Reece is a creator from Scotland behind The World According to Reece, a YouTube channel, Facebook page, and website that shares the ups, downs, twists and turns, and sometimes funny moments of living life totally blind and an autism diagnosis.
Through his content, he shares his personal experiences, discusses accessibility, and helps others understand the challenges people with disabilities encounter in everyday life.
For years, Reece wanted to create videos to share those stories. But producing them independently was difficult.
"I'd wanted to do it for a while, start a YouTube channel and make a website and make Facebook Reels," Reece said. "If you can't see where you're filming, it's difficult."
With HeyGen, Reece can create videos using a digital version of himself, giving him more independence in how he shares his experiences.
Creating whenever he has something to share
Before HeyGen, creating a video required help.
Reece needed someone to position the camera, check the framing, and make sure everything was recording correctly. His screen reader could also be picked up in recordings, and editing footage presented additional accessibility challenges.
He wanted to create videos whenever he had something to share, without arranging filming assistance every time.
Eventually, Reece turned to ChatGPT for help.
"I told ChatGPT, 'Okay, I'm blind, and I really want to try and get my video content off the ground a bit. Are there services I can use? I could maybe type a script into it, and it would make a video for me,'" Reece said.
ChatGPT pointed him toward HeyGen.
Reece created a personal avatar of himself and began turning written scripts into videos without filming himself.
"I'm glad I came across it," he said, "because I probably wouldn't have started creating yet if I hadn't found it."
Making video creation more accessible with AI
Creating his avatar was only part of the challenge. Reece also needed a way to navigate the tools used to produce his videos.
Because he relies on a screen reader, Reece has learned that not every creative tool is built with accessibility in mind. Unlabeled buttons can slow him down, and he sometimes works with a visual interpreter to help him understand a new interface.
Over time, his workflow has become more independent.
By combining ChatGPT with HeyGen, Reece can describe what he wants to create and have ChatGPT help navigate the production process.
"I've been able to ask ChatGPT to do a lot of the navigation side for me so that I can concentrate more on creating the videos," he said.
He can also ask ChatGPT to describe the finished video, including how his avatar looks, what's happening on screen, and expressions or movements.
Previously, reviewing those visual details might have required assistance.
While ChatGPT and HeyGen have significantly reduced his reliance on others, Reece still occasionally needs visual assistance, particularly when checking certain elements of a finished video. But compared to traditional filming and editing, he needs considerably less help, allowing him to manage much more of the creative process independently.
For Reece, this means spending more energy on what he wants to communicate rather than the mechanics of video production.
Helping others understand his experience
Through The World According to Reece, Reece shares what everyday life is like for someone who’s totally blind and has an autism diagnosis, while discussing broader issues affecting people with disabilities.
His goal is to help others understand perspectives they might not otherwise encounter.
He's beginning to receive more comments on his videos and hopes to reach an even wider audience.
But the impact goes beyond growing a channel.
Reece wants his content to demonstrate that blindness doesn't have to prevent someone from pursuing creative interests.
"You don't have to be able to see to become a creator or do the things that you want to be able to do," he said.
He's also exploring ways to make his videos more engaging, including sound effects and demonstrations of the technology he uses in everyday life.
As his tools become easier to use, he sees more possibilities for what he can create.
Gaining independence and creative freedom
For Reece, HeyGen has made something he'd wanted to do for years more achievable.
He can now write scripts, create videos featuring his avatar, review the results with AI assistance, and share his experiences with an audience. He no longer has to arrange filming assistance whenever he wants to create something.
That independence is also inspiring Reece to think beyond his own channel. Alongside continuing to grow The World According to Reece, he's developing plans to offer video creation services to individuals and organizations using HeyGen.
He's already launched a dedicated video services page on his website, outlining the types of content he hopes to create for others, including promotional videos and explainers. While the offering is still in development, it represents an exciting next step in turning his creative skills into new opportunities.
What began as a way to share his own experiences could eventually help others bring their stories and ideas to life through video.
Asked how it feels to create and share videos in a way he couldn't before, Reece had a simple answer.
“It's quite empowering to know that I've been able to create something and that I own it and that I'm hopefully going to be able to expand on that as time goes on," Reece said.
For Reece, the greatest benefit isn't producing more videos or creating them faster. It's having greater independence to tell his story, share his perspective, and build something of his own.
