'Metroxical New York' Schedule at IDSFFK

Sax Player in New York City Subway

This was shot during our documentary film shoot about the Subway Music in New York City Times Square Stattion. Something about his pathos inducing note made us wanna obscure his identity. Think his name's Ahmed or something, couldn't quite catch it coz his voice was broken. He himself seemed a broken man and his music was haunting enough to prove it.

Filming & Photography in NYC Subways

A quick reference and a MUST-HAVE for filmmakers and Photographers filming in New York City Subways. Print out these two documents and put it on your camera-bag and just FLASH it when cops or MTA officials interrupt you. Many of them don't know that this exists.

1. NYPD Directive - On April 3, 2009, the NYPD issued a directive to officers stating that it is legal to take pictures within the subway system so long as it is not accompanied with suspicious activity.

2. MTA Rules of Conduct saying it's ok to film/photograph inside the Subway. Check out 1050.9.
LINK - http://mta.info/nyct/rules/rules.htm
Currently, the MTA Rules of Conduct, Restricted Areas and Activities section states that anyone may take pictures or record video, provided that they do not violate MTA regulations:

Section 1050.9 Restricted areas and activities.

Photography, filming or video recording in any facility or conveyance is permitted except that ancillary equipment such as lights, reflectors or tripods may not be used. Members of the press holding valid identification issued by the New York City Police Department are hereby authorized to use necessary ancillary equipment. All photographic activity must be conducted in accordance with the provisions of this Part.

Very handy documents. Source from Wiki.

Chasm in Time at the MIAAC film festival

Finally 'Chasm in Time' is having its premiere at the MIAAC film festival in NYC.
Venue: The Quad Cinema, 34 West 13th street, bet 5th and 6th Ave, Thursday, November 12th, 2009, 12 p.m (precedes feature film Air India 182)

RAINBOW KIDS YOGA!!

Life is a collection of awesome strings of experiences. I had this beautiful experience in the week of March 19-22, 2009 with a fun loving group of people at NYC. I came across Rainbow Kids Yoga when I was browsing for something interesting to do for the Siragu kids in India. You all know that the Siragu Montessori School is a free school with an alternative system of education for homeless street children in Chennai, SouthEast India.

When I came across their website, it took me only a few minutes to decide to take the teacher training course. The peace I felt when I met Gopala the first time was contagious. The other wonderful people who joined the training were all so energetic and loving. I could see their eagerness to learn and share their knowledge with the kids they'd go back to.
The playfulness of the group was inspiring and Gopala had brought out the child in all of us. We all left our adulthood outside and interacted with each other as kids. The atmosphere was filled with fun and learning alternating in a smooth flowing way.

We learned a lot of fun poses for kids and family and Gopala taught us to integrate yoga poses in the kids' stories and also gave us each 5 minutes to conduct a class of our own on the last day of training. Creativity flowed as each one of us got a hands on the teaching and the rest acted like kids trying to create a real atmosphere of teaching kids. It was fun trying to distract the teacher and trying to cope up with distracting kids and engaging them while the assignment was going on. It was so much fun! We laughed so much and enjoyed every single moment of the training. By the fourth day, even though we were exhausted, we went with the flow and did not feel it a lot.
I could go more and more about the whole experience but I think after all this learning, it is up to us to practice it and share it with the world outside. I intend to prepare a curriculum and teach the kids at Siragu School next time i go to India.
you can also see pictures here.

Event-Youth Career Fair - New York City

We recently went to a youth career fair conducted by Idealist.org aka Action Without Borders which is an interactive site where people and organizations can exchange resources and ideas, locate opportunities and supporters, connect with other people, organizations and resources and take steps toward building a world where all people can lead free and dignified lives.

In the youth fair, children from various schools could come and register in various non-profit and not-for-profit organizations for volunteering positions. It was such an inspiration to see children at such young ages interested in the welfare of the society around them. Some children had come with their teachers to the event and signed up for events in groups.

There were many large canvases where the attendees of the event could write positive and inspiring messages which was later being displayed in a Summit which the Mayor of NYC attended. Children were very eager to write and color their messages and happily painted some positive images.

The list of the organizations that participated in the event is as follows.

1. www.relightny.com

RelightNY’s mission is to inform and inspire people that the seemingly unachievable task of helping to protect the earth’s environment for current and future generations can be achieved collectively by the small but tangible action of changing a light bulb!

