Page 122 – NYFA

Creed II’s Steven Caple Jr. & Dolph Lundgren Speak With New York Film Academy (NYFA) Students

On Tuesday, December 18, New York Film Academy (NYFA) hosted a Q&A with Creed II actor Dolph Lundgren and director Steven Caple Jr., moderated by NYFA screenwriting instructor and dedicated Rocky fan, Eric Conner.

Lundgren is best known for his role as Ivan Drago in Rocky IV, which he reprised in the 2018 hit film Creed II. He also starred in Marvel’s The Punisher (1989) and The Expendables (2010), among many other films throughout the last three decades.

Caple Jr. was given the chance to direct Creed II, the latest entry of the extremely popular and successful Rocky film franchise, after directing just a handful of short films, some television episodes, and one independent feature. He follows Black Panther director Ryan Coogler, who wrote and directed the first Creed film, starring Michael B. Jordan as the title boxer who trains under Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky.

Conner opened up the Q&A by asking Lundgren about reprising the role of Ivan Drago 30 years after originally playing him in Rocky IV. “I wasn’t too crazy about it originally when I heard,” said Lundgren. “I was afraid it was going to be just a one-dimensional bad guy… but it was when I met Steven and I read the script that I realized, ‘Oh this is a real movie.’”

Conner agreed and brought up a scene from Creed II in which Drago and Rocky, longtime boxing rivals, are sitting at a table across from each other in a restaurant, just talking. “I really wanted to know who Drago was, you know, besides a ‘killing machine,’” said Caple Jr., “and it felt like a perfect opportunity to blend in that sort of, you know, two legends sitting down hashing [it] out after 30 years, yet also giving [Lundgren’s] character some dimension… so it’s more than just a revenge story.”

“Man, I was afraid to take on this project because I am a fan, you know; it was like who wants to make a sequel to something that was already dope?” joked Caple Jr. He added, “I made it for people who are honestly Rocky and Creed fans.”

Conner added that Caple Jr. was a good choice to direct Creed II because he could make the Rocky franchise relevant to a new generation of viewers by connecting with Creed, the younger character of the film. Conner also shared the statistic that Creed II was the fourth movie directed by an African American director to earn over $100 million in the box office in 2018.

“There’s so much talent out there,” said Caple Jr. He shared that it was important for him to have a production team that included people of color because he wanted to provide as many opportunities as possible to progress and diversify the entertainment industry. “There’s a movement going on.” said Caple Jr.

The New York FIlm Academy would like to thank Dolph Lundgren and Stephen Caple Jr. for speaking with our students and sharing their entertainment industry knowledge and their experiences developing a story and franchise simultaneously.

The Magic City: Florence, Italy

Recently, on a rainy afternoon in Florence, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with students at New York Film Academy’s (NYFA) Florence location, located in a charming state-of-the-art facility on Via Torta, near the Basilica di Santa Croce.

The students had just returned — soaked and exhausted — from a long day filming the last scenes of their final projects. The “crews,” each comprised of four or five students, all used the city of Florence as the “film set” for their visual stories. They were in the homestretch, although they still had a few demanding days ahead, editing their films before presenting their work at the graduation screening and celebration of the conclusion of their semester abroad programs in Filmmaking and Acting for Film. These students came from 12 countries — the United States, Hungary, Ukraine, Iran, Netherlands, Romania, UK, Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, Spain, Italy, and Mexico.

After unloading their camera gear, we sat down and spoke about the impressions of their time in Florence, and at NYFA, during the past 12 weeks. “Life-changing” was the most echoed description; all heads also nodded “yes” when one student said, “this study abroad opportunity has by far been the best experience of my life so far; during these months I have grown so much as a person and as a filmmaker. ”

One student fervently told me that, while he had had a passion for acting from a young age, before NYFA he had doubts about whether it was something he wanted to pursue instead of an economics degree; but now he wants nothing more than to be an actor.

