Page 201 – NYFA

Emily Seale-Jones Returns to NYFA to Talk About Creating Content

The Acting for Film Department at the New York Film Academy has started a new Industry Trend series, which welcomes recent graduates who are at early and mid-level stages of their career. The series aims to provide current students with a glimpse of what their careers might look like in the near future.

Last week, as part of the Industry Trend series, Acting for Film Chair Glynis Rigsby welcomed her former student, Emily Seale-Jones, who is an actress, writer, producer, and director. Seale-Jones spoke about creating content, specifically her web series “Frankie and Emma.” The series follows the daily, comical antics of two girls in London. Seale-Jones created the show and stars in it with Nancy Wallinger, who is known for “The Play That Goes Wrong” at London’s West End.

Seale-Jones said she created the show in order to showcase her skills as both an actress and a filmmaker. “It’s really uncomfortable to promote yourself, but you have to get used to it,” she said. “If people aren’t going to bank on you, then you need to do the work and prove you’re bankable. You have to prove yourself.”

At the end of the day, even if Seale-Jones is unable to sell the series to a network, she believes it’s important to get the work out there for people to see. That’s the goal. “If you want to do something, you just go ahead and do it,” added Seale-Jones.

https://youtu.be/yzfjb8PEX1s

Her first experience creating content was at NYFA in 2011 when she decided to create a play with her fellow classmates and with Glynis as her director. Seale-Jones said NYFA broke down the wall of filmmaking, allowing her to believe the entire process of creating a film from idea to completion is feasible.

Seale-Jones also spoke about her film, “To Tokyo,” which her brother wrote and directed over a four year span in Japan. The film is about a young woman, hiding from her past, who is confronted by her stepsister in Japan and forced to face the figure that haunts her in a world where dreams meet reality.

With all of her projects, Seale-Jones has realized one major fact: “There has to be something that’s the driving force. You can’t rely on anyone except yourself.”

NYFA Acting for Film Grad’s “Proceed with Caution” Available on Amazon

New York Film Academy Acting for Film alumnus Kojo Boama’s newest short film, “Proceed With Caution,” has been picked up by Amazon Prime video. “Proceed with Caution,” written by NYFA alumnus Joey Colebut, is about an upcoming NYC music producer who stumbles on his way to stardom by getting his mistress pregnant. The film has been talked about by major hip-hop artists such as P.Diddy, Jadakiss, and Swizz Beatz.

We had a chat with Boama to find out more about his new film, and about how aspiring filmmakers should never give up.

Hi Kojo. Can you tell us where you’re from and what brought you to NYFA?

I was born in Ghana, West Africa and raised in Harlem, NY. My mother lived in London and had me educated in England as well. She was going to have me stay and live the rest of my life there, so NYFA in NY was an alternative escape route to move back in with my father up in Harlem while seeking to further my education and study a craft.

And the craft you studied was Acting for Film. Can you tell us about your experience in NYFA’s Acting for Film program?

I absolutely loved the acting program. Meisner technique is an essential tool I still use today: always listening to determine the true meaning underneath a person’s statement was a technique that was very useful in the making of this film. This is because I had to multitask around the set — produce, semi-direct and clean the set while playing the lead role. So aside from memorizing my lines, actually paying attention to other actors responses helped save me from potential bad acting.

How did this short film come about? What made you want to create “Proceed with Caution”?

This short film was written by fellow NYFA student Joey Colebut, who had originally had me act in his final showcase at NYFA. I fell in love with the process. Most of our journey can be found on our episodic youtube documentary called “Never Give Up,” which showcases the trials and tribulation it took to actually make this project a reality. “Proceed with Caution” was scheduled to be wrapped in six months, but due to setbacks it ended up taking four years. (Below is the first episode of “Never Give Up.”)

You have some really notable hip-hop artists and celebrities talking about your film. How did that come about?