2. www.prospectpark.org

Prospect Park is a 585-acre urban oasis located in the heart of Brooklyn, New York City’s most populous borough. The masterpiece of famed landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, who also designed Central Park, Prospect Park features the 90-acre Long Meadow, the 60-acre Lake and Brooklyn’s only forest.

3. www.globalcitizencorps.org

Members of Global Citizen Corps:

• learn more about global poverty and how it links to other global issues
• exchange ideas and resources with other youth around the country
• talk with anti-poverty experts
• find new ways to take action
• build a powerful movement for change

4. www.actioncenter.org

The Action Center to End World Hunger uses hunger as an organizing symbol of poverty, helping to explain and illustrate the challenges that lay behind it, such as poor agricultural practices, inefficient markets, weak health and education services, environmental degradation, conflict, and lack of access to clean water. By identifying and highlighting these underlying issues, the Action Center seeks to generate the public will necessary to end hunger in our lifetimes.

5. www.mercycorps.org

Mercy corps believe in the intrinsic value and dignity of human life.

They are awed by human resilience, and believe in the ability of all people to thrive, not just exist.

They believe that all our spiritual and humanitarian values compel us to act.

They believe that all people have the right to live in peaceful communities and participate fully in the decisions that affect their lives.

They believe that human imagination and energy can inspire innovative solutions to any problem, no matter how intractable.

They believe that it is our duty to be effective stewards of the financial resources entrusted to us.

6. www.helpusa.org

HELP USA is a national not-for-profit organization with a mission to empower the homeless and others in need to become and remain self-reliant. Through the development of quality housing with on-site support services HELP USA provides resources for its residents to become independent and productive. We break the cycle of dependency by addressing underlying causes in a way that respects the dignity of those we serve. We help our clients help themselves. Living in a pleasant, safe environment elevates clients’ expectations for themselves, and motivates them to realize their full potential.

7. www.readnyc.org

READ employs one-on-one research-based reading instruction to prepare at-risk children to become proficient readers. READ recruits, trains and employs teens to teach reading skills to young children who are struggling with learning to read.

8. www.nysec.org

As an ethical culture community, this organization believes that:

• We are all part of something that transcends the individual experience
• We have responsibilities to each other, to the Society, and to the community at large
• We are enriched through our interconnectedness with others
• We find confirmation and validation of our own selves and beliefs through our interactions with others
• We derive strength through our relationships with others

9. www.humanesociety.org

The HSUS seeks a humane and sustainable world for all animals—a world that will also benefit people. They are America's mainstream force against cruelty, exploitation and neglect, as well as the most trusted voice extolling the human-animal bond.

10. www.cityyear.org

City Year seeks to:

• Help children succeed
• Build stronger communities
• Break down social barriers
• Develop young leaders
• Foster active citizenship

11. www.makeadifference.org

Make a Difference is now HandsOn Greater Phoenix which is a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization that empowers people to become engaged, take action and create positive change in their communities.

12. www.youth4peace.org

AFSC's work is based on the Quaker belief in the worth of every person and faith in the power of love to overcome violence and injustice.

13. www.volunteerNYC.org

The Mayor's Volunteer Center and United Way New York City are proud to present VolunteerNYC.org to serve the dual purpose of providing meaningful volunteer opportunities for New Yorkers and providing nonprofit organizations in New York City the opportunity to post their volunteer needs and publicize the services provided by their organizations.

14. www.milliontreesnyc.org

MillionTreesNYC, one of the 127 PlaNYC initiatives, is a citywide, public-private program with an ambitious goal: to plant and care for one million new trees across the City's five boroughs over the next decade. By planting one million trees, New York City can increase its urban forest—our most valuable environmental asset made up of street trees, park trees, and trees on public, private and commercial land—by an astounding 20%, while achieving the many quality-of-life benefits that come with planting trees. The City of New York will plant 60% of trees in parks and other public spaces. The other 40% will come from private organizations, homeowners, and community organizations.

15. www.justell.org

Just Tell visualizes a world in which children who are molested immediately turn to a trusted adult figure in their lives and tell them of the abuse. That trusted adult has information to help the child though the next steps so that the abuse is stopped and the abuser is prevented from harming other children.

