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DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251114
DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261117
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20250930T202405Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260105T173108Z
UID:10003002-1763100000-1794808799@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:A Symposium of Sorts: Radical Inquiries with the UNDO Fellows
DESCRIPTION:g
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/a-symposium-of-sorts/
LOCATION:NY
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260425T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260510T163000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260212T181130Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260508T214715Z
UID:10003031-1777111200-1778430600@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Critical Care:  The Documentary Clinic
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_btn title=”Register!” style=”outline-custom” outline_custom_color=”#FFFFFF” outline_custom_hover_background=”#ADADCC” outline_custom_hover_text=”#0000CD” shape=”round” align=”center” css=”” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fairtable.com%2FappdVEm0GuHIuyDJF%2FshrotfkacOtCNAy0O”][vc_column_text css=””]Are you stuck or spiraling on a documentary project currently in development? Would some feedback and counsel from an experienced producer help take you to the next level? \nWe know that documentary filmmaking can be a lonely endeavor\, especially in the development and early production phase\, and sometimes we all need a little therapy particularly in a climate of increasingly scarce resources and support. Independent filmmakers are left alone to research\, develop\, write grants\, pitch and fundraise their project\, when this is the time when support\, constructive feedback and creative guidance can be the most transformative. We’re delighted to offer this intensive workshop to filmmakers in such a position\, providing a space for focused consultation with experienced creative producers who have best practices and experiences navigating the ever-changing landscape of independent documentary. \nOver three days\, emerging filmmakers will work closely with industry professionals and a cohort of peers to address the obstacles commonly faced by non-fiction practitioners working alone. Participants will have the chance to fortify their project’s framework\, to consider their filmmaking methodology\, clarify creative direction and adjust priorities for next steps. Together we’ll hone the craft of producing compelling teasers\, media samples\, loglines\, synopses\, and director’s statements with a focus on figuring out what to prioritize when shooting and what to look for when reviewing footage for producing these necessary materials. Our goal is to help participants identify areas in need of growth and provide tools to help answer creative and practical questions\, so participants can refine the scope and vision of the project\, and draw a roadmap for further development. \nThe first day of the workshop kicks off with individual 1-on-1 meetings with industry mentors\, who will provide tailored feedback and advice for each participant and their project. This day is proposed as a remote/in-person hybrid day\, allowing participants from out of town to participate online. After a 2 week gap\, giving participants the time to digest feedback and work on their project\, we’ll gather in person for a two-day intensive. On day 1 each participant will pitch their projects to the whole cohort. On the final day of the workshop the participants will be split into groups led by a mentor to guide them through a specific aspect of the development process\, adapted to the participant group and their needs.  \nParticipants will submit project materials ahead of the workshop in order for industry mentors to familiarize themselves with the project ahead of time. This workshop is tailored towards non-fiction filmmakers with an independent project between development and early production\, without a producer. Registration for this workshop will function on a first-come-first-serve basis\, potential participants will need to fill out a REGISTRATION FORM so we can ensure the submitted projects for the program are at the appropriate stage for this level of feedback and development. \nOnce we receive the completed form\, we’ll be in touch within 72 hours to confirm the eligibility of the project\, and will send on a registration link. Prospective participants are advised to please read the full schedule before submitting the form\, as accepted participants will be required to attend every session.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””] \nWho is eligible? \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]This workshop is designed for independent non-fictions filmmakers with a project in development or early production\, with no producer attached. We want to be sure that projects are at an appropriate stage\, so we are asking folks to fill a short REGISTRATION FORM before registering to join. \nWe will follow up with you once we review the form and send you a registration link with a payment portal and collect a short statement of interest and bio along with some informal project materials to share with instructors so they can get to know your work in advance. [/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_btn title=”REGISTRATION FORM” style=”outline-custom” outline_custom_color=”#FFFFFF” outline_custom_hover_background=”#ADADCC” outline_custom_hover_text=”#0000CD” shape=”round” align=”center” css=”” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fairtable.com%2FappdVEm0GuHIuyDJF%2FshrotfkacOtCNAy0O”][/vc_column][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text] \nSchedule \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”WEEK 1\nSaturday April 25th (in-person/remote hybrid) – 1-ON-1s” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 11:00am Welcome & workshop introduction  \n11:00am – 1:30pm 1-on-1 sessions (x5) \n1:30pm – 2:30pm LUNCH \n2:30pm – 5:00pm 1-on-1 sessions (x5)[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”WEEK 2\nSaturday May 9th (in-person) – PITCHING” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Welcome\, Introduction \n10:30am – 1:00pm Participants present/pitch work with the group and receive feedback (x5) \n1:00pm – 2:00pm LUNCH \n2:00pm – 4:30pm Participants present/pitch work with the group and receive feedback (x5) \n4:30pm – 5:00pm Wrap up discussion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Sunday May 10th (in-person) – GROUP WORK\, BREAKOUTS” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Introduction \n10:30am – 12:30pm FOCUSSED BREAK OUT GROUP  #1  \n12:30pm – 1:30pm Lunch \n1:30pm – 3:30pm FOCUSSED BREAK OUT GROUP  #2 \n3:30pm – 4:00pm Final thoughts\, conclusion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text] \nBios \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”161605″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Paul Dallas is a Toronto-born writer\, producer\, and director based in Brooklyn. He co-wrote the HBO docu-drama REALITY\, winner of a 2023 Peabody Award. Producing credits include the documentaries HALSTON (CNN Films/Amazon) and the 2024 NAACP Image Award winner INVISIBLE BEAUTY (Magnolia Pictures)\, both of which premiered at Sundance. He also produced the acclaimed indie comedy THE PLAGIARISTS\, a New York Times Critics’ Pick\, and he Co-producer of THE MISCONCEIVED (IFFR 2026). He served as archival producer on HBO’s ARMED ONLY WITH A CAMERA\, which is nominated for the 2026 Academy Award for Documentary Short. Paul’s latest short DIVISION premiered at True/False 2026 and was selected for New Directors/New Films 2026. His writing has appeared in Artforum\, BOMB\, Extra Extra Magazine\, Filmmaker Magazine\, IndieWire\, the Village Voice\, and he has programmed films for BAM Cinema\, the Guggenheim\, and Maysles Documentary Center. He is a 2025 MacDowell Fellow.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162297″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Su Kim is an Academy Award-nominated\, two-time Emmy and two-time Peabody Award-winning producer and executive producer known for her compelling nonfiction storytelling. Her acclaimed work includes Hale County This Morning\, This Evening (Oscar nominee)\, Free Chol Soo Lee (Emmy winner)\, Bitterbrush\, and Midnight Traveler (Emmy winner). Her films have premiered at top-tier festivals such as Sundance\, Berlinale\, Tribeca\, Telluride\, and the New York Film Festival\, and have been distributed by PBS\, Hulu\, The Criterion Channel\, Magnolia Pictures\, Cinema Guild\, and MUBI. Kim is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences\, BAFTA\, the Television Academy\, and the Producers Guild of America. She is a former Women at Sundance Fellow and the recipient of the 2022 Sundance Amazon Studios Nonfiction Producers Award. Her recent projects include Sansón and Me\, Suburban Fury\, and The Tuba Thieves\, continuing her dedication to bold filmmaking.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”Details” color=”white” el_class=”h1″][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_tta_accordion style=”outline” shape=”square” color=”white” active_section=”8″ no_fill=”true” collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Cost” tab_id=”1477608256642-4c32d845-e84384d0-801eac56-3cdc”][vc_column_text css=””]$475 regular registration.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Refund Policy” tab_id=”1477608441051-60d28267-92bf84d0-801eac56-3cdc”][vc_column_text css=””]The deposit is non-refundable. Should you need to cancel\, you’ll receive half of your registration fee back until April 11th. After April 11th\, the fee is non-refundable.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Technology Requirements” tab_id=”1477608488046-a8fa4720-501684d0-801eac56-3cdc”][vc_column_text]In order to keep costs down\, this workshop is a BYOL\, i.e. bring your own laptop. Students must be fully proficient using and operating their computers.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Registration & Cancellation Policy” tab_id=”1477612055387-51381642-d1c784d0-801eac56-3cdc”][vc_column_text css=””]To register for a workshop\, students must pay in full via card\, check\, or cash . After the early bird registration deadline of April 11th\, course fees are not refundable or transferable and any withdrawals or deadlines will result in the full cost of the class being forfeit. There will be no exceptions. To withdraw from a course please email info-at-uniondocs.org. \nIn the event that a workshop does not receive sufficient enrollment\, it may be canceled. Students will be notified at least 48 hours prior to the start of a cancelled workshop and will be refunded within 5 business days. If we reschedule a workshop to another date\, students are also entitled to a full refund. UnionDocs reserves the right to change instructors without prior notification\, and to change class location and meeting times by up to an hour with 48 hours prior notice.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/critical-care-the-documentary-clinic-2026-04-25/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
