OPENING NIGHT · Film, food, and cheer!
CHEERS OF JOY 
Thursday, February 20, 7:30pm · Pozez JCC 
Dir. Nancy Frohman | 64 Min | English | USA | Documentary 

Cheers of JOY is the compelling story of a group of special young women in search of inclusion, dignity and respect. It is an intimate portrait of team JOY, the Special Olympics cheerleading team from Montgomery County, Maryland, and the dedication and commitment of its head coach to help these young women gain confidence and inclusion. We see this evolve as the team strives to bring the sport of cheerleading to the world stage. The film takes you along on their journey as they experience triumph over challenges in life and on their road to The World Games. Cheers of JOY will make you laugh it will make you cry, and most of all it will make you cheer.

Sponsored by the Law Office of Michael D. Toobin, P.C. 

MOANA 
Saturday, February 22, 5:45pm activities, 6:30pm screening· Imagination Stage
Dir. Clements, Musker, Hall, Williams | 107 Min | English | USA

In Ancient Polynesia, when a terrible curse incurred by the Demigod Maui reaches Moana’s island, she answers the Oceans call to seek out the Demigod to set things right.

Location: Imagination Stage – The Christopher and Dana Reeve Theatre

5:45pm Families can do a craft to create and decorate their own shaker drums
6:00pm Theater doors open
6:30pm Screening

MIND/GAME: THE UNQUIET JOURNEY OF CHAMIQUE HOLDSCLAW 
Sunday, February 23, 1pm · Pozez JCC 
Dir. Rick Goldsmith | 57 Min | English | USA | Documentary

Billed as the “female Michael Jordan”, basketball phenom Holdsclaw led Tennessee to three successive championships and became a WNBA number-one pick, Rookie of the Year and All-Star. But her hidden struggle with mental illness led to personal setbacks and a second career as a vocal mental health advocate.

DEEJ
Sunday, February 23, 4pm · Beth El Hebrew Congregation  
Dir. Robert Rooy | 72 Min | English | USA | Documentary

DJ Savarese (Deej) finds comfort in words, as expressed by his poetry, spoken through a text-to-voice synthesizer. Adopted by a loving and supportive family, Deej navigates the college admissions process as a young adult on the autism spectrum, while confronting obstacles to inclusion.

This film is co-sponsored by Beth El Hebrew Congregation and  Agudas Achim Congregation.

4-5:15 Film screening
5:15-6:15  Panel Discussion – autism, assistive communication, education, and employment

Popcorn and light refreshments provided by Beth El’s Brotherhood.

Questions: Contact Beth El Hebrew Congregation, 703-370-9400.

DEAF JAM
Sunday, February 23, 7pm · The REACH at the Kennedy Center 
Dir. Judy Lieff | 70 Min | English, ASL | USA | Documentary 

Aneta Brodski seizes the day; a deaf Israeli teen boldly enters the spoken word slam scene. In a wondrous twist she meets Tahani, a hearing Palestinian slam poet and they embark on a collaboration/performance duet – creating a new form of slam poetry that speaks to both the hearing and the deaf.

PORTRAITS OF YOUTH: SHORT FILMS
Monday, February 24, 7pm · Robinson Secondary School 

JMAXX AND THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE 
Dir. Ryan Mayers | 13 Min | English | USA | Documentary 
A teenager with autism turns to dance as a way to better express himself.

CODA 
Dir. Erika Davis-Marsh | 22 Min | English, ASL | USA | Narrative 
A young dancer struggles with her identity and growing up hearing in a deaf family.

UNTEACHABLE
Dir. Anthony Sherin | 11 Min | English | USA | Documentary 
A boy who can’t read meets a teacher who changes everything.

THE DRUMMER AND THE KEEPER 
Tuesday, February 25, 7:30pm · Congregation Olam Tikvah   
Dir. Nick Kelly | 92 Min | English | Ireland | Narrative 

Gabriel is the drummer of an up and coming rock band in Dublin, barely keeping a handle on his drinking and depression. Forced into therapy, he strikes up an unlikely friendship with a teen with Asperger's. What follows is a winning, completely unpredictable story of finding family.

REEL INDEPENDENCE: SHORT FILMS
Wednesday, February 26, 7:00pm · Temple Rodef Shalom

SHAKESPEARE IN TOKYO
Dir. Genevieve Clay-Smith | 21 Min | English | Australia | Narrative 
A Shakespeare fan with Down syndrome sets off on a solo adventure to discover Tokyo and to prove his independence.

INNER FLAME (I TO EYE)
Dir. Vidi Bilu | 18 Min | Hebrew | Israel | Narrative 
Dreaming of a career as a professional dancer, Gali conceals her deafness from examiners and other dancers to fight for her place in the troupe.

TAKE ME TO THE WAVES
Dir. Jake Taylor Kipping And Tom Stoker | 20 Min | English | UK | Narrative 
When Clementine shares her romantic feelings towards her caregiver, she must face the complications that exist.

HEARTS OF GLASS · Popcorn provided by Blossom Daily Café 
Thursday, February 27, 6pm Adult Services Resource Fair, 7pm Film Screening · Service Source (SOLD OUT)
Dir. Jennifer Tennican | 68 Min | English | USA | Documentary

This film follows the tumultuous first 15 months of the operating of Vertical Harvest (VH), a state-of-the-art hydroponic greenhouse that provides local crops as well as employment for people with disabilities. Plants and people grow together in this intimate portrait of innovation, inclusion, and community. 

Participants in the Resource Fair:

• Autism Society of Northern Virginia (ASNV)
• Best Buddies
• City Center NOVA
• Department of Aging and Rehabilitative Services (DARS)
• Fairfax Community Services Board (CSB )
• George Mason University’s, Mason Autism Support Initiative, (MASI )
• Service Source
• The ARC of Northern Virginia
• The Pozez Jewish Community Center

GURRUMUL  
Sunday, March 1, 2pm · Reston Community Center    
Dir. Paul Damien Williams | 96 Min | English, Yolngu Matha (Gumatj & Gälpu) | Australia | Documentary 

A portrait of world music phenomenon Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu, a blind indigenous artist on the brink of international reverence. Possessing a deep reserve of musical talent, he struggles with balancing his personal life and keeping the show on the road.

The CenterStage is equipped with wheelchair seating as well as Assisted Listening Devices. Please let us know your needs ahead of time.

CLOSING NIGHT: REEL CREATIVITY: SHORT FILMS
Sunday, March 1, 7:00 PM · Pozez JCC

IAN, A MOVING STORY 
Dir. Abel Goldfarb | 10 Min | Wordless | Argentina | Animation 
Ian uses a wheelchair. All he wants is to make friends, but discrimination keeps him away from the playground.

SHAKE WITH ME 
Dir. Zack Grant | 33 Min | English | USA | Documentary 
Art, health, family and the will to cope: Debra Magid is an artist living with Parkinson’s Disease.

LIVING ART 
Dir. David Rochkind | 32 Min | English | USA | Documentary 
The story of a young woman living with Familial Dysautonomia, whose art became her stunning and profound means of communication and livelihood.

Closing night and gallery reception.