ReelAbilities programs have been presented in multiple locations across New Jersey since 2014. In 2017, the Office of Education and Community Outreach in the College of the Arts at Montclair State University, in partnership with Kean University, and JCC MetroWest, expanded the reach of ReelAbilities programming in Northern New Jersey. This initiative was made possible by a generous grant from Kessler Foundation. Montclair State University has since served as the lead location for ReelAbilities New Jersey with additional film screenings and ReelAbilities programming offered at Kean University and JCC MetroWest. Through the years, the ReelAbilities Film Festival | New Jersey has expanded further to include film screenings and special events at Montclair State University, Rutgers University, St. Peter’s University, The College of New Jersey, Kean Stage, Montclair Art Museum, Montclair Film, JCC MetroWest, JCC Middlesex, JCC Bridgewater, and Newark Arts.
ReelAbilities Film Festival is the largest festival in the US dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of the lives, stories and artistic expressions of people with different disabilities.
Founded in NY in 2007, the festival presents award-winning films by and about people with disabilities in multiple locations throughout each hosting city. Post-screening discussions and other engaging programs bring together the community to explore, discuss, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our shared human experience.
2024-2025 Events
Dancing with the Blind
June 5, 2025
This highly anticipated event, inspired by the popular television show “Dancing with the Stars”, is designed to showcase the talent, strength, and resilience of blind and vision-impaired individuals while educating the public on their remarkable capabilities. The event also provides an exciting and unique platform to challenge perceptions and foster a deeper understanding of the abilities of individuals with vision loss.
Invisible Impact
March 4, 2025
Location: Montclair State University
As severe weather increases and sea levels rise, people with disabilities face new threats from climate change driven disasters. A new short film by School of Communication and Media professor and journalist Jason Strother explores these concerns throughout Coastal South Asia. Join us on March 4 for a screening of Invisible Impact; Disability on Climate Change’s Frontline followed by a talk with the filmmaker and Anthropology professors Elaine Gerber and Neeraj Vedwan.
Ezra
December 17, 2024
The ReelAbilities NJ Film Festival screened the movie, Ezra. Guests Sabine Hoffmann, ACE (editor) and Tony Spiridakis (writer) were welcomed guests who gave a talkback session following the film screening. Special shoutout to Montclair native, William Fitzgerald, autistic child actor.
Ezra follows Max Bernal (Bobby Cannavale), a stand-up comedian living with his father (Robert De Niro), while struggling to co-parent his autistic son Ezra (introducing William Fitzgerald) with his ex-wife (Rose Byrne). When forced to confront difficult decisions about their son’s future, Max and Ezra embark on a cross-country road trip that has a transcendent impact on both their lives. Directed by Tony Goldwyn, who also appears in the film alongside additional cast members Vera Farmiga, Rainn Wilson and Whoopi Goldberg, Ezra is an endearing and often funny exploration of a family determined to find their way through life’s complexities with humor, compassion, and heart.
POSTPONED: Good Bad Things
New date TBD
Guest Speaker: Steve Way, Executive Producer
Location: Montclair State University
Good Bad Things is an intimate, small story about the gigantic issue that challenges and terrifies us all: the collision between the desperate need to be seen and loved and the fear that what people might see will repel rather than attract them. Danny, a young man with muscular dystrophy who is disillusioned by failed relationships, steps out of his comfort zone and into the world of online dating. An unexpected match with Madi, an enigmatic photographer, challenges him to be vulnerable and sparks a profound journey of self-acceptance, discovering the extraordinary beauty of his unique body.
Being Michelle
November 19, 2024
Location: St. Peter’s University, Jersey City
Guest Speaker: Mae Thornton, Producer
Being Michelle is an award-winning feature-length documentary film about a deaf woman with autism who survived incarceration and abuse and now uses her artwork to depict the trauma she survived and heal from her past.
Patrice: The Movie
November 3, 2024: Private Screening for the Montclair Film Club
Special Guests: Patrice Jetter, Garry Wickham, and Ted Passon, Director
A documentary rom-com about the next phase of marriage equality: disability.
