Brandon Harris – författare

A young African American millennial filmmaker’s funny, sometimes painful, true-life coming-of-age story of trying to make it in New York City—a chronicle of poverty and wealth, creativity and commerce, struggle and insecurity, and the economic and cultural forces intertwined with "the serious, life-threatening process" of gentrification.Making Rent in Bed-Stuy explores the history and sociocultural importance of Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn’s largest historically black community, through the lens of a coming-of-age young American negro artist living at the dawn of an era in which urban class warfare is politely referred to as gentrification. Bookended by accounts of two different breakups, from a roommate and a lover, both who come from the white American elite, the book oscillates between chapters of urban bildungsroman and a historical examination of some of Bed-Stuy’s most salient aesthetic and political legacies.Filled with personal stories and a vibrant cast of iconoclastic characters— friends and acquaintances such as Spike Lee; Lena Dunham; and Paul MacCleod, who made a living charging $5 for a tour of his extensive Elvis collection—Making Rent in Bed-Stuy poignantly captures what happens when youthful idealism clashes head-on with adult reality.Melding in-depth reportage and personal narrative that investigates the disappointments and ironies of the Obama era, the book describes Brandon Harris’s radicalization, and the things he lost, and gained, along the way.

A minute-by-minute analysis of Steven Soderbergh's film The Limey (1999), examining its innovative narrative and editing techniques, as well as its thematic explorations of revenge, regret, and memory.This book provides a nuanced and insightful exploration of this all-too-overlooked film in the career of one of contemporary American cinema’s most ubiquitous and indefatigable directors. Delving into Soderbergh's groundbreaking narrative style, which seamlessly intertwines past and present, it illuminates the film’s meticulous editing and groundbreaking storytelling techniques. Central to the discussion is the portrayal of revenge and regret, explored through the film’s distinctive structure, and its meditation on aging - of the actors in the film, the archetypes they represent, and American Cinema itself. Brandon Harris contextualizes The Limey within Soderbergh's broader oeuvre and its unique position in late-1990s American cinema, offering readers a compelling interpretation that underscores the film’s enduring impact and critical significance. The Limey: Movies Minute by Minute not only sheds new light on a deserving film but also provokes a wider conversation about an under-appreciated work from one of the modern masters of American Cinema. It is a book for cinephiles, for those fascinated by the craft of filmmaking, and for anyone who believes that some of the most profound artistic statements are often found in the most unexpected places.