Video
The Long Return
When COVID-19 hit New York in March 2020, the city’s 1,800 public schools were forced to make a sudden pivot to remote instruction. The scramble to transition 1.1 million students to online learning brought unprecedented challenges for principals, teachers, students and families, leaving everyone eager for a return to “normal.” But without clear guidance from the city, schools grappled with the uncertainty of how to safely reopen, and whether they even should.
Through a mix of interviews and vérité vignettes, The Long Return follows principals, teachers and students at two New York City schools as they navigate the challenges of reopening for a new school year in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. Did we make the right choices and what lasting impact will this experience have on children and education overall?
Bobby Ehrenberg: Seeking Clemency
In 1992, Bobby Ehrenberg shot and killed the owner of a Long Island jewelry store. He was convicted and sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. He is now 61 and has served 28 years of his sentence. During that time, he has undergone a transformation. He has written to the victim's family, expressing his remorse. He has conquered drug and alcohol addiction. He has earned two college degrees, both times as valedictorian with a 4.0. And he has even started a tutoring program to help other incarcerated men prepare for college-level math courses. Now he is hoping for a second chance at life through executive clemency.
Published in Gothamist
Surviving in New York in an RV
Ron is a photographer who has lived in an RV in Brooklyn for five years. The low cost of living makes the city more affordable on an artist's budget and the lifestyle has worked for him for the most part. Until the coronavirus outbreak, that is. From unemployment to bare essentials like water and electricity, the pandemic has made this simple lifestyle much more challenging.
Published in New York City News Service.
The Fixers Collective is a group of New Yorkers who gather regularly to repair broken items, instead of just throwing them away. What brings them together is not just sentimentality or concern for the environment, but the simple joy of tinkering.
NY Cake Window Competition
During the first snowfall of the season, five of the city’s best cake artists gathered at NY Cake to decorate the store windows with New York holiday-themed centerpieces.
On the Job
Ben Chen has worked in the restaurant industry for 17 years, but only recently opened his own place—Asian Express, in the Flatbush neighborhood of Brooklyn. This short film offers a peak into the new restaurant only four days after opening.