Songs From the Hole
October 29, 2024
Location: Montclair State University
Guest Speaker: Contessa Gayles, Director and Cinematographer
Emmy-nominated director, producer, and cinematographer Contessa Gayles creates award winning non-fiction. Her documentary short, Founder Girls, executive produced with Queen Latifah, premiered at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival. As a CNN producer, she created and worked on award-winning series and documentaries, including The Feminist on Cellblock Y. Songs from the Hole premiered at SXSW and gained critical acclaim as it tells the story of James “JJ’88” Jacobs through a musical odyssey of Hip-Hop and Soul, inspired by his deep personal struggles as someone who has both inflicted and endured violence while serving a double-life prison sentence.
MSU New Visions BFA Films at Montclair Film Festival
October 27, 2024: Clairidge Theater
Ms. Blind Diva Empowerment Pageant
October 26, 2024
Location: Newark Museum of Art
Co-Sponsored with Eyes Like Mine
Eyes Like Mine Presents the 8th Annual Ms. Blind Diva Empowerment Pageant, celebrating the achievements and talents of our participants.
Father Soldier Son (Documentary)
October 22, 2024
Location: Montclair State University
Guest Speaker: Catrin Einhorn, Director
Father Soldier Son (2020) is an Emmy Award winning documentary film 10 years in the making. Directed and produced by Catrin Einhorn and Leslye Davis, it follows the family of Brian Eisch, a Sergeant First Class in the United States Army, and the effects of his deployment to the War in Afghanistan has on him and his young sons. This deeply moving portrait of a family called to serve explores the meaning of sacrifice, the need for purpose, and the challenges of being a father, a soldier and a son.
MSU Emerging Voices of Documentary at Montclair Film Festival
October 20, 2024: Clairidge Theater
Reid My Mind – Guest Speaker Thomas Reid
October 15, 2024
Location: Montclair State University
In 2004, while working as an IT developer, Thomas lost his sight as a result of Cancer. Disturbed by the lack of accessibility he helped launch a local advocacy organization. He later pursued a dormant interest in audio production in order to help promote topics pertaining to vision loss. With a strong focus on audio, Reid My Mind is a platform for Thomas to share interviews, stories, opinions in all media formats.
Sensory Friendly Tour
October 12, 2024
Location: Newark Museum of Art
Co-Sponsored with Newark Arts Festival
A sensory friendly tour of the NAF Signature Exhibition at the Newark Museum of Art, designed especially for children and adults with sensory processing or environmental sensitivities.
Disability Awareness Flagraising
October 1, 2024: 1 pm at Montclair State University
Co-Sponsored by the Disability Resource Center and the Disability Caucus
Do You Dream in Color
September 24, 2024
Location: Montclair State University
Directors: Abigail Fuller, Sarah Ivy
Do You Dream in Color is the coming-of-age story of four courageous blind high school students as they strive to prove that their disability will not hold them back from achieving their dreams.
Past Events
Screening of Dustin Grella’s Various Works
April 16, 2024, 6:00 – 8:30 pm
Location: Montclair State University / 1040 Presentation Hall, School of Communication and Media 1 Normal Avenue Montclair, NJ 07043
Co-sponsored by Montclair Film Forum.
Dustin Grella is an animator and documentary filmmaker whose work attempts to glean glimpses of colorful insight into the seemingly mundane. His work has screened at the Cannes Film Festival, Margaret Mead Film Festival, and won the Walt Disney Award at the Ottawa International Animation Festival. His film “Prayers for Peace” screened at almost two hundred festivals worldwide and won over forty awards. He has written and mailed himself a letter every day for the past ten years and has all 3650 sealed letters neatly filed and categorized. Thanks to a grant from the Franklin Furnace Fund, the collection of over 3650 letters will be displayed in New York City in April 2012. He is currently in production of the Animation Hotline, a series daily animations where he uses crowdsourced voicemail messages for content.
The screening will begin at 6:00PM followed by a Talkback.
Register today to reserve your seat.
The ReelAbilities NJ – 2023 Film Festival is brought to you by the Office of Education and Community Outreach (OECO) in the College of the Arts at Montclair State University and is made possible by a generous grant from Kessler Foundation.
