EDWIN CRUZ age 21 // san Diego, CA

"From the day I stepped here I began making some realizations about my work that I hadn't before. The information coming from an experienced filmmaker is valuable and helpful to young filmmakers. Our work becomes better, we understand our work and ourselves better, and it becomes clear what it is we're trying to do. NeXt Doc helped me make these realizations."

KEVONTÉ ANDERSEN age 22 // Nashville, TN

“NeXt Doc has been very helpful in solidifying my progression as a filmmaker. I just finished my first film and the people I’ve met here have challenged me to grow and expand my own application of storytelling. After Next Doc I was inspired to get right back into editing my film and working to make it better.”

SHRIEN ALSHABASY age 19 // Queens, NY

“I learned so much from each of the filmmakers, they were so different style-wise but they are successful, and it was cool to see how different filmmakers approached telling a story, I was really inspired by that.”

RICARDO AMPARO age 18 // Baltimore, MD

“My favorite part was the masterclasses. I also liked sharing ideas with other filmmakers here at Next Doc. I learned a lot of information that I’ll apply to my daily life and as a filmmaker working in a production company.”

ADEN SUCHAK age 19 // Albany, NY

“The experience has been amazing, we’re in an awesome place, the vibe of the area is amazing. When you get into a close contact with people who are doing the same of what you’re doing, is very inspiring, it elevates your ideas. You always need something to get you back on track, sometimes you lose a lot of motivation, this is the perfect thing to get you more energy.”

MAYA TOOLE age 21 // Brooklyn, NY

“When I heard film intensive I thought I would be working with equipment, and cameras, but it was completely different. We talked about process, we talked about the overall experience of making a film, which was more helpful than learning things that you can learn on your own, like the hard skills.”

NORIYOSHI NEEDLE age 18 // Worcester, MA

“NeXt Doc is teaching me how to develop my own style, giving me the basic foundation of how to tell a story and all the steps to making a film. I’m really excited to absorb all this information and see what comes out.”

SIERRA WILHOIT age 18 // Ithica, NY

“The program is really good, I’ve learned a lot about how to make a doc, how to start your story and how to get an idea and elaborate from there. Next Doc inspired me because I saw that there are people actually doing this, and encouraging me to continue the work i’m doing as well.”

MALIK MITCHELL age 20 // Harlem, NY

“Having a diverse group was really helpful. When we watch each other’s work, we see how everyone has their own style, because they see films in a different way, because they see the world in a different way. You also learn that you have a lot in common with people from different backgrounds and I really appreciate that Next Doc has this diversity and it gives us the chance to get to know each other.”

CRYSTAL KAYIZA age 22 // Brooklyn, NY

“I loved the opportunity to learn in a different space and interact with people from different places. I've been through film school, so it's nice to take time off to relearn a lot of things and review the skills that go into my craft. The Carey Institute is really beautiful and a really inspiring place to learn.”

TAYLOR TAGLIANETTI age 18 // Brooklyn, NY

“I was expecting to learn a lot, but I learned so much more than I thought I would, and I am so impressed that we were able to fit in so much in these four days. It was an inspiring and once in a lifetime opportunity to learn from such accomplished filmmakers.”

MICHAEL MEJIA age 22 // Albany, NY

“NeXt Doc provides something crucial which is a community of fellow filmmakers. The lectures are more engaging to creating your own pieces, to get funding, techniques, investigative journalism, it’s really cool. And to receive mentorship from one another and not feel isolated as a filmmaker was very crucial.”

JESSE RODKIN age 20 // Buffalo, NY

“I had an amazing time at NeXt Doc! The Carey Institute campus was great, the guest speakers and their screenings were great. I would call this weekend sublime because it was entirely eye opening and it was exactly what you expected it to be. To learn directly from great filmmakers like Sam Pollard, was truly and incredible privilege for me.”

NeXt Doc Organizing Team

BHAWIN SUCHAK, Youth FX Program Director

Bhawin is an educator and filmmaker who works with digital media as a tool to further expression and connection. In 2008 he founded Youth FX, an award- winning digital film and media arts program for young people in the South End of Albany, NY, and is currently the executive director. Bhawin directed the award-winning feature documentary, The Throwaways (2014) and Free to Learn (2004) along with producing short documentaries that have aired on PBS. Bhawin is currently in production on his third feature documentary titled Outta The Muck.

DARIAN HENRY, Youth FX Assistant Director

Darian is a talented cinematographer and director and one of three youth founders of the Youth FX program. Darian’s goals as a filmmaker is to create content: documentary, narrative or experimental films that offer perspective into a world, a mind, a way of life, that has yet been represented by mass media. As an artist, she aims to provoke thought, encourage community dialogue and bring forth ideas of other possibilities while also challenging the status quo.

VERONICA MEDINA-MATZNER, Filmmaker

Originally from Brazil, Veronica Medina-Matzner holds degrees in Film, Cultural Journalism, Documentary Studies and an MA in Media Studies from The New School. She has vast experience working across the film industry, including production, editing, and distribution, and has worked with an extensive list of artists and internationally renowned companies and organizations such as Cinereach, Film Movement, Ashoka Youth Venture, and Barefoot Workshops.

REBECCA PLATAL, Carey Institute Programming Manager

Rebecca Platel is the Sustainable Communities Program Manager at the Carey Institute for Global Good. She holds a degree in Urban Planning from SUNY Albany and an MS Urban Affairs from Hunter College. Her work at the Carey Institute focuses on cultivating community-scale strategies for a sustainable and just society. She believes that storytelling is critical to this process and is thrilled to be able to work with the next generation of documentary filmmakers through NeXt Doc.

About the Organizations Behind NeXt Doc

NeXt Doc was developed as a collaborative project of the Carey Institute for Global Good in Rensselaerville NY, and Youth FX, based in Albany, NY.

The Carey Institute for Global Good is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2012 by Wm. P. Carey and is dedicated to making the world better by contributing to a strong, educated and just society. Through its programs, the Institute strives to bring together innovative and dynamic people from around the world to seek creative solutions to the mostpressing challenges of the day.

Youth FX is an intensive hands-on program, based in the City of Albany, that is designed to empower youth aged 14-19 by teaching them the technical and creative aspects of digital film making and offering a thorough overview of the production process from script to screen. Our primary mission is to work with a diverse groups of young people from communities that have been historically under-served and in need ofopportunities for training and engagement in emerging media technologies. Youth FX develops leadership, creativity, and critical thinking, through the collaborative process of digital filmmaking and media production.

Thank You To Our Supporting Organizations

Our mission is to gather a diverse community of youth filmmakers at The Carey Institute's beautiful 100- acre campus in upstate New York and provide an inspiring week of learning, sharing and creating. Youth FX is committed to amplifying the voices of people of color through digital filmmaking and storytelling and we especially encourage filmmakers of color and women to apply.