Due to the hardships of making this project a reality, I always had to plot ahead to see how I could overcome any giving situation. Initially, I worked over at CBS and used to rush down celebrities every time they came by to get some endorsements. One endorsement from Jack Thriller, which I actually got on 125th street in Harlem, helped turn this project around. I knew that hiring my co-star, Jack Thriller, who is signed with 50 Cent, and is talked about in the streets to be the next Kevin Heart, would help open other doors to various people within the entertainment business. (Check out this episode for more details.)

Why do you believe people should see your film?

Aside from the fact that it’s mere entertainment, I also want to give aspiring artists hope that they could do it as well. Thus, the making of the behind the scenes episodic documentary “Never Give Up.”

What do you hope to achieve with this film?

I hope this film helps open doors for me to grow as a filmmaker within the industry, and for me to be able to make a few feature films.

Are you planning to film a feature version of “Proceed with Caution”?

I could make a feature version of this project if need be, but I have already written another feature, “Blue Grease,” which I believe would be a great challenge for me if I’m able to accomplish it. “Blue Grease” is an urban love and basketball themed movie.

We wish you the best of luck with everything!

If you’re interested in checking out “Proceed with Caution,” CLICK HERE.

Juanjo Gimenez Screens Palm d’Or Winning Short “Timecode” at NYFA LA

Juanjo Gimenez brought his Oscar-nominated and Palm d’Or winning short “Timecode” to the New York Film Academy’s Los Angeles campus. The writer and director stayed after the screening to discuss his short shoot schedule, the difference between features and shorts, and what he has planned for the future.

Gimenez has been working in the film industry for over twenty years. Highlights of his career include “Tilt,” “Maxima Pena,” and “Esquivar y Pegar.” His experience in film isn’t limited to writing and directing. Editor, Cinematographer, Actor, Producer and Sound are all titles Gimenez has held on various sets making him a true student of cinema.

NYFA students were thrilled to discuss the short turn around of “Timecode.” Gimenez informed the crowd that from concept to sale, to the final shoot day, was only fourteen days. Developed with a local university Gimenez instituted cost saving measures to bring the film in at cost.

Using students as part of the crew offered an educational experience. The garage in which the film was shot was offered to them for free. Gimenez didn’t go into detail about how, but he was able to get a RED Dragon for almost nothing. The monitors through which the security guards watch one another are the same monitors on which “Timecode” was edited.

The New York Film Academy would like to thank Mr. Gimenez for taking the time to speak with our students. You can learn more about Gimenez and follow his creative journey by clicking here.

NYFA Alumna’s Thesis Film “My Lover Never Came” Wins Three Awards at NYC Indie Film Awards

Growing up in Myanmar, Moe Myat May Zarchi was very interested in a variety of movies from art house cinema to american independent films, and also reading about film history. Though adept to the storytelling aspects of filmmaking, Zarchi decided to pursue the Filmmaking Program at the New York Film Academy to learn how to make a film professionally and systematically. While in the program, Zarchi directed her thesis film, “My Lover Never Came,” which she says is about “the process of destruction in identity and sense of direction in this world for wanting something that you would never get back.” The protagonist is a young woman who is waiting and searching for her mysterious lover. It is told subtly in the form of a visual narrative using words and photographic frames.

“We had about four months to film our thesis film from writing scripts to production,” said Zarchi. “But just about three weeks before shooting my original script, I had to cancel it because of property rights. I went through an anxiety induced state as it felt too rushed for me to come up with a new idea, a new story. So I decided to take my mind from it. By chance, I came across photographer Duane Michels’ photo sequences, and one of his particular series made me think of this idea. I could personally relate to it so much that I need to make a film of it. The visual style is also an adaption of his photographs.”

So far the film has screened in New Filmmakers NY and won three awards at NYC Indie Film Awards (Best Short Film, Best Director and Best Editing).

“The experience at NYFA was indeed very useful,” said Zarchi. “It totally made me consider all the production aspects of turning an idea into a film; how to balance the budget, draw the timeline, get all the rights, working with a big team and handling the stress. But the most important tip I learned from NYFA is the question ‘why?’ Knowing why I choose a particular frame or movement, the color palette, the production design, the acting style, the pace, and the rhythm, makes me really dig into knowing my film as a director. It really brings out all the emotions and tones from a film.”