The Three of Us
April 10, 2024, 1:00 pm
Location: JCC MetroWest
Director: Henya Brodbeker
Filmmaker Henya Brodbeker documents her and her husband’s struggle to provide an education and social connections for Ari, their autistic son. When the Haredi Orthodox schools in Bnei-Brak refuse to accept their son, Henya and Arale begin questioning their faith and the choices imposed upon them by their community. Their journey for integration and acceptance takes them into secular Israel, where they discover new challenges – and, possibly, solutions – for their family. Brodbeker’s camera captures the religious and cultural transformation of a family looking for their place in the world.
ReelAbilities NJ Film Festival
February 29 – March 2, 2024
Location: Kean University
Multiple Films, Including: Jasmine is a Star, Strange, The Hero, Being Michelle, Super Powers, Wheels, Straighten Up & Fly Right, Coming Out Autistic, Flirting (With Possibilities), Illustrating Sam Newton, I Am Irani, Mike’s Words.
Flay Away Home
February 20, 2024, 6:00 pm
Directed by: Janet Grillo
FLY AWAY tells the story of Jeanne and her autistic teenage daughter, Mandy. Jeanne has cared for Mandy since the day she was born, growing closer every day to a child who is charmingly offbeat one moment and nearly impossible to manage the next. As the pressures of work and her child’s needs increase, she must decide whether or not to enroll Mandy in a therapeutic residential facility. Over the course of a few weeks, Jeanne is confronted with the most difficult decision a parent can make: to let go, allowing her child to grow, but also grow apart; or to hold on tight and fall together.
Blind Injustice
February 16 & 18, 2024
Location: Alexander Kasser Theatre, Montclair State University
Opera- Librettist David Cote, Composer Scott Davenport Richards
Blind Injustice explores the true stories of six people who were unjustly imprisoned and later exonerated with the help of the Ohio Innocence Project. Immediately following both performances, there will be a public conversation with two of the exonerated prisoners portrayed in the piece.
Don’t Stress the Mess
February 9, 2024, 4:30 – 5:30 pm
Location: Montclair State University
The Office of Education & Community Outreach, and the ReelAbilities NJ Film Festival team joined with the Disability Resource Center to provide this event including tips and tricks to help students destress from school and life.
OKAY! (The ASD Band Film)
August 21, 2023, 6:30 pm
Location: Montclair State University
Director: Mark Bone
Four talented autistic musicians come together through their shared love of music and form the ASD Band. Rawan, Jackson, Spenser, and Ron shatter stereotypes about people with autism and navigate a world where they are often misunderstood. As they write, record, and perform their first album, they find strength in each other and the music.
32 Sounds Screening
November 7, 2023, 6:00 pm
Location: Alexander Kasser Theater, 1 Normal Ave Hall, Suite 171, Montclair, NJ 07043
This film, “32 Sounds” explores the elemental phenomenon of sound and its power to bend time, cross borders, and profoundly shape our perception of the world around us.
This event is sponsored by the Montclair Film Forum Program and Co-Sponsored by ReelAbilities Film Festival.
For any accessibility needs or requests, please email us at reelabilitiesnj@montclair.edu at least 2 weeks prior to the event. If you have specific accessibility questions, please email: reelabilitiesnj@montclair.edu.
The ReelAbilities NJ – 2023 Film Festival is brought to you by the Office of Education and Community Outreach (OECO) in the College of the Arts at Montclair State University and is made possible by a generous grant from Kessler Foundation.
Amazing Grace
December 3, 2023, 4:00 pm
Location: Montclair State University
Director: Lynn Montgomery
Members of Montclair Film 505 Friends enjoyed a field trip to Montclair State University for a screening of Amazing Grace.
Grace Fisher was an active musician and dancer until a rare spine disease almost derailed her budding career. In this new 56 minute, award winning documentary we see grief transformed into gratitude, and tragedy turned into opportunity.
Champions Screening and Q&A with Athenea Mata (Actress) and Javier Fesser (Director)
May 3, 2023
Spanish film Champions (CAMPEONES) tells the heart-warming tale of how Marco, a selfish, self-absorbed basketball coach, changes for the better after being forced to work with a rag-tag group of individuals with intellectual disabilities.
Light refreshments will be served in the SCM Lobby at 4:30PM. The screening will begin at 5:00PM followed by a Q&A session at 7:15PM.
