NYC Public School Film Festival

4th Annual New York City Public School Film Festival

The Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) and NYC Department of Education (DOE) congratulate the students whose films were chosen as part of the 4th Annual New York City Public School Film Festival. The New York City Public School Film Festival is an opportunity for students to submit their work and perhaps see it screened.

Thirty-seven student films (Click Here for the Festival Program) from public schools citywide were selected in the categories of Feature/Narrative, Animation, Experimental, PSA Advocacy and Documentary by a panel of NYC Public School Film Festival teachers and media professionals. The student filmmakers chosen represent the diversity of public school student voices across the five boroughs.

Highlights from 3rd Annual New York City Public School Film Festival

First One Up | Director: Solomon Shulman | School: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | Teacher: Ben Swope | Principal: Yeou Jey Vasconcelos
About: A mushroom goes on a quest for company.

The Endless Corridor | Directors: Kingston Wong, Jayden Yan, Ethan Kim, Aidan Lau | School: MS74 Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle School | Teacher: Keith Crowley | Principal: Brandon Contarsy
About: 8th grade student-made stop motion animation using clay, paper, Adobe Photoshop & Adobe Premiere.

David vs. Goliath | Director: Jackson Rob Milott | School: The Beacon School | Teacher: Chelsea Green | Principal: Brady Smith
About: In this animation, David must overcome impossible odds and beat the great Goliath in a game of basketball.

The Fox King | Director: William Chellis French | School: West End Secondary School | Teacher: Nicole Zernone | Principal: Jessica Jenkins

Space Cat | Director: Abigail Summer Rees | School: Stuyvesant High School | Teacher: Natasha Marcano Dillon | Principal: Seung Yu
About: A cat goes out to fix a machinery malfunction on their spaceship, but ends up drifting into space.

Searching for a Friend | Director: Juniper Candelario | School: Brooklyn High School of the Arts | Teacher: Lauren Rocco | Principal: Daniel Vecchiano
About: Experimental animation by student Juniper Candelario.

Morse Code Flower | Director: Samya Blake | School: Brooklyn High School of the Arts | Teacher: Lauren Rocco | Principal: Daniel Vecchiano
About: Gif Animation created by student Samya Blake.

A Hundred Seeds, A Hundred Wishes | Director: Kaitlin An | School: Brooklyn High School of the Arts | Teacher: Lauren Rocco | Principal: Daniel Vecchiano
About: A Hundred Seeds, A Hundred Wishes.

Empty Stomach | Director: Moranchel Dayanara | School: Digital Arts and Cinema Technology High School | Teacher: Naomi Barak | Principal: Dawn Meconi
About: Digital animation about bulimia.

Two Doors Two Worlds | Directors: Brianna Daney, Rihanna Garcia, Georgia Grodsky, Janice Kim, Stella Leighton | School: MS74 Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle School | Teacher: Keith Crowley | Principal: Brandon Contarsy
About: 7th Grade student-made stop motion animation pixilation project using iStopMotion and iMovie.

Real Girl/Clay Girl | Director: Kaliope Tapper | School: Frank Sinatra School of the Arts | Teacher: Jason Spagnuoli | Principal: Gideon Rafel Frankel

Piece by Piece | Directors: Myles Spivey, Alexa Stone, Connor Margolis, Justice Repucci, Tehodora Pritchett, Joseph Ulloa, Emma White, Craig Ashton Marshall, Francisco Aponte, Elliot Stone | School: MS 243 The Center School | Teachers: Mr. Walkup, Mr. Verdejo
About: Upon returning to full-time school, students wrote, edited and filmed a cinematic Poem about their experiences with COVID.

Be the Change | Director and Writer: Danny Lopez | Editors: Danny Lopez, Anthonely Lora | Special Thanks: Ron Link, Bonnie Milner, Steven Mudrick, The Clean Green Music Machine | Writers: Myles Spivey, Alexa Stone, Connor Margolis, Justice Repucci, Theodora Pritchett, Emma White, Craig Ashton Marshall, Francisco Aponte, Elliot Stone | Key Cast: Myles Spivey, Alexa Stone, Connor Margolis, Justice Repucci, Theodora Pritchett, Joseph Ulloa, Emma White, Craig Ashton Marshall, Francisco Aponte, Elliot Stone | School: The Theatre Arts Productions Company School | Teacher: Steven Mudrick | Principal: Elaine Schwartz
About: Queens high school student Tiara Stewart created an original song articulating her concerns for the world. Tiara touches on topics of great concern to young people today, including racial profiling, police brutality, the environment, discrimination and medical freedom. Collaborating with video production high school students from the Theatre Arts Production Company school in the Bronx, including Director/Co-editor Danny Lopez, a video was created that combined the music video and documentary genres.

