Simon Tchoukriel is a filmmaker from France who originally moved to New York to play college soccer. In his work, Simon focuses on collectives and subcultures with a passion for games, whatever they may be, and what these activities tell us about our society at large.
Empire State of Chess is Simon Tchoukriel’s Doc Studies end of year film.
The game of chess has been bringing New Yorkers together for years in parks, squares, cozy clubs and tournament halls. But how can this beloved pastime survive amid a pandemic? Meet New York City’s most interesting pawn pushers, grandmasters, club owners and street players who keep the hope, and the game, alive.
BIG CONGRATS to our Doc Studies alumnus, Igor Myakotin, co-producer of “Welcome to Chechnya,” which has been shortlisted for not one, but TWO Oscars: Documentary Feature and Visual Effects (a first ever for a documentary)!
Igor and director, David France, joined us for a Doc talk back in November 2020.
We have fantastic news!!! Doc Studies graduates Maliyamungu Muhande @congolesetraveler, and Lillian Xuege Li @lillian_xuege_li received the National Board of Review’s 2020 Student Grant for their individual films “Nine Days a Week” and “Parklife.”
Congratulations to Amrit Cheng (Doc Studies 2020), whose graduating film OK Boomer is premiering today at Teen Vogue, along with an op-ed from two young activists whom the film features.
This remarkable film chronicles the student-led campaign to integrate the New York City public school system, which is among the most segregated in the country.
“The film that took the top of my head off was Speak So I Can See You….It’s on another planet from character-driven narrative, in a good way…. Art museums should embrace it. Radio aficionados will fall in love with it, and historians will treasure it.” – Pat Auderheide, IDA journal
“Rich in…brilliant moments…. immersing the viewer in quite a unique cinematic experience. And, commendably, it also leaves some room for irony.” – David Abbatesciani, Cineuropa
Serbian filmmaker and Media Studies alumna Marija Stojnić will screen Speak So I Can See You, her new documentary feature on Friday, February 21st at 6:30pm in Kellen Auditorium. The film premiered at International Documenary Film Festival in Amesterdam last fall, and it is featured at MoMA’s DocFortnight this month. Stojnić, who brings her background in music and keen understanding of the art of documentary, has crafted an original work—a “cinematic soundscape” that captures the wonders of Radio Belgrade, Serbia’s long-lived radio station, which has kept history, culture and critical thinking alive in the former Yugoslavia. Borrowing upon the cumulative effect of slow tracking shots and close-ups of cryptic technological grids and patient performers testing microphones, Stojnić portrays the station in the throes of change as it abandons the dilapidated equipment of its Tito-era studios for the bright newness of the now while clinging to all it holds dear. Her observational visuals illuminate the sounds of the radio past and present, including moments from beloved shows like “The Invisible People” and “Journey through Words,” jazz tributes on “Needle on Vinyl” and live performances of opera, and dramatic readings of writers like Dostoyevsky and Carl Sagan. Stojnić’s underlying focus is on the people who keep Radio Belgrade going—audio engineers, actors, announcers, directors, moving men, and cleaning ladies—while inviting viewers into the haunting space, time, and sounds of Radio Belgrade. Even if you never lived through ’68 or wondered about the future of the former USSR or listened through the night and in your dreams to the rambling thoughts of Radio Belgrade’s philosophical radio hosts, Stojnić’s film conjures a collective memory of the past through audio echoes personal and public.
The film is a love letter to radiophonic art, subtly and playfully demonstrating how radio can make us remember, understand, think, and feel.
Stojnić will join Media Studies faculty member Deirdre Boyle for a Q&A after the screening. This program is open to all students and faculty of The New School.
Doc Studies alumna, Adele Free Pham, was recently featured on the Center for Asian American Media’s website. The conversation marks the release of her documentary ‘Nailed It’, which captures an unforgettable and often hilarious saga born of tragedy, charting the rise, struggle, stereotypes, and steady hold Vietnamese Americans have on today’s $8 billion dollar nail industry. Congrats, Adele!
If you are in NYC, don’t miss the screenings of our Doc Studies alumni in DOC NYC Documentary Film Festival (Nov 8-15): 
Congrats
The New School Doc Studies 