All of the students’ reactions warmed me with joyfulness and “NYFA pride.” There was more under the surface because all of the sentiments were very familiar to me — each word and narrative brought back vivid and distinct memories…

It was 1976 when my feet stepped off a plane at the Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport in Rome and a new phase of my life began. Much of it stays with me to this very day, and now, encircled by this wonderful group of young “creatives,” more and more remembrances came rushing back to me.

I arrived at 18, never having previously left US soil, with just $300 dollars in my pocket and a full scholarship to study art in Florence that was graciously provided by publishing icon, Anna K. Meredith. At a later point I learned that Ms. Meredith, who at the time headed the family’s The Meredith Corporation — a massive publishing empire that produces dozens of the most popular magazines (including Sports Illustrated, Fortune and PEOPLE) — personally chose me as the first recipient of her generous study abroad grant.

My route to this study abroad experience was an extraordinary one; I was a freshman at the University of Denver and in the Spring of that year my favorite art instructor approached me — quite out of the blue — and handed me a formal document. “Read it!” she ardently and rather exuberantly stated. It was an acceptance letter from a US-accredited Art School in Florence. I was offered an acceptance and didn’t even know that I had applied! My professor, seeing my dismay, explained, “Jim, I applied on your behalf because I knew if you had this opportunity, it would change your art and your life in so many amazing ways.”

Now, I knew that in a week this delightful group of talented young people would be saying goodbye to the city of Florence, to the New York Film Academy staff and faculty, to their classmates and their friends, and that they would walk forward — as I did 40 years ago — into lives that will be forever changed for the better.

My teacher was certainly more accurate than she could ever have imagined. It is both the magic of Florence and the impact of the experience of studying abroad that simply cannot be explained well in words, because they reside in a spirit deep within the city — and at the same time — in one’s own heart.

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY (NYFA) CELEBRATES THE LIFE OF PENNY MARSHALL

Filmmaker, producer, and actress Penny Marshall has died at the age of 75. In addition to being a three-time Golden Globe nominee for her starring role on sitcom juggernaut Laverne & Shirley, Marshall was a groundbreaking director for Hollywood, helming such films as Big, Awakenings, and A League of Their Own.

As part of their video tribute to Marshall, CBS spoke with New York Film Academy (NYFA) filmmaking and acting instructor Paul Warner about her career and legacy. Warner spoke primarily about Marshall’s career as a director and producer, which followed her role as Laverne on the beloved sitcom and spin-off of Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley.

After directing the 1986 action comedy Jumpin’ Jack Flash, Marshall broke records when her film, Big — starring Tom Hanks as a 13-year-old boy who suddenly becomes an adult — became the first film directed by a woman to gross over $100 million. Marshall repeated the feat four years later with A League of Their Own. In between, her film Awakenings, starring Robert DeNiro, was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

“Awakenings, Big, and League of Their Own were huge films in a male-dominated environment, and they showed the kind of range and humanity that she brought to her work,” Warner said of Marshall. He spoke with CBS reporter Lisa Rozner at New York Film Academy’s Battery Park campus in downtown Manhattan hours after the news broke of Marshall’s passing.

In addition to teaching at New York Film Academy for several years, Warner has directed over 50 theatre and film productions including Women: The War Within at The Baryshnikov Arts Center, where he was a Princess Grace Foundation Artist-In-Residence; award-winning short In the Name of The Father (Sundance); and feature Fall Time (Lionsgate), which premiered at the Sundance Festival and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize.

Along with Warner’s interview on CBS, NYFA also produced and released a video tribute to Marshall:

NYFA also published a more in-depth look at Marshall’s career an an actress, producer, and filmmaker, which can be found here.

The Academy has multiple connections to Marshall. In 2012, her brother Garry Marshall spoke with NYFA students at our Los Angeles campus, where his son — and Penny’s nephew — Scott Marshall is a filmmaking and cinematography instructor. Penny Marshall’s Laverne & Shirley co-star, Cindy Williams, also spoke with NYFA students in 2015. Both Williams and Garry Marshall spoke very highly of Penny Marshall and her work.

The New York Film Academy is deeply saddened by the loss of a multi-talented Hollywood icon and trailblazing filmmaker who paved the way for many future women directors to come. Rest in peace, Penny Marshall.

