The Arc of New Jersey Presents The Sprout Film Festival

For Immediate Release

For more information, please contact:

The Arc of New Jersey

Céline Fortin, Associate Executive Director

732.733-6013

cfortin@ArcNJ.org

Film Festival Featuring Films by and About People with Disabilities Coming to New Jersey

Piscataway, NJ (April 28, 2016) – The Arc of New Jersey is pleased to announce that the Sprout Touring Film Festival is coming to New Jersey on Saturday, June 4, 2016 at the Busch Campus Center of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.

The Sprout Film Festival will feature two unique programs of short films by and about people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). Screenings will take place at 11:00 AM and 2:00 PM. Tickets are $10 per screening or $15 for a 2-screening pass.

The Sprout Film Festival is based in Manhattan and houses a library of approximately 200 films featuring people with I/DD. By presenting films of artistry and intellect, insight and humor, the festival hopes to offer accurate, nuanced portrayals of people with developmental disabilities and invite the media and the general public to consider this population from a new and engaging perspective. “We are trying to break the stigma of people being uncomfortable seeing individuals with I/DD,” says Anthony Di Salvo, founder of the Sprout Film Festival. “For many people, the only representations of this population are Sean Penn, Cuba Gooding, Jr. or Juliette Lewis playing the role of someone with a developmental disability… by presenting entertaining and enlightening films, we’d like to change that.”

The Arc of New Jersey is the state's largest organization advocating for and serving citizens with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families. They are continually seeking enjoyable and enlightening ways to help break down stereotypes and promote a greater acceptance of differences and awareness of similarities.

“The Sprout Film Festival delivers something to viewers that you can’t obtain from other mediums. It shows you, instead of telling you, that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities share the same desires, characteristics and needs as people without disabilities. I encourage everyone in New Jersey to attend the upcoming screening and to be part of this truly unique experience,” says Robert Hage, father and Board President of The Arc of New Jersey.

Co-sponsors of the event include The Arc of Camden County and the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities (NJCDD).

Twenty-two short films from 6 countries will be shown in 2 unique programs -- some poignant, some fascinating, all memorable. To view a trailer of the film festival, please visit: https://vimeo.com/160639510

Visit www.sproutnj.org to purchase tickets online or print a registration form and mail a check to The Arc of New Jersey.

For more information about The Arc of New Jersey, visit www.ArcNJ.org.

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