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X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260510T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260510T193000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T210015Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T103935Z
UID:10003059-1778441400-1778441400@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Alchemy in the Archive
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text css=””]Doors 7:00p\nProgram 7:30p\nTickets $12[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]UnionDocs\n352 Onderdonk Ave\nRidgewood\, NY[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_video link=”https://vimeo.com/851422192″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re thrilled to welcome Anthony Banua-Simon to UnionDocs for an evening of cinema and conversation! We’ll begin with a screening of Banua-Simon’s recent found footage short WORLD ENTERPRISES and continues with an in-progress presentation of his feature The Pink Palace\, a project that expands from the themes introduced in the short. Through preliminary documentary footage\, archival video\, photos\, and research\, Banua-Simon will narrate the project to be produced in the coming year. \nThe Pink Palace is a documentary / fiction hybrid built from both historical archive and scripted scenes produced within unsanctioned and occasionally improvised contemporary settings. The film takes place at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki on Oʻahu. In a narrative alternating between 1939 and the current day\, the film follows the “Golden Man” (in mocking reverence to author James A. Michener)\, a mysterious public relations agent employed by shipping company and hotel owner\, Matson\, and tasked with creating and maintaining an ever-evolving construct of Hawaiʻi that caters to tourism and a growing U.S. military empire. The film links historical figures such as Georgia O‘Keeffe\, General Douglas MacArthur\, Hawaiian activist Sammy Amalu\, and Filipino actress Isabel Rosario Cooper in an absurdist plot among the real-life current day backdrop of hotel union strikes and the RIMPAC military exercises. \nThe Pink Palace is an extension of themes and histories examined in Banua-Simon’s documentaries Cane Fire\, The Experiment Station\, WORLD ENTERPRISES\, as well as his ongoing video essay series based on the book by Delia Caparoso Konzett\, Hollywood’s Hawaii: Race\, Nation and War. These projects are critical analyses that dissect existing materials and utilize oral histories and The Pink Palace will be extending this knowledge into the speculative realm\, resulting in an original work that can act as an exponent to further inquiry. \nCome through![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_separator][vc_column_text] \nProgram \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_column_text css=””] \nThe Pink Palace\n[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]In-progress feature length\, 45 min presentation[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]The Hawaiʻi of 1939 and today converge into a transhistorical blend of fiction and documentary film as a mysterious public relations agent residing in the Royal Hawaiian Hotel is tasked with maintaining the island’s unraveling image.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_column_text css=””] \nWORLD ENTERPRISES\n[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]14 mins\, 2026[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css=””]In 1940\, on the dry westside of the Hawaiian island of Kauaʻi\, the Kekaha Sugar Company began a six-month mail-order film subscription with World Enterprises\, a distributor sponsored by the charitable trust and foundation of Castle & Cooke\, one of the “Big Five” sugar companies. Varied in style\, the films shared a common theme: American power taming lands and peoples of the “frontier” through extraction\, an encroachment justified by declared ideals of progress.  WORLD ENTERPRISES is a collage of radical possibilities sourced entirely from the original program screened for workers on their Sundays off from harvesting and processing sugarcane.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_column_text css=””] \nProgram Duration: 60 mins \n[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_single_image image=”147742″ img_size=”full”][vc_column_text] \nWatch the conversation between Presenter1\, Presenter2 and Presenter 3 on the UnionDocs’ Membership hub. \n[/vc_column_text][vc_btn title=”Watch” style=”outline-custom” outline_custom_color=”#ffffff” outline_custom_hover_background=”#adadcc” outline_custom_hover_text=”#0000cd” shape=”round” align=”center” css_animation=”bounceIn”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_separator][vc_column_text] \nBios \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162794″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Anthony Banua-Simon is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and editor who’s a 2024 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow in Video/Film. He was also named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 2021 “25 New Faces of Independent Film” and DOC NYC’s 2022 “40 Under 40”. His debut feature documentary\, Cane Fire\, was an official selection of the 2020 Hot Docs International Film Festival as well as the 2021 MoMA Doc Fortnight and won “Best Documentary Feature” at the 2020 Indie Memphis Film Festival and the 2021 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Cane Fire is distributed theatrically by Cinema Guild and was available to stream on The Criterion Channel. The film has received praise in RogerEbert.com\, The Wrap\, Jacobin\, Film Threat\, and Hyperallergic among several other outlets. \nHis short documentary about two former workers of the Domino Sugar Refinery\, Third Shift\, won “Best Short Documentary” at the 2014 Brooklyn Film Festival and was previously streaming on The Criterion Channel. He’s featured in The New York Times\, BOMB Magazine\, Screen Slate\, Pioneer Works Broadcast\, and HuffPost. \nAnthony attended The Evergreen State College and was a fellow at the UnionDocs Collaborative Studio Program. He taught film editing at The State University of New York at Purchase and was a member of the volunteer-run Spectacle Theater in Brooklyn\, NY. His current documentary project\, The Experiment Station\, has received support from both NYSCA and the Jerome Foundation. Occasionally\, he’s asked to list his favorite films (The Criterion Collection Top 10\, Grasshopper Film 10/10).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_separator][vc_column_text] \nFrom the Event \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][vc_media_grid style=”pagination” items_per_page=”1″ element_width=”12″ arrows_design=”vc_arrow-icon-arrow_01_left” arrows_position=”outside” arrows_color=”white” loop=”yes” item=”136647″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1777305610307-e3aed900-5675-8″ include=”147747\,147746\,147745″][vc_empty_space height=”30px”][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/alchemy-in-the-archive-2026-05-10/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/gdif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260515T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260517T133000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260324T125314Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260505T153013Z
UID:10003045-1778839200-1779024600@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Beyond the Feed:  Expanding the Art of Audio Non-Fiction
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46T0dWTytwA” css=””][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]After a period of commercial growth and seemingly endless interest and investment\, the last few years of the podcasting industry has seen a decline in opportunities for creators new and old. What could be seen as an industry in contraction can alternatively be thought of as an opportunity for artistic evolution. Join award winning podcast producer and documentary artist Mitra Kaboli for this 3-day workshop\, as she explores the new horizons of the contemporary audio documentary landscape. \nAlongside a select group of esteemed guests\, Mitra will guide participants through a world of sonic exploration\, in which audio work is conceived and considered within an expansive artistic framework. Elevated beyond its commercial value and leaving behind the podcast feed\, this workshop takes the audio documentary form and reaches for new possibilities in research\, format\, performance and distribution. We’ll be rifling through the rich lineage of podcasting and sound-based storytelling through sound to investigate what forms of audio presentation are available to sound artists and audio producers in the current landscape. \nThis workshop is intended to provoke out-of-the-box thinking\, inspire creativity and encourage an expansive approach to the potentials of audio techniques. Through a variety of hands-on activities\, artist talks and deep listening exercises\, we’ll be diving into questions like: what is the state of the podcasting industry and where can we go from here? How can we share and uplift our work beyond the podcast feed? What tools\, techniques and networks are available to sound artists and audio documentarians? What makes a story told through sound so compelling? \nThe workshop centers emerging and established artists from the intersecting worlds of sound art\, audio documentary and the podcasting industry\, and we’re lucky to be joined and guided by a few of them. Mitra Kaboli will be taking the lead\, guiding us over the bridge between our familiar podcast feed and the ever-expanding possibilities of sound-based documentary. Interdisciplinary artist Aaron Edwards will discuss multi-modal performance and field recording practices. Viv Corringham\, one of the foremost practitioners of the soundwalk\, will walk participants through her practice and the ideas that guide it. Composer\, vocalist and performance artist Gelsey Bell will share expert insight from years of research into vast artistic applications of the voice. Participants will also get the opportunity to share their own work in the context of a group discussion and feedback session\, hopefully leaving the weekend with tangible learnings and productive advice. