We are excited to present this program of work that mindfully observes global transit, labor, transience and place with two open and curious glances toward overlooked outsiders from Martin DiCicco and Braden King.

Martin DiCicco’s All That Passes by Through a Window that Doesn’t Open features the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway, known as the “Iron Silk Road,” which sought to create the fastest route between Asia and Europe by running new track through Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey (and ignore existing track in Armenia). Martin DiCicco’s serene documentary follows the laborers building this line as they work or hang out, giving them space to talk about their lives, country, beliefs, and regrets.

Shot throughout Armenia and the diplomatically undefined Nagorno-Karabagh region, Braden King’s expanded documentary project [POSTCARDS FROM] HERE reflects the sensory experience of road travel itself. The series is comprised of impressionistic vignettes produced alongside King’s feature, HERE [THE FILM], a New York Times Critic Pick that Stephen Holden called, “spectacularly beautiful… evocative… a stunner!”

DiCicco cited this project as an influential reference for his feature that follows the story of the Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway. His serene lens sticks with laborers building this line as they work and hang out, affording viewers an opportunity to hear them candidly share the contours of their lives, discussing their beliefs, their country and their regrets. Cineaste praised DiCicco’s “distinctive visual aesthetic and humanist tone” in the film which had a farflung festival tour including screenings at HotDocs, DokuFest, Art of the Real, RIDM, DOCAviv, CIFF, and Visions Du Reel. We’re delighted to host DiCicco at home in Brooklyn with Braden King, who will be in attendance to share in a conversation with him following the program.

[ POSTCARDS FROM ] HERE presents meditative (and, at times, surreal) imagery that reveals Armenia’s history, traditions and contemporary life in an experiential fashion as seen by outsider eyes. Its imagery is interwoven with first-person narratives gathered in different regions of the country. Like a memory or dream, [ POSTCARDS FROM ] HERE is an exploration of a unique geographic and temporal place, creating a rich portrait of Armenia and its people as seen through the lens of an intense creative journey

A journey by rail through opportunity and regret in Azerbaijan and Armenia, floating through the expanse- striving to fill their days and dreams, as much as their pockets. Winner of the Visions du Reel Best First Film Award.

Martin DiCicco is a cinematographer and director whose feature debut,  All That Passes By Through a Window That Doesn’t Open won the Regard Neuf award at Visions du Reel, Camden IFF’s Cinematic Vision Award and Taiwan IDF’s Artistic Merit Prize before playing at numerous international festivals.  As a cinematographer he has shot documentary shorts for Field of Vision, including Cecilia Aldarondo’s Picket Line and Brett Story’s CamperForce. He shot and directed Here There Is No Earth, which recently premiered at the 56th New York Film Festival.

Braden King (born 1971 North Carolina) is a New York-based filmmaker, photographer and visual artist. His feature film, Here (2011), starring Ben Foster and Lubna Azabal, premiered at the 2011 Sundance and Berlin Film Festivals and was distributed theatrically by Strand Releasing in 2012. A multimedia installation version of the project, Here [ The Story Sleeps ], premiered at The Museum of Modern Art in 2010 and toured internationally with live soundtrack accompaniment by composer Michael Krassner and Boxhead Ensemble. King’s previous work includes the feature film Dutch Harbor: Where the Sea Breaks It’s Back (co-directed with photographer Laura Moya), the award-winning short film Home Movie and music videos for Glen Hansard, Sparklehorse, Sonic Youth, Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy (Will Oldham) and Dirty Three.