This event is sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance and ReelAbilities NJ Film Festival.
The ReelAbilities NJ – 2023 Film Festival is brought to you by the Office of Education and Community Outreach (OECO) in the College of the Arts at Montclair State University and is made possible by a generous grant from Kessler Foundation.
Ali Stroker
April 1, 2023
Ali Stroker won the 2019 Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her role as ‘Ado Annie’ in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! She’s a series regular in the Netflix series, Echoes, and she recently starred in the Lifetime holiday film, Christmas Ever After. She made history as the first actor in a wheelchair to appear on Broadway in Deaf West’s acclaimed 2015 revival of Spring Awakening. Ali recurred in the final season of Netflix’s Ozark and is in her second season recurring in Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building. She co-wrote the 2021 novel, The Chance to Fly, and she wrote the 2022 children’s book, Ali and the Sea Stars. This past summer, she was featured as ‘Lady Anne’ in the Shakespeare in the Park production of Richard III. She’s performed her cabaret act at New York’s Green Room 42 and solo’ed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, New York’s Town Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, and Carnegie Hall. Her mission to improve the lives of others through the arts is captured in her motto: “Turning Your Limitations Into Your Opportunities.”
ReelAbilities Film Festival
March 30, 2023 – April 1, 2023
ReelAbilities New Jersey celebrates the lives, stories, and artistic abilities of people with all types of disabilities through award-winning short and feature-length films.
The ReelAbilities Film Festival runs from Thursday, March 30, to Saturday, April 1, 2023. Films can either be screened in-person at Kean University or viewed virtually from home.
North Avenue Academic Center [NAAB]
1000 Morris Avenue (at the corner of North Ave.)
Union, NJ 07083
A talkback and Q&A session will follow all screenings.
- Screening 1: Thursday, March 30 at 6:00 pm
- Screening 2: Friday, March 31 at 6:00 pm
- Screening 3: Saturday, April 1 at 11:30 am
- Screening 4: Saturday, April 1 at 2:30 pm
Please note: The above times are when the auditorium will open to kick off the day’s program. Film screenings will begin 30 minutes after the doors open, and post-screening talkbacks will be approximately 30 minutes. Please plan your arrival and departure times accordingly.
There is a suggested donation of $5 per session.
A donation can be made through the Kean Foundation or in person at the film festival.
I DO! Commit to Marriage Equality
February 15, 2023
Location: Montclair State University
Co-Sponsored with the Disability Caucus at Montclair State University
On the heels of Valentine’s Day, Patrice Jetter, disabled artist and advocate from Netflix’s WORN STORIES, officiated a mass (low commitment) commitment/wedding ceremony where all guests were invited to participate. This act of solidarity was of course not legally binding, but provided allies and spectators with the opportunity to support disabled marriage equality. As a fun form of participation, guests were encouraged to wear festive wedding attire. Interracial and gay marriage has been codified at last. But disabled Americans remain excluded from this basic right. The federal “marriage penalty” affects the lives of millions of disabled Americans who can’t legally marry because they will lose their benefits. A new bill in the Senate could change the “marriage penalty” if enough people speak out.
CODA
August 24, 2023, 6:00 pm
DIRECTOR: Sian Heder
PRODUCER: Fabrice Gianfermi, Philippe Rousselet, Jérôme Seydoux, Patrick Wachsberger
CAST: Emilia Jones, Tony Kotsur, Marlee Matlin
COUNTRY: USA
RUNTIME: 111 min
September 22-25: Prince Hamlet (Co-sponsored by ReelAbilities NJ and Kessler Foundation)
See details and get tickets (Use promo code RANJ2022 for 20% discount)
Performed in the spoken word and American Sign Language. Remixed, reimagined, and bilingual Prince Hamlet features a cross-cultural, gender-bent cast – challenging traditional ideas of who can tell this story. Interweaving Shakespeare’s spoken text with heightened and poetic American Sign Language, this physical theatre production creates a visually stunning retelling for both hearing and Deaf audiences.
Wednesday, September 28 (6:00-8:00pm): Screening of We Hear You (Documentary) and Talkback with Shari Eberts and Holly Cohen
See details and reserve your seat here.
