DOCUMENTARY SHOWCASE
In collaboration with NYU’s Department of Anthropology, Department of Cinema Studies, and the Program in Culture and Media
THURSDAY / MAY 10 / 6-8 PM
Cantor Film Center
36 East 8th Street
Theater 200
DOCS ON THE EDGE:
A Documentary Showcase from the 2017-2018 Video Production Seminar, Graduate Program in Culture & Media @ NYU
Notes for a YouTube Video
by Alia Ayman
Something is changing. Performers are travelling, scientists are classifying people and things are being made into objects as empire cr
afts the cinema in its own image. Almost 200 years later, an American silent film produced by Thomas Edison becomes a Youtube Video and the film’s star, Little Egypt, comes back to give her first performance since her alleged appearance at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
Walking Backwards into the Future
by Anna Weinreich
What happens when ancient Tongan designs are projected into the contemporary urban fabric of New York City and become part of a neighborhood’s vibrant landscape of street art? Walking Backwards into the Future tells the story of Tauhi Vā, a stunning black-and-red mural created by Tongan artist Benjamin Work in 2016 in collaboration with Maori Scholar Dr. Maia Nuku, curator of the Oceania collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.Strangers Ourselves
by Laura Murray
Eighty-six-year-old Elizabeth Rapley, the filmmaker’s grandmother, has sponsored ninety-two refugees since 1979, helping them resettle in Canada. What are the challenges both for the families who are accepting help and for those providing it? At a moment when the global refugee crisis burgeons, this short documentary moves beyond media stereotypes to explore the everyday lives of those offering and seeking refuge, and highlights the longtime social bonds that continue to sustain them. Among Us
by Ximena Málaga Sabogal
At first glance, Vanessa is an ordinary 30-year-old Peruvian: she is raising a young son, caring for her family, looking for a job. But being from and living in Huancasancos, an Andean town with a violent past, her story is not as simple as it might seem. Making Haven
by Saudi Garcia
Tenants in Mott Haven, the Bronx stage the takeover of their neglected apartment building with a little-used legal procedure. Making Haven highlights the everyday labor of organizing as a path to community building and personal growth for New Yorkers mobilizing for the right to stay in their homes.Swim Lesson
by Melissa Lefkowitz
What does it feel like to learn something new as an adult? Through the eyes of Brooklyn native William Coon, this sensory-based short presents an immersive experience of moving through water as a novice swimmer, over the course of one swim lesson.
by Alia Ayman
Something is changing. Performers are travelling, scientists are classifying people and things are being made into objects as empire cr
afts the cinema in its own image. Almost 200 years later, an American silent film produced by Thomas Edison becomes a Youtube Video and the film’s star, Little Egypt, comes back to give her first performance since her alleged appearance at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair.
Walking Backwards into the Future
by Anna Weinreich
What happens when ancient Tongan designs are projected into the contemporary urban fabric of New York City and become part of a neighborhood’s vibrant landscape of street art? Walking Backwards into the Future tells the story of Tauhi Vā, a stunning black-and-red mural created by Tongan artist Benjamin Work in 2016 in collaboration with Maori Scholar Dr. Maia Nuku, curator of the Oceania collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.Strangers Ourselves
by Laura Murray
Eighty-six-year-old Elizabeth Rapley, the filmmaker’s grandmother, has sponsored ninety-two refugees since 1979, helping them resettle in Canada. What are the challenges both for the families who are accepting help and for those providing it? At a moment when the global refugee crisis burgeons, this short documentary moves beyond media stereotypes to explore the everyday lives of those offering and seeking refuge, and highlights the longtime social bonds that continue to sustain them. Among Us
by Ximena Málaga Sabogal
At first glance, Vanessa is an ordinary 30-year-old Peruvian: she is raising a young son, caring for her family, looking for a job. But being from and living in Huancasancos, an Andean town with a violent past, her story is not as simple as it might seem. Making Haven
by Saudi Garcia
Tenants in Mott Haven, the Bronx stage the takeover of their neglected apartment building with a little-used legal procedure. Making Haven highlights the everyday labor of organizing as a path to community building and personal growth for New Yorkers mobilizing for the right to stay in their homes.Swim Lesson
by Melissa Lefkowitz
What does it feel like to learn something new as an adult? Through the eyes of Brooklyn native William Coon, this sensory-based short presents an immersive experience of moving through water as a novice swimmer, over the course of one swim lesson.
*a short intermission will follow the third film*