Zarchi is currently working on post-production of a short film she shot in New York, after graduating NYFA. She’s also working on a script for a feature film, which she intends to shoot Myanmar.

NYFA Acting for Film Alumna’s “Frisky” Gets Distribution from Gravitas

Shot on a mere five thousand dollars, 8-Week Acting for Film alumna Claudia Pickering’s film, “Frisky,” was recently digitally released by Gravitas — which happens to be the same distribution company who distributed her former NYFA instructor, Adam Nimoy’s Spock documentary — in the US and Canada.

The Sydney-born filmmaker began her foray into filmmaking through acting, which led to creating comedy sketches, short films and webseries’, the first of which was a music video titled “Sebring,” which included Danny Trejo, who choreographed and performed a synchronized dance for the clip.

“Acting and directing involves a lot of switching between head spaces, and a lot of trust in your cast and crew,” says Pickering. “Having a very intimate understanding of each scene really helped the process of going between ‘acting’ and ‘directing’ modes. As an actor, I could feel when we had hit the right emotional moments in each scene, but the issue was, I couldn’t see whether we’d nailed the shot. Fortunately, I had a wonderful relationship with our cinematographer, Christiana Charalambous, and trusted her that when she said she got the shot, we were clear to move on.”

Pickering has now written and produced two feature length films, ‘Frisky’ and ‘Winning Formula‘, of which she directed the former, and both have received international festival success including Official Selection at the Chicago Comedy Film Festival, Best Feature Film at the 10th Broad Humor Film Festival in Los Angeles, Best Comedy Feature at the Atlanta Underground Film Festival and the Director’s Choice for Best Feature Film at the Austin Revolution Film Festival. Pickering won the 2015 Tropfest Tropvine competition with a stop motion animation of a giraffe telling a dad joke, and regularly creates sketches with her comedy troupe, Frothpocalypse. She is currently developing several projects through her company, Cliff House Productions.

“My experience at NYFA LA was nothing short of life-changing,” said Pickering. “With incredible teachers such as Adam Nimoy, the course not only taught great acting techniques and theory, but also gave me a solid practical and theoretical foundational understanding of filmmaking. Additionally, I met some wonderful lifelong friends, one of whom, Anna Bennett, I went on to form a comedy production company with.”

Her most recent film, “Frisky,” involves two young women who move back to San Francisco, where they had met on exchange years earlier. However, their high career aspirations quickly become sidelined by their sexual interests. While wildly crass and charismatic in their public personas, they are in fact fundamentally at odds on many levels. Their opposing beliefs surrounding responsibility and romance, combined with their close quarters while crashing in an acquaintance’s living room, find them thrust onto a fast track to discovering what their friendship is really made of. Based on true events, “Frisky” is an honest, tongue-in-cheek look at what it is to be a woman in the limbo years between college and “the real world.”

“The film is based on my real life experiences moving from Sydney to Los Angeles — the first and most emotionally potent time was for NYFA — then from LA to San Francisco,” says Pickering. “The emotions, the the friendships, the flings, the near-misses, and the life-long lasting love for people and places. I was living in San Francisco, waiting for another feature film, ‘Winning Formula,’ to go through post production in LA. I was working as an architect to earn some money, but was really becoming disillusioned by the whole profession as I’d sit at my desk and fantasize about stories I’d like to make into movies. One night, I was invited to attend the test screening of a film that a friend of a friend had made on virtually no budget with a six month turn-around. The film was such a joy to watch — so honest and funny — and had been shot on a DSLR camera just like one I already owned and I thought to myself, ‘I can do that.’ I checked my savings account balance that night, quit my job the next day and started writing ‘Frisky'”

For more information about how to download or stream, “Frisky,” please visit the website at friskymovie.com.

NYFA Welcomes VR Software Architect Chris Bobotis

Last week, the New York Film Academy welcomed well-known VR artist, Chris Bobotis, to speak to students in our new VR program.

