In Sony Pictures Animation’s “GOAT,” the roar of the crowd filling the theater’s speakers has an important meaning unknown to most viewers. These chants, crowd noise, and energy around the arena were provided by nearly 20 disabled actors, making history as the first all-disabled Loop group to work on a major studio film.
The Disability Loop Group, formed through the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge (EDFC), made its feature film debut in the original action comedy animation GOAT, currently in theaters. This is a milestone that Nick Nowicki, founder and director of EDFC, has been building on for more than a decade.
“Like Will on GOAT, these talented artists have earned the opportunity to show what they are capable of,” Nowicki said.
The diminutive and working actor, whose credits include Boardwalk Empire, The Sopranos and The Good Doctor, began his foray into film 13 years ago after noticing the continued lack of opportunities for creatives with disabilities in Hollywood. “It’s really exciting to see so many people with disabilities being recognized for their skills and invited to take part in major studio films,” he said.
Loop groups provide the ambient audio that fills your film’s soundscape, from crowd noise to background chatter and reaction sounds. For GOAT, about an underdog goat chasing his dream of playing professional loreball in a world full of animals, the group helped build the film’s arena sequences from the ground up, building chants and audience energy over two days of recording at Sony’s lot.
“We’re improvising, playing different accents, different elements. It’s like an orchestra,” Nowicki said. “We use a variety of voices and sounds, sometimes collectively and sometimes alone, to create the overall atmosphere of the film.”
The group grew out of workshops held on the premises of Sony Pictures Entertainment, where EDFC participants received coaching and feedback from animation executives and casting directors. Sony Pictures Entertainment has been the primary sponsor and organizer of this challenge for seven years.
Nowicki had just voiced Lego Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and fellow EDFC participant and wheelchair user Daniel Perez was discovered by Academy Award-winning producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller and cast as Sun-Spider in the same film.
These consecutive castings confirmed what Nowicki had long believed. Loop Work was a unique opportunity for the disability community, where the barriers that define much of on-camera casting simply don’t apply.
“It doesn’t matter what your disability is or what you look like. Your voice is your instrument,” he said. “I can play anything.”
The group is coordinated by filmmaker and autism spectrum advocate Brock Powell and includes actors with a range of disabilities, both visible and invisible. Featuring the voices of Caleb McLaughlin, Gabrielle Union, Stephen Curry and Jennifer Hudson, GOAT is just the first of the group’s multiple studio projects, with additional credits currently in the works.
“I am so honored to be a part of this effort and to be a part of the disability community,” Nowicki said. “There’s a lot of talent out there. This is a dream come true. People with disabilities are being employed and getting opportunities. And I really feel like that’s going to continue.”
Registration for the 2026 EDFC Contest is now open and will run from March 24th to 29th. The awards ceremony will be held at Sony Pictures Studios on May 7th.
