CINCINNATI, Ohio – Cincinnati is the first city in the U.S. to present the traveling program of the New York ReelAbilities Disabilities Film Festival. This festival features award-winning films and engaging special presentations that celebrate the lives, stories, and art of people with disabilities. Never before presented outside of New York City, ReelAbilities is September 10 - 22 at four locations across Greater Cincinnati.

Award-winning films are accompanied by discussions and other engaging programs which bring together the community to explore, discuss and celebrate the diversity of shared human experience.

One of the festival’s featured films, Warrior Champions, profiles four Iraq War veterans who returned home with life changing injuries that they turned into Olympic dreams. Premiering on September 12 in Cincinnati, the documentary will be followed by a post-screening discussion with local Paralympian April Kerley.

“Warrior Champions is an extraordinary example of how the strength of the human spirit prevails,” said April Kerley, a local US Paralympian and teammate to cast members of Warrior Champions. “These athletes are not only my teammates, but also America’s war heroes and they continue to serve our country even after being wounded on the battlefield. Their resolve is uncompromising and their journey to qualify and compete as Olympic-level athletes is a reflection of that and the true embodiment of patriotism and courage.”

An opening night celebration will be held on September 10 at the Mayerson JCC, presenting the award-winning film Shooting Beauty; guest speaker, Richard Bernstein; and a chocolate dessert reception catered by local company, Chocolate Passion.

Guest speaker Bernstein has been blind from birth and has spent his adult life fighting for the rights of the disabled. His incredible story involves accomplishments in the business world and in his personal life, including running marathons around the world, finishing the Ironman Competition, and creating and hosting a television show.

Shooting Beauty, the opening night film, is about an aspiring fashion photographer who discovers the hidden world of beauty at a center for people with significant disabilities. She documents how these people with disabilities learn the art of photography, and get a second shot in life by becoming photographers.

Nine different films will be shown throughout the festival. Most films will be shown at the Mayerson JCC (located at 8485 Ridge Road, next to Ronald Reagan Highway in Amberley Village) with additional film screenings at the Cincinnati Art Museum, College of Mount St. Joseph and Xavier University.

Schedules, movie trailers and tickets are available at www.JointheJ.org/ReelAbilities. Tickets should be purchased in advance due to limited space.

The ReelAbilities NY Disabilities Film Festival is presented by the Mayerson JCC and the Saul Schottenstein Foundation B. Cincinnati is the first city in the U.S. to present the traveling program of the New York ReelAbilities Film Festival which is dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of the lives, stories and artistic expressions of people with different disabilities. More information about ReelAbilities in Cincinnati is available online at www.JointheJ.org/ReelAbilities as well as on Facebook and Twitter.