August 20 – August 25 Our indiegogo fundraising campaign is now over but the filming of this movie will continue until the end of summer and probably a bit beyond that. A new website for the film will be up soon. Washington Heights is truly undergoing a Renaissance; Nutcracker Inc. captures that magic, energy and verve and immortalizes it. Our mission is to put this neighborhood in its proper light. Having grown up here and lived through the worse, I feel personally obligated to tell our story and tell it right. With that said, thanks to our crew, our supporters and all the people that have helped to make this movie. To stay abreast of what is transpiring with the movie please check out www.NutcrackerInc.com. The photographic exhibit Faces of Hope is a series of stark and searing portraits of people that have survived and eventually thrived over tragic circumstances. The man behind the lens is none other than the super talented Jay Franco. In an accompanying book, Ankita T. Pandya and Pie Soto tell the stories of the people behind the portraits. The opening reception will take place on Saturday, September 8th at Le Chéile (839 West 181st Sreet). This week we also posted an ode to my mother on her birthday. It was such a hit that we complimented it with a look at my mother’s old-school Dominican apartment in the 190’s on Wadsworth Ave. It still looks much the same way it did when I was a kid, kitsch knick-knacks, Catholic Saints on standby, plastic covering on the furniture and a delicious food always waiting in the wings. Organic Magnetics premiered Ghosts of Manhattan, a live installation at Fort Tryon Park in early August. The walk-through theater experience animated an interactive history of the island through music, dance, design and storytelling. Don’t forget folks, Global music icon, Alicia Keys will be at the 92Y to talk with Jonathan Tisch on Monday, September 10th. The best part is that Uptown Collective readers get a 50% discount on select tickets by using our special UPTOWN promo code. In addition we ran a thought-provoking article by our wellness contributor, Eileen Z. Fuentes on the business of Breast Cancer. You will never look at those ubiquitous Pink Ribbons the same way again. Keep checking us out at www.uptowncollective.com. Led Black Editor-in-Chief The Uptown Collective The UC’s mission is to become “the” definitive, transformative and community-based force impacting the arts, culture, business and New York City’s overall perception of Upper Manhattan. Its objective is to reset, reboot and positively redefine Uptown’s artistic, political, cultural and business spheres via the online space as well the collective’s initiatives and functions.
