We had a fantastic evening of panels at Rooftop Films on Saturday night - and the rain was no match for the incredible folk at Rooftop Films and their magical Brooklyn Can Factory! My favorite quote from the evening has to be this from Esther Robinson during the Cinema and Social Justice panel: “Make your life good, don’t get in a lot of debt and do something meaningful.” Amen Sister!

Photo: Copyright Sarah Palmer 2008
Cinema and Social Justice: Simon Kilmurry (P.O.V.), Ryan Harrington (Gucci Tribeca Fund), Esther Robinson (Director, A Walk Into The Sea: Danny Williams and the Warhol Factory), Katy Chevigny (Arts Engine and Director, Election Day) and moderator Danielle DiGiacomo (IndiePix)

Photo: Copyright Sarah Palmer 2008
The Art of Short Film: Casimir Nozkowski, Signe Baumane, Benh Zeitlin, Duana Butler and moderator Mark Rosenberg (Rooftop Films)

Photo: Copyright Sarah Palmer 2008
The rain didn’t stop us!

I went to see Captured (Ben Solomon, Dan Levin and Jenner Furst) at Rooftop Films last night - on the Open Road Rooftop in the Lower East Side. It was an incredible night - feeling so plugged into the neighborhood, looking out over the ever changing skyline, and watching a film about a man, Clayton Patterson, who has tirelessly documented the LES for 30 years. Clayton’s photographs and videos tell a fascinating story of a neighborhood in constant flux - from the drugs and graffiti, the homeless and the squatters, the Puerto Ricans and old-time Jews, to the drag queens at the Pyramid Club and the hardcore boys who watched over them, and on to the encroaching gentrification of the late 80s and 90s. The film peaks in 1988 with the Tompkins Square Riots when the fight against gentrification was fought in the streets in pitch battles with police. The deal is sealed with the closing of CBGBs, celebrated and mourned with a final Bad Brains show, Clayton snapping away in the front row as he is moshed from all sides. Clayton was always there, constantly getting arrested and beaten up, working in tandem with his quietly powerful wife, losing teeth to tell the story of the neighborhood he loved and the people who lived there.

Still from Clayton’s footage of the 1988 Tompkins Square Riots.

The roof of the Open Road Rooftop has some amazing graffiti murals and sitting up there with Clayton in his signature embroidered cap, snapping photos of the audience (gentrifiers though we may be!), felt electric. A.R.E. Weapons provided much of the music for the film and they played a great set before it started, including my cheesy favorite Don’t Be Scared. If you live in NYC, or any city for that matter, and you care about what happens to communities and local histories you should see this film (and if you’re one of those people who keep moving into the horrible new chrome and glass buildings in my neighborhood you should definitely see this film!)

A.R.E. Weapons performing before the Rooftop Films screening of Captured with some of Clayton’s photographs projected behind them.

Summer is here which means that Rooftop Films are back on Friday, June 6th with This Is What We Mean By Short Films. This is very good news indeed for fans of film, lovers of New York City, and appreciators of fine rooftops.  I am always happy to sit outside under the stars and watch beautifully curated shorts and features so I was pleased as punch to get involved with the Rooftop Films Panorama which is happening next week, June 12-14. On Saturday, June 14th Rooftop Films, Shooting People and IndiePix will be presenting two panels before the Industriance shorts program at The Old American Can Factory: Cinema and Social Justice and The Art of the Short Film. Panelists include Ryan Harrington (Gucci Tribeca Fund), Simon Kilmurry (P.O.V.), Esther Robinson (Director, A Walk Into the Sea: The Danny Williams Story), Katy Chevigny (Arts Engine and Director, Election Day) Benh Zeitlin (Filmmaker, Glory at Sea), Duana Butler (Filmmaker, Curator of ReelNY) and Signe Baumane (animator).

It’s going to be an amazing evening of panels, music and films -  tickets are only $6 online so please come out to play.

The Shooters posse went to see DARKON at Rooftop Films last night. I’d forgotten quite how funny the film is and it was lovely to watch it on the lawn of the Automotive High School where we have done Shooting People screenings with Rooftop in the past. By the way there are only a few more Rooftop screening happening this Summer so make sure you go before the frosts set in - it’s a really great experience to sit outside in NYC and watch bands and films under the (light-polluted) stars.

Here’s Shooting People founder Cath le Couteur and NY Editor Jesse Epstein with a man in armor (I don’t know who the random guy in the background is but I’m sure he’s very nice):

New York’s Rooftop Films are partnering with IFC.com to bring you 100 short films online. The fine folk at Rooftop Films have been great champions of short films for 11 years and they curate some really interesting, bizarre, and wonderful work. Plus they’re just really lovely people who live and work in Brooklyn and create amazing outdoor summer shows involving music and film (and beer) so it’s hard not to be a fan of what they do. I have discovered a few filmmakers I really love through Rooftop (please everyone track down Jennifer Matotek’s films: Brent’s Wondrous Balls and Every Boy I’ve Fucked) and they showcased the films of Shooting People’s own Lee Kern at a brilliant summer show in 2006.

So check out the films here - there are already a few online.

The 2007 Rooftop season starts with a free show tonight in Fort Greene Park and then the official opening night is June 8th in the Lower East Side. Bring it on! Find all the details here. Tickets are only 5 bucks if you book them in advance online.

And while we’re on the subject of short films and Brooklyn, the Sundance Institute at BAM are showing a series of shorts programs tomorrow. Ticket holders can also attend a talk with Sundance Film Festival’s Director of Programming John Cooper and Senior Programmer Trevor Groth. All details here.