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NYFA’s Sara Antkowiak Stars in ‘Pretty Babies’

Last week was the World Premiere of the new Anthony Raymond play, Pretty Babies, which stars New York Film Academy Musical Theatre Instructor Sara Antkowiak (Tales of Hoffmann/Metropolitan Opera).

The ensemble cast, directed by Raymond and produced by the critically acclaimed Elsinore County Theater Company, is led by Stacey Roca who had a recurring role as Rachel on the UK series The Office with Ricky Gervais.

Pretty Babies is a story about using the taboo and forbidden as weapons in a no-holds-barred scheme of manipulation. The play revolves around Jason and his sister Randi — two lives steeped in sex, drugs, and grifting.

Already off to a roaring start, Pretty Babies will continue its performances from now until March 21st at the newly renovated 13th St Rep Theater in New York City.

If you’re interested in checking out this wonderful play, and supporting your fellow NYFA teacher, visit here for tickets!

MFA Filmmaking Grad to Premiere ‘More Than Words’ at Cannes Short Film Corner

They say write what you know. That’s precisely what former New York Film Academy MFA Filmmaking student Gabe Chavez set out to do with his semi-autobiographical thesis film, More Than Words. Chavez suffers from a heart disorder called Aortic Stenosis, a genetic disorder that constricts his aortic valve. If left unchecked, the disorder could become life threatening. Initially, Chavez refused to take the heart disorder seriously — he wouldn’t even visit his doctor. Eventually, his girlfriend (now fiancée) Caitlin gave him an ultimatum: if you don’t want to take care of yourself, do it for me. A crucial moment not only in Chavez’s film, but in his own life. In addition to Caitlin, other characters in his film were inspired by his extended and immediate family.

Chavez’s team consisted of a number of NYFA students, including Kyle Pavlin (co writer/AD), Tripp Townsend (producer), Regina Bang (EP), Javier Del Olmo (EP), Laura Elisa Perez (DP), Badr Farha (production design), Mich Castro (1st AC, b camera op), and Yiting Lyu (2nd AC).

“This film simply could not have been made if it wasn’t for [producer] Tripp Townsend,” said Chavez. “He has been like my brother; he grew up with me in New Mexico, produced my film, and is about to graduate from the producing program this May.”

Townsend and Chavez are business partners, having teamed up to form production company Frozen Frame Productions, LLC.

“Also, my actors were fundamental in telling this story—especially my leads, Samm and Cody.”

Chavez put Samm and Cody through 6 weeks of rehearsals before filming began. While working on set, the three of them formed a very close bond of collaboration and trust that still exists today.

Praised by NYFA Los Angeles Producing Chair Tony Schwartz, Chavez’s thesis film will begin the festival circuit with its premiere at the Cannes Short Film Corner.

Chavez originally decided to enroll in the MFA Filmmaking program because of its hands-on approach and access to industry-standard equipment. The program put Chavez in a position where he could concentrate solely on filmmaking and directing.

“My directing teachers Nick Sivakumaran and Adam Nimoy along with my writing mentor Andy Guerdat really helped me with my thesis,” said Chavez. “While Nick didn’t advise me in my thesis year, it was really his teaching and constant inspiration of my films and efforts that led me to my thesis film with the tools necessary to get the most from the scenes. Adam’s advanced directing class encouraged me to experiment (especially in rehearsals), and gave me the vocabulary to talk these actors through such difficult and personal material. When it comes to Andy, he provided me with such great screenwriting advice and knowledge (coupled with my undergrad screenwriting teacher Matt McDuffie — writer of the recent Ed Harris/Annette Bening vehicle Face of Love), that lead me to the final script I wrote with my cowriter Kyle Pavlin. This story really couldn’t have come off the page without Kyle’s contribution. He really is the most excellent writer.”

Chavez hopes his film will inspire people to examine their own relationships, realizing the blessings they have in life. Beyond that hope, he intends to use this short as a springboard toward the feature film version.

In addition to showcasing More Than Words at festivals around around the country, Chavez has been working in New York City on several TV shows and movies, including Gotham, Madam Secretary, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Broad City, The Americans, Elementary, and the upcoming films Urge (with Pierce Brosnan) and Freeheld (with Academy Award Winner Julianne Moore and Inception/Juno star Ellen Page). He is also key gripping a low budget feature film that is being produced by NYFA graduates Regina Bang and Javier Del Olmo (the same team who executive produced his film).

Spielberg’s U-2 Movie Casts U2 Daughter

St. James Place, a historical spy thriller, has quite the pedigree background behind it. Steven Spielberg will be directing a screenplay by Matt Charman and the Coen Brothers. Its cast includes Alan Alda, Amy Ryan, and frequent Spielberg collaborator Tom Hanks. Also included in the cast is Eve Hewson, 23, a rising star from Ireland who also happens to be the daughter of music legend Bono.

