Gentrification and displacement are affecting all big cities throughout the world, but none more egregiously than my hometown of New York City. As a Native New Yorker, I am disturbed to see my beloved hometown become a haven for the wealthy when it was once a city that valued culture and community over money. Before Covid happened, the sky seemed to be the limit for corporate greed and that is when I started making this film. I chose specifically to focus on two lower-class neighborhoods that are in peril- Queens and the Lower East Side. In documenting these neighborhoods under threat, I met local activists whose lives centered around maintaining the ethos of their community.
May 2023
Abruptly abandoned by her husband in a country completely foreign to her, Colombian native Mariana (Paola Mendoza) struggles to take care of herself and her two young children on the unforgiving streets of New York City. Sebastian Villada, Laura Montana and Anthony Chisholm also star in this gritty independent drama jointly written and directed by Mendoza and her collaborator Gloria La Morte.
Apr 2009
Petals of flowers are arranged in a dish with a candle, as if a cake. Love creates wonderful things, but these can hide boundaries and differences, for a while. A couple can be physically close and yet worlds apart, with manias poised at the surface, to latch onto triggers. Sometimes we do everything to get what we want, sometimes not.
Jan 2019
"The Strange Case of Normalcy" is a subtle examination of how each of us lives on the edge of normalcy while we construct an illusion of "the normal" by which we define ourselves.
Jul 2023
Hoyle, a girl with a sharp mind and a weakness for bourbon, finds herself on the trail of a reclusive genius. Along the way, her reality becomes disconnected and surreal. Her loyal partner and an ethereal lounge singer help her along the way, but ultimately she must turn within and confront her own shadow.
Dec 2009
Aiko, a 24-year old Japanese woman, moves to London to study painting and meets Oliver, a much older, British artist. Oliver becomes obsessed with her, his new passion revitalising his art. When she finally agrees to visit his studio in Greenwich, their attraction becomes mutual.
Nov 2023
"Vena Amoris" celebrates life with hope in our hearts and an eye toward the future. This film depicts how easy it is to live a happy life when we're surrounded by friends and family who love us and how easy it is to stray when left alone James (Christopher Newell) is a successful and attractive businessman who will be married tomorrow, but before he is married he has to goose step his way past a beautiful temptress (Laurine Price) and endure painful torture at the hands of his fiancé's father (Allan Charof). Will James' love be strong enough to get him through the gauntlet to his wedding day, or will he be swayed by the promise of pleasure and impending pain that threaten to crush his dream of being a good and faithful husband?
Dec 2013
What if your living will mistakenly gave the power to a stranger to unplug your life support? Kay's elderly Aunt Vera, a formerly promiscuous showgirl, falls into a coma and is at the mercy of a local psychic.
Jan 2015
Tabitha, a self-proclaimed fish enthusiast, is convinced that her 'touch' is lethal after pet fish and unexpectedly dies following contact. Consequently she dons a pair of latex gloves and finds work in a taxidermy studio where the risk of killing anything else is minimal. Yet just as Tabitha begins to relax and discover the joy in restoring dead fish, tragedy strikes again and ultimately forces her to choose between her isolating phobia and a budding relationship with Wade, the quirky owner of Living Dead Taxidermy.
May 2010
An idealistic grade school teacher has a fear of speaking up in public (other than in front of her kids). But when she finds out that children in her school are going hungry- thanks to federal cutbacks in school lunch programs- it compels her to do things she wouldn't have thought she could do, including confronting a Congressman, in order to help the children.
Jun 2015
The São Marcos river in the state of Goiás flows between the cities of Catalão and Campo Alegre. This region once had many farms, built and farmed by members of the same family. In some parts, only ruins remain, insistent reminders that someone once lived there. The remaining inhabitants lose more land, everyday, to soybean fields and the Serra do Facão hydroelectric dam; these are their lives.
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Jameson finds out his girlfriend has been cheating on him. As his world slowly spirals out of control the only one there for him is his closest friend, Emily, who struggles to reveal a life changing secret of her own.
May 2016
The joy of a family seeing the Super Eagles of Nigeria win "Gold" against big teams in Atlanta '96 Olympics despite the odds stacked against them would seem like the long-awaited hope that the country needs.
Jan 2022
When Anna arrives at Jane's house for a date, she finds a quick high and kinky sex. But their sexual chemistry can't quite overcome the class and race differences between them, and the encounter leaves Anna wanting more.
Jan 2017
A mysterious young woman is obsessed with Armenia and the archeology of the mental layers that represent identity. She documents her obsession through interviews with various individuals about their encounters with the protagonist, blurring the lines between truth and fiction.
Jan 1998
In 2001 a rowdy group of Austin women were determined to ressurect an old sport, but with a new spin. This is the beginning of a revolution: HELL ON WHEELS is the ass-kicking documentary film telling the story of a group of Texas women who band together to resurrect roller derby for the 21st century. Emerging from the Austin music and arts scene, these women create a rock and roll fueled version of all-girl roller derby that has spawned the derby craze that's sweeping the nation.
Sep 2007
Terry is a life coach and motivational speaker for the meek and afraid, and his methods are very effective. But when his students start to become aware of the "wolf" inside of them, their transformations take a dangerous turn.
Aug 2023
Critically acclaimed DO PAHAR recounts the unlikely and fascinating friendship that forms between Sudha, an elderly abused woman and Bilal, a young hit man who she observes one day planning to murder her neighbor. He becomes her hero and savior; she becomes his most improbable partner-in-crime.
Mar 2012
A raw, gritty, uncompromising and heavily stylised independent feature production, based on the ancient Greek narrative, Homer's: 'The Odyssey'.
Hundreds of pictures scattered all over the floor of a dark and solitary room. Monika, an East-German woman, has lost her memory and can only fantasize of a forgotten past and an impossible future. A message from her friend Kirsten, on a voice recorder, pushes her to remember her life and friends, in a lost Berlin, against a forgotten wall.
May 2018