We Hear You is a groundbreaking documentary about hearing loss, the invisible disability that impacts 430 million people worldwide, including 48 million in the United States alone. By shining a light on the hearing loss experience, it strives to build awareness, community and a more inclusive world for all.
Join the talkback with Shari Eberts and Holly Cohen (executive producers of the documentary) and Maryrose McInerney (faculty in Communication Sciences and Disorders). The discussion will be moderated by Christine Lemesianou, Associate Dean in the College of the Arts.
Shari Eberts is a passionate hearing health advocate and internationally recognized author and speaker on hearing loss issues. She is the founder of Living with Hearing Loss, a popular blog and online community for people with hearing loss, and an executive producer of We Hear You, an award-winning documentary about the hearing loss experience. Her book, Hear & Beyond: Live Skillfully with Hearing Loss, (co-authored with Gael Hannan) is the ultimate survival guide to living well with hearing loss. Shari has an adult-onset genetic hearing loss and hopes that by sharing her story, she will help others to live more peacefully with their own hearing issues. Connect with Shari: Blog, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter.
Holly Cohen is a nationally-recognized hearing health advocate and speaker who was diagnosed with a bilateral hearing loss in her 20’s. Drawing on her experiences as Past President of the Hearing Loss Association of America – New York City Chapter (HLAA-NYC), CEO of a small business, and over 25 years as a professional career coach, Holly is committed to empowering others to advocate for their hearing needs. She is an executive producer of the award-winning documentary about living with hearing loss, We Hear You. Holly serves on the Boards of HLAA-NYC chapter and TDF (Theatre Development Fund). https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollycohen/
Tuesday, November 15 (6:30-8:00pm): Screening of As We See It and Talkback with Jason Katims (creator, showrunner and executive producer of the series)
See details and reserve your seat here.
The series follows Jack, Harrison, and Violet, 20-something roommates on the autism spectrum, as they strive to get a job, keep a job, make friends, fall in love and navigate a world that eludes them. With the help of their families, aide, and sometimes even each other, these roommates experience setbacks and celebrate triumphs on their own unique journeys towards independence and acceptance.
Tuesday, December 6 (6:30-8:00pm): Screening of Addicted to Life (Documentary) and Live Talkback with Filmmaker Pola Rappaport
See details and reserve your seat here.
Strong-willed, funny, and charismatic, at 37, Belgian Paralympic champion Marieke Vervoort’s time is running out. A debilitating illness she has had for more than 20 years has begun to take its toll. As Marieke’s strength falters and her body begins to fail, she decides to take control by signing papers to request medical aid-in-dying, a controversial procedure that is forbidden by law in most other countries. Liberated and empowered by now having the legal permission to end her life, Marieke again discovers the freedom and thrill of living and of competition. Throughout, Marieke draws people to her: fans, girlfriends, celebrities, and other people with disabilities. ADDICTED TO LIFE intimately documents this determined, vulnerable, and astonishing athlete through the dramatic events of her final inspirational three years, during which Marieke’s acceptance of death becomes an affirmation of life. Marieke demystifies one of the most controversial issues of our time.
Tuesday, August 31 (6:30-8:00pm): Screening of Best Summer Ever
See details and reserve your seat here.
Tuesday, September 28 (6:15-8:30pm): Screening of Deaf Jam
See details and reserve your seat here.
Tuesday, October 19 (6:15-8:30pm): Virtual screening of Behind the Scenes of On Display mini-documentary as well as “Conversations With… ” Elaine Katz and Heidi Latsky about the making of On Display. See details and register here.
Tuesday, November 9 (6:15-8:30pm): Virtual pre-screening of Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution as well as “Conversations with …. ” Directors James Lebrecht and Nicole Newnham. See details and register here.
March 11- March 17 (8:00pm): CODA (Co-Sponsored by Montclair Film and ReelAbilities NJ)
DIRECTOR: Sian Heder
PRODUCER: Fabrice Gianfermi, Philippe Rousselet, Jérôme Seydoux, Patrick Wachsberger
CAST: Emilia Jones, Tony Kotsur, Marlee Matlin
COUNTRY: USA
RUNTIME: 111 min
Wednesday, April 13 (6:00-7:30pm): Disability – No Laughing Matter (Featuring Steve Way, Comedian and Disability Activist)