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”Details” color=”white” el_class=”h1″][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_tta_accordion style=”outline” shape=”square” color=”white” active_section=”8″ no_fill=”true” collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Who is eligible?” tab_id=”1477608256488-ac7d3d1a-ae9084d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]Open to everyone\, though the workshop setting is best suited for filmmakers\, film producers\, journalists\, curators and media artists. \nGive us an idea of who you are and why you are coming. When you register you will be asked for a short statement of interest that should briefly describe your experience and a film project (it would be great if you have a project in progress that you would present to the group during the work-in-progress critique sessions)\, plus a bio. There’s a spot for a link to a work sample (and CV\, which would also be nice\, but is not required).[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Cost” tab_id=”1477608256642-4c32d845-e84384d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]$295 early bird registration ends on May 5\, 2026. \n$350 regular registration.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Refund Policy” tab_id=”1477608441051-60d28267-92bf84d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]The deposit is non-refundable. Should you need to cancel\, you’ll receive half of your registration fee back until May 5.  After May 5\, the fee is non-refundable.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Technology Requirements” tab_id=”1477608488046-a8fa4720-501684d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]No animation software is required for participation in this workshop. \nIn order to keep costs down\, this workshop is a BYOL\, i.e. bring your own laptop. Students must be fully proficient using and operating their computers.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Registration & Cancellation Policy” tab_id=”1477612055387-51381642-d1c784d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]To register for a workshop\, students must pay in full via card\, check\, or cash . After the early bird registration deadline of May 5\, course fees are not refundable or transferable and any withdrawals or deadlines will result in the full cost of the class being forfeit. There will be no exceptions. To withdraw from a course please email info-at-uniondocs.org. \nIn the event that a workshop does not receive sufficient enrollment\, it may be canceled. Students will be notified at least 48 hours prior to the start of a cancelled workshop and will be refunded within 5 business days. If we reschedule a workshop to another date\, students are also entitled to a full refund. UnionDocs reserves the right to change instructors without prior notification\, and to change class location and meeting times by up to an hour with 48 hours prior notice.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_message message_box_style=”solid” style=”square” message_box_color=”orange”]Please note: Participants are accepted on a first-come\, first-serve basis.[/vc_message][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_text_separator title=”Schedule” color=”white” el_class=”h1″][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”Friday\, May 15th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Welcome & intros  \n10:30am – 12:30pm Intro session with Mitra Kaboli \n12:30am – 2:00pm Lunch \n2:00pm – 4:00pm Session with Aaron Edwards \n4:00pm – 4:30pm Wrap Up Discussion with Mitra additional exercises / discussion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Saturday\, May 16th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]11:00am – 11:30am Warm up\, inspiring references\, case studies \n11:30am – 1:30pm Session with Viv Corringham \n1:30am -3:00pm Lunch \n3:00pm – 5:00pm Session with Gelsey Bell \n5:00pm – 5:30pm Wrap Up Discussion with Mitra\, additional exercises / discussion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Sunday\, May 17th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Warm up\, inspiring references\, case study\, ear training. \n10:30am – 12:30pm Creative session OR work-in-progress with Mitra \n12:30pm – 1:30pm Wrap Up Discussion with Mitra\, additional exercises / discussion[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Each day follows this general structure\, with some minor variations and substitutions:” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]10:00a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Warm up\, inspiring references\, case study\, eye training.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]10:30a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Presentation by guest speaker + individual work-in-progress critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]11:45a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Discussion[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]12:30p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Share / Discussion / Exercise[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]1:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Lunch (on your own)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]2:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Presentation by guest speaker + individual work-in-progress critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]3:15p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Discussion[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]4:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Workshop Exercise + Critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]5:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Wrap Up[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_text_separator title=”Bios” color=”white” el_class=” \n“][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162177″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Mitra Kaboli is an award-winning audio producer\, sound designer\, and multimedia artist working professionally in radio and podcasting since 2012. Mitra was one of the original members of the Peabody Finalist podcast\, The Heart. Her work has been featured on ESPN’s 30 for 30 Podcasts\, the BBC\, Making Contact and NY Mag’s Tabloid. In 2022\, she hosted and produced the critically acclaimed podcast\, Welcome to Provincetown. Currently\, Mitra is an adjunct professor at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism and at Hunter College.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162178″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Aaron Edwards is an interdisciplinary director\, story editor and writer working across text\, stage and narrative audio. His writing\, podcasting and performance work has appeared at places like BAM\, Lincoln Center\, the Brooklyn Public Library and the Tribeca Festival. He’s based in the Hudson Valley.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162179″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Viv Corringham (voice\, electronics\, field recordings) is a US based British vocalist and sound artist\, who has been described as “a vital force in improvised music since the late 1970s” (Corey Mwamba\, BBC Radio 3) and “a vocalist of stunning virtuosity” (Louise Gray\, The Wire). She makes concerts\, soundwalks\, workshops and installations. Her practice explores relations between voice\, place and walking\, responding with sung improvisations to both natural and urban soundscapes. Corringham has received international recognition and awards including two McKnight Composer Fellowships through the American Composers Forum. She is a certified facilitator of Deep Listening\, having played and studied with composer Pauline Oliveros. In 2024 this practice took her to Mexico\, Spain\, Germany and the Listening Academy in Hong Kong. Notable live performances have occurred in festivals at Queen Elizabeth Hall\, London\, Hong Kong Arts Centre\, Fonoteca Nacional de Mexico\, Issue Project Room New York and Tempo Reale Florence. Her recent album “Soundwalkscapes” (Vol. 1: January to June) on Flaming Pines label (Bandcamp’s Best Field Recordings 2024) has been well received. The Wire wrote that “Corringham voices the depth of place.” Her definitive contribution to sound art practice is the 20 year ongoing “Shadow-walks”\, which create layers of time and space\, combining recordings from shared and solo walks along the same path with her improvised sung response. They have occurred in 18 countries\, are taught in many sound art classes and have been the focus of articles in books and publications.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162180″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Gelsey Bell (she/they) is a Brooklyn-based multidisciplinary performance creator\, composer\, and vocalist. Her recent works include the experimental opera mɔɹnɪŋ [morning//mourning] (2023)\, commissioned by the HERE Arts Center and presented in the Prototype Festival; Cairns (2020)\, a soundwalk for Green-Wood Cemetery; the musical one-act Archaeopteris (2025)\, commissioned by Wet Ink; and thingNY’s collaboratively written opera Mouthful (2024). She is the Co-Artistic Director of thingNY and Varispeed. She has released multiple albums\, including the recent mɔɹnɪŋ [morning//mourning]\, Skylighght\, and Heads Together. She has received awards from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts\, Opera America\, the Aaron Copland Fund for Music\, the Japan Foundation\, NYSCA\, and others. Performance highlights also include Dave Malloy’s Natasha\, Pierre\, & the Great Comet of 1812 (Broadway) and Ghost Quartet\, Robert Ashley’s Celestial Excursions and Improvement\, Darius Jones’s Samesoul Maker\, and others. She has a PhD in performance studies from NYU\, is part-time faculty and the program director for the Master of Music Performer-Composer program at the New School\, and has published articles in TDR/The Drama Review (for which she is a Contributing Editor)\, The Journal of Interdisciplinary Voice Studies (for which she is an Associate Editor)\, Tempo\, Performance Research\, and others.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/beyond-the-feed-expanding-the-art-of-audio-non-fiction-2026-05-15/
LOCATION:NY
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/webp:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/46064a16-770b-4991-8083-2a5ac1144b43_6000x4000.webp
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260605T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260605T190000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T211539Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260416T185423Z
UID:10003049-1780686000-1780686000@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Emergent City
