Congratulations to the 2007 Reach Film Fellows!  Nicholas Bruckman (SUNY Purchase '06), Suel Kim (NYU '06), Annie Waldman (NYU '07), and Pilar Zaragoza (NYU '08) will each receive $5000 to make their films in addition to production support, great swag from our sponsors, and a New York premiere and party.  Take a look at the FILMS page to read more about their projects, and check back for updates on their progress and information on how to apply for the 2008 Reach Film Fellowship.

Nicholas Bruckman recently graduated from the State University of New York at Purchase College, where he spent two years as general manager of the college television station, PurchaseTV.  Nicholas won the statewide SUNY Chancellor's award for his thesis film, Kashmir: Voices of Occupation, a documentary following victims of terrorism and state repression in the war-torn Himalayan Region.  His upcoming feature-length film, La Americana, is an intimate documentary portrait of an undocumented immigrant's struggle to reunite with her daughter in Bolivia.  La Americana will screen at the Angelika theater as part of the IFP Market in September and be sent to film festivals in the Fall.

Suel Kim is an alumnus of New York University's East Asian Studies and Film Departments. His most recent narrative short, Circles, is about a young man's struggle to overcome his insecurities and racist sentiments to realize true love. Kim's upcoming feature length documentary, Portrait of A Mother, is a personal and intimate story of a painter, daughter, and mother of two. Kim also has two feature length screenplays, one full-length play, and several short film scripts in his stable, as he aspires to entertain while bridging gaps and promoting a healthy dialogue between and within communities.

Annie Waldman, a New York based filmmaker, received her B.F.A. from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts in Film Production.  She has worked under several documentary filmmakers in the New York area and with several post-houses such as Orbit Digital and Technicolor.  Waldman's most recent work, Killer of Canaries (a narrative short about the release of repressed memories), is currently in the final stages of post-production and is set to be completed by November 2007.  A native of San Francisco, much of her work deals with themes of adolescence, nostalgia, and the tides of memory.

Pilar Zaragoza is dedicated to using art as a creative solution to problems. A native of the Philippines, Pia and friend Joahnna Te began Project Art(is)+, an organization that provides children living in developing nations the opportunity to benefit from the creation of art. After working with street children and children in conflict with the law, Pia was inspired to collaborate with them to create a documentary about their experiences.