Hewson studied acting at the New York Film Academy in 2005 and has since found roles in music videos, thrillers and romantic comedies. She currently co-stars with Clive Owen in the Cinemax medical drama The Knick.

Spielberg’s hotly-anticipated film takes place in 1960 and stars Hanks as real-life lawyer James Donovan. Donovan was tasked with negotiating the release of a pilot shot down in the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War. Filming commenced last Fall in Hewson’s current hometown—Brooklyn, New York. Ironically, the plane shot down in both real life and in the movie was a U-2 spy plane, U-2 inspiring the name of Hewson’s father’s legendary rock band.

Dream of co-starring with Tom Hanks in a Steven Spielberg film one day? Check out New York Film Academy’s acting school program today!

This Dress Is Showing Everyone the Power of Color

By now, the only excuse for not knowing about #TheDress would be if your Internet’s been out for the past twelve hours. While some viral memes are said to be breaking the Internet, this one is breaking people’s brains—a grainy photo of a dress is splitting the world into those who see it as white and gold and those who see it as blue and black.

Rumor is that the dress is, in fact, blue and black, but those in the white-and-gold camp believe this is some sort of truth-masking conspiracy, like the lone gunman and the moon landing. Wired has even published a scientific account explaining what’s going on here—it involves the cones and rods in our eyes that receive color and translate images in the visual cortex for the brain. Because of this, sometimes our brains can be tricked, which isn’t exactly news—who hasn’t been dumbfounded by optical illusions like this?

But besides taking attention away from llama drama, #TheDress controversy has another big benefit—it’s showing everyone just how powerful and important the use of color can be in an image. The students in New York Film Academy’s filmmaking school and cinematography school programs know this all too well—one of the first things they learn is how to properly white balance their digital cameras. White balancing calibrates a camera to read white light as pure white, allowing the rest of the spectrum to fall properly into place. An improperly white balanced image may leave whites looking blue (or gold.) Filmmakers may intentionally warp the colors of their image. Blues can create a downbeat tone, much like minor keys in music. Orange and Reds are considered warm and can be used for the opposite effect in filmmaking.

It’s not just filmmakers who benefit from playing with the science of color. Our students in New York Film Academy’s graphic design school programs learn how to change the way we perceive images with Photoshop and other software—tools that can break down an image into its very makeup of reds, blues and greens. Right now, they’re the ones everybody is looking to for a final, definite answer to #TheDress question. Of course, we’re all going to listen to our guts—and our eyes—no matter what they tell us.

Strong Net Neutrality Rules Passed by the FCC

Following up on a previous proposal from the Chairman, the FCC has passed rules to support Net Neutrality.

The new rules classify the internet as a utility, preventing service providers from discriminating based on certain types of content. More precisely, all legal content must be treated equally. That means that ISPs cannot create internet fast lanes as they have previously discussed doing. Comcast’s practice of charging Netflix more to stream their content will no longer be allowed, for example.

This seems to be good news of those who support a free internet. And it’s especially good news for those individuals who get most of their film and TV viewing in on streaming services like Netflix and Hulu.

However, the battle is likely far from over. While there is opposition within political ranks, stating that this represents another expansion of government control, the action is likely to come from a different source. Chances are better than not that internet service providers will fight back and take this into court, which will likely lead to a long, drawn-out battle over the issue.

Even if the new regulations stand, there seem to be some questions about how the rules will be put into practice, as there are often unintended consequences in the real world. For example, what constitutes “legal content”? Will this create a loophole that provides ISPs the ability to censor or throttle content?

There aren’t many answers at this point. It’s more of a wait-and-see situation. However, it seems that fans of streaming content have won a battle (for now) thanks to the FCC.

Photography Guest Speaker Jen Davis: Body Image, Intimacy, Self Identity

Jen Davis - Photography — Photography Guest Speaker Jen Davis

Jen Davis, a photographer renowned for her intimate self-portraits, was our guest lecturer last Friday, February 20th at the Battery Place campus.

Photography students were taken through Davis’ 11 year journey of honest self-portraits dealing with issues regarding personal growth, self identity, body image, love, intimacy and self acceptance. The journey was not just personal, it also gave students great insight into her technical photographic development.

“Mapping the trajectory of her career and showing her most recent work, she gave us a completely uninhibited view of her working methods and her approach to personal discovery through photography. It was an inspiring afternoon in the presence of a provocative contemporary artist.” Paul Sunday, New York Film Academy’s Co-Chair Photography Department summed up the afternoon.

During her early years at Columbia College Chicago, completing her BFA in Photography, she began experimenting with natural light. “Light became very seductive to me,” Davis explains. “The light guided the photography” and with her transition from a 4×5 to medium format, she felt this allowed her to learn “about how the frame works in a different way.”

