Saturday Evening Screening + Panel
Join us for Superfest’s first festival at the new San Francisco Disability Cultural Center! Before this event, we’re happy to offer warm appetizers and light refreshments! Join us for good food and good company starting at 4:30pm PT!
Date: Saturday, October 18th
Party with food: 4:30 pm - 6:00 pm PT (only for folks in-person)
Screening & Panel: 6:00 pm - 8:15 pm PT | 9:00 - 11:15 ET
Hybrid Event: Zoom + 165 Grove Street in San Francisco
Access: ASL | Captions | Closed Audio Descriptions | Hybrid | Masks Required
Film Lineup:
Audio Description
After making a wish on his birthday, a lonely visually impaired man finds his world turned upside down by an unexpected encounter.
Equal World?
The film follows disability advocate Abia Akram as she platforms the voices of three young people with disabilities: Tapiwa, Taqwa and Basiru. It shows their daily lives and talks to what is needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and an inclusive society.
Access the Unknown
In this documentary short, Dr. Mona Minkara, a blind traveler and adventurer, takes on the challenge of scuba diving, proving that with adaptation, trust, and a willingness to access the unknown, the beauty of the world can be experienced in more ways than one.
Kisses
Mia, a young woman who uses a wheelchair and lives with her conservative father, is curious about love. When James, a young man with secrets, unexpectedly enters her life, she embarks on a bold journey of intimacy and self-discovery.
Renegades
A series of docu-shorts about the lives and cultural contributions of little-known historical figures with disabilities. Hosted by award-winning musician and disability rights champion Lachi, and made by a team of D/deaf and disabled filmmakers, the project is designed to increase knowledge of disability history.
Les Monstres
Visually impaired teen Erwan can't wait to get to school to declare his love for Agathe. But he has to share a medical transport van with David who vows to make sure they never arrive on time. War is declared.
Unholy
Unholy follows Noa, a young adult with a complex gastrointestinal disorder, as she attends her family's Passover Seder for the first time since being put on a feeding tube. There, she is confronted by pushy family members, malfunctioning medical devices, and a room full of food she cannot eat.
An Evening with Blind Filmmakers:
Dr. Mona Minkara
Dr. Minkara is a blind scientist, adventurer, and storyteller. After losing her eyesight at a young age, Dr. Minkara became known for her passion, dedication, and commitment to the idea that "Vision is More than Sight." This belief permeates her professional and personal projects as she serves as an Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at Northeastern, leading the Minkara COMBINE Lab. She is also the Founder and Creative Lead behind the original YouTube travel show, Planes, Trains, and Canes (PTC). Dr. Minkara founded PTC as a platform to introduce a global audience to diverse cultural experiences of public transportation and inspire reflection on societal systems. Through PTC, she aims to bring awareness to societal regulations and structures, revealing hidden assumptions about individuals with disabilities. The show aims to uncover ways in which social systems, including public transportation, impact the empowerment and inclusion of individuals with disabilities in diverse communities worldwide. For more information about Dr. Minkara visit her website at www.monaminkara.com.
A man with tan skin, black hair combed up, glasses, and gray shirt looks over at someone. He also has headphones with a mic around his neck and is in a cubicle office environment.
Lee Pugsley
An award-winning producer, actor, writer, and director whose work champions inclusion and accessibility in the creative sphere. As a visually impaired artist, he has earned accolades for his short films at the Easterseals Disability Film Challenge and the LA 48 Hour Film Project, as well as multiple film festivals. Lee’s diverse career spans stage and screen including performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. and collaborations with Theatre By The Blind, Film By The Blind, and The Blind Dance Company. Beyond producing and performing, he co-hosts The Dark Room, a podcast exploring accessibility in cinema and the transformative power of storytelling. Lee is a walking musical theatre encyclopedia, so don’t be surprised if he spontaneously breaks out into song from time to time.