Comedian Ricky Gervais defends dwarfism sitcom

From AAS via Media Dis n Dat:

Ricky Gervais has defended his new sitcom centred around Warwick Davis, insisting he doesn’t rely on the dwarf actor’s short stature for the show’s jokes.

Gervais and his writing partner Stephen Merchant recruited the Harry Potter star, who was born with dwarfism, for upcoming TV comedy Life’s Too Short, about a dwarf actor running a struggling showbiz agency.

But The Office funnyman told Britain’s Absolute Radio Breakfast Show he doesn’t poke fun at Davis’ disability in the series.

“This is nothing to do with his height. We’re not getting jokes out of him being short all the time, we’re getting jokes out of him being militant or ripping off other dwarves. He runs an agency, both in real life and in this one. In this one it’s called Dwarves for Hire and of course he’s just ripping them off. He’s getting all the best jobs for himself and he treats them like commodities and props.

“It’s not the real Warwick Davis, he’s not really like that. We’ve created a character here, a little Mussolini (dictator). And it’s not all jokes about his height, it’s much more about his character.”

Gervais previously worked with Davis on a 2005 episode of his TV hit Extras.

ABC Family Searching for Young Deaf Actress to Star in New TV Show

ABC Family is looking for an amazing young, deaf actress to star in a new TV series (and two male deaf actors too)!

The show revolves around Daphne, a smart, confident and well-adjusted deaf teenager who has her world turned upside down when she discovers that she was switched at birth with another girl.

If you meet the characters’ requirements below, submit a video of yourself by October 15th, 2010. PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU MUST SIGN A WAIVER BEFORE SUBMITTING ANY VIDEO.

For more information about the project, including instructions on how to submit your video, and how to get a copy of the waiver, please go to www.facebook.com/SwitchedSearch.

DAPHNE – actress must be deaf or hard of hearing and must speak English well, American Sign Language preferred. Age range from 16 to early 20’s to play high school. Actress is to be light-haired or willing to dye hair blond for the role, and if the show moves to series, actress must be willing to relocate to Los Angeles in February.

Smart, confident, and well-adjusted Daphne is stunned to learn that she and Bay Kennish were accidentally switched at birth 15 years ago. Having grown up in a working-class household as the only child of a single mom, she is excited to meet her new parents, and especially thrilled at the idea of having brothers and a dad. But balancing two families is trickier than she expected, particularly because her biological parents have never been around anyone deaf, and are eager for her to enter a mainstream school and a less deaf-centric world.

EMMETT – 16, actor must be deaf or hard of hearing, must be fluent in American Sign Language. Emmett is Daphne’s best friend. Raised by deaf parents and educated in a deaf school, Emmett doesn’t talk orally, and is more comfortable in a deaf world. Rugged, reserved, a young deaf James Dean.

PENN – late 30’s or 40’s. Male, actor must be deaf or hard of hearing, must speak English well. Penn is Emmett’s father and Daphne’s mother’s best friend. Penn is the one who educated Daphne’s mother about the importance of learning sign, schooling Daphne in a deaf world, etc.

Again, if you would like to audition, go to www.facebook.com/SwitchedSearch to find the audition scenes and the instructions on how and where to submit your video.

Hurry – we need to find our actors in the next couple of weeks! And please spread the word — if you know a “Daphne”, “Emmett”, or “Penn”, tell them about this and help them audition! This might just be the break that makes someone’s dreams come true!

Good luck!