Netflix Series 'All the Light We Cannot See', Aims for Authentic Disability Representation, Stars Legally Blind Actors in Leading Roles

"Breaking Barriers: 'All the Light We Cannot See' Touts Breakthrough in Casting with Legally Blind Lead Actors, Paving Way for More Authentic Portrayal of Blindness in Hollywood"

Netflix's 'All the Light We Cannot See' stars newcomer Aria Mia Loberti in the lead, aiming to change the landscape of Hollywood by employing people from the Blind and low vision community in prominent roles for enhanced authenticity in depicting blindness.
Joe Strechay, a member of the Blind community, who has previously been an accessibility consultant for Apple TV+'s 'See', acted as an associate producer for the groundbreaking series. His contributions included advising on the accuracy of the Blind techniques used by Loberti's character.
The series, based on Anthony Doerr’s 2014 bestselling book, is a period piece set in Nazi-occupied France in 1943, challenging the norm of disability narratives typically being rooted in science fiction.
Strechay stresses that the higher employment of actors from the disability community in significant roles, like Loberti, contributes positively towards breaking the disparity in employment for persons with disabilities in the entertainment industry.
The director, Shawn Levy, underlined the transformative effects the experience had on him and the production process, which was led, not only by considerations of sight, but also touch and texture, thereby creating a world as the Blind protagonist would perceive it.