ACE

Upstate Alliance for the Creative Economy

CAPNY

The Team Behind the CapNY Brand

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This week, the CapNY Regional Brand Initiative was launched. The ACE team and partners have been at the forefront of this effort for over 5 years, when we first began connecting amazing places and people in all 8 counties of the Capital Region. It’s your stories, conversations and connections that built the CapNY brand. Here’s the ridiculously creative talent that built CapNY:

  • Rachel Dunn led our very earliest ACE Roundtable discussions in 2018, where we first posed the question, “What is this place, and do you like it here?” Hundreds of people from all 8 counties weighed in, and your outpouring of comments – and love for this place — formed the basis for the CapNY brand. Rachel then envisioned and led the formation of the CapNY brand with our stupendously generous partners, Fingerpaint, Overit and Collectiveffort. You can see the story of the CapNY brand here. The fact that three marketing / branding firms from three different counties worked together with a project manager as talented as Rachel is exactly what makes the Capital Region special. Our depth of talent is remarkable, and it’s why we are truly CAPable of aNYthing.
  • Gabby Fisher – who is now Associate Director of ACE! – served as Senior Producer of the CapNY website, and will continue to spearhead the social media and newsletter development for the CapNY brand. Gabby managed and oversaw the development of a hundred articles, and worked with dozens of writers, technicians, photographers and more, to give the site its vibrant, authentic feel and sleek, clean look. And, she did all of this in just six months, which is nothing short of amazing. A serial entrepreneur, Gabby’s co-mads (new site coming 4/19) and Capital Heart Connection projects are unmistakable evidence of the power of the next generation of talent in Capital Region. CapNY is designed to shift the region’s focus and power to leaders like Gabby. NOW. Not twenty years from now. 
  • The project leads of our agency partners who gave their hearts to the development of the brand: Patrick Harris and Jamel Mosely (collectiveffort), Bill McEllen and Andy Spitzer (Fingerpaint), Michelle Dinsmore (Overit), and the amazing teams who created soooo many iterations of this brand, to finally arrive at the absolutely perfect one.  
  • Our dozens of talented, up-and-coming writers and collaborators, SEO editor Barbara Price, and our lead technician Rachel Holt of Reach Creative
  • Our earliest and strongest advocates, who had the vision to see what we were doing when this was just a kernel of an idea: Jeff Buell of Redburn Development, Dan Nolan of Graypoint LLC, Chet Opalka, and Ellen Sax of MVP Health Care. Hundreds of people helped, but these four people turned the tide and moved mountains for us.
  • Corey Aldrich of 2440 Design Studio, who has thrown his entire self into every one of our 40+ ACE events. Those events formed heart and soul of what’s culminated in CapNY and so much more ahead.

Also. ACE is aware of the inadvertent problems that can occur when a region takes its eye off of the people who live here, and focuses its efforts on attracting and courting outsiders. This was made clear by consultant Meredith Powell during our “Lessons from Austin” event in 2019. Meredith said something that sticks in our heads to this day – “Dance with who brung ya.” In other words, don’t forget the residents who made the region great in the first place. We’re committed to telling ALL of our stories, both new residents and old. Because you built this place. And you’re amazing.

A million thanks to all of you, for showing the world what the Capital Region is made of.

-Maureen Sager, Executive Director, ACE

5 Film Industry Professionals To Watch in CapNY

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These 5 film industry professionals may not be famous (yet), but they’re making incredible work right here, right now, in the Capital Region.

The Capital Region is just three hours from New York City, a global hub for filmmaking. However, even though the Capital Region regularly hosts television shows and movies, we’re more often sought for cast and crews. This lack of understanding of our depth of talent has hurt our local filmmakers. Often, it drives us to work outside of the area, to New York City, Boston, and even Los Angeles.

Many local filmmakers have chosen to live in the Capital Region despite the challenges. These 5 film industry professionals may not be famous (yet), but they’re making incredible work right here, right now, in the Capital Region.

1. Lakota Ruby-Eck, Cinematographer

Leading off our list of 5 film industry professionals is Lakota Ruby-Eck, an Albany-based director of photography (DP) and assistant camera operator (AC). He became a filmmaker by accident, when he found himself in an advanced video class in high school. Then and there, he fell in love with cinema. After graduation, he attended school for broadcast communications, finding film school was too expensive. Lakota also worked at the Spectrum 8 Theatre in Albany. He would watch and study as many free movies as possible. There, he met other local filmmakers and eventually ended up working on their sets. “Being on set is my favorite thing ever,” he said. “It feels like a family.”

