Our Staff

Winnie Luk, a chinese woman with short black hair, is captured in a close-up portrait, smiling warmly. She wears a black-and-white patterned button-up shirt. A large green monstera plant is visible in the softly lit background.

Winnie Luk

Executive Director

Winnie Luk is a visionary senior leader with close to 30 years of progressive experience and proven expertise in strategic planning, project and events management, human resources, financial management, fundraising, and team development working across non-profit, film, entertainment, and public sectors.

Winnie is the inaugural Executive Director of the Disability Screen Office (DSO). She has navigated various mobility disabilities throughout her life. Her lifelong encounters with mobility issues and work with the city fuel her passion for advocating for accessibility rights.

Prior to her role at the DSO, Winnie served for four years as the Managing Director of Rainbow Railroad, a charitable organization that provides support to LGBTQI+ individuals seeking a safe haven from state-sponsored or enabled violence. Before that, she was the Director of Operations and Events at Inside Out, the presenter of the annual Toronto and Ottawa 2SLGBTQI+ Film Festivals and was with the organization for 16 years. Winnie also worked with the City of Toronto for eight years in the Parks and Recreation Department where her work included supervising disability recreation programming.

Winnie is a member of the Advisory Committee for the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, a member of the Advisory Committee for the CISF (Canadian Independent Screen Fund for BIPOC Creators), a Project Advisory Committee member for Independent Living’s Festivals and Events Accessibility Project, and a shareholder in Glad Day Bookshop, the world’s oldest LGBTQI+ bookstore. Other select organizations to which she has contributed as a senior volunteer include serving on the Board of Directors for ILGA (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association of North America and the Caribbean), the Board of Directors for Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, and the Selection Committee for the Community One Foundation.

Winnie graduated from the University of Toronto with a double major in Semiotics and Communications and Women and Gender Studies, and a minor in Cinema Studies.

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Alethea Bakogeorge

Director of Programs & Development

Alethea Bakogeorge (she/her) is a physically disabled access professional, fundraiser, and actor with cerebral palsy. She joined the Disability Screen Office from the National accessArts Centre in Calgary, where she was Director of Development & Performing Arts. Prior to her time at the NaAC, Alethea worked in fundraising and access for The Musical Stage Company in Toronto, where she was the first full-time Accessibility Manager to be appointed at an Ontario theatre company.

As an accessibility consultant, she has taught and lectured across North America on disability representation in the performing arts, access and accommodations, and disability-inclusive organizational change.

Alethea maintains an active acting career as a physically disabled voiceover and theatre actor. Some favourite credits include recurring as Mercedes Cohen-Davis on Lyla in the Loop (PBS Kids) and originating the role of Chrissie onstage in Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Live: King for a Day (US National Tour). Alethea holds a BFA in Music Theatre and a BFA in Arts Administration from Viterbo University, as well as a Professional Development Award in Leadership in Accessibility and Inclusion from Toronto Metropolitan University. She lives in Toronto.

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Elspeth Arbow

Executive Assistant/Operations Manager

Elspeth Arbow (she/her) is an experienced arts administrator, film programmer, festival professional, and event host and moderator. In addition to her work at the DSO, Elspeth is an Associate International Features programmer at Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. Previously, Elspeth helped oversee Hot Docs’ national Youth & Education program, Docs For School, providing free documentary programming to an average of 100k grade 5-12 students in Canada each year. She has served as the Disability Consultant for the Hot Docs Festival and as a jury member with Reel Abilities Toronto for multiple editions of each festival. Originally from Saint John, New Brunswick, Elspeth is currently based in Toronto, Ontario. She holds an HBA in Cinema Studies from the University of Toronto.

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Kássia Neves

Communications Manager

Kássia Neves is a communicator and published author with nearly a decade of experience in communications focused on human rights. As a public servant in Brazil, her home country, she worked at the Federal Public Defender’s Office (DPU), focusing on making complex legal concepts accessible to the public. Storytelling, plain language, and UX design principles were her main tools in ensuring information was accessible to those who needed it the most. Her work contributed to DPU becoming one of the most digitally engaged public defender’s offices in Brazil, with an Instagram audience of over 80,000 followers. She has also worked as a volunteer supporting people with disabilities and individuals experiencing homelessness. Kássia lives in Ottawa, and her loyal dog, Fufi, helps her manage misophonia and sensory processing sensitivities.

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