May 2012 – Page 2

A couple of weeks ago Red Sock Friday founder John McInroy joined us to talk for our How To Friday sessions. You don’t meet John you experience him, a little over two years ago he started an inspirational social movement for people to share stories of hope and inspiration, and show their support by wearing red socks on Fridays. In the fun talk above he shares his story of how the movement started, and also talks about the Unogwaja Challenge that will see John and friends cycle for 10 day road from Cape Town to Pietermaritzburg (1,677km), followed by running the Comrades Ultra Marathon (89km) on day 11.

So far he has already garnered sponsorship from the likes of Avis, New Balance, and Ogilvy (We will be filming his journey). If you’re looking for an speaker with an inspirational story you can find him on twitter @JohnMcInroy.

In a country with many social and welfare problems, the plight of disabled people in South Africa is often ignored. This film was a direct appeal for help from the DPSA.

The final scene is shot at South Africa’s iconic government headquarters, The Union Buildings, on World Disability Day – December 2011.

There were several incredible things about making this ad. First and foremost, the lead character, Noma-India Zenzile, is such a determined and inspirational woman. She easily overcame the difficulties of travelling over 1400km in taxis and trains from Cape Town to Pretoria as a disabled person. And, as she overcame each of these difficulties she showed us, the crew, just how challenging it is to be a disabled person in South Africa. Even the smallest things, like making one’s way down a train aisle, getting onto a taxi, ramping off a pavement or going to the toilet become a serious undertaking. So while we set out to make an ad that would help disabled people’s cause in South Africa, each of us also left with a deeper, more meaningful understanding of what it actually means to be disabled in this country. It was a serious learning experience and a massive eye-opener. Great thanks must go to Noma-India. Hopefully all her incredible efforts, and her very relevant message will not fall on deaf ears.

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