On the Cusp: A Series of Short Films by Emerging Artists in Israel and the U.S: Part Two

On the Cusp is an ongoing series of short films from students and recent grads in Israel and the US. Each of these screenings will be followed by an online discussion with the emerging filmmakers and industry pros who will provide their valuable insight.

Part Two in the series were three films from the School of Audio and Visual Arts at Sapir College and one from a recent grad from the Grady College at the University of Georgia. Read more about the films here.

Our special guests for the discussion were Judy Cairo and Michael Simpson, partners in Cairo Simpson Entertainment and Informant Media, and composer George Clinton. Click here for more information about our special guests.

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On the Cusp: A Series of Short Films by Emerging Artists in Israel and the U.S.  

On the Cusp is an ongoing series of short films from students and recent grads in Israel and the US. Each of these screenings will be followed by an online discussion with the emerging filmmakers and industry pros who will provide their valuable insight. First in the series we showed three films from the Maaleh School of Film and Television and two films from the Grady College at the University of Georgia.

Our special guests for the discussion were Rick Allen, CEO of ViewLift, writer/director Takashi Doscher, and David Gale, EVP of Development and Production  at Gunpowder & Sky.

Rick Allen

Takashi Doscher

David Gale

Stories from Israel: Virtual Screenings and Live Discussion Part Two: 

Part 2 of Virtual Screenings + Live Discussion series, cosponsored with the Bender JCCGW, was an online screening from June 3-7 of 3 student films from the Ma’aleh School of Film & Television in Jerusalem 

Following these 3 very distinct short films, each with its own unique insight and artistic approach, we had an enlightening online discussion with the director of Ma'aleh, Neta Ariel.

The Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance presents

Rick Baitz's Master Class on "Composing for the Screen." 

Though we couldn't be in Jerusalem for composer Rick Baitz to teach the master class we had originally planned, we are thrilled that he taught an abbreviated version online to the students at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance on May 7.

A Unique Virtual Experience

The backStorygroup normally takes professionals, film students, and music students on cultural trips to Israel where American film students can share and engage with Israeli film students. Since we can’t currently take such a trip, we thought it would be a good time to bring Israeli student films to you. We were delighted to partner with the Bender JCC of Greater Washington to share some of that with you via the limited American screenings of two Israeli films: Reflections, written and directed by Yael Bibelnik, with score by Sapir Matityahu, and Upper Lip, written and directed by Shiri Cohen.

We hope those of you who watched the films enjoyed them, and that those of you who joined the discussion with the young Israeli filmmakers and composer--and our special guests, composer George S. Clinton and Producer David Gale--found their insights into filmmaking and film scoring interesting. We certainly did, and look forward to bringing you more programming in the near future