When the casting call came for the Netflix series “All the Light We Cannot See,” being adapted from the book of the same name, the producers announced that actresses who are blind or have low vision are “especially encouraged to apply,” as reported in the RDPFS Resources for Partners Bulletin in September 2021. When the selection of Mia Loberti was announced, it was “welcomed by disabilities rights activists.” Loberti, who has a rare genetic eye condition called achromatopsia, reports that she is completely blind in some environments and has minimal vision in others. A student with no formal training in acting, Loberti is currently pursuing a PhD in Rhetoric at Penn State University after receiving her master’s degree Royal Holloway, University of London as a US-UK Fulbright Scholar. All the Light We Cannot See told the story of a blind teenager, Marie-Laure, in occupied France during World War II. Shooting for the four-part adaptation of this Pulitzer Prize-winning, best-selling novel is slated to take place in Europe later this year. This casting decision has been cited by Lauren Appelbaum of Respectability, a nonprofit advocacy organization for people with disabilities, for its importance in changing “’stigmas surrounding what it means to be blind. Just because you’re blind doesn’t mean you can’t be an actress in a major role…It’s not overcoming blindness or in spite of being blind. She just happens to be blind and is going to play this role.’” For more information about Mia Loberti and this production, read the article in The Guardian: Untrained blind student lands starring role in Netflix second world war epic. And for more news about the full cast, check out the Town and Country piece: Netflix’s “All the Light We Cannot See” Adaptation Has Announced Its Cast.
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