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re delighted to present an evening of cinema and conversation with Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg’s thrilling documentary Emergent City! \n“Emergent City is not a polemic\, nor does it fall into the “all sides” trap of equivocation. It’s curious and patient\, taking the time to understand its subject. It leaves enough wiggle room for the audience to make up its own mind\, a kind of nonfiction Rorschach test to help us illuminate how we really think about everything from housing costs to climate change.” \n— Alan Zilberman\, Washington City Paper \nVerité thriller Emergent City chronicles a critical period of transformation for the Sunset Park neighborhood in waterfront Brooklyn. Over the course of several years the film presents the intersections of multiple stakeholders and divergent interest groups as the plot known as Industry City changes owners and faces redevelopment and rezoning. Local council\, community members\, small business owners and large developers go head to head in this observational civic epic. Emergent City sheds light on power and process\, illuminating systems and giving viewers a front row seat to the public and private spaces where the city is shaped. The film explores the profound intersections of gentrification\, climate crisis and real estate development\, and asks how change might emerge from dialogue and collective action in a world where too many outcomes are constrained by money\, politics and business as usual. \nThe screening will be preceded by a presentation by directors Jay and Kelly\, joined remotely by producer Brenda Àvila-Hanna\, discussing the inception of the film\, where the idea came from\, initial encounters with the film’s subject and the original vision at the outset of the project. \nNote: We’re overjoyed that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals course is led by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg! Emergent City will serve as a case-study for DOC FUNDAMENTALS\, our annual six session professional development series\, across all the sessions including RESEARCH & FINANCING\, VISUAL LANGUAGE\, ACCESS & FIELD WORK\, POST PRODUCTION and RELEASING your documentary. Each session features a range of exciting\, advanced and award-winning professionals from the field and many from this film who represent all aspects of producing a documentary feature. It is perfect as a primer or a way to refocus and rethink your project in today’s changing landscape! You can attend all sessions with a SERIES PASS or just tackle the hurdles where you need help with a single session.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162393″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Brenda Àvila-Hanna is a filmmaker and educator born and raised in Mexico City and currently based in Central California. Her films mostly focus on transnational stories\, spaces and identities. Brenda is a recent fellow for the Sundance Documentary Producing Lab\, Points North\, BAVC’s National MediaMaker\, NALIP and DocsMX. Brenda was in the inaugural cohort of DOC NYC’s “Documentary Industry New Leaders” and was a 2021 Rockwood/Just Films Fellow. She is a producer of the ITVS supported documentary EMERGENT CITY  (Dir. Kelly Anderson & Jay \nSterrenberg)\, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival and aired nationally on PBS. Brenda is also a producer of the Sundance Institute supported HOW TO CLEAN A HOUSE IN TEN EASY STEPS (Dir. Carolina Gonzalez)\, currently in festivals. She is also a co-producer of American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez (Dir. David Alvarado)\, winner of the U.S. Documentary Audience Award and Festival Favorite Award at Sundance. Brenda received an M.A. in Social Documentation from UCSC\, where she teaches various storytelling courses. She is a Board Member of the Watsonville Film Festival.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-how-it-started-2026-06-05/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/6gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260605T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260607T180000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T210012Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260416T184619Z
UID:10003048-1780686000-1780855200@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals 2026: Emergent City
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]Today’s documentary landscape is rapidly evolving with new avenues and pitfalls around every corner. DOC FUNDAMENTALS\, our annual six session professional development series\, responds each year to the changes we see in the field and is geared towards preparing emerging and mid-career independent filmmakers with all the nuts-and-bolts knowledge they need to complete a feature documentary. \nWe’re overjoyed that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals course is led by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg\, the directing duo behind the observational documentary feature Emergent City\, a timely and unflinching insight into local politics and the political process. “The best New York City-based documentary in a decade” according to Hell Gate\, Emergent City is a masterclass in verite and participant management\, with incredible access to the multiple layers of a local story with far reaching resonance. You’re invited to follow along and trace the trajectory of this recent documentary all the way from development and pre-production stages to production and post-production\, through its festival run\, distribution and continued exhibition life. \nEmergent City will serve as a case-study across each session\,  including DEVELOPMENT & FINANCING\, VISUAL LANGUAGE\, WORKING IN THE FIELD\, POST PRODUCTION and FINDING AN AUDIENCE\, and ultimately could serve as a possible model for your own documentary. \nEach session features a range of exciting\, experienced and award-winning professionals from the field\, who contributed to bringing Emergent City to life\, and who represent all aspects of producing a documentary feature. It is perfect as a primer or as a way to refocus and rethink your project in today’s changing documentary landscape! You can attend all sessions with a SERIES PASS or just tackle the hurdles where you need help with a single session.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”BUY SERIES PASS – ALL ACCESS” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]The full series pass includes access to all of the 2025 Documentary Fundamentals sessions listed below and the public screening of Emergent City. You can also tailor your Doc Fundamentals attendance to your personal needs and select each course a la carte for $35/session.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””] \nAbout Emergent City \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””] \nOver a decade\, within the borders of a single Brooklyn community district\, a microcosm of American democracy emerges. Residents of Sunset Park face a tangled web of rising rents\, a legacy of environmental racism and the loss of the industrial jobs that once sustained their community. When a global developer purchases Industry City – a massive industrial complex on the waterfront – and begins to transform it into an “innovation district\,” a battle erupts over the future of the neighborhood and of New York City itself. \nEmergent City is an observational civic epic. It sheds light on power and process\, illuminating systems and giving viewers a front row seat to the public and private spaces where the city is shaped. With extraordinary access\, it tracks an ensemble of participants including the local council member\, Industry City’s developers and community members with divergent stakes. The film explores the profound intersections of gentrification\, climate crisis and real estate development\, and asks how change might emerge from dialogue and collective action in a world where too many outcomes are constrained by money\, politics and business as usual. \n[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text] \nAbout Doc Fundamentals \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians\, after receiving countless requests from folks who desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking and has received feedback that this course does the trick! Each year we select an array of guests that represent the best of the field with contemporary approaches to navigating with best practices.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Reflections from past participants of Doc Fundamentals:” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:center” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text] \n“Overall a great balance between breadth & depth; I feel very encouraged & equipped with the basic knowledge of how turn my projects into more serious endeavors.” \n[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text] \n“The focus of the sessions on brass tacks issues like funding\, logistics\, legal & business matters\, organizing production flow\, and how to find & work with collaborators was excellent; it’s the most helpful information that can be shared in such a relatively limited amount of time & it conveys a trust in session participants that they will find their own way through” \n[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text] \n“I really enjoyed the concept of breaking a single documentary down over several focus points. Looking forward to future courses! Thank you!” \n[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text] \nSchedule \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”Day 1: Friday\, June 5″ font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]SESSION 1: Project Conception | 60 mins\n(Opening Session – Directing\, access\, vision of the film and overall idea of the film) \nFILM SCREENING | Emergent City | 95 mins[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Day 2: Saturday\, June 6″ font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]\nSESSION 2: Research\, development\, & financing | 11am – 12:30pm \nSESSION 3: Creating a visual language (Cinematography\, Archival & Graphics) | 2pm – 3:30pm \nSESSION 4: (Access\, Working in the field) | 4pm – 5:30pm \n[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Day 3: Sunday\, June 7″ font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]SESSION 5: (Post-production: Editing\, Music & Sound) | 2pm – 3:30pm \nSESSION 6: (festival strategy\, distribution & Impact) | 4pm – 5:30pm[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text] \nBios \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”white”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162393″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Brenda Àvila-Hanna is a filmmaker and educator born and raised in Mexico City and currently based in Central California. Her films mostly focus on transnational stories\, spaces and identities. Brenda is a recent fellow for the Sundance Documentary Producing Lab\, Points North\, BAVC’s National MediaMaker\, NALIP and DocsMX. Brenda was in the inaugural cohort of DOC NYC’s “Documentary Industry New Leaders” and was a 2021 Rockwood/Just Films Fellow. She is a producer of the ITVS supported documentary EMERGENT CITY  (Dir. Kelly Anderson & Jay \nSterrenberg)\, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival and aired nationally on PBS. Brenda is also a producer of the Sundance Institute supported HOW TO CLEAN A HOUSE IN TEN EASY STEPS (Dir. Carolina Gonzalez)\, currently in festivals. She is also a co-producer of American Pachuco: The Legend of Luis Valdez (Dir. David Alvarado)\, winner of the U.S. Documentary Audience Award and Festival Favorite Award at Sundance. Brenda received an M.A. in Social Documentation from UCSC\, where she teaches various storytelling courses. She is a Board Member of the Watsonville Film Festival.