Documentary Directing and Producing

“The Other Side of the Water”

Producer/Director - Feature Documentary on a Haitian rara band in Brooklyn.  Acquired for PBS Broadcast, January 2011.  Awarded grants from Brooklyn Arts Council and Independence Community Foundation. Official selection of Urbanworld Film Festival, Hollywood Black Film Festival, Africaworld Documentary Festival, Caribbeantales Film Festival, and others.  (2008)

Time.com

Freelance Video Journalist - produce and edit news stories for the multimedia site of Time Inc. (2010-present)

Carnegie Hall

Producer/Editor - create artist interviews and documentary content for Carnegie Hall website. (2008-present)

“Composer Portraits”, and “Composer Journeys”

Producer/Director - The Composer Portraits are a series of more than a dozen short documentary portraits of contemporary jazz and classical composers, produced in conjunction with the American Composers Orchestra, and screened at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Hall and Philadelphia’s Annenberg Center. “Composer Journeys” was an experimental documentary following two composers as they create new orchestral works.  “Chapters” were posted on YouTube in real-time, and two documentaries were screened at Carnegie Hall during the live concerts.  (2006-present)

“MTV’s True Life” – Gigantic! Productions

Field Producer - Coordinate and shoot 24P DV verité production for MTV documentary series for Gigantic! Productions, New York (2005 to 2006)

“The Cause of Pierre Toussaint”

Producer/Director - Documentary short produced for the Interfaith Center of New York on the life of a 17th Century Haitian entrepreneur and former slave who is being considered for sainthood in the Catholic church. (Winter 2004)

“I Promise I Won’t Break Stuff”

Producer/Editor – Dance-film collaboration with choreographer Shanti Crawford.  Screened at Dance Theater Workshop and PS122. (2004)

Additional Selected Freelance Clients: 

1. -LVMH Moët Hennessey Louis Vuitton Inc.
   

2. -Fund for the City of New York
   

3. -The New York State Department of Correctional Services
   

4. -La Troupe Makandal
   

5. -Center for the Study of Brooklyn
   

6. -Brooklyn Linkage to Care Coalition
   

7. -The College Initiative
   

8. -Interfaith Center of New York
   

Director of Photography:

“History Detectives” (Lion TV)

Shot interstitial segments, and second-camera for mystery-style history show for PBS broadcast (2006)

“Great Minds” Series - Hartley Film Foundation

DP-Shot 24P DVCPRO50 for documentary series on leading religious and philosophical thinkers (2005)

“I Promise I Won’t Break Stuff”

Producer/Editor – Dance film collaboration with choreographer Shanti Crawford.  Screened at Dance Theater Workshop and Performing Space 122. (2004)

TBS Tokyo Television

News segment on New York City Ballet, in anticipation of company’s Japan tour (2004)

Additional Production and Post-Production

"POV’s Borders"

P.O.V./American Documentary, New York, NY

Editor, Curriculum Designer - Worked on Final Cut Pro editing experimental documentary for P.O.V.'s web series "Borders."  The series can currently be seen at http://www.pbs.org/pov/pov2002/borders.  (August to December, 2002 )

“My American Dream” [formerly “How Democracy Works Now”]

Camerini/Robertson Productions – The Epidavros Project, New York, NY

Associate Editor – Working on Final Cut Pro 3, CatDV, and File Maker Pro to organize the post-production of a documentary series on immigration policy and the democratic process.   (June-September, 2003)

"Live from Downtown"

Downtown Community Television, New York, NY

Floor Manager/Camera Operator- Worked in various roles for award-winning live studio show highlighting avant-garde dance, theater, music, and performance poetry.   (March 2002 to May 2003)

“Postcards from Buster”/ WGBH

Field AP – Associate Produced live-action documentaries for hybrid animation/documentary program on PBS. (2004)

“Drapo Libete”

Director/Editor – Music Video for Haitian Roots band Djarara – featured on national cable broadcast of “Democracy Now!” with Amy Goodman (2004)

Teaching and Youth Media

Workshop Instructor

DOWNTOWN COMMUNITY TELEVISION (DCTV), New York, NY

Teach technical workshops in Cinematography, Final-Cut Editing, Lighting, Sound, HD Production, Producing Fundamentals, Documentary Ethics.  (2004 to 2009)

Educational Coordinator and Project Director

HARLEM CHILDREN'S ZONE, INC., New York, NY

Advise and manage a comprehensive arts-based youth development program.  Responsible for designing one-on-one case management and academic support systems, staff hiring and training, and development of video, mural, media literacy, and writing curriculum.  (October 1998 to 2004)

Youth-Media Video Instructor

T.R.U.C.E., PRO-TV, Educational Video Center

Lead documentary projects with New York City public school students ages 11-19 focusing on media literacy, social justice, job skills, cinematography, and editing. (1998-Present)

Workshops and Talks

Columbia University Teacher’s College:  Holistic Youth Media Program Design (2002)

At Alliance for Community Media: Team Building in Youth Media (2003)

Partnership for After School Education (PASE):  Integrated Arts-Based Program Design (2000)

Citizens’ Committee for New York / The Door:  Youth Media and Social Activism (2001)

Articles

“Urban Visionaries Youth Film Festival: Youth Media Comes of Age.” In the Independent Film and Video Monthly (June 2003)

“Ocularis Screening Series: Cinema’s ‘Autonomous Zone’ in Williamsburg.” in the Brooklyn Rail (November, 2003)

Education:

University of Chicago, BA Sociology 1998

Jeremy Robins is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker and media educator. After a decade in youth development field he began his documentary work at POV, where he edited and designed curriculum for "POV's Borders" (2002), a web-based documentary exploring migration and adolescent identity. Since then, he’s worked as a field producer for MTV’s True Life, and has worked as a Director of Photography on shows for PBS and the Hartley Film Foundation.  His first feature documentary “The Other Side of the Water” – following the 20-year journey of a Haitian processional band in Brooklyn - screened in festivals around the world and was broadcast on public television in 2011 as a part of the National Black Programming Consortium’s series Afropop.  He currently produces news pieces for Time.com, and freelance work for clients including American Composers Orchestra and Carnegie Hall.  As an educator, he teaches production classes at Downtown Community Television (DCTV), and leads award-winning documentary projects with public high school students around New York City.

BIO / CV