Adult Education Program: Film and Discussion

The Peretz Program Planning Committee is sponsoring a 3-part online program, beginning with a free, online screening of the film My Disability Roadmap. Please register for the film in advance of the event. The film will be shown with open captions and audio description for maximum accessibility.

In this Emmy Award winning documentary short, Samuel Habib wants to date, leave home, and go to college. But he drives a 350-pound wheelchair, uses a communication device, and can have a seizure at any moment. Determined to find his path forward, he seeks out guidance from America’s most rebellious disability activists. Will they empower him to launch the bold adult life he craves?  The film, co-directed by Samuel and his father Dan Habib, premiered on May 17, 2022, as a New York Times Op-Doc. The entire lead cast on this project – and the majority of the production and outreach crew – are people with disabilities. Following the film, there will be a pre-recorded Q&A with Samuel and a live discussion with Dan.

Dan Habib (pronounced “Habeeb”) and his son Samuel Habib are co-directors of the film and the upcoming feature film, THE RIDE AHEAD (a major expansion of this film). Dan is also the creator of award-winning documentary films including INTELLIGENT LIVES, WHO CARES ABOUT KELSEY?, MR. CONNOLLY HAS ALS, INCLUDING SAMUEL and many other short films on disability-related topics. He is the Inclusive Communities Project Director at the Westchester Institute for Human Development. Dan has screened and discussed his films hundreds of times in the U.S. and internationally, at universities, corporations, national conferences, film festivals, and independent theaters for educators, families, students, employees, policy makers, and the general public. His films have been broadcast nationally on public television stations, nominated for Emmy awards, and translated into 17 languages for use as teaching tools worldwide. In 2014, Habib was appointed by President Barack Obama to the President’s Committee for People with Intellectual Disabilities. (Some of you may know Dan – he is from Highland Park – the son of Miriam and Stan Habib.)

Samuel Habib, 24, is a high school graduate and community college student currently pursuing a career as a multimedia storyteller. Samuel is a co-director of the Emmy® Award winning film MY DISABILITY ROADMAP and the upcoming feature film, THE RIDE AHEAD. Samuel interned at the local community access television station in Concord, NH and had a paid job at a video production studio. In 2016, he created a film about disability rights leader Judith Heumann, that was featured in the Breaking Down Barriers Film Festival in Moscow, Russia. Samuel also helped Dan create the nationally broadcast film MR. CONNOLLY HAS ALS. Samuel uses a wheelchair for mobility and a communication device (as well as his voice) to express himself. In addition to exploring his current and future academic and career options, Samuel also navigates significant, chronic health challenges.