Folk partners with inclusive theatre company Hijinx to bring representation to the comms industry
Creative communications agency Folk has formed a partnership with world-leading inclusive theatre company Hijinx Theatre to bring more diversity to the marketing and comms industry.
Hijinx creates opportunities for actors with learning disabilities and/or autism through theatre and film productions. These aim to confound expectations and challenge people’s perceptions about learning disability.
Folk’s financial sponsorship will go towards supporting the operational running of Hijinx which provides professional performance training for actors with learning disabilities and/or autism and supports them to access jobs in theatre and film. The partnership demonstrates Folk’s commitment to improving representation of disabled people in media and marketing.
Sharon Flaherty, CEO of Folk says:
“Founded from my firm belief that every voice matters, Folk’s mission is getting people from all backgrounds heard, represented, valued, and empowered. I believe this partnership with Hijinx Theatre will help us to keep improving the visibility of underrepresented groups on screen which will keep up the momentum on normalising difference and hitting home the message of the importance of representation for all in the marketing, PR and the advertising industries.
Cardiff-based Folk was rebranded in November from multi-award-winning agency BrandContent, which Sharon Flaherty launched in 2014. Folk is committed to creating inclusive marketing campaigns and to helping clients to achieve representation and inclusivity.
Hijinx runs five training Academies to provide professional performance training for 70 uniquely talented actors with autism and other learning disabilities, providing them with the skills needed to become professional performers.
Sarah Horner, CEO of Hijinx says:
“At Hijinx we’re always excited to build connections with organisations committed to access and inclusion for all. By working together Hijinx and Folk have a unique opportunity to inform each other's work, building understanding and seeding real change in the advertising and marketing industry, ensuring that representation for learning disabled and/or autistic people is authentic, and that voices are amplified and heard. As a charity, support from companies like Folk is invaluable in helping us to continue our work to pioneer, produce and promote professional and participatory opportunities in the arts and creative industries for learning disabled and/or autistic people. We’re hugely grateful for their sponsorship in these challenging times, it will have a real impact.”
Acclaimed Hijinx productions include Meet Fred, Into the Light and Metamorphosis, which have toured globally to over 35 countries in recent years. And its actors have gone on to appear in BBC’s Casualty, and Severn Screen for S4C and BBC Cymru’s final series of Craith/Hidden.
ENDS
For more information contact Fiona Magill: Fiona@persuasioncomms.com
About Folk
Folk (formerly BrandContent) is an independent, Cardiff-based agency on a mission to make inclusive representation the norm for all communications. The agency works nationally and internationally with household brands in a range of sectors including financial services, education, technology and the public sector with clients including FTSE 100 Admiral, Principality Building Society, the Welsh Government. It is a co-founding member of the CMA diversity and inclusion group, is a disability confident employer, Whizz kids partner and a member of the climate perks initiative. It was named Best Small Agency at the International Content Marketing Awards in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.
