Breathe
New York, US
The determination and rigorous mindset of the first woman to swim two consecutive laps around the Island of Manhattan while battling with her mental illness.
In 1983, Julie Ridge became the first person to swim two consecutive laps around the Island of Manhattan (earning her a guest appearance on the David Letterman Show). Now living in Manhattan and working as a clinical social worker with over 25 years of experience, she dives into her memories of struggling with bipolar. BREATHE explores her relationship with marathon swimming and how the water has aided her along her journey.
Directed, produced and filmed my own short documentary (BREATHE)
-2022 NYU DOC Festival official selection -2022 NBR student Grant winner
-Nominated for the UFVF/KODAK Grant.
Banyan Studios
Williamsburg, NYC
Recording & Art Installation
The Noguchi museum
Queens , New York City
My Past Project
Woman In the Window
Brooklyn, New York City
Self Portrait
Kalamos, Pelion, Greece
During the end of February, I shot a short abstract film in relation to myself and spearfishing. This was a difficult task as I had no extra help and relied on interesting techniques to accomplish certain shots needed for the story to make sense.
Equipment used:
Camera: Sony a7sii
lenses: 24-105 and 16-35
Sound recorded from iPhone
Diverged Bonds
South Africa
During the Month of June 2019, I was given the chance to participate in a wildlife documentary filmmaking internship in South Africa. Here is the film I directed, filmed and edited throughout my time there.
The internship in which I participated in took place in a small town called Mosell Bay on the south coast of South Africa. The footage used within the short film was however filmed at the Schotia Safaris, Private game reserve near Port Elizabeth. We spent 10 days filming out in the bush camp, an area within Schotia. We lived among the lions and could hear them roar close to us most nights.
The film is about the bond between humans and animals and how we need to reconnect with our original design before we lose the species surrounding us. I tried to achieved that by having the animals and character used in the film to look straight into the camera or at each other.
I used a combination of the Sony A7S and Sony S100 and a drone depending on the situation. It was my first experience filming wild animals. I chose to do a more artistic experimental documentary short film compared to my colleagues who chose documentary blue chip – I really wanted to convey my message cinematically and visuals speak for themselves.