Video games often inspire Lakota’s cinematography. “Video games are now informed by film,” he said. “Even the lighting in games is heavily informed by cinema.” Lakota would love to work on a video game adaptation, especially System Shock of Bioshock. Advising new cinematographers, Lakota says, “Always be prepared to learn. There are so many different kinds of gear and every DP has certain things they like.”

You can contact Lakota and find his work on his website.

2. Victoria Diana, Writer/Director/Comedian

Victoria Diana is a writer, director, and stand-up comedian born and based in Schenectady, NY. She attended SUNY Oswego, planning to study archaeology. She ended up working at the university television station as an anchor and director. Victoria realized she didn’t like the news, but she loved news writing. Eventually, she directed tape sketches and interned in Los Angeles for a summer. There, she edited sizzle reels and did script coverage.

Her career brought her back to Schenectady after college where she worked as a PA on The Pretenders. Later, she found work in New York City, staying with friends or family during gigs. She hoped to move to NYC, until she realized that the high cost of living would keep her from creating her own content. Instead, she moved back to Schenectady and focused on her writing full-time, taking side jobs to pay the bills.

Victoria’s Prizes and Festivals

Victoria’s first film, The Cabinet, is a short horror film that made it into multiple festivals, including the Adirondack Film Festival in Glens Falls.

Recently, Victoria completed her second film, Devour, starring Kelli Barrett (Dickinson, Netflix’s The Punisher) and Andrea Morales (Prodigal Son, The Blacklist, Bull).

Victoria won $40,000 through the Innovation Group of CNY Art’s Short Film Competition Grant. Although the film had to be based in Syracuse, a significant portion of the crew were based in the Capital Region.

You can watch her latest film, The Cabinet, and see some of her comedy on TikTok.

3. Aden Suchak, Writer/Director/Educator

Aden Suchak is the Director of Education at Youth FX. He’s also an independent writer and director. Aden was a born storyteller. He adds, as a kid, “I had no interest in sitting down in one place.” Youth FX was originally a summer camp. There, Aden was given the freedom to make a lot of mistakes. “The thing that made me a filmmaker,” he said, “is the opportunity to do so. Just be a filmmaker, just do it. It should be normalized and have more support.” Aden regularly watches foreign films for inspiration. He explained that many classic films don’t tell modern stories. They don’t tell stories about women or people of color. His favorite filmmaker is Wong Kar-wai. He said, “We need a new visual history to replace the old ones.”

Aden’s Albany-based Filmmaking

Aden recently finished his short film, Driver, with collaborator Mohammed Al Shaneif. Driver centers around a Syrian driver who plans to meet his family in Toronto. The entire cast and crew of the film, other than one person, was based in the Albany area. Aden and Mohammed won a grant from the Scout Film Festival to complete the film. “[I want] to make films about the local community, both set in and also starring people from the area. I feel really connected to a lot of those stories and that’s where a lot of my writing comes from. This film came together through our friendship and our relationship.” Aden says that his first feature will also be shot in Albany.

You can follow Aden on Instagram and see his work on Vimeo.

4. Kenna Hynes, Director/Cinematographer

Kenna is a director and cinematographer who moved to Upstate New York 5 years ago. She originally studied orchestral music performance for the French horn, but later moved to Chicago to study cinematography at Columbia College. Her goal was to become a union camera operator. But, she met a group of musicians, leading her to make tour videos and tour documentaries. Since then, Kenna has joined a few bands and started working on music videos as well. After fatefully meeting members of Chromoscope Pictures at Little Pecks in Troy, Kenna has collaborated with them, directing music videos for local musician, Half Waif.

Many filmmakers say yes to every opportunity, but Kenna explained that being selective is okay. Her advice? “Only work on the projects you want to work on, with the people you want to work with. You don’t have to live in a big city to make amazing art or find people to make art with. Follow a path that works for you.” Kenna’s dream project is to create a narrative feature that’s impactful and uplifts marginalized voices.

You can find more information about Kenna on her website, follow her on Instagram, and see one of her latest videos.

