A Different Spirit: Creating Meaningful B'Nai Mitzvah for Children with Disabilities - Howard Blas

Trachtman, Ilana: - Ilana Trachtman is an Emmy award-winning creator of nonfiction programs for PBS, HBO, ABC-TV, Showtime, Lifetime, Discovery, A&E, and the Sundance Channel: from the legacy of slavery in Peru, to activism among Louisiana shrimpers, and glassblowing with at-risk youth. Prime-time directing credits include Mariachi High; Black in Latin America hosted by Henry Louis Gates; and Texas Ranch House. Ilana was a supervising producer on PBS' History Detectives, the Sundance Channel's Big Ideas for a Small Planet and began her career on PBS' Reading Rainbow. Ilana's independent film Praying with Lior screened theatrically in more than 60 cities, receiving six Audience Awards for Best Documentary, the International Disability Film Festival Grand Prixe, and was a critic's pick of the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, and Washington Post. For WHYY, Ilana directed The Pursuit: 50 Years in the Fight for LGBT Rights, winner of the Mid-Atlantic Emmy for Best Documentary. She lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.