Wexner partners up with ReelAbilities Film Festival to spotlight filmmakers with disabilities

Varad Raigaonkar
Fri, 16 Sep 2022 02:22:52 +0000
Arts & Life, Entertainment, Instagram Page, Movies, art, Buckeyes, Columbus, columbus film festival, film, film festival, local, local film festival, movies, ohio state, reelabilities, reelabilities film festival, students, visual arts, wexner center, wexner center for the arts

Reid Davenport’s documentary “I Didn’t See You There” is shot from his perspective on a wheelchair. Credit: Courtesy of The Film Collaborative

The ReelAbilities Film Festival, started in New York in 2007 to highlight and normalize disabilities, has made its way once again to the Wexner Center for the Arts.

ReelAbilities — sponsored by the Ohio Arts Council, the Greater Columbus Arts Council, the Wexner Center and a variety of other organizations and nonprofits — first displayed films by and about people with disabilities in Columbus in 2012. Films to be featured include “I Didn’t See You There,” “Any Given Day,” “Freebird” and more for their 2022-23 season, according to the festival’s website.

Megan Fitze, director of programs at Art Possible Ohio, said ReelAbilities strives to not only combat ableist metaphors in media, but to celebrate the voice and artistic works of artists with disabilities.

“This idea that a disability is something that you can overcome, that individuals with disabilities are people you should be inspired by because they have disabilities, it’s about normalizing seeing that everywhere, especially in the arts,” Fitze said.

Fitze said one of the major steps in achieving this goal is to work on accessibility for the public.

Helyn Marshall, the accessibility manager at the Wexner Center, said her job is to reach out and share the arts with the broadest possible audience.

“Since we’re a public institution, the public is everyone, and everyone has different needs,” Marshall said. “In accessibility, it’s like, ‘Who’s here? Who isn’t here?’ and ‘Why are people that are missing not here?’”

Marshall, who has a history of cancer treatments, said anyone who participates or attends the Wexner Center’s events should be comfortable being there regardless of the body they have or the identity they put forth in the world.

Marshall said she hopes to make a cultural space for people with disabilities by having their voice be a part of the conversation.

“When we see disability from the lens of social justice, it turns into a human rights issue,” Marshall said.

ReelAbilities will kick off Sunday at 1 p.m. with Reid Davenport’s documentary “I Didn’t See You There,” which won the U.S. Documentary award for directing at the Sundance Film Festival, according to the festival’s website. A 3:15 p.m. screening with open audio description will follow after an online Q&A with Davenport at 2:30 p.m.

Fitze said “I Didn’t See You There,” which is filmed from Davenport’s point of view in a wheelchair, is about his life and thoughts on the idea of a “freak show” after a circus tent goes up in his neighborhood.

“The film is about his perspective as a filmmaker and as an individual with disability working in the arts,” Fitze said.

RealAbilities will also debut Audio Café, an inclusive complementary project and sensory art experience for those with disabilities in collaboration with Art Possible Ohio, Marshall said.

“It’s a space to grow culture and to have disability culture live,” Marshall said.

Marshall said registration for Audio Café closed Thursday, but she will try to be flexible if she gets any more emails.

Fitze said the ReelAbilities Film Festival itself will go until April with a screening on the third Sunday of every month, free of charge. The entire festival schedule can be seen on its website.

“I’m hoping that it would be a great experience for everybody that comes and that it can be something which we can do again,” Marshall said.