Back in 2019

The Focus on Ability Film Festival will be back in 2019 and we can’t wait to see what our film makers come up with. Entries will close May 31, 2019 and as always the theme is 'focus on the ability of people with disability.'

For more information please contact [email protected]

Search the Catalogue

Click the icon above to visit a page where you can search the entire film catalogue by keyword(s).

Use Filters on Catalogue

Click the icon above to visit a page where you can use various dropdown lists to filter the catalogue by competion year, entry category and origin country.

View Great Playlists

Click the icon above to visit view playlists of the best films chosen from all the films in the catalogue.

Keyword Cloud

Click the icon above to visit a page where you can view keyword clouds relating to themes in each of the films in the catalogue. It's a great way to get into the minds of the filmmakers.

The Focus Story

This festival asks film makers to 'Focus on the Ability' of people with a disability and tell a story on film for the world to view.

Films are judged by a professional judging panel and subject to an online voting process, with separate prizes for each category.

Meet the Team

The Focus on Ability film festival is involves a huge amount of effort from a large number of talented individuals. Meet some of those people here.

FOA Creator, Martin Wren

In 2009, Martin began the festival with a belief in the ability of people with disability, and the goal of bringing that belief to the world through the medium of film.

FOA Ambassador, Paula Duncan

Paula Duncan, known for both her success in the Australian film and television industry and passion for supporting people with disability, has worked tirelessly to bring this festival to the world.

Creative Director, Ryan Goodwin

Ryan Goodwin studied as a journalist and has used his curiosity and ability to talk to people to encourage film makers from all walks of life to tell their story via the medium of film.

Focus Blog

Actors with disability playing the role
Ninety-five per cent of roles featuring people with disability are played by able-bodied actors. Huh? Yep. Right now, they're the stats. But why? Because, like many other minorities, such as people ...

Focus on Malawi
Last November, the African nation of Malawi hosted its second annual screening of FOAM (Focus on Ability, Malawi) to an audience of approximately 200 people. The huge and enthusiastic attendance was ...

Touring FOA - Australia & New Zealand
'Without a doubt the highlight of every year is getting out and screening the films,' says Focus On Ability (FOA) Creative Director Ryan Goodwin. This year the national tour visited Melbourne, ...