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162392″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Sean Hanley is a documentary cinematographer versed in longitudinal vérité projects but with a knack for creative non-fiction and experimental techniques. His work has therefore screened across a spectrum of festivals\, from Sundance to MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight. Recent credits include Judd Ehrlich’s Jane Eliott Against the World (2026\, Sundance)\, Debra Granik’s series CONBODY vs. Everybody (2024\, Sundance)\, and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg and Kelly Anderson’s Emergent City (2024\, Tribeca). He has held a long and productive collaboration with experimental documentarian Lynne Sachs starting with Your Day is My Night (2013\, MoMA Documentary Fortnight)\, Tip of My Tongue (2015\, Closing Night of MoMA Documentary Fortnight)\, and Contractions (2024\, NYTimes OpDocs). He is a member of the Documentary Cinematographer’s Alliance and the Meerkat Media Collective.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162391″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Betty Yu is an award-winning filmmaker\, socially engaged multimedia artist\, photographer and activist born and raised in NYC. Yu integrates documentary film\, photography\, installation\, new media platforms\, and community-infused approaches into her practice. Betty’s films and multimedia work has focused on labor\, immigration\, gentrification\, abolition\, racism\, militarism\, transgender equality among other issues. She is a co-founder of Chinatown Art Brigade\, a cultural collective using art to advance anti-displacement fights. Ms. Yu’s documentary “Resilience” about her garment worker mother fighting sweatshop conditions screened at film festivals including the Margaret Mead Film Festival. \nHer work has been exhibited and screened at the Brooklyn Museum\, Queens Museum\, NY Historical Society\, Museum of the City of NY\,  Artists Space/ISP Whitney Museum\, The Highline\, Tenement Museum\,\, 2019 BRIC Biennial\, Apexart\, Pace University Art Gallery\, Transmitter Gallery\, 601 Artspace\, Five Myles\, Squeaky Wheel Film and Media Art Center\, Bullet Space\, Carriage Trade\, Old Stone House and MAXXI in Rome. “The Garment Worker”\, an interactive installation\, was featured at Tribeca Film Institute’s Interactive Showcase. Her multimedia installation\, “Resistance in Progress”\, highlighting housing activism in Flushing was featured at the Queens Museum. Betty had her first solo exhibition\, “(Dis)Placed in Sunset Park” at Open Source Gallery. Ms. Yu won the Aronson Social Justice Award for her film “Three Tours” about U.S. veterans returning home from war in Iraq\, and their journey to overcome PTSD. Her photography and art college book\, Family Amnesia: Chinese American Resilience was released in Summer 2025. \nHer work has received coverage in outlets including New York Times\, CNN\, HBO VICE News Tonight\, i-D Vice Media\, Art Forum\, ARTNews\, Sinovision\, Hyperallergic\, E-Flux\, F-Stop Magazine\, The Eye of Photography Magazine\, La Belle Revue Art Journal & Studio International.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162390″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Alex Mallis is a Cuban-American\, Jewish filmmaker raised in New Hampshire now living in Brooklyn\, NY. His short films have been distributed by PBS\, Criterion\, The New Yorker\, and The Atlantic. His debut feature The Travel Companion premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival and is being distributed by Oscilloscope Laboratories. His short documentary Shut Up And Paint (2022) was awarded Grand Jury Prize at IFF Boston and Big Sky Documentary Film Festival\, shortlisted for the 95th Academy Awards\, and broadcast nationally on POV. Alex received an MFA in Integrated Media Arts from Hunter College (CUNY) and is an active member of the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective and the Meerkat Media Collective.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162389″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Gisela Fullà-Silvestre is a Barcelona-born\, New York–based composer\, sound designer\, re-recording mixer\, and vocalist whose work spans award-winning film\, television\, and music. Her projects include Academy Award–nominated and major festival premieres (Sundance\, Tribeca\, Berlinale\, SXSW)\, as well as the Emmy Award–winning ¡Atención! Murdered Next Door\, with releases on PBS and Netflix. She also performs as NOIA\, an experimental pop project acclaimed by Pitchfork and The New York Times\, and is a 2022 NYFA Women’s Fund Fellow.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162388″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Zara Serabian-Arthur is a documentary editor and producer\, and a co-founder of Meerkat Media\, an award-winning production company cooperative based in Brooklyn\, NY. Her work has been featured on Hulu\, PBS\, National Geographic\, The New York Times\, and The New Yorker\, premiered at Sundance\, and screened theatrically. Recent credits include Stolen Youth (Hulu\, series editor)\, Art21: Between Worlds (PBS\, editor)\, and Justice (Sundance\, editor). As an editor\, Zara is committed to telling complex stories with empathy and care\, exploring power\, resilience\, and the possibility of transformation. Across both her filmmaking and her organizing within cooperative and solidarity economy movements\, she works to shift dominant narratives toward mutualism\, economic democracy\, and more just futures.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162496″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Robert Salyer is Director of Outreach and Impact at American Documentary\, Inc.\, leading national outreach campaigns and partnership development for award-winning films and impact initiatives. He spearheads the Our America: Documentaries in Dialogue project\, a long-running effort that empowers PBS stations and local partners to foster meaningful civic dialogue around urgent social issues. To date\, he has supported the impact campaigns of more than 70 POV films\, encompassing a wide range of issues and engaging audiences across the country. \nWith more than 25 years of experience in documentary film and community media\, Robert previously spent much of his career at Appalshop\, Inc.\, where he directed and produced films focused on Appalachian culture. His credits include work with CNBC\, HBO\, Greenpeace\, and Lost Nation Pictures\, among others.  His films have screened widely in the U.S. and internationally\, including at MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight and Festival Film Dokumenter in Yogyakarta\, Indonesia. \nRobert has been deeply involved in media education and youth training. He taught documentary filmmaking at Kentucky State University\, served as a longtime instructor with the Appalachian Media Institute\, and facilitated a U.S. State Department–funded media exchange with Indonesian filmmakers. He has worked as a community organizer with the Virginia Organizing Project and mentored emerging filmmakers through NYU Tisch’s summer immersion program.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162387″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Sylvia Savadjian is a New York based film publicist. Work includes festival PR for Museum of the Moving Image’s First Look\, DOC NYC\, Full Frame\, staff roles at Kino Lorber\, Maysles Documentary Center and HBO in publicity\, marketing\, acquisitions and programming.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162724″ img_size=”200×200″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Stephen Maing is an Emmy-award winning filmmaker\, cinematographer and editor based in New York City. His most recent film UNION captures the historic efforts by workers to unionize the first Amazon fulfillment center. Co-directed with Brett Story\, it won a Special Jury Award for The Art of Change at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Maing’s feature documentary CRIME + PUNISHMENT which he directed\, filmed and edited is an immersive cinéma vérité account of a group of minority whistleblower NYPD officers. It won a 2018 Sundance Special Jury Award\, an Emmy Award for Outstanding Social Issue Documentary and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary. His previous films\, HIGH TECH\, LOW LIFE\, directed\, filmed and edited over five years\, and THE SURRENDER\, have screened internationally and were released on POV and Field of Vision\, respectively. His film DIRTY GOLD\, featured in Netflix’s Dirty Money series\, intimately observers US involvement in the illicit mining and trading of gold and was filmed on location in Peru’s Amazon rain forest & Miami\, Florida. Maing’s films seek to expand the aesthetic form and limits of longitudinal nonfiction filmmaking. They are highly observational visual investigations of societal phenomenon\, complex power structures and the fascinating individuals who challenge them.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-2026-06-05/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/7gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T110000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T123000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T213026Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260416T184600Z
UID:10003050-1780743600-1780749000@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals:  Researching\, Development & Financing
