Changing hearts and minds
Genevieve Clay-Smith spent her childhood ensconced in the creative world of Young People’s Theatre in her home town of Cardiff, Newcastle. When she wasn’t improvising with her theatre buddies, she was spending lunch breaks immersed in writing stories — more compelled by the worlds she was creating on the page than the kids playing outside.
Set on making it as an actor, Clay-Smith delved into a Media Arts and Production degree at the University of Technology in Sydney, drawn by the idea that she could better herself as an actor from behind the camera — it didn’t take long for her to realise that was where she belonged.
Stars aligned
In 2008, Clay-Smith was contracted to make a documentary for Down Syndrome NSW. She was to follow six people with trisomy 21 (the preferred term for people with Down syndrome) as they pursued their job of choice. During the 18-month-long project, Clay-Smith witnessed the many barriers to employment for people with trisomy 21 and the people willing to help them