5. Cameron S. Mitchell, Director/Cinematographer

Cameron grew up in Michigan and graduated from Temple University with a degree in film and visual anthropology. Now, he lives in Albany with his three cats, Mickey, Prince, and Nugget. Cameron started working professionally as a swing grip on the series Restaurant Impossible.  From there, he worked as a rental technician in New Jersey, networking his way to working on other productions including Molly’s Game, Iron Fist, and The Romanovs.

Accessibility for Actors with Disabilities

Cameron felt naturally attracted to filmmaking. Both of his parents are documentary filmmakers. His interest in telling stories about people with disabilities arises from both his father and sister living with disabilities. His latest film, Co-Op, is about a grocery store robbery that doesn’t go as planned when the thief realizes that many of the shoppers are people with disabilities. Co-Op made it to over a dozen film festivals worldwide, including Slamdance. The film will stream on Hulu.

According to Cameron, casting people with disabilities is not as difficult as top casting directors make it out to be. Cameron often casts people who are non-actors. He says, “How can non-actors become part of a story about themselves?” When it comes to advice, Cameron also attests success to becoming comfortable with failure. “It took me 10 years of sitting back in the DP seat and observing other directors do the thing I wanted because I wanted it to be perfect when I did it.” 

You can find out more about Cameron S. Mitchell on his website and watch the trailer for The Co-Op.


Written by: 518 Film Network

Local filmmakers Michelle Polacinski and Micah Khan began the 518 Film Network in the beginning of 2020. 518 Film Network’s mission is to empower and connect the local Capital Region filmmaking community in order to collaborate on new content and inspire outside productions to hire locals when they choose to film in our area. Find out more information on their facebook page.

CapNY Coworking Spaces: Urban Co-Works, Schenectady

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Since popping up as one of CapNY’s first coworking spaces, Urban Co-Works has become a second home for lots of local professionals who choose to make this downtown office the hub for their hustle. 

The Neighborhood

Set in the heart of Schenectady – at the corner of quaint, little Jay Street and the city’s main corridor State Street – this fourth-floor space features grand views of the downtown district, including a large conference room overlooking the historic Proctors Theatre marquee. This spacious, open office has character, namely a friendly life-size skeleton called Skully that greets visitors upon arrival.  

The Space

Inside, there are chances to meet real live humans as well. “We love the open concept and the ability for people to mingle, get to know each other, do business with each other,” Urban Co-Works CEO Jeff Goronkin said. 

Depending on their desired level of social interaction, members have many options for where to work: solo desks, large community-style tables, cozy lounge chairs or soundproof phone booths for privacy. Private offices, like the one with a giant reminder to “Be Awesome Today,” are available, too.  

Vibe / Community

Throughout all of Urban Co-Works, the atmosphere is calm, clean and super quiet – except when there’s a lively networking opportunity happening at the on-site event space.  Urban Co-Works is also a place for play. Schenectady-based gaming company, Gaming Insomniacs, hosts its eSports league here on a regular basis for some serious gaming fun. 

Membership is diverse and eclectic; include professionals and business in tech, banking, health care, medical innovation, mental health services, sustainability consultants, affordable energy developers, business and product innovators, and Guatemalan chocolate.

The Basics

Membership in coworking spaces generally includes a wide range of perks.

Says community manager Kristen Guastella, “We try to provide as much as we can to members, of course, other than just the Wi-Fi and the comfortable chairs.”

At Urban Co-working all members access 24/7 key card entry, high speed (FIOS) internet, printing, lockable storage, indoor bike storage, restrooms, a kitchenette and complimentary coffee, tea and water. 

Memberships are scaled to professional needs: from a one day pass, 5 or 10 days per month flex memberships or private offices all have access to use of a conference room with Bluetooth, television and video accessories. For those in need of private space, Urban Co-working offers affordable fully furnished offices by the month, suitable for up to 5 teammates, a business address, and on-site office support plus all the basic benefits.

Ambition Coffee and Eatery

For the coworking foodie, Urban Co-Works has plenty of nearby eateries to explore, for take out or delivery all within walking distance. Breakfast or lunch at quirky coffee shop Ambition, tea time at the Whistling Kettle or a hearty Italian meal at Johnny’s are just a few spots on this adorable, pedestrian-only section of Jay Street.