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re excited that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals series centers on the kinetic and timely Emergent City by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg—a film whose impact comes from the filmmakers evident patience\, commitment to the subject and time spent following the development of the story. In this session on research\, development and financing\, directors Jay and Kelly are joined by filmmaker and executive producer Stephen Maing\, to explore how projects like this are brought to life from the earliest stages: building a compelling concept and pitch\, securing partners\, and navigating the complex ecosystem of funding independent documentaries. \nThis session is all about developing and financing your next documentary. It will address the eternal question: how to finance your doc? What are the pros and cons of different fundraising options and how does someone get started on this process? Pitching\, how to pitch and successfully apply for grants\, and routes to markets will be discussed in this can’t-miss session.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162724″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Stephen Maing is an Emmy-award winning filmmaker\, cinematographer and editor based in New York City. His most recent film UNION captures the historic efforts by workers to unionize the first Amazon fulfillment center. Co-directed with Brett Story\, it won a Special Jury Award for The Art of Change at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival. Maing’s feature documentary CRIME + PUNISHMENT which he directed\, filmed and edited is an immersive cinéma vérité account of a group of minority whistleblower NYPD officers. It won a 2018 Sundance Special Jury Award\, an Emmy Award for Outstanding Social Issue Documentary and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary. His previous films\, HIGH TECH\, LOW LIFE\, directed\, filmed and edited over five years\, and THE SURRENDER\, have screened internationally and were released on POV and Field of Vision\, respectively. His film DIRTY GOLD\, featured in Netflix’s Dirty Money series\, intimately observers US involvement in the illicit mining and trading of gold and was filmed on location in Peru’s Amazon rain forest & Miami\, Florida. Maing’s films seek to expand the aesthetic form and limits of longitudinal nonfiction filmmaking. They are highly observational visual investigations of societal phenomenon\, complex power structures and the fascinating individuals who challenge them.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-researching-development-financing2026-06-06/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/5gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T153000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T214552Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260506T134816Z
UID:10003051-1780754400-1780759800@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals:  Observation\, Interviews and Cinematography
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re excited that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals series centers on the kinetic and timely Emergent City by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg—a film that combines skillful interviewing with the urgency and incisiveness of vérité storytelling\, both immersing the audience in the unfolding events while guiding them through each with revealing insights from the participants. In this session\, co-directors Kelly and Jay will be joined by cinematographer Sean Hanley as they discuss building their visual storytelling style\, crafting original imagery\, and interview techniques to bring the film’s narrative complexities to life. \nThis session will be all about shooting your next documentary. Learn about the practicalities of shooting unpredictable events and preparing a camera that’s alive to the moment. What kinds of aesthetic considerations are taken into account? What kind of equipment do you need? What kinds of conversations go on between a cinematographer and a director before and during an observational film shoot? How does the framing of an interview\, both editorially and cinematographically\, impact the narrative? Join us to enrich your understanding of observational filmmaking. [/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162392″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Sean Hanley is a documentary cinematographer versed in longitudinal vérité projects but with a knack for creative non-fiction and experimental techniques. His work has therefore screened across a spectrum of festivals\, from Sundance to MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight. Recent credits include Judd Ehrlich’s Jane Eliott Against the World (2026\, Sundance)\, Debra Granik’s series CONBODY vs. Everybody (2024\, Sundance)\, and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg and Kelly Anderson’s Emergent City (2024\, Tribeca). He has held a long and productive collaboration with experimental documentarian Lynne Sachs starting with Your Day is My Night (2013\, MoMA Documentary Fortnight)\, Tip of My Tongue (2015\, Closing Night of MoMA Documentary Fortnight)\, and Contractions (2024\, NYTimes OpDocs). He is a member of the Documentary Cinematographer’s Alliance and the Meerkat Media Collective.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-observation-interviews-and-cinematography-2026-06-06/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/4gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260606T173000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T215556Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260416T181251Z
UID:10003052-1780761600-1780767000@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals:  Access & Working in the Field
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re excited that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals series centers on the kinetic and timely Emergent City by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg—a film that exemplifies the social and ethical principles of observational documentary\, and is remarkable for its insight into often opaque political spaces. In this session\, Kelly and Jay are joined by field producer Betty Yu and cinematographer Alex Mallis\, to discuss the ins and outs of managing access to the spaces and participants\, the film documents\, and the complexities of working in the field. \nA crucial\, but often overlooked piece in the documentary puzzle is the management of participants and spaces the filmmakers set out to document. Emergent City‘s chronicling of a complicated political process\, involving multiple groups (made up of diverse individuals) with divergent interests and differences of opinions presents a marvel of access management and field production. Learn about how the team gained and maintained working relationships with each participant and stakeholder. How do you get permission to film in sensitive environments? What needs to be taken into account during the shoot\, in order to keep getting allowed back? How does a documentary team communicate its intentions to different groups with different objectives? [/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162391″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Betty Yu is an award-winning filmmaker\, socially engaged multimedia artist\, photographer and activist born and raised in NYC. Yu integrates documentary film\, photography\, installation\, new media platforms\, and community-infused approaches into her practice. Betty’s films and multimedia work has focused on labor\, immigration\, gentrification\, abolition\, racism\, militarism\, transgender equality among other issues. She is a co-founder of Chinatown Art Brigade\, a cultural collective using art to advance anti-displacement fights. Ms. Yu’s documentary “Resilience” about her garment worker mother fighting sweatshop conditions screened at film festivals including the Margaret Mead Film Festival. \nHer work has been exhibited and screened at the Brooklyn Museum\, Queens Museum\, NY Historical Society\, Museum of the City of NY\,  Artists Space/ISP Whitney Museum\, The Highline\, Tenement Museum\,\, 2019 BRIC Biennial\, Apexart\, Pace University Art Gallery\, Transmitter Gallery\, 601 Artspace\, Five Myles\, Squeaky Wheel Film and Media Art Center\, Bullet Space\, Carriage Trade\, Old Stone House and MAXXI in Rome. “The Garment Worker”\, an interactive installation\, was featured at Tribeca Film Institute’s Interactive Showcase. Her multimedia installation\, “Resistance in Progress”\, highlighting housing activism in Flushing was featured at the Queens Museum. Betty had her first solo exhibition\, “(Dis)Placed in Sunset Park” at Open Source Gallery. Ms. Yu won the Aronson Social Justice Award for her film “Three Tours” about U.S. veterans returning home from war in Iraq\, and their journey to overcome PTSD. Her photography and art college book\, Family Amnesia: Chinese American Resilience was released in Summer 2025. \nHer work has received coverage in outlets including New York Times\, CNN\, HBO VICE News Tonight\, i-D Vice Media\, Art Forum\, ARTNews\, Sinovision\, Hyperallergic\, E-Flux\, F-Stop Magazine\, The Eye of Photography Magazine\, La Belle Revue Art Journal & Studio International.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162390″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Alex Mallis is a Cuban-American\, Jewish filmmaker raised in New Hampshire now living in Brooklyn\, NY. His short films have been distributed by PBS\, Criterion\, The New Yorker\, and The Atlantic. His debut feature The Travel Companion premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival and is being distributed by Oscilloscope Laboratories. His short documentary Shut Up And Paint (2022) was awarded Grand Jury Prize at IFF Boston and Big Sky Documentary Film Festival\, shortlisted for the 95th Academy Awards\, and broadcast nationally on POV.  Alex received an MFA in Integrated Media Arts from Hunter College (CUNY) and is an active member of the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective and the Meerkat Media Collective.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-access-working-in-the-field-2026-06-06/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/3gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260607T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260607T153000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T220039Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260413T170529Z
UID:10003053-1780840800-1780846200@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals: Editing\, Music & Sound
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re excited that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals series centers on the kinetic and timely Emergent City by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg—a film that skilfully builds tension\, energy and forward momentum with the aid of precise editing and a detailed sound design. In this session\, participants will be guided through the post production process with directors and hosts Kelly and Jay\, joined by sound designer & composer Gisela Fullà-Silvestre and consulting editor Zara Serabian-Arthur.  \nThis session is about navigating the post-production process on your next documentary. How does a story emerge from a pile of footage and sound? How can the power of music and sound be harnessed to propel the story forward and highlight the themes? How can documentary directors work effectively with editors\, sound designers\, and other essential post-production talent? Can you really “fix it in post”? What is an online edit and can you do it yourself? How can music underscore emotion or rhythm? [/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \n\nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \n\nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162389″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Gisela Fullà-Silvestre is a Barcelona-born\, New York–based composer\, sound designer\, re-recording mixer\, and vocalist whose work spans award-winning film\, television\, and music. Her projects include Academy Award–nominated and major festival premieres (Sundance\, Tribeca\, Berlinale\, SXSW)\, as well as the Emmy Award–winning ¡Atención! Murdered Next Door\, with releases on PBS and Netflix. She also performs as NOIA\, an experimental pop project acclaimed by Pitchfork and The New York Times\, and is a 2022 NYFA Women’s Fund Fellow.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162388″ css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Zara Serabian-Arthur is a documentary editor and producer\, and a co-founder of Meerkat Media\, an award-winning production company cooperative based in Brooklyn\, NY. Her work has been featured on Hulu\, PBS\, National Geographic\, The New York Times\, and The New Yorker\, premiered at Sundance\, and screened theatrically. Recent credits include Stolen Youth (Hulu\, series editor)\, Art21: Between Worlds (PBS\, editor)\, and Justice (Sundance\, editor). As an editor\, Zara is committed to telling complex stories with empathy and care\, exploring power\, resilience\, and the possibility of transformation. Across both her filmmaking and her organizing within cooperative and solidarity economy movements\, she works to shift dominant narratives toward mutualism\, economic democracy\, and more just futures.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-editing-music-sound-2026-06-07/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2gif-1.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260607T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260607T173000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T221520Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260415T181831Z
