ReelAbilities Film Festival
ReelAbilities Film Festival showcases award-winning international films presenting the stories and artistic expression of people with disabilities. It is the largest film festival in the world dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of the lives, stories, and artistic expressions of people with different abilities. ReelAbilities brings communities together to explore, discuss, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our shared human experience.
The 2022 ReelAbilities New York Film Festival will be held virtually April 7-13! Commonpoint Queens is proud to partner with the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan to bring access to these films and live Zoom Q+A to you. When purchasing tickets to these films, please use the code commonqueens to receive a 20% discount and support Commonpoint Queens!
Feature Film
THE SPECIALS
Dir. Olivier Nakache, Éric Toledano
114 mins – Narrative – France, Belgium – 2019
Close friends Bruno and Malik have combined their nonprofits to train youth for underprivileged areas to be caregivers for autistic children and teens. However, the program lacks official certification and is under the watchful eye of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs. Despite this looming threat and internal conflicts, the power of unity, compassion, and acceptance within the program may prove exceptional.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Urprs8TPKFc&feature=youtu.be
Click here to purchase tickets (Use discount code commonqueens)
Short Films – Free with RSVP
A CRITTER FABLE
Dir. Grace Fisher
8 mins – Animation – US – 2021
A caterpillar who can’t become a butterfly discovers he can still add color to the world in his own special ways. Featuring music and artwork by Amazing Grace star Grace Fisher, with critters created by children with disabilities in Santa Barbara.
Click here to purchase tickets
BEAT LINGO
Dir. Jose Navas
16 mins – Short – US – 2021
Marcus, a reserved teenager with mutism, attends public school for the first time in his life. Pushing through trials and prejudices of the past and present, Marcus soon uncovers a special gift he’s been hiding from the world.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YrJnnEcjYs&feature=youtu.be
Click here to purchase tickets
BEAUTIFUL
Dir. Mulan Fu
6 mins – Animation – Chinese – US – 2020
A teenage girl undergoes a transformative growth as she witnesses her mother’s fight against breast cancer.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3GDsd2rdlY
Click here to purchase tickets
FREEBIRD
Dir. Michael Joseph McDonald, Joe Bluhm
5 mins – Animation – Canada – 2021
A boy with Down Syndrome learns to navigate the world with a loving mother, an absent father, a classroom bully, and a life-long crush.
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpijQZQzJD8&feature=youtu.be
Click here to purchase tickets
For more information, please contact Sivan Ben-Aderet at [email protected].
Click here for more information about the Virtual Passover Film Festival April 14-24!
Virtual Passover Film Festival
We’re proud to partner with the Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan to bring a Passover Film Festival to your homes April 14-24! For ten nights, watch engaging movies across a variety of topics and genres that welcome everyone to add a new dimension to their Passover celebrations.
Choose from any of the eight films or watch them all! When purchasing the tickets, use the discount code cq2022 for 20% off for the Commonpoint Queens community.
Films include:
Leaving Paradise – Cleo fulfilled his dream: to leave the big city with his wife and fifteen children, to establish a family commune on a farm in Brazil. Exploring their family-roots leads the children to discover their surprising heritage, which undermines the existence of the communal paradise.
My Hero Brother – A group of remarkable young people with Down syndrome embark on a demanding trek through the Indian Himalayas, accompanied by their siblings.
Rabenu (Our Rabbi) – I’m a Wonder Man – In a special and surprising cinematic language, Rabenu – I’m a Wonder Man, delves into the biggest spiritual movement in Judaism today, and brings the magic of one of Judaism’s most mysterious Hassidic rabbis, Rebbe Nachman of Breslow, to the screen.
Redemption – Menachem, a former frontman for a rock band, is now religious, and a father to a six-year-old. When his daughter is diagnosed with cancer, he must find a creative solution to fund the expensive treatments. He reunites his band for one last tour.
Shadow in Bagdad – A young Iraqi journalist sets out to write about Linda Abdul Aziz, who escaped to Israel in the early 70’s and whose father, a prominent lawyer, had been kidnapped in Baghdad.
The Other Story – Two rebellious young women – one fleeing the chaos of secular hedonism for the disciplined comforts of faith; the other desperate to transcend her oppressive religious upbringing for sexual and spiritual freedom – cross paths unexpectedly in Jerusalem, to startling consequences.
There Are No Lions in Tel Aviv – The story of the chief Rabbi of Copenhagen’s Jewish community, who would come to be known as Rabbi Doolittle.
Yerusalem, The Incredible Story of European Jewry – Yerusalem, a new feature documentary (based on the Israeli documentary series) brings to life the story of a long, dramatic and tumultuous journey as the Jewish Ethiopian community, also known as “Beta-Israel”, finally find their way back to the heart of the Jewish people after centuries – Jerusalem.
For more information, contact Sivan Ben-Aderet at [email protected].