What’s YOUR favorite coworking space? Send us a DM on social media! @upstatecreative

Connect with Urban Co-Works

Address: 433 State Street, in downtown Schenectady.
Website
Phone: (518) 290-7203
FB / IG

#CapNYRedAlert: Sarah Craig, Caffe Lena

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Caffe Lena’s Sarah Craig, courtesy the Daily Gazette

Caffe Lena is widely recognized as the oldest continuously-operating folk-music venue in the United States. Over 60 years of operation in the heart of Saratoga Springs, its stage has hosted luminaries including Bob Dylan in 1961 and Sawyer Fredericks in 2014. We checked in with Executive Director Sarah Craig to find out how this gutsy little venue is faring during the Covid challenges, and were not surprised to find them bravely weathering these unprecendented ups and downs.

Hot Club of Saratoga, courtesy of Sarah Dobies

The Pivot From Mainly-Live to Totally-Online Performances

Right now, Caffe Lena is not a “live performance venue;” technically, we’re a “broadcast studio.” Therefore, we’re an essential business. We were able to qualify for that designation because we’ve been live streaming every performance for over six years now. So we went into the shutdown in a much different position than many performing arts venues. Even though we’re very small and very DIY, we had the infrastructure to be a virtual venue the day the shutdown started. That’s meant that we’ve been able to hang onto our staff, and have given work to dozens of regional artists by producing live shows on our stage almost every night since mid-March. Also, the launch of the Caffe Lena School of Music coincided with the start of the pandemic. We pivoted to virtual group lessons for kids and adults, and the school is growing and growing.

A live studio audience at Caffe Lena, courtesy Sarah Dobies

Has Caffe Lena had any attendees at these performances?

As a broadcast studio, we’re allowed to have a live studio audience. This is very different than having a show — there’s a very small, prescreened audience that arrives with their masks on, and they’re taken to their seats. They’re there to applaud and lend atmosphere to a performance. It’s been WONDERFUL for the performers to get that immediate feedback for their performance. But last week we decided to dial it back to essential-personnel-only in light of the Covid numbers creeping up. We’re all frustrated about having to pause–not just the music world, but all industries–but nobody wants to risk going through this again so we’re playing it super safe.

This is a tough question, but what is the financial picture like?

We have virtually no earned income right now. We have not sold a ticket since March 13. But the generosity of the public has been astounding. People have made it clear that they really want us to continue creating work for musicians, and keep the Caffe Lena legacy intact. Our only earned revenue is tuition from the Caffe Lena School of Music – it’s a mission project, to teach the next generation the culture of folk music.

Our live streams feature a prominent virtual tip jar. It really works, because everybody wants to keep the music alive! They’ve been generous with the tip jar, which we split evenly with the performer. Most times they cover our direct production costs, sometimes not. The tip jar isn’t enough to pay all the bills, but because of a couple of very successful fundraising endeavors we’re definitely hanging on and we have no plans to stop streaming live shows. In fact, we’re looking at ways to add even more programming.

How are you, the staff, the board and the performers faring through these challenges?

This is our 60th anniversary year – what a great year for an anniversary!

A pre-Covid performance by Steel Wheels

For the venue’s first 57 or 58 years, it was an organization that just got by. Living close to the bone was a source of pride. It wasn’t until our board of directors said that this organization is incredibly vulnerable that we hatched a plan to stabilize finances and create an organization that could weather hard times. Thank heavens we turned things around before Covid hit!

But the bottom line is that we are all in this for the love of music and a deep commitment to serving the community in keeping with folk music values and traditions. We are fine living close to the bone again until this crisis passes, and there’s no sense that “we might not make it.” In fact, although we miss our audience and so many of our out-of-state bands with all our hearts, we’re mostly feeling blessed that we can still be a full-time music producer at a time when so much of the live music industry is shutdown.

As long as we can just keep putting on shows, we are satisfied.

For more on Caffe Lena, go to CaffeLena.org. Address: 47 Phila St, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. (518) 583-0022.

3 CapNY Thrift Shops for the Socially & Economically Conscious Consumer

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A Newfound Appreciation for Thrift Shops

Growing up, I was not much of a thrift store person. We were a Kohl’s Cash, JCPenney’s clearance sales, and Old Navy Super Cash household with the mentality that we wore clothes until they wore out. Style wasn’t much of a priority. But as I got older and needed to both build up my personal fashion sense and pay for those clothes myself, I looked to thrift shops. I found that buying secondhand items online is a good way to save money on fashion too. eBay is a popular site for this and savvy shoppers will be flocking their as soon as they hear about the additional savings they can make by using discounts and promo codes from sites like Raise – discover more here so that you too can purchase quality items at lower prices.

