Stetson Blue Williams, a Kiwi actor with Down syndrome, has taken out Best Child Actor (Short Film) at the Los Angeles Film Awards.

Stetson, 11, won the award for his role in the film Upside Down. The movie centres around a single mother of a 10-year-old boy with Down syndrome, who struggles to keep her life under control. The film was made by Stetson's parents Kacie Stetson and Jessi Williams.

Kacie says she hopes the crowd-funded film will shine a light on the representation of disabled people in film.

"I feel very, very, very passionate about representation."

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"A lot of people are afraid of people with Down syndrome, but if they just get to know them they'll actually realise they're really fun, they're really loving, and you can see that in our film. We're trying to get people to get more comfortable with people's Down syndrome, and actually see how special and wonderful they are."

Kacie said the joy of casting Stetson - who has previously featured in a commercial for SKY TV - far outweighed any minor challenges that arose from working with him on set.

"You have to slow down and calm the set quite a bit, and there were moments of resistance, but we moved from LA about eight years ago so he grew up there in the industry."

Supplied Kiwis will be able to watch Upside Down once it has wrapped on the festival circuit.

The film also took home awards for Best Narrative in a Short Film (Kacie) and Best Actress in a Short Film (Jessi).

The win for Upside Down coincides with a nationwide casting call searching for an actor with Down syndrome to star in Linda Niccol's upcoming feature film.

POPPY will tell the story of a young woman with Down syndrome who dreams of learning to drive and becoming a mechanic.

"The role will be demanding in that we need our Poppy to drive the film. She'll need to have the ability to learn lines and she'll also need to be fit, feisty and fun." Niccol (Secondhand Wedding and The Handkerchief) says.

Supplied Kapiti writer-director Linda Niccol, left, with the Beverley Hills cast and crew for the staged reading of Niccol's story 'Poppy'.

The actress cast will be coached by Miranda Harcourt.

"In a world where diversity and respect for difference are important elements of story-telling, Linda Niccol has written a paean to joy in POPPY," Harcourt says.

"Now is the time to be celebrating actors of disability and stories about difference."

Those interested in auditioning for the role of Poppy can contact the film's Casting Director Linda McFetridge at linda@catchcasting.com.

Upside Down will be released to Kiwi audiences in 2019 (date TBC).