Fall 2009’s Disability Council meetings
Meeting Dates – all meetings 2:00 – 3:30 pm. 726 Broadway, Room 541: September 14, October 12, November 9, December 7 For information and/or accommodations, contact Alicia Blegen, Faye Ginsburg, or Ann Goerdt.
The Council for the Study of Disability, NYU is proud to co-present the screening of six films at the 33rd Annual Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival
November 12-15! All screenings are held at the American Museum of Natural History. See below for information about tickets and the location.
Edie and Thea: A Very Long Engagement
Susan Muska and Greta Olafsdottir, 2009, 61 min, U.S. New York Premiere
When Edie and Thea first met, they danced so long that Edie wore a hole in her stocking. Both now in their 80s, the couple light-heartedly reminisce about their storied relationship, which began in New York City in the early 1960s. Facing homophobic families, prejudiced co-workers, and Thea’s diagnosis with multiple sclerosis, they managed to stay together through it all. A loving look at a long-term relationship, Edie and Thea also serves as a lens through which to see the history of the American gay rights movement. Friday, November 13 5:00 pm, Program F3 Filmmakers and Edie in person
War + Love in Kabul
(Mein Herz sicht die Welt Schwarz-Eine Liebe in Kabul) Helga Reidemeister, 2009, 87 min, Afghanistan, Germany U.S. Premiere
Shaima and Hossein are in love. But Shaima is already married to another, and Hossein is a paraplegic unable to work. Add to these already extraordinary problems the threat of igniting a generation-decimating blood feud, and the unfolding drama takes on the dimensions of a Shakespearean play. Helga Reidemeister’s observational camera captures the muddy hues of bombed-out Kabul and the whispering worlds of Afghani women, as she demonstrates not only the difficulties of lives lived in a perpetual war zone but also of an outsider trying to penetrate the layers of truth. Saturday, November 14 2 pm, Program F11
How I Am
(Wie Ich Bin) Ingrid Demetz, Caroline Leitner, and Daniel Mazza 2008, 49 min, Italy
“I’m like a hermit on an island,” is how Patrick, an autistic teenager, describes himself. Trapped in his own body, he attempts to reach others with “talk written down,” his own poetic prose, which acts as a free-form guide through this intimate portrait of a disability. With a delicate hand, the filmmakers show Patrick’s discomfort with the outer world of family and school as well as his affinity for the natural world. As the camera tries to reach through his disability, Patrick himself reveals the limitations of language as an expression of an inner life. (preceded by Speech Memory) Saturday, November 14 5:30 pm, Program F16 Filmmaker in person
Voices from El-Sayed
(Shablul Bamidbar) Oded Adomi Leshem, 2009, 75 min, Israel New York Festival Premiere
Generations of intra-marriage among Bedouins in the Negev desert has created the largest deaf community in the world. Wary of outsiders and neglected by the Israeli government, which still has not brought electricity to this 200-year-old village, the people of El-Sayed have developed their own unique sign language. When two-year-old Muhammed gets surgery for a cochlear implant, the community waits to see if it will work as they simultaneously grapple with the threat its success would pose to their language and culture. Sunday, November 15 4 pm, Program F24 Filmmaker in person
Blind Loves
(Slepe Lasky) Juraj Lehotsky 2008, 77 min, Slovakia New York Premiere
Sitting around the parlor one afternoon in their home in Levoa, Slovakia, Peter and Iveta imagine an underwater world, him noodling on the piano, her knitting vigorously. Director Juraj Lehotsk obliges the married couple’s fantasies, rendering them in a fanciful vignette. But neither Peter nor Iveta can see it. They are both blind. Combining moody, low-light cinematography, an artist’s eye for composition, and a sharp ear for quotidian sounds, Blind Loves depicts the day-to-day world of four blind couples, rich in other sensory experiences.
Sunday, November 15 6:00 pm, Program F25
For all Mead programs enter at 77th Street between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue To Order Tickets: By Phone: 212-769-5200 Online: www.amnh.org/mead On-site: During Museum hours at the Advance Group Sales desk in the Theodore Roosevelt Rotunda (Central Park West at 79th Street entrance), and at the Rose Center for Earth and Space (81st Street entrance).
Mention Council for the Study of Disability, NYU to receive Member price of $10! To view the festival’s full schedule please visit www.amnh.org/mead. The 2009 Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival, the longest running showcase for international documentaries in the United States, celebrates 33 years! American Museum of Natural History Central Park West at 79th Street New York, New York 10024
www.amnh.org
The Disabilities Network of NYC and The NYU Council for the Study of Disability invite you to disThis! Fall 2009
DisTHIS! Unarmed but Dangerous Wednesday, October 14th UK, 2009, 75 minutes Doors open 6:30 PM, Film begins at 7:00 5 Washington Place, Room 101 (Between Mercer and Broadway)
Series fave and UK actor, Mat Fraser, star of the film, will be there for Q & A Mat Fraser plays an expert in Kung Fu,whose wife is shot and his child kidnapped, but they were messing with the wrong man. A strong cast give sterling performances in this dark, action movie. Think Quentin Tarantino with a disability twist.
For more information, go to: http://disthis.org To RSVP and reserve YOUR seat, call 212-284-4160 or email: disthis@dnnyc.net
NYU’s Council for the Study of Disability and the Disability Network of NYC are proud to bring the first two disTHIS!* films to NYU
DisTHIS! Coming Down the Mountain and Cousin Wednesday, September 30th Doors open 6:30 PM, Film begins at 7:00 5 Washington Place, Room 101 (Between Mercer and Broadway)
A moody teenager believes his family loves his disabled brother more than him and decides to get revenge…by hurling him off a mountain. Suprisingly unsentimental and frequently funny, this 90 minute drama explores the volatile relationship between two brothers: David, a typical 15 y.o. with a colorful imagination, and Ben, his slightly older brother who has Down Syndrome. Written by Mark Haddon (author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime), it centers on an often overlooked aspect of disability–how it affects the whole family. Features great performances by Tommy Jessop (Ben) and Nicholas Hoult (David).
Adam Elliot’s childhood remembrances of a cousin, his “special” arm, pet rocks, and shopping carts make up his animated Cousin.
For more information, go to: http://disthis.org To RSVP and reserve YOUR seat, call 212-284-4160 or email: disthis@dnnyc.net