Editor's Desk

For information about our Editorial Team, please visit the Masthead http://independent-magazine.org/about/bios/.

New Horizons of Virtual Reality: Exploring Utopia Through the Evolution of Second Life

New Horizons of Virtual Reality: Exploring Utopia Through the Evolution of Second Life

Annie Berman, named one of The Independent’s ten filmmakers to watch (2016), is a media artist living and working in New York City. Her background in photography and psychology inspires work about visual culture, virtual realities, and the changing media landscape. Her films, videos, performances, and installations have shown internationally including at the Museum of Modern Art’s Doc Fortnight, Rooftop Films, Galerie Patrick Ebensperger Berlin, Kassel Hauptbahnhof, and the Rome Independent Film Festival where she was awarded the Best Experimental Film Prize. Recently,  Annie spoke with The Independent’s editor about her newest VR project—an exploration of the possibilities and limitations of virtual reality through the aftermath of Second Life.

New Documentary on Historic “Rumble in the Jungle” Boxing Match
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New Documentary on Historic “Rumble in the Jungle” Boxing Match

The Independent’s Editor speaks with Gnimbin Ouattara, Associate Professor of History and International Studies at Brenau University on his new documentary Ali, mbomayé’s. The film centers on four African people who vividly remember the 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle” fight in Zaire, where Muhammad Ali, former heavyweight champion, defeated George Foreman, the undefeated world heavyweight champion in a knockout.

 

 

On Art and Healing

On Art and Healing

The Independent’s editor speaks with Ricardo Bouyett, filmmaker, writer, and photographer of the new short No Love For Fuckboys. The film, which won “Best Experimental Short” at the Short To The Point International Film Festival, is an exploration—at once personal and more broadly social—of the intricacies of navigating dating, friendship, love, and desire after the trauma of sexual assault.

New Documentary Shines a Light on Brooklyn Teenager Miasia Clark
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New Documentary Shines a Light on Brooklyn Teenager Miasia Clark

The Independent catches up with Yvonne Michelle Shirley, creator of the new documentary, Miasia: The Nature of Experience. The film, which featured at BlackStar Film Festival, chronicles the life of Brooklyn teenager Miasia Clark as she navigates her everyday world and prepares to present at the first ever Black Girl Movement National Conference. Miasia is joined in this effort by members of her activist group, Girls for Gender Equity.

 

(Dis)Ability in the Work of an Australian Filmmaker
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(Dis)Ability in the Work of an Australian Filmmaker

The Independent speaks with gough, a screen writer, director, and producer based in Australia. gough, who is legally blind, runs the successful company Beernuts Productions, which has produced a variety of documentaries, shorts, and other media content. Here gough reflects on how his disability informs his work and comedy.