Well, bluetooth-based PS3 remotes do have more dedicated function buttons which should make the task easier, but whether you will need the display is dependant on how well you work "blind". So if you can do it now with the existing controller, then I'd wager you could do it with a remote as well.

You could also use a PSP's remote play capabilities for this, as I seem to recall that you can select to route audio through the main system (although I'm not 100% positive that it will let you use the disc drive - I know BD movie playback isn't possible this way).

One caution: if you're using HDMI for audio, you'll want to confirm that you still get sound from your receiver with the display off.