Thursday, October 25, 2007

Brooklyn in Film Screening November 29th, 2007 at Brooklyn Historical Society







Ferry Entrance at Montague Street, Brooklyn, circa 1911. Photo: Brooklyn Historical Society archives.


Brooklyn in Film Screening November 29th, 2007 at Brooklyn Historical Society

The Brooklyn Historical Society and Brooklyn Film & Arts Festival are pleased to announce a screening of documentaries about Brooklyn and the people of Brooklyn on November 29th, 2007. This program of Brooklyn focused documentaries is titled, "Brooklyn on Film, 1899-2007" and will include some very early documentary footage including Edison Studios motion picture records of Brooklyn in the 1890s, and Sarah Bernhardt addressing a crowd in Prospect Park in 1917, will be shown.

The screening will also include short documentaries about Brooklyn’s diverse neighborhoods and people.

One of which, Brooklyn: Among the Ruins directed by Suzanne Wasserman, introduces audiences to Brooklyn born and bred Paul Kronenberg. Paul is a 60 year-old subway buff who built a life-size replica of a 1930s motorman's subway cab in his tiny bedroom in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn.

A documentary by Maggie Hadleigh-West titled "Player Hating" illuminates the lives of young Brooklyn aspiring rap artists striving to develop their musical careers while struggling with the constraints of every day life in the housing projects of Brooklyn.


"Brooklyn Matters" by Isabel Hill is a documentary that address the changes being planned for some of Brooklyn neighborhoods through planned development projects. Isabel Hill is historian and urban planner and her exploration of the timely issues of large-scale building in Brooklyn helps convey the challenges faced by many Brooklynites in a time of change.




The audience will get a rare glimpse of an ougan, or Vodou priest who is possessed by the spirit of Gede in a basement in Brooklyn in "Vodou Brooklyn" by Stephanie Keith. This extraordinary photo-essay with narrative is a compelling insight into the spiritual journey taken by these members of Brooklyn's Haitian community.

Several other short documentaries about Brooklyn and the people of Brooklyn will also be presented as part of this screening.


Location:The Brooklyn Historical Society,128 Pierrepont Street,Brooklyn, NY 11201

Date & Time: November 29th, 2007 at 7:00 pm.

Admission is Free to the public. For information please call:718-222-4111 or email: brooklynfa@yahoo.com.