WORLD PREMIERE Howard Bloom spent much of the 1970s and ’80s as the publicist for iconic musicians including Michael Jackson, Prince, Joan Jett, Run DMC and Aerosmith. When a rare disease left him housebound for 15 years, Bloom reinvented himself as an author, publishing several books on evolutionary psychology and humanity’s role in the universe. Now, […]
NYC PREMIERE Caught up in the precariousness of survival and self-preservation, homeless queer and trans youth of color hang out at Christopher Street Pier, forging their own chosen family. Genuine and charming, these eloquent youth must contend with overwhelming amounts of homophobia and abuse. As real as it gets, and with intimate, immersive access to the […]
NYC PREMIERE For anyone who loves theater, this contemporary history of Broadway is a joy, packed with legendary stars and performances. Key players—Helen Mirren, Christine Baranski, August Wilson, James Corden, Alec Baldwin, John Lithgow, Viola Davis, Hugh Jackman and Ian McKellen—take us behind the scenes of Broadway’s most groundbreaking shows, from A Chorus Line to […]
2019 METROPOLIS COMPETITION WINNER WORLD PREMIERE Maurice Hines: Bring Them Back is a portrait of the charismatic song-and-dance man from his tap-dancing childhood to today. Maurice and friends—Chita Rivera, Mercedes Ellington and Debbie Allen tell tales from his seven-decade career, including Broadway shows, Hollywood films like Francis Ford Coppola’s The Cotton Club and about his loving yet difficult relationship with superstar brother Gregory […]
WORLD PREMIERE Turning trauma into precise and angry feminist rock, American singer, writer and actress Lydia Lunch helped birth the No Wave music scene in the late 1970s and early ’80s—and she’s still killing it today. Fellow No Wave pioneer Beth B constructs a lively portrait of this innovative performer, whose confrontational artistry resonates loudly […]
WORLD PREMIERE In the 1980s, an Army wife-turned-glamorous party girl named Tish ruled New York City’s downtown nightlife, often out on the scene with the likes of Michael Musto. Just a few years later, after more than a decade as a woman, Tish transitioned back to being Brian. Now, in his sixties, Brian reflects on the […]
NYC PREMIERE Khader El-Yateem is a Palestinian American, a practicing Lutheran pastor and, he hopes, the first Arab American on the New York City Council. Having grown up amidst conflict before emigrating to the US, Father K works to alleviate the mounting fears of the diverse but marginalized Arab-American community of Bay Ridge following the 2016 […]
WORLD PREMIERE What do Jessica Chastain, Viola Davis, Patti LuPone and Alex Sharp have in common? They are but a few of the extraordinary actors who have studied under Moni Yakim at Juilliard, America’s greatest performing arts school. With interviews with Laura Linney, Anthony Mackie and Kevin Kline, this compelling portrait of the master teacher—the sole […]
2018 METROPOLIS COMPETITION WINNER US PREMIERE Offering a recontextualization of the 1960s New York art and experimental film scene through the story of a remarkably influential, yet unheralded, figure, Chuck Smith’s film introduces viewers to Barbara Rubin. This extraordinary young filmmaker, who defied sexist conventions when she picked up a film camera and shot an […]
WORLD PREMIERE Since 1996, the wonderfully diverse students of a Queens public high school have staged an elaborate mock presidential election for an entire semester, simulating the American electoral process against the backdrop of the real one. In 2016, Ukranian-American Daniel hams it up as a cocky Donald Trump, while Pakistani-American Misbah, an observant Muslim, […]