All of her of work developed from her interest in women, the body and how it “related to me.” She began studying her own body as her interest in flesh and skin became her main focus. Her first image with herself as the subject (or “object” as she describes it), was taken at the beach. As this specific image was projected on a white screen in front of a lecture room of students, she explains that she never expected to share this photo as it was done purely for herself.

Once she began her MFA at Yale University, she began to explore men as her subjects, capturing “masculinity and vulnerability” while also “using photography to gain access” to forms of intimacy with her male subjects. As Davis presented her work to the students, it became clearer that she, in fact, used her photography to guide her though her personal growth. “[Photography] was a vehicle to experience that,” she said when referring to her introduction to love and intimacy.

As the talk came close to an end, a Q&A session left the audience with these wise words: “Don’t worry about putting yourself against what has already been done, because everything has already been done.” Just don’t put walls and limitations on yourself. She recommends “putting tape over your digital SLR.” Stop judging your work and “just shoot, shoot, shoot!”

Acclaimed Documentary Filmmaker Bruce Sinofsky Passes Away at 58

There is sad news in the world of film today, as acclaimed documentary filmmaker Bruce Sinofsky has passed away at the age of 58. As confirmed by his long-time collaborator Joe Berlinger, Sinofsky passed away in his sleep due to long-time complications from diabetes.

The two collaborated on several award-winning and influential films beginning with 1992’s Brother’s Keeper, which won a Director’s Guild Award. 1996 marked the beginning of the Paradise Lost trilogy. The initial film, which the two co-directed, won an Emmy. And the third installment, 2011’s Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, was nominated for an Oscar.

The trilogy followed the story of the West Memphis Three and had a huge impact on the legal system, bringing national attention to the case and attracting several celebrities to get on board the cause. The three innocent men were eventually set free after serving over 18 years in prison.

Music was another passion of Sinofsky. And his most popular work in the field was 2004’s Metallica: Some Kind of Monster, which followed the iconic band’s most tumultuous years.

He also directed several episodes of Iconoclasts for Sundance, Oprah Presents: Master Class, and most recently Oprah’s Master Class: Civil Rights Special which aired in January.

In a statement, Berlinger said:

Bruce’s humanity is on every frame of the films that he leaves behind, and words can’t express how graced I feel my life has been by having the extraordinary opportunity of being able to say we were partners and, more importantly, best friends.

Sinofsky was also the recipient of a Peabody, an Independent Spirit Award, and several accolades at the Sundance Film Festival.

He will be missed by many, both in and outside the film industry.

NYFA’s James Lecesne Gets Rave Review from NY Times

As was made quite clear in the Oscar Winning Best Picture Birdman, having the approval of the New York Times is one of the most crucial components of putting on a successful show. While turning the pages (okay, clicking a link) of a recent Times article, we came across a rave review, highlighting none other than one of our very own, New York Film Academy’s Oscar-winning Documentary instructor James Lecesne.

The New York Times’ respected and well known critic, Christopher Isherwood, identified Lecesne as one of “the most talented solo performers of his (or any) generation,” in his review of James’ one-man show, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey.

In his one-man show, Lecesne portrays various characters of a small Jersey shore town as they struggle to understand what happened to 14-year-old Leonard Pelkey. Adapted from his YA novel, Absolute Brightness, this solo show begins with the the discovery of Leonard’s disappearance, follows a criminal investigation led by detective Chuck DeSantis, and concludes with a trial that reveals the shocking truth.

The multi-talented Lecesne has been admired for many of his artistic traits, as well as his work in philanthropy. To attest to his tremendous talent, the first film he ever wrote, Trevor, won the Oscar for best live action short! It’s truly an honor to have Mr. Lecesne as a member of the New York Film Academy.

The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey is showing at Dixon Place, 161A Chrystie Street in Manhattan, now until March 28.

Dr. Katz Is Going Live for Its 20th Anniversary

Twenty years ago, the animated series Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist aired on Comedy Central and began six seasons of squiggly cartoon avatars of leading standup comics complaining to the ultra-dry shrink. Created by and starring Jonathan Katz, the show has maintained its cult status ever since, as well introducing the world to popular voiceover artists H. Jon Benjamin and Laura Silverman.

To celebrate its 20^th anniversary, the show will have a special live performance at the Moontower Comedy & Oddity Festival in Austin, Texas. Katz will hold staged therapy sessions with today’s leading comics, including Andy Kindler, Emo Philips, Maria Bamford, Dom Irrera, Dana Gould, and Eddie Pepitone as well as surprise guests.

While it’s been fifteen years since the show produced new episodes, its legacy lives on today. In addition to Katz, the show was primarily produced by Loren Bouchard, who went on to create the equally-squiggly animated series, Home Movies. Today, he runs one of the most critically acclaimed animated shows on television, the Fox sitcom Bob’s Burgers.

Interested in working in animated TV? Check out New York Film Academy’s animation school program and screenwriting school program today!