A Real New York Premiere
Neighborhood activists in anti-Stadium t-shirts loudly applauded every on-screen victory. Meanwhile, representatives from New York unions showed continued support for the other side with chants of “Build it! Build it!”All in all, it was a very New York filmgoing experience. By the end of the evening, after the filmmakers exhorted the crowd to “let the healing begin,” members of the opposing factions were seen shaking hands and finally agreeing to disagree.
Both Sides Now
New York natives Benjamin Rosen and Jevon Roush make their directorial debut with A Stadium Story. Roush was in favor of building the stadium while Rosen was decidedly against it. During a Q & A with the filmmakers after the premiere, Roush explained, “Our angle was to tell both sides.”The film itself is an entertaining look at the complex worlds of New York politics, real estate, and government bureaucracy. The audience is first introduced to the neighborhood activists who seek to protect their community from being destroyed. Later, we also come to sympathize with the New York union officials who support the Stadium project as a source of badly-needed jobs. Throw in Mayor Bloomberg, Cablevision, and the star-studded New York bid for the 2012 Olympics and you’ve got quite a story.
An Entertaining Look at a Polarizing Issue
The directors do a very capable job telling a complicated story in an entertaining way. The clever use of music, movie clips (including “West Side Story” naturally), and candid interviews helps to interject humor at just the right moments. And the real-life New York characters in this film are far more memorable than those in most Hollywood blockbusters.Get tickets to see A Stadium Story: The Battle for New York’s Last Frontier.
More New York films at the Tribeca Film Festival