New York Film Academy (NYFA) Musical Theatre School Produces “Kristy’s Lament: Another Awful Day with the MTA”

You’d be hard pressed to find a New Yorker who doesn’t experience their fair share of frustration with the MTA, the corporation that runs the city’s sprawling and crowded transit system of trains and buses. Especially these days, as commuters deal with train construction, delays, and an impending apocalypse, while fares continue to increase (the MTA announced just this week their plan for yet another fare hike of 4%).

And every New Yorker deals with it in their own way. Some of us mutter under our breaths, while others aren’t afraid to scream and yell at the top of their lungs. Some of us weep silently when we finally get home, while others pray to themselves that they’ll actually get home.

But what most of us haven’t done, is sing a song about it. With Kristy’s Lament: Another Awful Day with the MTA, a new musical number performed by Broadway actress Kristy Cates, that’s no longer the case. And now that it has an accompanying music video produced by the Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre at the New York Film Academy (PCMT at NYFA), the song is easily available for everyone to share, relate with, and sing along to.

Kristy’s Lament is very much based on a true story. “I have the worst train luck,” Cates tells NYFA, continuing, “I’m always stuck underground with no explanation, waiting for a train that never shows up, or on the car with the person about to puke. And I often share these wild stories on social media.”

After one particularly nasty commute for Cates, where one bizarre thing followed another as she tried to make her way home from her Broadway show, she recounted the entire nightmare on Facebook. Her story quickly gained traction and gained a lot of attention on social media. Typically, the story would end there, but not for Cates.

After seeing her commute from hell, lyricist Chris Giordano was inspired to adapt the tale into song, writing lyrics for a number that step-by-step portrayed Cates’s disastrous trip. Soon, it was put to music by composer Ryan Edward Wise, and Kristy’s Lament was born. It wasn’t long after that that a music video was produced to accompany the track.

The video features Cates playing multiple roles — not just the tragic commuter narrating the song, but also a rude passenger carrying numerous bags, a stoner, and a homeless man, among others. It is mostly a stage production, filmed at NYFA’s 1st Floor Theatre, with gorgeous lighting direction and a minimal subway set. The video was also partially shot in an actual subway station, where the video opens and closes.

The video was produced by the PCMT at NYFA, where Kristy Cates also serves as Creative Director. The renowned musical theatre school prides itself on giving its students real world training that prepares them to achieve success in a competitive, empowering industry, creating an educational experience few other musical theatre schools can offer.

Aspiring performers develop their skills as triple threat performers by studying with faculty — like Kristy Cates — who have appeared in numerous Broadway and touring productions, top-rate regional theatre, opera, hit movie musicals, and television shows. NYFA’s musical theater alumni include llda Mason (On Your Feet), Pierre Marais (Aladdin), Christopher Viljoen (Les Misérables), and Kylan Ross (Straight Outta Oz).

Additionally, the PCMT at NYFA is able to use all of the resources shared by NYFA’s film school, cinematography school, and other departments. Using the Academy’s resources and state-of-the-art filmmaking equipment, its stage and its location in the heart of the New York City, and some of the Academy’s highly-talented staff — including director Jonathan Whittaker, editor Sean Robinson, Broadway veteran and choreographer Deidre Goodwin, and costume designer David Withrow — Kristy’s Lament was able to take advantage of high production values to really sell the humorous lyrics and support Cates’s powerful yet hysterical performance.

“One thing I love about working for NYFA,” Cates says, “is their willingness to explore new projects. As a result, our ability as a program to collaborate with up-and-coming composers and lyricists.” She adds, “It was wonderful to combine the expertise of our faculty, the passion of our alumni, the ingenuity of the composer and writer, and the generosity and support of the Film Academy.”

Cates is no stranger to high production values and show-stopping numbers. She is a member of AEA and SAG-AFTRA and has starred in Wicked (Broadway, First National Tour, Chicago) as Elphaba, as well as playing Miss Bassett in Finding Neverland (Broadway), Grandma Josephine in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Broadway), and has had roles in a handful of off-Broadway shows and many regional productions. Additionally, she performs as a professional voiceover artist.

