Jarrett Lilien invites you to a special celebration & reception!

An exclusive evening of cocktails and community with an artist talk and excerpt of “New York’s Hottest Indie Theater Show” to support

UnionDocs Center for Documentary Art

SAY SOMETHING BUNNY!

April 2, 2020 – 6:30pm
UNDO Project Space, Chelsea, NYC
511 West 20th Street, 2nd Floor

Say What?

With Say Something Bunny!, Alison S. M. Kobayashi and UnionDocs present an enthralling performance based on an amateur audio recording made over sixty years ago. The origin of this audio was a mystery. Two spools of thin steel wire were found tucked inside an obsolete sound device purchased by a collector at an estate sale. There were no labels; no dates, no names, and no context. Through her obsessive research and active imagination along with hundreds of times listening through, Kobayashi decodes the rich dialogue in the recording and discovers the detailed history of an unforgettable Jewish family from New York that bursts with humor, surprise and drama. The one-woman show annotates, illustrates, and reconstructs the scenes of the recording, while revealing the stranger-than-fiction biography of the eldest son, David, who made the wire recordings. Using video, installation, performance and plentiful archival material, Kobayashi leads the audience through a close listening, spinning “a multigenerational yarn of Rothian heights.”

Reviews Say

Details

UnionDocs is thrilled to invite you to a special evening of Say Something Bunny! hosted by Jarrett Lilien.

6:30pm    –  Doors, open bar (wine/beer, specialty cocktails, snacks & treats)
7:30pm   –  Performance begins
8:30pm   –  Act 1 concludes
8:35pm   –  Presentation with Alison SM Kobayashi and Christopher Allen
9:10pm   –  Q&A and reception

*All donations are tax-deductible *

UNDO Who?

UnionDocs (UNDO) is a Center for Documentary Art that presents, produces, publishes, and educates. Since 2005, we’ve brought together a diverse community on a search for urgent expressions of the human experience, practical perspectives on the world today, and compelling visions for the future. Our programs – including events, workshops, labs, publishing initiatives and productions – are run with the belief that documentary art, when paired with thoughtful context and open debate, is an invaluable tool for understanding the complexities of contemporary life and creating a more compassionate, engaged, and integrated society.

UnionDocs is a place where documentary makers, scholars, experts, and enthusiasts come to develop their projects, share their resources, engage group research and build long-term community. Called, “Williamsburg’s own pocket-size dynamo” by The Village Voice, UnionDocs three-story building (lovingly built out bit by bit over the years) provides a rich and vibrant space where storytelling, visual experimentation, journalism, politics and poetry intersect.

Why UNDO?

This is urgent work in 2020. We need to not only communicate the important issues of our time more effectively than ever before; we also must explore languages of cinema to represent our diversity,  strengthen community, and generate hope and empathy. Until now, we have not pursued avenues for seed funding from individual donors. While our programs are all thriving and there is a clear need for our presence, the cost of running our programs is increasing.  To be as accessible as possible and to continue sharing our ever-growing resources with more people, we are launching this effort to raise money that will allow us to keep on going forward with our mission to bring people together to push the boundaries of documentary art. Kent Jones, Director of the New York Film Festival noted that UnionDocs plays an essential role in the landscape of documentary and that although “there are many, many documentary organizations and collectives, film festivals and initiatives…there are only a precious few that fulfill their missions so steadfastly, and fewer still whose missions are based on such a clear understanding of documentary filmmaking.” Be a part of the movement to support compelling and urgent storytelling and support UnionDocs today!