After screenings in Miami, New York, Baltimore and Boston, the outdoor house music dance documentary HANDS TO THE SKY is ready for its Harlem debut this Saturday, May 25th at MIST Harlem Cinema.  If you’re familiar with DJ Stormin’ Norman’s thumpin’ Sundae Sermon dance parties in Morningside Park during the summer, you’ll understand the idea behind this film – to capture the vibe, and the feeling experienced when you bring together party people with beautiful House music outdoors.  “Hands to the Sky” executive producer Domingo Canate describes the film as “the uplifting and spirited experience of the outdoor House Music movement.”   Check out the preview video below.

Production company My House Rocs dedicated the last two years following the outdoor House music dance scene at parks and beaches, from Coney Island to Fort Greene Park to Harlem, and various public spaces in New York and New Jersey. The uplifting House music soundtrack for “Hands to the Sky” was scored and compiled by writer/arranger Erik Talbert, and the film features interviews with dancers, event promoters, DJs and performers who share their personal experience in the scene. I had the pleasure of co-writing the theme song for Hands To The Sky with Erik, as well as producing the Freedomsound “Harlem Late Night Dub” remix of the song for the film.

Come out and see “Hands to the Sky” this Saturday, May 25 at MIST Harlem Cinema, 46 West 116th Street, New York, NY.  Showtimes for “Hands to the Sky” are at 7:00 PM and 8:30 PM, and the after-party will feature Basement Boys producer Teddy Douglas (Crystal Waters “Gypsy Woman), Andre Collins and film producer/DJ Kervyn Mark.  Admission is $25.00 for the screening plus after-party or $15.00 for just the after-party. Tickets are available at www.MISTHarlem.com.

Hands to the Sky Production Credits

Domingo Canate        Executive Producer

Angelo Boyke             Director, Editor

Kervyn Mark              Producer

Erik Talbert                 Composer

Jean-Paul Noel          Co-Director,  Producer

Wendy Arimah           Associate/Literary Producer

Chris Hunt-Walker     Associate Producer

Hands to the Sky also features such House Music progressives as trailblazing vocalist Carolyn Harding; the British-born founder of Harlem’s Sundae Sermon dance party, DJ Stormin’ Norman; DJ Wayne Williams, noted for bringing disco to Chicago’s South Side and founder of Chicago’s Chosen Few (an elite corps of deejays) and Rican Vargas, a.k.a, “The Commander in Chief” of The Coney Island Dancers, a volunteer organization whose mission includes promoting tourism to Coney Island.

The new cut of “Hands to the Sky” adds an on-camera Interview with DJ Jeannie Hopper, whose enterprising “Liquid Sound Lounge” includes a long-running show on WBAI-FM and parties that transcended “no dancing allowed” policies in New York clubs in the 90’s by taking her beats to the water; and a discussion of the contributions of Newark, New Jersey (Mayor Cory Booker makes a brief cameo) to the house music scene with Anthony Smith, Project Manager of the Newark Municipal Council, who is instrumental in the annual Lincoln Park Music Festival – A Celebration of Spirit and Dance – an outdoor event that draws close to 50,000 visitors every summer.

The Harlem Resonance Spring Festival is in full swing at Symphony Space on 95th Street and Broadway featuring music, literature, film, and stage/dance performances in April to May 11, 2013.  Check out the full schedule, or browse specific events of the festival which celebrates Harlem culture, past and present.

Harlem Resonance at Symphony Space

• From the classic music of Duke Ellington to the new sounds of Wycliffe Gordon;
• From the literary giant Langston Hughes to his compatriots Claude McKay, Georgia Douglas Johnson, and Ann Petry, as well as contemporaries Sapphire and Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts;
• From the world of Zora Neale Hurston in the 1920s to our world explored by Eisa Davis today;
• From the dynamic dancers from the Ailey and Dance Theatre of Harlem Schools to the dazzling Harlem Quartet and jazz ensembles from Harlem School of the Arts;

About The Film:

Changing Face of Harlem is a film told from the voices of longtime residents, business owners, politicians, developers, and clergy about the dreams and struggles of a neighborhood. The film explains Harlem’s intricate history so you can comprehend the complexity and height of emotions that Harlem citizens express today. If you weren’t aware, Harlem is undergoing a huge rebirth and revival just like many other urban communities of color. Identified as The Black Mecca, the birthplace of the renaissance, and also depicted as a crime-infested ghetto, Changing Face of Harlem takes a critical look at how Harlem has undergone its present transformation.

If you’re looking to step out tonight, why not start your evening at the Harlem Stage Gatehouse where film director Terry Carter’s acclaimed documentary on Duke Ellington, “A Duke Named Ellington,” will light up the screen at 7pm.  Harlem Stage Gatehouse is located at  150 Convent Avenue and 135th Street. Tickets are available online.

A DUKE NAMED ELLINGTON
Date: Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Time: 7:00pm
Venue: Harlem Stage Gatehouse
Price: $10 General / $8 Members

A documentary that examines the 1989 case of five black and Latino teenagers who were convicted of raping a white woman in Central Park.

After having spent between 6 and 13 years each in prison, a serial rapist confessed to the crime.

See larger image The Central Park Five: A Chronicle of a City Wilding (Hardcover) By (author) Sarah Burns List Price: $25.95 USD New From: $6.96 In Stock Used from: $3.88 In Stock Release date May 17, 2011.

A new Harlem renaisiannce is here. One featuring a new wave of people living in harlem, an increase in the amount of attention being paid to Harlem, and utilization of new technology to showcase the richness of the community and it’s residents and visitors.

Speaking of which, some new residents are using the latest crowsourcing technology Kickstarter to promote an award winning movie they are making about Harlem, “Welcome to Harlem”.

Storyline

“Marty Blackstein, a young man of the new 20-something generation, after realizing that most of Manhattan today seems to be less about art and culture and more about money and corruption (and realizing that he can no longer afford this realization) decides to take a chance and move uptown to Harlem (151st st), NYC. Once there, he finds a sea of friendship, love and adventure enveloped in music, dance, grit and one of the most unique neighborhoods (and even more unique blocks) on the planet, and quickly learns that Harlem is not quite what he expected…”

Video Introduction

Website

http://www.welcometoharlemthemovie.com/

Kickstarter Campaign

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/154481486/welcome-to-harlem-the-movie-musical-comedy?ref=live

Please let us know what you think of the project and if you decide to fund it (or not) and why.

The 2012 Harlem International Film Festival will kick-off on Wednesday, September 19 at 7pm, when Kevin Iega Jeff and Gary Abbott’s dance company Deeply Rooted Dance Theater will present a live performance before the premiere of Theodore Collatos’ film MOVE at the Schomburg Center in Harlem. Tickets: $20

The five day Harlem International Film Festival (Hi) will bring attention to filmmakers from around the world, and the festival’s Harlem Spotlight will highlight films produced or directed by Harlem residents, films shot in Harlem, or films about Harlem and Harlem history.  Tickets are available with a $10 donation at the MAYSLES CINEMA box office on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, & Friday, 12 – 6 pm.