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AXS Lab Inc

Long Island City, NY · EIN 263805278 · Form 990 · FY2024 · NTEE A70 · Arts, Culture & Humanities · Small ($100K-$1M) · axslab.org
revenue
$520K
expenses
$254K
net assets
$1.2M
employees
0
program ratio
60%
mission · from form 990

AXS Lab Inc serves people with disabilities through media and technology.

profile · synthesized from sources

AXS Lab Inc is a nonprofit organization that advances inclusion for people with disabilities through media and technology. It produces films by and about disabled individuals and develops accessible tools such as AXS Map, a crowd-sourced platform for rating the accessibility of public spaces. Founded by filmmaker Jason DaSilva, the organization combines storytelling, film, and data-driven technology to challenge systemic barriers and promote global accessibility.

irs program accomplishments · form 990 part iii · fy2024

What they reported doing

  1. #1 primary $13K
    We utilize the qualitative story-telling of film and the quantitative data gathering of new media to further our objectives. AXS Lab makes movies by disabled people telling the stories of disabled people and has created an online accessibility mapping tool called AXS Map (AXSMAP.COM). This program service reflects the grant income and expenses of the AXS Map Tool.
  2. #2 $2K
    AXS Lab is a nonprofit that is building a network of organizations and people to supercharge the movement for inclusion of people with disabilities. We aim to engage audiences to playfully explore the disability experience using new media, films, technology and the power of story. This program service is for the writer and subject content videos.
named programs · 3 · from sources

What they call their work

AXS Film Fund
Provides financial support to filmmakers of color with disabilities to produce authentic, intersectional stories on screen.
AXS Map
Crowd-sourced platform allowing users to rate and review the accessibility of public spaces; includes community-driven Mapathons held in over 280 locations globally.
Filmmaking and Documentary Production
Produces award-winning films by and about people with disabilities, including When I Walk, Lest We Forget, and The Dismantled.
activities · 4 groups

What they do

  • Documentary Film Production 2 activities
    • Conducting research through documentary filmmaking
      Produces feature-length and short documentaries that investigate systemic social issues related to disability, healthcare access, and racial justice, including studies on geographic mobility restrictions for people with disabilities due to healthcare policy and wartime racism in the U.S. and Canada.
    • Film production about disability experiences
      Produces documentary and short films by and about disabled people, including award-winning works such as "When I Walk" (Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Programming – Long Form) and "First Steps," screened at major festivals including Tribeca and Vancouver International Film Festival, and distributed through platforms like The New York Times.
  • Disability Rights Advocacy & Self-Advocacy Empowerment 1 activity
    • Advocacy through data contribution to international institutions
      Supports disability rights advocacy by contributing accessibility data from AXS Map to the United Nations’ annual flagship report on Disability and Development since 2013.
  • Film Production Funding and Fiscal Sponsorship 1 activity
    • Funding filmmakers with disabilities through AXS Film Fund
      Administers the AXS Film Fund, launched in 2020, which provides financial support to filmmakers of color with disabilities to produce original content advancing inclusion and representation.
  • Uncategorized 1 activity
    • Operating AXS Map platform
      Operates a crowd-sourced accessibility rating and review platform for public spaces such as restaurants, transit stops, and businesses; launched in 2010 and expanded through Mapathons in over 280 global locations, forming one of the largest accessibility databases in North America.
financials · form 990 · fy2024
revenue
Total revenue$520K
Contributions & grants$445K86%
Program service revenue$55K11%
Investment income$20K4%
Other revenue$0
expenses
Total expenses$254K
Program expenses60%
Admin / overhead40%
Fundraising0%
Salaries & benefits$1K
Grants paid out$0
Largest expense lineOther
balance sheet
Total assets$1.22M
Cash$24K
Investments$1.16M
Liabilities$2K
Net assets$1.22M
Liquid reserves55.7 mo
4 years on record · 2020–2024 · YoY revenue +82.0%
leadership · form 990 part vii · fy2024

Who runs it

board members · 3
  • Jason DaSilva — President
  • Phil Beder — TreasurerOfficer
  • Siddartha Joag — Board Member
relationships · 26

Who they work with

  • AXS Map Partner — Collaborative initiative to create an online accessibility mapping tool.
  • Bertha Foundation Funder — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • Canada Media Fund Funder — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • Eric Gamalinda Partner — Provided voice-over spoken word for a short film exploring everyday existence.
  • Ford Foundation Funder — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • Frank Tachikoma Partner — Collaborated on the creation of a short film by composing the piano score.
  • Global Visions Film Festival Partner — Film festival where "When I Walk" won Best Canadian Documentary and the Audience Award in 2014.
  • Google Earth Outreach Funder — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • Hot Docs Partner — Film festival where "When I Walk" won Best Canadian Feature in 2013.
  • International Documentary Festival of Amsterdam Network — Documentary premiered at the festival in 2004.
  • Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival Partner — Film festival where "When I Walk" won the Grand Jury Prize in 2013.
  • MacArthur Foundation Funder — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • NYC Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities Government — Provider of support for the AXS Map platform.
  • News & Documentary Emmy Awards Government — Awarding body that honored "When I Walk" with an Emmy for Outstanding Informational Programming in 2015.
  • One World International Human Rights Film Festival Prague Network — Festival awarded the documentary a Special Mention in the Right to Know category in 2004.
  • Suheir Hammad Partner — Narrated a short film combining multimedia elements to explore everyday existence.
  • Telefilm Canada Partner — Collaborating on feature film development through the Telefilm Feature Film Development Fund.
  • Telus Funder — Provided production grant funding through the StoryHive program.
  • The New York Times Partner — Contributes content and collaborates as a media partner on stories related to disability and inclusion.
  • To Be Continued Brass Band Partner — Subject of the documentary produced by AXS Lab Inc, focusing on their musical and community resurgence after Hurricane Katrina.
  • Topanga Film Festival Partner — Film festival where "When I Walk" won the Innovation Award in 2013.
  • Toronto International Film Festival Partner — Participated in the Telefilm Pitch This! Competition.
  • Tribeca Film Festival Partner — Screened AXS Lab's documentary "First Steps" at its festival.
  • United Nations Government — Contributed accessibility data from AXS Map to the UN’s flagship report on Disability and Development since 2013.
  • Vancouver International Film Festival Partner — Film festival where "When I Walk" won the Audience Award in 2013.
  • Vancouver International Film Festival Partner — Screened AXS Lab's documentary "First Steps" at its festival.
strategies · 3

How they approach the work

Named approaches extracted from this org’s sources. Where others share an approach, follow it to see the full set of orgs running it.

  • Film and New Media as Advocacy Tools
    methodology: film_as_advocacy
    By using documentary filmmaking, multimedia expression, and accessible technology, the organization advances disability rights and cultural resilience, because visceral, artistic narratives disrupt dominant stereotypes and motivate policy change more effectively than data alone.
  • Networked Movement Building
    methodology: networked_inclusion_movement
    By building a distributed network of individuals and organizations engaged through storytelling and playful media, the organization amplifies disability inclusion, because collective identity and shared narrative drive broader cultural and institutional change.
  • Story-Data Integration for Disability Inclusion
    methodology: story_and_data_integration
    By combining personal storytelling with crowd-sourced and quantitative data, the organization drives engagement and systemic change in disability inclusion, because narrative builds empathy while data validates patterns and scales advocacy.