Congratulations Genevieve Clay-Smith, 2015 NSW Young Australian of the Year

How good to hear that the very talented and innovative Genevieve Clay-Smith has been selected as NSW Young Australia of the Year 2015.  Genevieve has worked with Down Syndrome NSW, and has been instrumental is promoting the careers of many young people with Down syndrome in the film industry. 

Genevieve directed Let the Journey Begin exploring the lives of three individuals and their families as they progress through the Independent Living Support Initiative (ILSI) program over the course of nine months. (ILSI is an innovative program designed and developed by Down Syndrome NSW, in conjunction with service providers and NSW Ageing Disability and Home Care, to help people living with a disability live a more independent life.)

Genevieve directed Be My Brother the winner of Tropfest 2009 (in which Gerard O'Dwyer also won Best Actor). She founded Bus Stop Films, and has included many people with Down syndrome, and other disabilities on both sides of the camera, winning awards and honours along the way. The Interviewer is currently on the international film festival circuit, and continues to win both critical and popular acclaim, and awards. 

... Genevieve Clay-Smith has been named the 2015 NSW Young Australian of the Year. The filmmaker and social entrepreneur, 26, is the co-founder of not-for-profit organisation Bus Stop Films, which teaches members of diverse and marginalised communities how to create short films that voice their experiences ... She is currently working with 12 of her intellectually disabled students on a film called Heartbreak and Beauty, in which they share their experiences of love and loss through poetry, dance and visual metaphor 

Ms Clay-Smith is also the co-founder of Taste Creative, which provides students with paid employment on film sets ... Genevieve Clay-Smith NSW Young Australian of the Year 2015, Helen Gregory, Newcastle Herald, 10th November 2014

The writer/director (Genevieve Clay-Smith) has been nominated in the annual Australian Financial Review and Westpac awards for her contribution to creating inclusion in the film industry ... Genevieve Clay-Smith has been recognised in the Young Leaders category for her efforts in creating inclusion within the film industry.
The gifted writer/director has won numerous accolades for her empathetic film work including Tropfest’s top prize and in 2012, Clay-Smith co-founded Bus Stop Films, a pioneering not-for-profit organisation dedicated to giving people with a disability the opportunity to learn the ropes when it came to professional filmmaking ... Genevieve Clay-Smith Named One Of The 100 Women Of Influence For 2014, Film INK

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