Kurt Brokaw

Kurt Brokaw joined The Independent in 2010 as Senior Film Critic, covering New York’s six major film festivals and reviewing individual features and shorts of merit.  He was Associate Teaching Professor at The New School for 33 years, and has taught courses on film noir, early lesbian fiction and Jewish-themed cinema at The 92nd Street Y for 15 years. His memoir, The Paperback Guy, was published in 2020.

Two shots of Fox Rich from the movie Time
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New York Film Festival – Critic’s Choices

2020 New York Film Festival – For the first time in its 58 year history, Manhattan’s NYFF wasn’t shown in its  Lincoln Center home.  Senior Film Critic Kurt Brokaw watched it all online, reviewing his favorite narrative dramas, documentary features, and outstanding shorts.
The Apollo theater and 125th Street in the documentary The Apollo

DOC NYC Film Festival Nov. 6-15 – Critic’s Choices

America’s largest documentary film festival celebrates its 10th anniversary with 300 features, shorts and events, showing on 16 downtown Manhattan screens. Senior Film Critic Kurt Brokaw focuses on features and shorts set in and around New York City, selecting two shorts plus three features saluting The Apollo theater, rocker Lydia Lunch, and Cinema 5’s legendary exhibitor and distributor Donald Rugoff.