Shine Your Light | Director: Anastasia De Jesus | Key Cast: Nancy Pierre | Editors: Anastasia De Jesus, Samantha Alvarex | Special Thanks: Ron Link, Bonnie Milner, Steven Mudrick, The Clean Green Music Machine | School: The Theatre Arts Productions Company School | Teacher: Steven Mudrick
About: Brooklyn high school student Nancy Pierre created an original song articulating her concerns for the environment. Nancy highlighted topics of great concern to young people today, including climate change, pollution, over-population and sustainability. Created as part of the rFuture2021 project, Nancy was teamed with students from the Theatre Arts Production Company School (TAPCo) in the Bronx to create a video that had both documentary and music video elements. Directed and co-edited by HS junior Anastasia De Jesus, who has been studying video production and technology at TAPCo since 7th grade.

A Silent Dream | Director: Avery Hong | School: Brooklyn Technical High School | Independent Submission | Principal: David Newman
About: A man has the same dreams everyday of an empty world, but it wasn't a dream at all.

Toxic Productivity | Director, Writer, Producer: Olivia Dartley | School: The Clinton School | Teacher: Michael McGuire | Principal: Jonathan Levin
About: In a society where to work is to live–literally–a girl defies the incessant productivity demanded of her by an authoritarian government.

Don't Touch | Directors: Richecia Henry, Issac Allen | Camera: Thorin Watts | School: Academy for Careers in Television and Film | Teachers: Ricardo Thompson, Shaziya Ali | Principal: Robert Mccubbin
About: During an infectious pandemic, a high school students takes quarantine in a classroom, but is then faced with the challenge of risking his safety to help another.

Hellth Science | Directors: Alpha Bah, Christopher Cumberbatch, Shay Thomas, MD Sayef, Jayshaw Chery | Writers and Producers: Alpha Bah, Jayshawn Chery, Christopher Cumberbatch | Key Cast: Alpha Bah, Justus Snyder, Daniel Mcgarrell McGarrell, Shay Thomas, Naiya Kirkland, Kalanji Clark, Chardonnae Coly, Beth Kling, Luz Martell, Juan Reddick, Patrick McGillicuddy, David Nelinson | School: East Brooklyn Community High School | Teachers: David Nelinson, Justus Snyder | Principal: Patrick Mcgillicuddy
About: A science teachers experiment goes horribly wrong and an infection spreads throughout a school community that only Eric Adams Vegan Fridays can bring an end to the reign of terror.

Black Forest | Director: Kim Leonhardt | School: Brooklyn Collaborative Studies | Principal: Priscilla Chan
About: A boy is caught between reality and fantasy. A story of jealousy, dark instincts and forgiveness.

The Email | Director, Writer, Producer: Isaac O'Shea Allen | School: Academy for Careers in Television and Film | Teacher: Ricardo Thompson | Principal: Robert Mccubbin
About: A student procrastinates on writing an email to their teacher, but later dawns upon what they should say.

Pros of Con | Director: Sekou Cherif | Editor: Edward Zuniga-Velasco | Producers: Sekou Cherif, Edward Zuniga-Velasco, Timothy Crean, Nicolo Pinzolo | Key Cast: Sekou Cherif, Mara Matthews, Edward Zuniga-Velasco | School: Art & Design High School | Teacher: Hanan Harchol | Principal: Maximillia Re Sugiura
About: A store owner is accused of racially profiling a customer.

Latinx in "America"? | Director: Roselin Lopez | Key Cast: Roselin Lopez, Jacob Lopez | School: P.S./I.S. 187 Hudson Cliffs | Teacher: Michael Bridenstine | Principal: Emel Topbas Mejia
About: A professor argues with two eager students over the value and appropriateness of the term "Latinx".

