Apple is marking the International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3rd) with a vibrant global campaign that puts disabled college students at the heart of the story. Through a new short film directed by Somesuch’s Kim Gehrig, the tech giant showcases how accessibility is not an add-on, but a daily catalyst that enables students worldwide to study, create, socialise and navigate campus life with autonomy.
Anchored by an energetic musical sequence, the film highlights the full spectrum of accessibility features embedded across the Apple ecosystem. This year introduces tools such as Magnifier for Mac, Braille Access and Accessibility Reader, while longtime staples like VoiceOver, AssistiveTouch and Live Captions remain central to the experience. For the students featured, these functionalities aren’t simply design perks — they are the backbone of their academic and social independence.
The campaign marks Gehrig’s return after directing Apple’s acclaimed 2022 accessibility short The Greatest. This time, she spotlights Deaf and disabled students as they harmonise across lecture halls, dorm rooms and late-night campus hangouts, singing a unifying message: being “remarkable” is not an exception — it is an everyday reality.
Apple’s commitment to accessibility is decades-long. The company established its first dedicated disability office in 1985, predating the Americans with Disabilities Act by five years, and has since embedded dozens of accessibility tools directly into its devices — available to every user from the moment they unbox them.
The new film joins a growing body of Apple work advancing disability representation, including Taika Waititi’s The Lost Voice, the Paralympic tribute The Relay, the Emmy-nominated Heartstrings and the documentary series No Frame Missed exploring life with Parkinson’s disease.
Released globally across broadcast, digital and social platforms, the campaign reinforces Apple’s message for this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities: technology should not only connect people — it should empower them.
