A founder of the New York production company Cicala Filmworks, Schaefer's films have premiered and won award s at festivals such as Berlin, the Hamptons, and South by Southwest, and been successfully released theatrically, via cable outfits such as HBO and the Sundance Channel, and on DVD. In the past five years he has written, directed and/or produced eight feature films, among them "My Last Day Without You" (2011), "First Lady" (2011), the Maui-set comedy "Get A Job" (2010), "The Hungry Ghosts" (2009), Olaf Johannesson's "The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela" (2008), "Arranged" (2007) and "Confess" (2005). On these and other projects, he worked with Academy Award winner Melissa Leo, Ali Larter, Emmy winner Michael Imperioli, Zoe Lister-Jones, William Sadler, Nicole Beharie, Ken Duken, and many more. In addition to his work at Cicala Filmworks, in 2009 Schaefer founded Silver Shepherd Films with writing and producing partner Christoph Silber ("North Face", "Goodbye, Lenin"). Silver Shepherd focuses on international co-productions, with their first project being the forthcoming "My Last Day Without You." Recent award s include: Grand Prize for Best Film at the Skip City Int'l Film Festival in Japan (2008), the Teddy Award for Best Feature Film at the Berlin Int'l Film Festival (2008), Best Film at the Brooklyn Int'l Film Festival (2007), Best Film/Audience Award s at the Berkshire Int'l Film Festival and the Washington Jewish Film Festival (2007), Best Screenwriter at the Hamptons Film Festival (2005), Grand Prize in Digital Filmmaking from Panasonic and Apple (2004), and the New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Screenwriting (2003). Schaefer and his family split their time between Park Slope, Brooklyn and Haiku, Maui.
Graduated from Wesleyan University.Studied as a Fulbright Scholar in Germany.Met Icelandic collaborator Olaf de Fleur Johannesson at the 2003 Berlin Int'l Film Festival, where they had both been selected to attend the first annual Talent Campus for emerging filmmakers.Met writing partner Christoph Silber in 2002, when Chris was hired by German producer Katrin Schloesser to rewrite a script he had optioned to her company Oe-Filmproduktion.
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Through interviews with leading historians, urban planners, and government officials, CONTESTED STREETS explores the history and culture of New York City streets from pre-automobile times to the present. This examination allows for an understanding of how the city, though the most well served by mass transit in the United States, has slowly relinquished what was a rich, multi-dimensional conception of the street as public space to a mindset that prioritizes the rapid movement of cars and trucks over all other functions. Central to the story is a comparison of New York to what is experienced in London, Paris and Copenhagen. Interviews and footage shot in these cities showcase how curtailing automobile use in recent years has improved air quality, mitigated noise pollution and enriched commercial, recreational and community interaction. Congestion pricing, bus rapid transit (BRT) and pedestrian and bike infrastructure schemes and looked at in depth...