The Professional Conservatory of Musical Theatre at the New York Film Academy is proud to have Kristy Cates as an original and current member of its faculty, and was equally as proud to produce Kristy’s Lament: Another Awful Day with the MTA with her. Next time you’re stressed and stuck on the subway, check it out and let yourself laugh a little — if the wifi is working down there, of course.

Brooklyn Photographer Miranda Barnes Guest Lectures at New York Film Academy (NYFA)

On Wednesday, October 17, Brooklyn photographer Miranda Barnes spoke with New York Film Academy (NYFA) Photography students in a special guest lecture. The lecture was held at NYFA’s Battery Park campus in downtown New York City.

Miranda Barnes was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1994. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Humanities and Justice from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in the spring of 2018. A participant of The New York Portfolio Review in 2017, Barnes has garnered attention for her work that especially focuses on race, politics, and notions surrounding American culture.

Barnes’ work has been shown in group exhibitions at FotoFocus Biennial (Kentucky) and at A-Type Gallery and Photoville (New York). Her previous clients include The New York Times, TIME, Vice, Teen Vogue, and The Undefeated by ESPN.

Additionally, her work has also been featured on Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, Art News, i-D, and Nylon Magazine. Barnes currently resides and works in Brooklyn.

Speaking with a room full of NYFA photography students, Barnes discussed her work, as well as her process, using visual aids connected to a large projected computer screen in one of NYFA’s Battery Park classrooms. Students were delighted to see Barnes’ work and learn from her up close and personal.

New York Film Academy’s Photography school offers students the remarkable opportunity to study photography under award-winning, professional photographers who remain active in many genres of photography — from fine art to fashion, commercial work to photojournalism. NYFA’s photography school instructors are not simply interested in producing competent photographers, but also in mentoring artists who each possess a singular voice that will make their work immediately recognizable.

The New York Film Academy thanks Brooklyn photography Miranda Barnes for her generous time and sharing her expertise with our students!

Interested in studying photography? Find more information on NYFA’s Photography school programs here.

NEW YORK FILM ACADEMY CONGRATULATES DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING FACULTY CLAUDIA RASCHKE AND BOB EISENHARDT WHOSE WORK ON “RBG” AND “FREE SOLO” HAS BEEN SHORTLISTED BY THE ACADEMY AWARDS

The holiday season will soon be over but Awards Season is just heating up for Hollywood and the film industry. Nominations for some major awards like the Golden Globes and various Guild awards have already been announced, and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are a step closer to naming their own, having just announced several shortlists of potential nominees for next year’s Oscars.

The Oscar Documentary Feature Shortlist includes RBG and Free Solo, two critically-acclaimed documentaries with New York Film Academy (NYFA) faculty playing key roles in their production. RBG was shot by Director of Photography and NYFA Documentary instructor Claudia Raschke; Free Solo was edited by NYFA Documentary instructor Bob Eisenhardt.

The fifteen shortlisted documentaries had an incredible amount of competition this year, with 166 films originally submitted in the category. The shortlist was voted on by the documentary branch members of the Academy.

RBG tells the story of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, and was a surprise success story after premiering at Sundance, striking a chord with many young voters and moviegoers. To date, the film is one of the most financially successful documentaries of all time.

Raschke, who teaches cinematography for NYFA’s documentary school, has previously shot several other Academy Award shortlisted films and nominees, including Mad Hot Ballroom. In addition, Raschke has won a Peabody Award, a Dupont, and a National Board of Review Award, among others.

Free Solo is a critically-acclaimed documentary from National Geographic, focusing on rock climber Alex Honnold as he attempts to free solo — or climb without the use of ropes — the famed vertical rock formation, El Capitan. Honnold is the only person to have ever pulled off the climb. The film, which broke An Inconvenient Truth’s box office record for highest per-theater average, currently has a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 98%.

