13.350 --> 0:21:16.470 thing that I've always wanted to do. But then I thought, okay, well, 0:21:16.470 --> 0:21:17.929 they're not going to fit that if you get it. 0:21:18.090 --> 0:21:20.100 If you if you get anything at all, they're not 0:21:20.100 --> 0:21:23.909 going to film you below the waist because of the 0:21:23.910 --> 0:21:28.700 way you walk. And that was something that that I 0:21:28.700 --> 0:21:31.460 had to come to terms with. There's no I think 0:21:31.460 --> 0:21:33.050 there was one of my friends was like, well, there's 0:21:33.050 --> 0:21:36.740 no place for people like you in in theater or 0:21:36.740 --> 0:21:42.800 in in film. So I went to radio instead. But 0:21:43.010 --> 0:21:46.100 I really wish that they they would even like they 0:21:46.100 --> 0:21:50.810 would have, you know, more actors and actresses that that 0:21:50.810 --> 0:21:56.500 were disabled, you know, just so that we could. We 0:21:56.500 --> 0:21:58.990 could act and do all the things that we wanted 0:21:58.990 --> 0:22:01.629 to do. I didn't think I was good enough talking 0:22:01.630 --> 0:22:03.820 about this, but I just thought about it from when 0:22:03.820 --> 0:22:05.350 I was a kid and I wanted to do all 0:22:05.350 --> 0:22:07.000 these different things. And then I had to come to 0:22:07.000 --> 0:22:09.340 terms with the fact that there's no way you're going 0:22:09.340 --> 0:22:12.190 to be doing that because of what you've got, really. 0:22:13.600 --> 0:22:15.639 So I really wish that it would be more accessible. 0:22:16.270 --> 0:22:18.879 I've got two stories that I'm probably going to share. 0:22:18.970 --> 0:22:21.909 This one is when I was you know, when I 0:22:22.570 --> 0:22:25.090 did drama, this is about it is as an elective. They 0:22:25.119 --> 0:22:27.400 actually forced everyone to do it in year seven eight 0:22:27.430 --> 0:22:31.060 at my school, which that's a good idea. My school 0:22:31.060 --> 0:22:36.100 had brains at some point and we had this horrible 0:22:36.100 --> 0:22:41.350 drama teacher, which no one liked. And I actually was 0:22:41.350 --> 0:22:43.960 only there for it because the really good drama teacher 0:22:43.960 --> 0:22:47.860 who is a legend also made some sort of leave 0:22:49.780 --> 0:22:51.280 long service and she'd been at that school for a 0:22:51.280 --> 0:22:57.730 very long time. So she I guess this drama teacher 0:22:57.730 --> 0:23:01.030 said to the three people who are disabled in that class. 0:23:03.140 --> 0:23:05.149 She just asked all of us and said, You shouldn't 0:23:05.150 --> 0:23:09.130 do this next year. You shouldn't do it. It's just 0:23:09.130 --> 0:23:13.900 too hard feeling like it's not really necessary. Like I 0:23:13.900 --> 0:23:16.479 don't want to be. You're not the judge of my body, 0:23:16.480 --> 0:23:18.880 so I'm not to you. If I choose or not 0:23:18.880 --> 0:23:21.340 choose to do a class is your responsibility to make 0:23:21.340 --> 0:23:25.180 it as accessible as you can. And I think hopefully 0:23:25.450 --> 0:23:27.190 she wasn't even the teacher next year. So it wasn't 0:23:27.190 --> 0:23:29.590 really an issue. But it's like I now have a 0:23:29.590 --> 0:23:31.780 major in drama and I'm probably going to have honors 0:23:31.780 --> 0:23:34.480 in it next year. I'm already more qualified than this person, so. 0:23:34.600 --> 0:23:39.250 Another story was that when I was in, we went 0:23:39.250 --> 0:23:43.330 to the Britain for Holiday Ground 20, and I think 0:23:43.330 --> 0:23:46.720 it's about 1516 when it happened and was Stratford upon 0:23:46.720 --> 0:23:50.880 Avon and went to the Royal Shakespeare Company, the British, 0:23:50.890 --> 0:23:53.410 and we went to see Othello and one of the 0:23:53.410 --> 0:23:55.870 lead actresses in it was she only had one arm. 0:23:55.869 --> 0:24:00.070 And I was like, That's a disabled actress. The physical difference. 0:24:01.020 --> 0:24:03.460 I'm here, one of the famous theaters in the world. 0:24:03.480 --> 0:24:06.870 I was like, Maybe I can actually pursue theatre. Maybe 0:24:06.869 --> 0:24:10.020 you actually can do all these things like pursue drama. 0:24:10.020 --> 0:24:13.109 And I mentioned upstream the schools let me do drama 0:24:13.109 --> 0:24:14.100 the next Semester. 0:24:14.160 --> 0:24:17.520 Because it was like just saying that just changed the 0:24:17.520 --> 0:24:20.310 way I thought about theatre. And then I go to 0:24:20.310 --> 0:24:23.879 university and half the people in my class have autism, 0:24:23.880 --> 0:24:27.030 and it's like, I've actually never told anyone at my 0:24:27.030 --> 0:24:29.939 high school that I had autism until university. And I was like, 0:24:30.450 --> 0:24:34.280 Maybe I can actually do this. Maybe it actually that difficult. 0:24:35.580 --> 0:24:39.780 That. I love that story so much, and I think 0:24:39.780 --> 0:24:43.530 that it would be awesome to have more people with 0:24:43.920 --> 0:24:48.870 any disability, but especially a physical one that you can see, 0:24:48.869 --> 0:24:52.080 to see that it can be done. You know, because 0:24:52.080 --> 0:24:55.020 I had to I remember being young, kind of wanting 0:24:55.020 --> 0:24:57.540 to be an actress, you know, when you're seven, eight, nine, 0:24:57.540 --> 0:24:59.220 ten years old, I want to be an actress. I 0:24:59.220 --> 0:25:00.540 want to be a singer, I want to be all this. 0:25:00.540 --> 0:25:02.040 And then I thought, no one's going to you know, 0:25:02.340 --> 0:25:05.010 I can't do that because because I have a physical 0:25:05.010 --> 0:25:08.760 disability and I still want to do something creative. So 0:25:08.760 --> 0:25:12.870 I went into radio and I that's become my my dream. 0:25:13.350 --> 0:25:15.690 But I remember when I when acting was my dream 0:25:15.690 --> 0:25:17.650 and I was like, well, I can't do that, you know? 0:25:17.670 --> 0:25:21.210 And I did do drama until year 12. I loved 0:25:21.450 --> 0:25:25.680 I loved being, you know, I did love that. But yeah, 0:25:25.680 --> 0:25:28.290 it's it's difficult when you have people telling you you 0:25:28.290 --> 0:25:31.229 can't do something. And I'm always one of those people 0:25:31.230 --> 0:25:33.630 that as soon as someone tells me I can't do something, 0:25:33.630 --> 0:25:35.850 it makes me want to do it even more.