UID:10003054-1780848000-1780853400@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Documentary Fundamentals:  Festival Strategy\, Distribution & Impact
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_column_text css=””]We’re excited that this year’s Documentary Fundamentals series centers on the kinetic and timely Emergent City by Kelly Anderson and Jay Arthur Sterrenberg—a film that follows a local story but whose message is far-reaching and broadly relatable. In this session\, Kelly and Jay are joined by publicist and sales agent Sylvia Savadijan and Robert Salyer\, Director of Outreach and Impact at American Documentary\, Inc. | POV\, who will share insights into educational distribution and audience strategy—exploring how documentaries find their viewers\, build impact\, and extend their life beyond the festival circuit. \nThis session will be all about releasing and publicising your next documentary. How can you find and reach audiences for your film?  How do you know if your film is best suited for theatrical\, broadcast\, or both? How do digital platforms affect “traditional” models of distribution and release? How can you best utilize your film festival campaign? Another can’t-miss session![/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nBuy a Series Pass \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”]$175.00Add to cart	\n			\n [vc_column_text css=””]DOCUMENTARY FUNDAMENTALS: A professional development series designed to give the emerging or intermediate documentary filmmaker an inside look at the filmmaking process from pre-production planning to post-production and distribution. Over the past few years\, UnionDocs has developed this ongoing program for documentarians that desire a better foundation for navigating the modern landscape of independent filmmaking. This six-part program takes place over the course of one weekend at UnionDocs. Buy a SERIES PASS ($175) or choose to attend individual sessions ($35/each).[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_column_text] \nInstructors \n[/vc_column_text][vc_separator color=”custom” accent_color=”#ffffff”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162386″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Kelly Anderson is a Sunset Park based documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is Rabble Rousers: Frances Goldin and the Fight for Cooper Square (w. Ryan Joseph and Kathryn Barnier). Her 2012 film My Brooklyn\, about the hidden forces driving gentrification\, was broadcast on PBS’ America ReFramed. Kelly produced and directed Every Mother’s Son (PBS\, 2004\, w. Tami Gold)\, about mothers whose children were killed by police\, which won the Tribeca Audience Award and aired on POV. She produced and directed Out At Work (HBO\, 2000\, w. Tami Gold)\, which premiered at Sundance. Kelly chairs the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162394″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jay Arthur Sterrenberg is a New York City based filmmaker\, editor and co-founder of the Meerkat Media Collective whose work has screened at Sundance\, Tribeca\, IDFA\, CPH:DOX and broadcast on PBS\, HBO\, Netflix & Hulu. \n\nJay’s two decade documentary editing career began with collaborations with DCTV’s Jon Alpert & Matt O’Neil on the HBO documentaries Section 60: Arlington National Cemetery (2008)\, Wartorn (2010) and Oscar nominated Redemption (2012). He also edited the Oscar shortlisted films Dark Money (dir. Kimberly Reed\, 2018) and After Maria (dir. Nadia Hallgren\, 2019) and a has had a long collaboration with filmmaking duo Shaul Schwarz & Christina Clusiau – Narco Cultura (Sundance 2013)\, Emmy-winning Trophy (CNN Films\, 2017)\, Emmy-nominated FLY (Nat Geo\, 2024) and the 2020 Netflix doc series Immigration Nation\, which won a Peabody Award and Best New Documentary Series at the Independent Spirit Awards. \n\nAs a director\, his films find cinematic ways to explore process & democracy. A believer in collective filmmaking\, he co-directed many independent films with the Meerkat Media Collective including Stages (2010)\, Consensus: Direct Democracy at Occupy Wall Street (2011) and Brasslands (2013). His solo directorial debut was the observational short film Public Money (POV\, 2018) which paved the way for the feature-length collaboration with Kelly Anderson: Emergent City (POV\, 2025).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162387″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Sylvia Savadjian is a New York based film publicist. Work includes festival PR for Museum of the Moving Image’s First Look\, DOC NYC\, Full Frame\, staff roles at Kino Lorber\, Maysles Documentary Center and HBO in publicity\, marketing\, acquisitions and programming.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”162496″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Robert Salyer is Director of Outreach and Impact at American Documentary\, Inc.\, leading national outreach campaigns and partnership development for award-winning films and impact initiatives. He spearheads the Our America: Documentaries in Dialogue project\, a long-running effort that empowers PBS stations and local partners to foster meaningful civic dialogue around urgent social issues. To date\, he has supported the impact campaigns of more than 70 POV films\, encompassing a wide range of issues and engaging audiences across the country. \nWith more than 25 years of experience in documentary film and community media\, Robert previously spent much of his career at Appalshop\, Inc.\, where he directed and produced films focused on Appalachian culture. His credits include work with CNBC\, HBO\, Greenpeace\, and Lost Nation Pictures\, among others.  His films have screened widely in the U.S. and internationally\, including at MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight and Festival Film Dokumenter in Yogyakarta\, Indonesia. \nRobert has been deeply involved in media education and youth training. He taught documentary filmmaking at Kentucky State University\, served as a longtime instructor with the Appalachian Media Institute\, and facilitated a U.S. State Department–funded media exchange with Indonesian filmmakers. He has worked as a community organizer with the Virginia Organizing Project and mentored emerging filmmakers through NYU Tisch’s summer immersion program.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/documentary-fundamentals-festival-strategy-distribution-impact-2026-06-07/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Screenings & Events
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/gif:https://uniondocs.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/1gif.gif
GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
X-APPLE-STRUCTURED-LOCATION;VALUE=URI;X-ADDRESS=UnionDocs 352 Onderdonk Avenue 352 Onderdonk Avenue Ridgewood NY 11385 United States;X-APPLE-RADIUS=500;X-TITLE=352 Onderdonk Avenue:geo:-73.9507576,40.7099952
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260626T100000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260628T133000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T211439Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260508T135925Z
UID:10003061-1782468000-1782653400@uniondocs.org
SUMMARY:Embracing Adrift:  The Documentary Travelogue
DESCRIPTION:[vc_row][vc_column offset=”vc_hidden-lg vc_hidden-md vc_hidden-sm vc_hidden-xs”][vc_video link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46T0dWTytwA” css=””][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=””]What does it mean to move through a place with a camera—not to capture it\, but to engage with its present\, histories\, absences\, and afterlives?  In this workshop\, filmmaker & media artist Jean-Jacques Martinod invites participants to look anew at the documentary travelogue as a speculative\, political\, and poetic form.  \nThe travelogue\, an extension of the diary form\, has long served as a structuring device for filmmakers; changing landscapes and passing time offer a visible and legible analog to the development of a narrative and the journey taken by its protagonists. Drawing from his own practice between fieldwork and reflection\, Martinod approaches travel not only as discovery\, but as a process of listening\, wandering\, and attunement to what lingers beneath the visible. The travelogue as a form then encounters the unexpected\, the mistake and the incomplete into the creative process.  \nWe’ll be exploring questions like: how does travel structure the way we construct a film\, and how does filming shape the way we travel? How can the camera register what is no longer there? What kinds of narratives emerge when we relinquish mastery over location and embrace the unexpected? How might the travelogue become a space for reimagining relationships between land\, history\, and the moving image? \nAcross the weekend\, Martinod and guests will share methods for working with landscape as archive\, failure as a generative process\, and travel as an act of participatory worldmaking. Argentine film collective Antes Muerto Cine will present and discuss their unique approach to integrating chaos and mistakes into their work. Tiffany Sia will critically unpack the thorny colonial history of the travelogue\, and look to the future of the form. Participants will also be invited to share their own travel-based projects—whether rooted in distant journeys or the overlooked terrains of the everyday—in the context of a group feedback session. Together\, we will explore the travelogue as an open form\, and against romantic notions of the wandering auteur or the confessional diarist\, we embrace failure\, drift\, and the incomplete as methodology. \nNo prior filmmaking experience is required—just a curiosity for movement\, memory\, and the unstable boundaries between document and dream.