In their vision, children do not have to bear the scars of unrevealed and repeated abuse, the consequences of which have been repeatedly shown to include higher-than-average rates of: drug and alcohol abuse, self-destructive behaviors, guilt and shame.

16. www.ncac.org

NCAC's Purpose is:

• To promote and defend First Amendment values of freedom of thought, inquiry and expression.

• To oppose restraints on open communication and to support access to information.

• To encourage, support and coordinate activities of national organizations in opposition to censorship.

• To encourage understanding that restrictions on the free interchange of ideas threaten religious, moral, political, artistic and intellectual freedom.

17. www.girights.org

The GI Rights is a coalition of nonprofit, non-governmental organizations who provide information to members of the military about discharges, grievance and complaint procedures, and other civil rights.

18. www.centeronconscience.org

CCW is a faith based organization that advocates for the rights of conscience, opposes military conscription, and serves all conscientious objectors to war.

19. www.yayanetwork.org

The Ya-Ya Network is a citywide anti-racist, anti-sexist organization and allies with the LGBTQ community. Ya-Ya is staffed by young activists ages 15-19. We work with other youth, adult allies, youth programs & activist organizations. We help groups & individuals connect. We share information & resources & we support the work that other groups are doing. All to build a stronger voice for young people in the movement for social & economic justice.

20. www.objector.org

CCCO supports and promotes individual and collective resistance to war and preparations for war.

21. www.vote.nyc.ny.us

The Board is responsible under New York State Election Law for the following:

• Voter registration, outreach and processing
• Maintain and update voter records
• Processing and verification of candidate petitions/documents
• Campaign finance disclosures of candidates and campaign committees
• Recruiting, training and assigning the various Election Day officers to conduct elections
• Operate poll site locations
• Ensure each voter their right to vote at the polls or by absentee ballot
• Canvassing and certification of the vote
• Voter education, notification and dissemination of election information
• Preparation of maps of various political subdivisions

22. www.childrenforchildren.org

Children for Children mobilizes the energy, ingenuity and compassion of young people, beginning at an early age, to discover their power and potential to solve real world problems through volunteer opportunities and service learning programs that instill a lifelong commitment to service.

23. www.18in08.com

Children for Children mobilizes the energy, ingenuity and compassion of young people, beginning at an early age, to discover their power and potential to solve real world problems through volunteer opportunities and service learning programs that instill a lifelong commitment to service.

24. Service We Trust.

Please take some time to go through the activities in the websites and try to make a difference TODAY! The world needs action from you...Today!!!

Preview Clip (2) - Men of Burden

Here's a re-post of the second preview clip.

Preview Clip (1) - Men of Burden

With our impending Exclusive NYC screening of "Men of Burden - Pedaling Towards a Horizon", on May 12th, 2007, at 5 p.m (at Aicon Gallery), we just thought it might be a good idea to re-post the Preview Clips.
For more Event Information, please click on Exclusive Screening.

Outrage: NYC Pedicab (Cycle Rickshaw) Regulations

NYC against alternative transportation? NYC against reduction of green house gas emissions? NYC council against a better tomorrow?
This is what we call purely outrageous. Can you believe it? NYC council has passed a regulation against the Pedicab (Cycle Rickshaw) industry on its streets owing to 'congestion' and 'safety standards'...whatever that means.
I just got off the phone with the man who pioneered the Pedicab Business and is still fighting the regulations of the NYC council - George Bliss. He needs the support of everyone who's for the pedicab industry. Just remember that there are larger ramifications if we don't fight this right now. Check out this article for more information - NY State Vs. NYC
Also check out Times Up, which is a New York City-based not-for-profit direct-action environmental group that uses events and educational programs to promote a more sustainable, less toxic city.
This is mostly due to the lobbying of the Yellow cabs/Medallion in NYC which are trying to suppress the pedicabs. Check out this video "Inclusively Green" which is an antidote to the video by the yellow cab lobbyists.
Images courtesy: http://www.streetsblog.org/2007/02/14/pedicab-rally-in-the-news/

This is especially disheartening because our documentary film "Men of Burden - Pedaling Towards a Horizon" is advocating the cause of Cycle Rickshaws (Pedicabs)
For more information, check out our website www.AccessibleHorizonFilms.com