Editor Bob Eisenhardt is an Academy Award nominee, three-time Emmy winner, and recipient of the coveted “Eddie” aka American Cinema Editors Award. He has edited over 60 films, mostly feature and television documentaries, including Sundance Audience Award Winner Meru. His film Scotty Bowers and the Secret History of Hollywood was screened at DOC NYC in 2017. Eisenhardt teaches Advanced Thesis Editing and is a Master Class instructor at New York Film Academy’s New York City campus.

Asked about Free Solo’s appearance on this year’s shortlist, Eisenhardt says, “When you are stuck in the edit room in the middle of the process there is no way of knowing how your film will be received. It’s very gratifying that it’s been recognized and done so well at the box office.”

He continues, “Now that the Academy has whittled consideration down to a shortlist of really good films, you can only hope for the best.”

Andrea Swift, Chair of NYFA’s Documentary Filmmaking department, couldn’t be more thrilled about this year’s shortlist, telling NYFA, “Bob and Claudia are two of the best in the business. Both have had films nominated for Oscars multiple times. RBG and Free Solo have enjoyed huge box office success, critical raves, and fantastic buzz. So I can’t say it’s a surprise. Still, we’re all very excited for them!”

Swift is also grateful to have such talented people working in her department. She adds, “For documentary masters like Claudia and Bob to work closely with the students on their films day in and day out — it just doesn’t get any better.”

*Bob Eisenhardt Celebrating with NYFA Students after this year’s Shortlist was announced*

Raschke and Eisenhardt aren’t the only faculty members of NYFA’s documentary school with prestigious awards and nominations. Just last year, Heroin(e) — edited by instructor Kristen Nutile — was nominated for Best Documentary Short and won an Emmy Award. Earlier this year, prolific documentary filmmaker and NYFA instructor Maxine Trump published her book, The Documentary Filmmaker’s Roadmap: A Practical Guide to Planning, Production and Distribution.

“No Documentary film school in the world has a better faculty. Even Oscar is a fan,” remarks Andrea Swift.

The New York Film Academy congratulates instructors Claudia Raschke and Bob Eisenhardt on the success and recognition of their films, and wishes them the best of luck as the awards season continues!

New York Film Academy (NYFA) Industry Lab Scores a Hit With ‘The Counter: 1960’

The New York Film Academy’s Industry Lab and African American Black Film Society (ABA) kicked off the first official screening of internationally acclaimed short film, The Counter: 1960. Seven Industry Lab members contributed to the making of the film, and were invited along with cast and crew to the screening.

The Counter: 1960 gives the account of three “woke” students from 2017 that find themselves seated at a lunch counter in 1960. Will they be served?

On February 1, 1960, four young educated African American men attending North Carolina A&T decided to make their mark in history. On that cold blistery day, the A&T Four — which they would soon to be named — walked to the local Woolworth lunch counter and sat down to be served. Keep in mind African Americans were able to shop in Woolworth’s but not eat there. This non-violent protest known as a “sit-in” became a common demonstration as a way to abolish segregation in eating establishments across the rural south.

The Q&A was moderated by Chair of the Industry Lab and producer Kimberly Ogletree and ABA President Furaha Bayibsa; panelist and director Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd shared stories about the making of the film; actress/producer Ashley Jackson, daughter of civil rights activist Reverend Jessie Jackson offered advice regarding producing and acting; editor and NYFA Editing instructor Leander Sales crafted the creative techniques used in the editing process that assisted in delivering a strong well-rounded message; and actor Charles Malik Whitfield shared stories about the making of the film.

The film has been an Official Selection in numerous film festivals, including the Jaipur International Film Festival. The US Premiere was held during the Pan African Film Festival. Lights and cameras flashed as the producers, director, and cast walked the red carpet and spoke with media promoting the film. Producer Kimberly Ogletree said, “I’ve always supported this festival and by this being my 3^rd film in PAFF this is a great night. Just being surrounded by filmmakers from the black diaspora is a humbling experience. It’s important in our history that we as African Americans control and document the true narrative of our stories for the generations to come.”

The Bentonville Film Festival was the next stop on the festival circuit. The screening was well attended and the audience became emotional during the screening. The film was in competition with other amazing short films. Although we didn’t bring back a win, the film was part of the top five shorts in the festival. Since then, the filmmakers have been asked to submit The Counter: 1960 into the Bentonville Film Festival archives, which is paramount for the film and the New York Film Academy Industry Lab.

The Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival awarded Best Actorin a Short Film toBuddy Lewisfor the role ofJoseph and NYC Indie Awards winner. The Counter: 1960 also won the Gold Award in the LA Shorts Awards.

The Official Selections continued with Garifuna Film Festival in Los Angeles and the British Urban Film Festival in London. The night was filled with British filmmakers and celebrities. The winners will be announced later in the year and will be celebrated in June 2019.

However, it wasn’t until the Diversity in Cannes Film Showcase that the film won for Best Cinematography and the Audience Award. The film was placed in the Women In Formation category, which focused on strong social and political messages from a female perspective. Out of 260 official selections from 25 countries with an acceptance rate of 10%, The Counter: 1960 became an Official Selection in the 2018 showcase. Yolonda Brinkley, Creator of the Short Film Showcase, commented, “I’ve created a needed platform for underrepresented filmmakers from diverse backgrounds to showcase their stories that would normally not be seen at the Festival de Cannes.”

As quoted from the Entertainment Sun news article “JuVee Productions’ Julius Tennon And Viola Davis Support Independent Filmmaker Initiative Promoting Diversity And Inclusion At 71^st Festival de Cannes”, AJUUA Entertainment and Academy Award-winning actress Viola Davis and husband Julius Tennon, President, Development and Production stated: “For the last eight years, Yolonda has been focused on shining a light on films about people of color. The curtain has been lifted, and a fresh conversation can now be had about how inclusive and diverse films travel. A global audience awaits and is ready to be served.”

In April 2018, director Tracy “Twinkie” Byrd won Best First Time Director in the Top Shorts Online Film Festival. “It felt amazing, freeing. It felt like someone else sees what’s been burning inside me for years. My fears were unfounded and I’m thankful I took the leap,” commented Tracy.

Additional accolades mount as our most recent Official Selections include the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival, where the film received a standing ovation and the Bronzelens Film Festival in Atlanta, Georgia; which is forthcoming.

The Industry Lab’s number #1 goal is to strive to make award-winning productions to further our alumni and student professional work ethic and experiences in the entertainment industry.

Peter Rainer Discusses Film Criticism With New York Film Academy (NYFA)

On Friday, December 7, New York Film Academy (NYFA) hosted a guest lecture by Peter Rainer, noted Christian Science Monitor film critic, Bloomberg News columnist, and reviewer for National Public Radio’s FilmWeek. Peter Rainer, a NYFA Master Faculty member, is film critic for the Christian Science Monitor and NPR, author of “Rainer on Film,” and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Criticism.

Rainer began by sharing the origin of his interest in movies. When he was a boy, there were not very many movies on television; because of this, he would re-watch the same movies over and over again when they aired, and doing this caused him to examine and question various elements of the films.

Once he was older, he started attending screenings of classic movies at revival theaters in New York City and reading film history books and articles by critics. He was inspired by the work of critic James Agee, who he felt elevated film criticism to art by writing with passion and style and not just listing the pros and cons of films.

“It made me think for the first time that maybe, you know, I could write about movies and be a real writer… and not just a recounter or a reviewer,” said Rainer. Rainer added that Pauline Kael was another film critic that influenced him; her style was “acerbic” and “opinionated” but distinct from other critics of her time because she was unafraid to ruffle Hollywood’s feathers.

When Rainer attended Brandeis University, he wrote movie reviews for their newspaper, The Brandeis Hoot; in Rainer’s opinion, the late 1960s to early 1970s — when he attended college — were the “Golden Age of American cinema.” During this time, Rainer had the opportunity to review classic films like A Clockwork Orange (1971), The Godfather (1972) and Cabaret (1972), and he built a portfolio of work that he later used to try to get jobs as a professional writer.

Eventually, Rainer got a job as a film critic for Mademoiselle magazine, but it was not enough to support him financially. He co-wrote a screenplay and it was produced as a film called Joyride (1977) starring Desi Arnaz, Jr. and Melanie Griffith, but Rainer’s heart was still in film criticism more than filmmaking. “I still had this jones to be a critic.” said Rainer.

