Do It Yourself Ticket Acquisition

DIY is – for the most part – De rigueur in our household.

Common sense leads my family to make a number of choices that have dramatic impact upon our day-to-day living. For example we cook our own meals which means we plan, shop, prep, cook, consume and clean up after ourselves several times a day. We fix our broken light switches in the kitchen which means we sometimes go for weeks cooking in partial light until we get around to handling the broken switch. We scrape, prime & paint our own walls, we build our own loft beds, we take our own family portraits, we design & print our own holiday greeting cards; the list goes on. Sure it’s a pain and it takes up a lot of our time but there is something solid and wonderful about doing a task of our own bidding.

When the time came to make the step to secure tickets to the opera it was clear we were going to take the DIY approach. Calling in a subscription was much too simple, not to mention out of our budget. No, what we needed was a plan of attack. We had vision, obstacles & one goal in mind.

• Vision – holding tickets to the opera in my hand
• Obstacle – everyone else who wants tickets and who, like us, can’t afford a season subscription
• Goal – be among the first ten people in line at the Met when the box office opens August 15th at noon

Thus began a period of sweet anticipation and prep work as we gathered schedules, floor plans, box office notes, #Met Twitter feeds and Lincoln Center schematics to guide us. The calendar was marked, family members most affected by our opera obsession alerted & peace offerings made. Finally the weekend of the great acquisition arrived.

Jewish Hipsters in Training / or / My Latest Project

My latest project is a non-fiction film. Many have asked so here is the treatment. Production is well underway and first round grant proposals are submitted & under review. Watch for updates about clips to be posted on YouTube this fall.MMN

Creating Community (WT)

A non-fiction, short-form film

With the memory of bar and bat mitzvah parties faded into history, eleven teenagers who have basically one thing in common, a Hebrew School in lower Manhattan,  come to the realization that there is, indeed,  Jewish life after middle school.

An extraordinary group of ordinary teens attending diverse secular schools in New York City choose to study together beyond their bar and bat mitvah’s to prepare for a trip to Israel. This group soon realizes more than a trip is being planned; community is being forged. As they spend a year together learning and taking on adult Jewish responsibilities they face challenges none could have predicted or ever asked for.  This bonds them into a community that transcends race, class or level of religious observance. It is one where they support and strengthen each other as they make the transition into high school and early adulthood. Their work culminates in an extraordinary journey through Israel, a first visit for many in the group. Their lives, the lives of their families and those of the community around them are forever altered by what they have created together.

Photo by Scott Newirth

Noah, Sigal, Tiye, Jordan, Max, Noya, Lexi, Alix, Haley (David & Daniella couldn’t make the shoot)

This short-form documentary captures the essence of community these kids have forged on their own initiative and celebrates the rising generation of Jewish men and women who are the link for future generations to come.

Produced by MSM&A Productions