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”Details” color=”white” el_class=”h1″][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_tta_accordion style=”outline” shape=”square” color=”white” active_section=”8″ no_fill=”true” collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Who is eligible?” tab_id=”1477608256488-ac7d3d1a-ae9084d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]Open to everyone\, though the workshop setting is best suited for filmmakers\, film producers\, journalists\, curators and media artists. \nGive us an idea of who you are and why you are coming. When you register you will be asked for a short statement of interest that should briefly describe your experience and a film project (it would be great if you have a project in progress that you would present to the group during the work-in-progress critique sessions)\, plus a bio. There’s a spot for a link to a work sample (and CV\, which would also be nice\, but is not required).[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Cost” tab_id=”1477608256642-4c32d845-e84384d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]$295 early bird registration ends on June 17\, 2026. \n$350 regular registration.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Refund Policy” tab_id=”1477608441051-60d28267-92bf84d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]The deposit is non-refundable. Should you need to cancel\, you’ll receive half of your registration fee back until June 17.  After June 17\, the fee is non-refundable.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Technology Requirements” tab_id=”1477608488046-a8fa4720-501684d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]No animation software is required for participation in this workshop. \nIn order to keep costs down\, this workshop is a BYOL\, i.e. bring your own laptop. Students must be fully proficient using and operating their computers.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Registration & Cancellation Policy” tab_id=”1477612055387-51381642-d1c784d0-801ebd47-97fc”][vc_column_text css=””]To register for a workshop\, students must pay in full via card\, check\, or cash . After the early bird registration deadline of June 17\, course fees are not refundable or transferable and any withdrawals or deadlines will result in the full cost of the class being forfeit. There will be no exceptions. To withdraw from a course please email info-at-uniondocs.org. \nIn the event that a workshop does not receive sufficient enrollment\, it may be canceled. Students will be notified at least 48 hours prior to the start of a cancelled workshop and will be refunded within 5 business days. If we reschedule a workshop to another date\, students are also entitled to a full refund. UnionDocs reserves the right to change instructors without prior notification\, and to change class location and meeting times by up to an hour with 48 hours prior notice.[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_message message_box_style=”solid” style=”square” message_box_color=”orange”]Please note: Participants are accepted on a first-come\, first-serve basis.[/vc_message][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_text_separator title=”Schedule” color=”white” el_class=”h1″][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_custom_heading text=”Friday\, June 26th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Welcome & intros  \n10:30am – 12:30pm Intro session with Jean-Jacques Martinod \n12:30am – 2:00pm Lunch \n2:00pm – 4:00pm Remote session with Antes Muerto Cine \n4:00pm – 4:30pm Wrap Up Discussion with Jean-Jacques additional exercises / discussion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Saturday\, June 27th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Warm up\, inspiring references\, case studies \n10:30am – 12:30pm Creative session OR work-in-progress with Jean-Jacques \n12:30am – 2:00pm Lunch \n2:00pm – 4:00pm Session with Guest (TBC) \n4:00pm – 4:30pm Wrap Up Discussion with Jean-Jacques\, additional exercises / discussion[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Sunday\, June 28th” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” css=””][vc_separator color=”white”][vc_column_text css=””]10:00am – 10:30am Warm up\, inspiring references\, case study\, eye training. \n10:30am – 12:30pm Session with Tiffany Sia \n12:30am – 2:00pm Wrap Up[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_custom_heading text=”Each day follows this general structure\, with some minor variations and substitutions:” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]10:00a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Warm up\, inspiring references\, case study\, eye training.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]10:30a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Presentation by guest speaker + individual work-in-progress critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]11:45a[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Discussion[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]12:30p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Share / Discussion / Exercise[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]1:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Lunch (on your own)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]2:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Presentation by guest speaker + individual work-in-progress critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]3:15p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Discussion[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]4:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Workshop Exercise + Critique[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/6″][vc_column_text]5:00p[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”5/6″][vc_column_text]Wrap Up[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][vc_text_separator title=”Bios” color=”white” el_class=” \n“][vc_empty_space height=”40px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”163023″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Jean-Jacques Martinod is a filmmaker\, media artist\, film curator\, abyssological researcher\, and clandestine anarchivist. His work is engaged within extended modes of noetic and intersubjective experience\, manifest in an ongoing practice of experimental documentary cinema: the human/non-human\, folk mythology\, anemic memory\, sur-regional biomes\, hydra techno-logics\, and the poetic mediation of living worlds and their extended cohabitants. Martinod’s work has been showcased in leading festivals\, museums\, and cinematheques worldwide\, including the IFFR International Film Festival Rotterdam\, FIDMarseille\, Sheffield Doc/Fest\, Frontera Sur\, First Look at MoMI\, CIFF Camden\, Novos Cinemas Pontevedra\, PHI Centre Montreal\, Cinemateca do MAM Rio de Janeiro\, Cinemateca Nacional del Ecuador\, Cinemateca de Bogotá\, and the European Media Arts Festival\, among many others.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”163024″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””] Tiffany Sia (b. Hong Kong) is an artist\, filmmaker\, and writer based in New York whose work examines how images and material culture shape power\, governance\, and imagined geographies. Her practice traces the apparatus underwriting film/video\, attending to what remains unseen or illegible within the visual record. Author of On and Off-Screen Imaginaries (Primary Information\, 2024)\, her films have screened at TIFF\, MoMA Doc Fortnight\, and the New York Film Festival. She has held solo exhibitions at Artists Space\, the Cantor Arts Center at Stanford University\, and Mudam Luxembourg. Overt Listening\, her first feature film and a forthcoming body of work\, will be presented at Kunsthalle Wien (Fall 2026) and KW Institute for Contemporary Art\, Berlin (Spring 2027).[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”163034″ img_size=”full” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”2/3″][vc_column_text css=””]Antes Muerto Cine is a film collective based in Buenos Aires\, dedicated to the production of documentary and experimental cinema. We met in a riot in the public university\, recording images and sounds to shake and discuss the reality we inhabit.\nSince then\, we seek that our practice dialogue with past and future experiences to noticeably rescue the absurd and everyday beauty that is shipwrecked in chaos. We like movies that are alive\, those that are made with care in the privacy or in the street\, those that are invented drawing conclusions on the fly\, those that play.Because we believe that films are also their mode of production\, we understand friendship as a creative policy. Our projects were part of MoMA’s Doc Fortnight\, Mar del Plata International Film Fest\, Ji.Hlava DIFF\, FID Marseille\, Márgenes Cine\, DocLisboa\, Visions Du Réel\, BAFICI\, RIDM\, É tudo verdade\, FICUNAM\, Cinélatino Rencontres de Toulouse\, New Horizons IFF\, Festifreak\, Transcinema\, DOCBSAS\, SEMINCI\, FIDOCS\, Open City\, Frontera Sur among other festivals. And they have received support for its realization from Berlinale Talents\, Buenos Aires Youth Art Biennial\, BoliviaLAB\, AcampaDOC\, Labex\, Migrant Film Festival\, INCAA – National Institute of Cinema and Audiovisual Arts\, National Endowment for the Arts\, Cultural Patronage of BsAs and National University of the Arts.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row]
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/embracing-adrift-the-documentary-travelogue-2026-06-26/
LOCATION:NY
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260916T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20261216T235900
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T212203Z
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SUMMARY:Audio & Performance Lab
DESCRIPTION:
URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/audio-performance-lab/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, Ridgewood\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, QUEENS\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20261006T193000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20270616T193000
DTSTAMP:20260509T012928
CREATED:20260402T213029Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260506T122028Z
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SUMMARY:UnionDocs Collaborative Studio
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URL:https://uniondocs.org/event/uniondocs-collaborative-studio/
LOCATION:UnionDocs\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, 352 Onderdonk Avenue\, Ridgewood\, NY\, 11385\, United States
CATEGORIES:Workshops & Labs
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GEO:40.7099952;-73.9507576
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