Bobotis is the Co-Founder and 360/VR Software Architect at Mettle, which introduced 360/VR plugins that have been widely adopted by leading companies world-wide, such as The New York Times, Time, CNN, HBO, Google, youtube, Discovery VR, DreamWorks TV, National Geographic, USA Today, LinkedIn, The Ellen Show, BuzzFeed, Conan 360, Framestore, Google, Jaunt VR, GreenPeace, Care, UBER, RYOT, Huffington Post, Washington Post, Apple, and Facebook. Independent filmmakers and youtubers have also widely adopted the toolset available through Mettle, shaping the content that is available through YouTube, FaceBook, Samsung, and other 360/VR viewers.

Founded in Montreal as a production studio by Chris Bobotis and Nancy Eperjesy in 1992, the team of artists and programmers who have consistently embraced art and tech, and pushed forward the notion of empowering artists with digital tools, developing software by artists for artists.

Drawing on a vast experience of production and post-production workflows, Bobotis leads the development of all Mettle software. SkyBox 360/VR plugins are the most complete set of Cinematic 360/VR production tools available for Adobe After Effects and Premiere Pro, and include a VR Player for Oculus RIFT.

Chris generously spent a couple of hours lecturing on the theory of creating successful VR experiences, as well as demonstrating very practical how-to lessons with the software, which is used in the NYFA VR classrooms.

At the end of the event, Bobotis offered an award to the best student VR project. Stay tuned!

NYFA Musical Theatre Alumna Stars in “The Little Mermaid” Musical in São Paulo

After graduating from the New York Film Academy, Musical Theatre alumna Anna Luisa Preto returned to her home country of Brazil where she was cast to play the Little Mermaid in “The Little Mermaid: The Musical.” The musical’s first season was at Teatro das Artes in São Paulo, and is now playing at “Teatro Jardim Sul,” also in São Paulo.

“I have always loved musical theatre, and when I saw the opportunity of auditioning for NYFA’s Musical Theatre program, I was immediately interested,” said Preto. “After researching about the course, the place and the professionals involved I fell completely in love! NYFA has changed the way I approach and study a song or a scene. With what I learned there, I have much more material to work on the performances.”

Preto says the Little Mermaid was a very special character in her life as a child, especially being a redhead. “It was one of those stories that you do not think will happen to you…until it happens,” she recalls. “I didn’t know about the auditions, in fact, I lived in another city during that period. A friend that I hadn’t spoken for a long time had moved to São Paulo and sent his material to this musical and in the middle of the material was a duet that we recorded when we studied together. The production saw the material and decided to look for me! I almost did not believe it when I saw the producer’s message calling me audition for the mermaid in São Paulo. In the end, I went to do the test and, on the same day, I received the answer that changed the course of my life at that moment.” She became the Little Mermaid.

Since graduating, Preto has also performed as the character of Cassie with the Company Project Broadway in Highlights of Chorus Line at the “Teatro Guaíra,” in Curitiba.

“My goal is always to overcome myself,” she says. “Learn something new with each class, or work and be able to put it into practice. I have no idea what my next character will be, but I look forward to more of this amazing world of musicals!”

NYFA Movie Musical “Streetwrite” Premieres at The Cutting Room

On Sunday, March 12, one of the New York Film Academy’s newest movie musicals, “Streetwrite,” held a very well attended premiere screening at The Cutting Room in Manhattan. The film was written and directed by Blanche Baker, an Emmy Award winning actress and Senior Faculty member of the New York Film Academy, and shot by Piero Basso, an award-winning Director of Photography. The performers in the film consisted of an international cast of talented Musical Theatre students working alongside NYFA’s faculty and staff of professional artists.

Using street art as a focal point, Baker’s film examines the various ways people struggle to express themselves in situations where free speech is curtailed or suppressed. It also explores how certain kinds of expression can be repressive to individuals.

