I’m happy to share that my new short film, Privately Owned Public Gardens, is complete and will begin its festival journey in 2027.
New York City is full of spaces that appear to belong to everyone but are, in fact, privately owned. Gardens, plazas, and small pockets of greenery offer a respite from the noise and density of the city, yet their openness comes with conditions. Someone decides when they open, when they close, what we can do there, and who is welcome.
Privately Owned Public Gardens is an experimental essay film exploring the uneasy relationship between public space and private ownership. Through observational imagery, fragments of conversation, and poetic narration, the film considers how architecture, nature, and invisible boundaries shape our experience of the city. What does it mean for a place to be public when access to it is ultimately controlled by private interests?