It’s very easy to become enthralled with glitzy Instagram accounts and unboxing videos from fashion influencers, but fast fashion is unsustainable both environmentally and ethically. So, I developed two criteria for seeking out these thrift shops:

  1. Finding local thrift shops that directly benefit the community
  2. Choosing thrift shops that catered to my budget

Just like anything else, where you buy things and where that money goes matters. To that end, here are 3 thrift shops located in CapNY that fit the bill.

My Top Pick

  1. Style Encore
    (22 Clifton Park Rd. #78, Located in Clifton Park Center)
    M-S 10:00AM-8:00pm, Sun 11:00AM-5:00PM
    518-630-5730

Style Encore is a locally owned and operated franchise that also encompasses other second hand shops in the area, including Plato’s Closet, catering more to brand name clothes for teens and young adults and Once Upon a Child, which carries kids clothing. Earlier when I said to choose thrift shops that fit your economic need, a place like Style Encore is what I mean.

With the boutique-ification of thrifting, some stratifications of access have emerged to appeal to different markets. When you begin to think about your fashion philosophy, be honest with yourself. Consider your impact. If you’re buying second hand and used clothes, not because you need to but because you want new looks and would like to cut costs and move away from fast fashion, Style Encore fits the bill.

What brought me to Style Encore was the fact my post-university job at a nonprofit paid about $36k after taxes. At about $20/hour and around $1100 biweekly, that first check pretty much got eaten up by rent, utilities, car insurance, and my health insurance premium. A good portion of the second check was taken up by consumables and fun stuff with the barest trickle going to savings. I lived in a relatively low-cost area and did not have student loan or major credit card debt.

I am listing the financial factors that were a part of my fashion philosophy, not saying this to tell you how you should budget your money.  Everyone’s cost-benefit calculation is a personal judgment. Transparency in financial decisions can de-stigmatize the perception of wealth and can empower other people to make more informed purchasing decisions for themselves.

Style Encore fit my economic needs because:

  1. Most pieces I was attracted to were priced between $5.00-$25.00, around what I was willing to purchase for new, except with the added benefit of lowering my environmental impact. 
  2. Some brands that would otherwise not be accessible to me new, I could find there used and in a perfectly serviceable condition.     
  3. While the majority of my wardrobe is practical and utilitarian, I like owning a fresh statement piece each year for specific events, to be retired usually after being photographed wearing them a couple times. 

Here’s what I left the shop with:

For a complete summer outfit that really popped, I found these shorts that actually fit my waist and butt at $8, plus a racerback style top in a beautifully vibrant, boho print that held at my neck with a mandarin-style collar for $12. It was floaty and light, perfect for a warm day throwing axes.

The real prize was a Calvin Klein bodycon black dress for $25. I absolutely slay in this outfit. I have now worn it to a big birthday bash and a Valentines dinner. It is the outfit I use to convince my often fawning audience that thrifting is both a desirable and more sustainable styling option.   

Need some caffeine after slaking your thirst for the hunt?

Located in the same shopping center, Uncommon Grounds is a local institution with specially sourced and freshly roasted coffee, accompanied by the best bagels you will get north of NYC.

Other Socially-Conscious Thrifting Spots

2. For Pete Sake-A Thrifty Place
583 New Scotland Ave, Albany 12208
M 11:00AM-3:00PM, W-F 10:00AM-3:00PM, S 10:00AM-2:00PM
518-525-1107

For Pete’s Sake is operated by St. Peter’s Hospital right across the street. It actually used to be in its basement like an underground Macy’s with everything from prom dresses to home goods.

I got these small yellow baking dishes for a dollar each and got both these clear tea cups for a dollar.

Shortly after moving to Albany from California for grad school, I was looking for things to set up my new home. My roommate was from Georgia and didn’t even have a good coat for the impending wet and windy autumn. We washed up at Pete’s Sake like lost souls in need of supplies and boy did it deliver.

3. Second Chance Thrift Shop
1229 Central Ave., Albany 12005
T 10am-2pm, S 10am-2pm

This thrift shop is a fundraising venue for The American Italian Heritage. Museum & Cultural Center in Albany. They have a steep collection of clothing of all kinds – including a boutique room with higher end items. In the back room, they have endless jeans, all for $4 each. As one person who wrote a review said, “You have to see it to believe it.”

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