Romania took hold of my heart in 2015 and since then has consumed my mind and soul. As with any genuine commitment, my relationship with this beautiful, complex country has grown and deepened over time as I have learned of its many tragedies, as well as its many triumphs. I have surrendered myself to Romania. [...] As I continue my Romanian journey, I marvel over the resiliency and fortitude of the people. I am fortunate to have developed close relationships, familial in many ways, with many Romanians. And I am eternally grateful to have been granted a Fulbright and honored to become part of this amazing community.
Exit Strategies, Volume 5
U.S. Fulbright Scholar David Gracon continues his dialogue-driven series “Exit Strategies: Critical Dialogues and Alternative Media” with an event showcasing U.S. Fulbrighter Bronte Stahl’s short films.
Volume 4: A DocNomad: The Documentary Short Films of Bronte Stahl (Presentation in Person with Q/A)
Date/Time: Wednesday, April 24th, 2024, 18:00-19:30 (Romania/Bucharest Time)
Location: T Building, Room TP8, Transilvania University of Brașov (25 Eroilor Boulevard)
Participation is open to the Brașov community and beyond.
Description (presentation in person, only): Bronte will be presenting the following three short documentary films which will be followed by a question-and-answer session.
👉 Puiet (2022) / Italy, USA, Romania / 14 minutes
directed by Bronte Stahl and Lorenzo Fabbro
As a boy aspires toward adulthood, he looks to his natural surroundings to imagine a place for himself.
👉 15 Frames from Now (2022) / 18 minutes / forthcoming
The sights and sounds of the immediate surroundings of 32 filmmakers in 22 countries comprise the material in “15 Frames from Now”, resulting in an intimate composition exploring domesticity, isolation, anxiety, and solace.
directed by: Bronte Stahl, Elijah Stevens
edited by Bronte Stahl, Elijah Stevens, Amir Shams
👉 Terril (2019) / Charleroi, Belgium / 13 minutes
The geography of the otherwise flat city of Charleroi is defined by slag heaps – hills formed from the waste material from coal mines. Filmed entirely from these terrils themselves, the film weaves large-scale industrial tragedy with the poeticism of ecological rebirth through a data-driven narration in which the terrils are the protagonists.
Bio: Bronte Stahl (1993) is a filmmaker from Westerly, RI, USA. He graduated from the European itinerant MFA program DocNomads and is an alumnus of the Flaherty Seminar Fellowship, IDFA Project Space, Eurodoc and Points North Fellowship. The films he directs including Puiet (2022), Terril (2019) and Lungs (2017) have premiered at festivals such as Venice Critics Week (Best Short Film), Rotterdam and DocLisboa, respectively. As a producer, he is compelled to elevate emerging international voices in non-fiction cinema. This work has been supported by the Sundance Documentary Fund, DocSociety US, British Film Institute, and LEF Foundation, among others. His first feature as a producer, Rejeito (2023) by Pedro de Filippis, premiered at Cinéma du Réel and screened at HotDocs, Camden, IDFA and many others. Currently he holds a Fulbright scholarship to Romania in the field of filmmaking.
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Series Description: This speaker series features a combination of critical media scholars, artists and activists. It entails talks, conversations, media screenings and performances that examine historical and contemporary issues related to critical media theory and active media practices happening in the world. The series reinforces the importance of independent and alternative media that functions outside the dominant media systems in search of new ideas, inspiration and critical thinking skills necessary for a democratic, humanizing and interesting society.
This dialogue driven series is open to both the Transilvania University and greater Brasov, Romania community.
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Programmer Bio: Dr. David Gracon is a U.S. Fulbright Scholar and visiting professor of American Studies/Communication at Transilvania University located in Brasov, Romania with a project focused on critical media literacy education. His research/creative and teaching interests include critical media literacy, the political economy of media, alternative media and documentary film. He was previously a Fulbright Scholar in Ukraine (2017-2018) and has served as a faculty member at Eastern Illinois University and Gonzaga University. He is currently developing an educational startup: Media Literacy Access Initiative (MLAI). His film and video works have been screened at the Chicago and Seattle Underground Film Festivals and at 50+ other venues.
For more information/Contact: davidgracon@gmail.com
👉 Critical Dialogues and Alternative Media » Fulbright Romania
👉 Exit Strategies, Volume 2 » Fulbright Romania