Following The Cutting Room screening, there was an engaging panel discussion, which included David Klein, NYFA’s Senior Executive Vice President; Issues of freedom of expression in film, journalism and the world of academia were explored by J. R. Brandstrader, a veteran print and broadcast journalist; Deborah Carroll, executive producer at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs; Blaze Coyle, filmmaker, focused on women and social justice; and Christa Salamander, Syrian media specialist and Associate Professor of Anthropology at Lehman College whose current book project is on the Syrian TV drama industry.

For those who were unable to attend The Cutting Room premiere, there are a few more festival screenings to come.

The RiverRun Festival, based in Winston-Salem, NC, will be holding a screening on Saturday, April 1. After the screening there will be a talkback moderated by the producer, Dale Pollack.

Cinemonde, the private film series at the Roger Smith Hotel, will be screening the film on April 5 at 7pm.

“Streetwrite” will then screen at the Manhattan Film Festival on Friday, April 21 at Cinema Village and at the NYC Indie Film Festival on Friday, May 5 at The Producer’s Club.

For a look at more photos from The Cutting Room premiere, visit our Official Facebook Album.

As reported in Broadway World, “Streetwrite” will also screen at 13 New York Public Library locations the summer of 2017.

“Young Adult Librarians at the New York Public Library are very much looking forward to screening ‘Streetwrite’ at the Library. Films like this speak to many of the real-life issues facing our young patrons and are a perfect entry point into thought-provoking conversations,” says The New York Public Library Manager of Young Adult Educational Programming Caitlyn Colman-McGaw.

For those in the New York City area interested in attending a screening of “Streetwrite,” check your local New York Public Library listing for showtimes.

“Streetwrite” will also screen in New York City at the Producer’s Club on September 2, 2017 as a part of the Cinema New York City Festival.“Streetwrite” will also have a West Coast Premiere at the Awareness Festival at 5 p.m. on Friday, October 6 at Regal Cinemas L.A. Live 1000 West Olympic Blvd, LA. A special Q&A will be held with NYFA Los Angeles Chair of Acting for Film Lynda Goodfriend. The festival is presented by Heal One World, a non-profit charity promoting positive change throughout the world. On March 9, 2018, “Streetwrite” will screen as a part of the Global Cinema Festival of Boston.Also, The Chautauqua International Film Festival will be presenting “Streetwrite” with the 1st Place Trophy award for the film in July 2018.

“Streetwrite” had its final screening at the International New York Film Festival on Saturday, June 16 @ 6:30 p.m. at the Producers Club, 358 West 44th, where it took home the top award of the festival.

Recent NYFA Acting for Film graduates Fabian Vega, David DeCicco, and Ketih Shrill, and production designer Nancy Maloy were there to help celebrate. They are all onboard to crew and act in the next movie musical!

NYFA Cine Students Enter the World of Virtual Cinematography

New York Film Academy Cinematography faculty member and author Mark Sawicki introduced his VFX students to the concepts and step by step process of how to create a virtual set extension that combines on set lighting with virtual lighting in post. The technique was used to great effect in the box office hit “Dr Strange.”

The method involves the clever integration of properly photographed stills coupled with a green screen foreground. The stills are specially processed in Photoshop and then delivered to After Effects to create a synthetic 3D space of texture maps on Polygonal surfaces that can be manipulated in space and time. Mark’s students were instructed to take exacting notes of their lighting and camera set up when they shot the green screen element, so they could take that information and do follow through virtual lighting with computer graphic light instruments and materials.

Once the footage was processed the students met in post where they were introduced to the strange world of the virtual set. Sawicki gave students a hands-on experience demonstrating lighting simulations where boxes have to be checked to allow shadows to fall and spotlights can defy the inverse square law or even create a light that “darkens” a room. Even Doctor Strange would be challenged in such a world.

virtual lighting — Virtual lighting added.

Sawicki feels it is extremely important for the Cinematographers of today to get a grasp for lighting on set and in the computer, so that they have control over the look of their imagery every step of the way and also have a feel of when they can save time on set by enhancing or modifying lighting in post. NYFA stands out as one of the few schools on the globe that takes their students beyond the envelope to explore the strange and exciting world of virtual lighting.