Jerry Carlson has two intertwined careers, that of an academic and that of a maker of documentary films and television shows.

Academic career

Carlson is a specialist in narrative theory, global independent film, and the cinemas of the Americas. He is Director of the

Cinema Studies Film theory is a set of scholarly approaches within the academic discipline of film or cinema studies that began in the 1920s by questioning the formal essential attributes of motion pictures; and that now provides conceptual frameworks for und ...

program at the

City University of New York The City University of New York ( CUNY; , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven Upper divis ...

and is a member of the doctoral faculties of

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

, Film Studies, and Comparative Literature at the CUNY Graduate Center, where he is also a Senior Fellow of the Bildner Center for Western Hemispheric Studies. His current research is focused on how slavery and its legacy in the New World have been represented in film, literature, and music. In addition to his work at CUNY, Carlson has lectured at Escuela Internacional de Cine y TV (Cuba), the University of Paris, the University of Sao Paulo,

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

, and Columbia University.

Film and television

Carlson is also a producer, director, and writer for television and documentary films. Carlson created, produces, and hosts CUNY TV’s weekly movie showcase, ''City Cinematheque''. He created and produced ''Charlando con Cervantes'', a 40 part series of interviews with artists from Spain and Spanish America. He also created, produced, and hosted ''Canape'' about French-American cultural relations, and ''Nueva York'' (in Spanish) about the Latino cultures of New York City. He has produced more than 50 episodes of television dedicated to Latin American cinema and has been involved in the enhanced recognition of Cuban film. His work has won him a total of 9 New York Emmy Awards. Carlson is also a judge for the

New York Indian Film Festival The New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in New York City, and screens films relating to India, the Indian Diaspora, and the work of Indian filmmakers. The festival began in November 2001 and was foun ...

In regards to his own films, Carlson produced the Showtime Networks' ''Dirt'' (2003), which was directed by Nancy Savoca and ''Looking for Palladin'' (2008), which was directed by Andrzej Krakowski. He was inducted by the government of France as a Chevalier in the Ordre des Palmes Académiques in 1998.

Personal life and education

Carlson was raised in Dallas, Texas, where he graduated from St. Mark's School of Texas in 1968. He received his undergraduate degree from Williams College in 1972 and then earned his A.M. and Ph.D. at the University of Chicago. He is married to Deborah Navins.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carlson, Jerry American documentary film directors Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Williams College alumni University of Chicago alumni Graduate Center, CUNY faculty St. Mark's School (Texas) alumni