2016 Sep 6
by Yasonil Piyatissa
The profound abilities of Hasantha Dissanayaka have been showcased through his short film ‘Disability is not a Dis-ability’, which recently won the Most Famous Short Film title at a competition organized by a nonprofit organization named Nova Employments. The competition, which was held in Australia,dedicated its theme to revolve around the slogan ‘Focus on Ability’. It aimed at creating awareness by identifying that “disability” is a mere social construct that becomes a reality only when we allow it to. Accordingly, the short films entered into the competition aim at breaking down these barriers that restrict disabled people through thought provoking clips that will undoubtedly lead to one reflecting on his/her own attitude towards this issue. Likewise, Hasantha Dissanayaka has achieved this purpose by choosing a compelling storyline for him to direct and film, which was why he successfully qualified into the final round of the competition.
The film that’s less than five minutes long shows how a disabled child, who was initially a dancing student, went on to currently being a dancing teacher at the Lyceum International School. This goes to show that children who are mentally challenged should not be limited to a stereotypical style of living that society has unfairly expected of them. The film that whizzed past your eyes in only a matter of a few minutes carried such a significant message which displayed how we have truly underestimated the potential of these “disabled” individuals when they are indeed much more abled that we had assumed. Not only did this film put Sri Lanka on the map once again but, more importantly, it represented a step closer to the whole of humanity being more open minded about this issue.
Hasantha, still being only 20 years old, has secured titles such as All Island Best Actor, Best Writer and Best Director etc. He has written, directed and acted in many stage plays throughout his school career and now hopes to pursue a career in film and television. His first short film was screened at a festival and was titled ‘Vidhiyen Thaggak’. ‘Disability is not a Dis-Ability’ is only the second short film he has ever directed on his own and it has already claimed an international award, gaining its Screenwriter and Director a sense a recognition at such an impressively rapid pace. Hasantha Dissanayaka proves to be an individual that has the potential to be a great influence to not only Sri Lanka but the whole world through his life changing films and plays.
Check out the short film below!
