Samuel Habib, 7, sits in his power-assist wheelchair and smacks a ball off of a batting T. His father, filmmaker Dan Habib, videotapes him in their Concord, N.H., driveway.

Isaiah Habib

When Dan Habib’s son, Samuel, was lying in a hospital intensive-care unit with life-threatening pneumonia, his doctor made what seemed an unusual suggestion under the circumstances: He urged Habib, a photojournalist who was then photography editor at the Concord Monitor in New Hampshire, to use his talents to document the story of Samuel, who had cerebral palsy.

The result is Including Samuel, a 58-minute documentary that will be screened tonight at Brown University in a program that is free and open to the public. The film chronicles four years in young Samuel’s life and the attempts by his family to include him in everyday activities that some might think were not open to people with disabilities. That included being in a regular schoolroom with children who had no disabilities and even playing sports such as baseball and basketball even though Samuel gets around in a wheelchair.

Over the phone Habib explained that cerebral palsy is a condition in which “your brain has trouble communicating with your muscles. Sometimes this can mean only a curling up of your fingers.” For Samuel, he said, it means that although his son can walk with assistance, most of the time he maneuvers in a wheelchair and has some difficulties with speech. However, he added that “Samuel, like most people who have cerebral palsy, has no cognitive problems.” His mental abilities are sharp, and “he loves what other typical third graders love,” including volcanoes and sports.

Habib, who will be present at tonight’s screening at 8, said his film “shows it’s possible that all people with disabilities can be included” in everyday life. He has discovered that in the case of Samuel, who will turn 9 in December, it has benefited not only his son, “but the other kids in the class who have become more well-rounded, more empathetic” in their dealings with Samuel and with others.

That’s one of the main messages of Including Samuel, which will be followed by a panel discussion with Habib, local educators and parents of children with disabilities. Habib said that in screenings he has held earlier in Atlanta, North Carolina, California, New York State, Ohio and elsewhere, audiences have included health-care professionals, people with disabilities, their advocates and the general public.

“That’s my hope for the film … that it becomes a catalyst for informed discussion,” said Habib who now is the filmmaker in residence at the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire.

He sees inclusion of the disabled as the next “major civil rights movement” while realizing that it “is a controversial issue. A lot of schools are doing it well, but a lot of schools are not doing it at all.”

Besides taking Including Samuel on the road across the country, he said he hopes to have a deal in place soon for a national broadcast on PBS stations. The film also is available now on DVD and can be purchased at includingsamuel.com. It is also being translated into Arabic and will be used by Mercy Corps, a global relief and development agency, for showings in Iraq to support the growing civil rights movement of the 2 million Iraqis who are disabled.

Tonight’s program at Brown will begin at 8 in Room 117 of Macmillan Hall, 167 Thayer St. It is free and open to the public.