Simon's World | Directors: Simon Grinfeld, Lev Vitrak | Producers: Sasha Paone, Ardi Buqaj, Ivan Shelest | Key Cast: Simon Grinfeld | School: P.S. 145 The Bloomingdale School | Teacher: Mr. Hunter | Principal: Natalia Russo
About: A boy travels to parallel worlds to find himself.

Love Unflinching | Director, Writer, Producer: Oscar Giles | School: Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts | Teacher: Lee Lobenhofer | Principal: Yeou Jey Vasconcelos
About: Captures the relationship between a boy and his dog through a poem by Rudyard Kipling. Puppetry and poetry meet to explore the power of a dog's love.

Talking Murals | Director: Joshua Alatriste | Director of Photography: Joshua Alatriste | Voiceover: Fiona Slattery | Editor: Joshua Alatriste | School: Frank Sinatra School of the Arts | Teacher: Jason Spagnuoli | Principal: Gideon Rafel Frankel
About: Talking Murals' brings light to the many talented black artists in NYC. It highlights the beautiful street art made by black artists, and the impact it has on New Yorkers!

The Right Thing | Director: Zane Mills VanWicklen | Key Cast: Zane Mills VanWicklen, Teja VanWicklen | School: Art & Design High School | Teacher: Ashton Agbomenou | Principal: Maximillia Re Sugiura
About: A boy battles with himself in an effort to do the right thing—not lash out at his mother when she tells him he can't meet his friend.

Burning Out | Directors, Writers, Producers: Veronica Royzen, Abigail Tenenbaum | School: Staten Island Technical High School | Teacher: Michael Van Buren | Principal: Mark Erlenwein

Represent Us, Properly | Director, Writer, Producer: Abeer Saed | School: Young Women's Leadership of East Harlem | Independent submission | Principal: Colleen Mcgeehan
About: Media representation of girls and women of color that isn't based on stereotypes is important because it helps young girls pursue their dreams and have role models who inspire them.

Hate Crimes | Director, Writer, Producer: Hayden Celentano | School: Midwood High School | Teacher: Elizabeth Bouiss | Principal: Michael Mcdonnell
About: A young New Yorker wakes up to the reality of his environment while watching television.

A Day in the Life of Adam | Director, Writer: Adam Bailey | School: New Dorp High School (Reelworks) | Teacher: Ebony Hatchett (Reelworks) | Principal: Seth Schoenfeld
About: A teenage boy moves to the city, and faces challenges in his new living environment.

Culture | Director, Writer, Editor: Nana Kwame Williams | School: Digital Arts and Cinema Technology High School | Teacher: Carlos Rentas | Principal: Dawn Meconi
About: The growth of African dance and drumming in New York City.

Black History Month | Director: Jaylette Jones | Producers: Regina Lee, Sudan Raphael, Nadia Michel | School: Tottenville High School | Teacher: Aaron Afflitto | Principal: Gina Battista
About: Short documentary on how black history month is acknowledged at Tottenville High School on Staten Island.

Friendship | Director: Dina Yamazaki O'Leary | School: Academy for Careers in Television and Film | Teacher: Ricardo Thompson | Principal: Robert Mccubbin
About: What it feels like to have friends and the struggle to let someone go.

What It Takes To Be A Winner | Director: Gio Choi | Key Cast: Zander Mercado, Mia Petersen | School: Susan E. Wagner High School | Teacher: Shea Ryan | Principal: David Cugini
About: A documentary about the Susan E. Wagner Track Team.

We Achieve Greatness | Directors: Katie Marrow, Patricia Marcero | Producers: Katie Marrow, Frankie Cannizzo | Key Cast: Katie Marrow, Matthew D’Orio, Anthony Donato, Frankie Cannizzo, Brendan Bonomo, Matthew Lopez, Elizabeth Farrell, Dylan Accornero, Michael DiSchiavi, Supreme Ryant, Joseph Mariano, Matthew Martinez, Sofia Guido, Vincent Fattarusso, David Zhou, Anastasios Sialakas, Tyler McAnuff, Yousuf Asghar, Skylar Cerami, Rusty Tam Diaz, Elias Lacina, Patricia Marcero, Tiffany Lin | School: P37R: The David Marquis School of the Arts | Teacher: Nicholas Giglio | Principal: Cori Regan
About: A glimpse into P37R's vocational training program.