Rainer then went on to work for the daily newspaper, The Los Angeles Herald Examiner, where he worked for 10 years as chief critic. When The Herald Examiner ceased publication, Rainer was hired as a film critic for the Los Angeles Times. He struggled at the Times because their editors were hesitant to criticize films made by big Hollywood production companies — they didn’t want to lose the companies’ advertising money. Rainer was frustrated with the Times’ priorities and ultimately moved on to other publications, eventually landing at the Christian Science Monitor, at which he has worked for 13 years. Additionally, he is a reviewer for National Public Radio.

Rainer shared that, as movies are increasingly distributed through digital streaming networks like Netflix, the experience of a film critic has evolved; now critics are expected to watch and review more and more movies at a time and more and more movies in a digital streaming format rather than at a theater. Rainer feels that this infringes on the critic’s — and ultimately the moviegoer’s — experience because it reduces one’s ability to be absorbed into the world of the film. Additionally, some films have special effects and production design that is better showcased on a big screen.

Rainer inquired about the students in the audience and their filmmaking aspirations. “I think in the end, filmmaking, acting, writing, producing is the same thing as what I do,” said Rainer, “in the sense that you have to sort of find who you are and work out of your own experience.” Rainer emphasized the importance of authenticity in the art of moviemaking but, he added, “I don’t know if it’s that simple.”

Ultimately, a film’s quality is based on a balance between a basic knowledge of the process and history of filmmaking and how well the story is conveyed by the actors and production team. A film critique’s quality is based on that film knowledge as well as a clear point-of-view about the movie being reviewed. Additionally, Rainer added that serious criticism is about dissecting the various aspects of a film and whether or not they conveyed the story and tone in a clear way, rather than just sharing opinions for the sake of sharing opinions — an activity heavily encouraged by the rise of internet culture.

The New York Film Academy would like to thank film critic Peter Rainer for discussing lessons learned throughout his career, and for his advice for young filmmakers from a critic’s perspective.

New York Film Academy (NYFA) Acting for Film Alum Ioanna Meli Stars in “Isabel”

Isabel, a short film starring New York Film Academy (NYFA) Acting for Film alum Ioanna Meli, is now available on Amazon Prime Video, allowing millions of the streaming service’s subscribers to check out the haunting drama.

Ioanna Meli originally hails from Greece, and studied for her Master of Fine Arts in Acting for Film from NYFA’s Los Angeles campus, where she was trained and taught by a faculty of working professionals from Hollywood, Broadway, and the independent film industry.

NYFA’s MFA in Acting for Film program is an intense commitment — students learn two years’ worth of education in only sixteen months, and are often rehearsing and studying on weekends, in evenings, and wherever they can find those extra minutes to devote to their craft. Meli was more than up for the task however, and her work in Isabel shows off her talent and the skills she picked up while at the Academy.

Written and directed by Alex Knudsen based on a story by Charlotte Zang, Isabel tells the story of an elderly woman named Isabel Dove at the very end of her life. However, when she seemingly passes away, she wakes up hours later as her younger self. The mystery grows deeper from there as Isabel searches for answers and reflects on the life she thought she was leaving behind. The film stars Jamie Donnelly and Lauren Elyse Buckley as old and young Isabel, respectively; Meli co-stars as Meredith.

About her experience filming the short, Meli tells New York Film Academy, “Working with Alex on set was a fantastic, collaborative experience. The film’s dialogue was composed to express only what was necessary to move the story forward, creating a sense of mystery that’s powerful in this film.”

Meli continued, “The scene we did with Lauren was challenging; our energies and objectives in the story are very different and in the scene, we meet under circumstances that both of our characters are uncertain about. Working through that together was an interesting process.”

The New York Film Academy congratulates Acting for Film alum Ioanna Meli on her stellar work in Isabel, and encourages everyone who can to check it out on Amazon Prime Video!

Ioanna Meli
“Isabel”
“Isabel”
Ioanna Meli