Now in Production
Frei Otto: Spanning The Future
This documentary will profile internationally-renowned architect and engineer, Frei Otto. Half a century ago, Otto became world famous as a pioneer in the design of tensile structures made from metal armatures and lightweight membranes. Otto’s work includes the Mannheim Multihalle, the Munich Zoo Aviary, the 1967 Montreal World Expo German Pavilion and co-design of the 1972 Munich Olympics Stadium.
Despite his fame among top professionals in architecture and engineering, Frei Otto is little known to the public at large. FREI OTTO: SPANNING THE FUTUREintends to right this wrong. This 6 minute trailer will introduce you to Frei Otto’s remarkable life and his revolutionary body of work.
For Otto, the mission of architecture is to be harmonious with nature. He believes every detail needs to be in agreement with the laws of the universe. This attempt to reconcile development with the natural world makes Frei Otto a prophet to the modern field of sustainability. Frei Otto saw as a given, that the earth has limited resources and humanity has almost unlimited needs. To efficiently solve the problem of shelter in a climate of constant shortages, Otto combined scientific experimentation with his fertile artistic imagination. Frei Otto’s true contribution to architecture and structural engineering has only been appreciated with the perspective of time. Contemporary architects including Norman Foster and Zaha Hadid cite Frei Otto as having been a major influence on their work. They talk about Otto’s pioneering research on lightweight architecture; his early interest in the natural environment; his sense of social responsibility; and his foresight of the needs of the future. These elements—combined with Frei Otto’s compelling presence—have made him one of the most important architects of the 20th Century—and one of those whose ideas are still resonating in our own time. This trailer was produced by Simon K. Chiu, in collaboration with writer Michael Paglia, editor Heather Dalton, and Joshua V. Hassel serving as director.
Nuba Mountains, Sudan: Darfur Genocide Again?
While the summer heats up most of the U.S. the rainy season is in full swing in South Sudan and Sudan. Emmy Award-winning journalist Tamara Banks has just returned from her fifth trip to the region. There is excitement for the fledgling new country, South Sudan, but there is also tension, struggle and even violence in the area. This challenging trip in June focused on the bombings and starvation of the people in the Nuba Mountains. The Nuba Mountains are in South Kordofan, Sudan.
This preview offers a glimpse of Tamara's new program, NUBA MOUNTAINS, SUDAN: DARFUR GENOCIDE AGAIN? which will air on CPT12 in the future. For now, you can read Tamara's blog post:
"I have been a TV journalist for a little more than 20 years and what I have learned, among many other things is that Americans, the West in general, have short term memories and short attention spans.
What many of you will remember is the president of Sudan, Omar Al Bashir, was charged with war crimes in 2010 over the conflict in Darfur, becoming the first sitting head of state issued with an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
What I observed recently and documented on video in the Nuba Mountains is eerily similar to what occurred in Darfur.
Bashir’s government in Sudan is bombing the Nuba Mountain people, forcing them to hide in caves and foxholes. And he’s kicked out most NGO and humanitarian groups effectively starving the Nuba people. I saw hundreds of people, families with babies, walking hundreds of miles to Yida, a refugee camp set up in Unity State, South Sudan. There, the United Nations High Commission on Refugees is tending to the critical and dire needs of tens of thousands of Nuba people. The day I arrived there in early June, 1,250 people arrived as well. More than 55,000 had made their way to Yida by then and that number is expected to continue to grow in the coming days, weeks and months as thousands flee to safety.
I also videoed several babies and small children on death’s door suffering from malnutrition and diarrhea and old women drinking water from mud puddles.
My blogs on CPT12 will go in to more depth on this story. And in the fall when STUDIO 12 resumes, I’ll have a live guest panel, video and more information on this, one of the world’s humanitarian disasters."
Neal Cassady: The Denver Years
Neal Cassady was a charismatic, larger then life character. His charm, manic energy, sexual swagger, and free flowing verbosity made him the authentic ‘hero’ of the beat generation. He was introduced to the world as Dean Moriarty in Jack Kerouac’s classic, On The Road.
Now in production, NEAL CASSADY: THE DENVER YEARS will examine Cassady's humble beginnings in Denver Colorado.
CSFAC: A Modernist Pioneer
Built on the foundation of the prestigious Broadmoor Art Academy, the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center (CSFAC) carries the legacy of Colorado Springs’ arts and cultural heritage.
From the latter part of the 19th Century through the mid 20th, Colorado Springs was an artists’ colony that rivaled the scenes in Taos and Santa Fe. CSFAC: A MODERNIST PIONEER, an hour-long documentary and DVD with extras, will reveal the compelling story of the CSFAC’s history and how three dynamic women – Alice Bemis Taylor, Elizabeth Sage Hare and Julie Penrose – forged an art center that was unique at the time since it included a museum, art school and performing arts venue.
Opening in 1936, in a new building by architect John Gaw Meem that combined Southwestern vernacular architecture with the art deco style, the center became an immediate architectural landmark and home to acclaimed print and mural workshops. From the time of its opening celebration – where Martha Graham danced barefoot, and Alexander Calder designed the set for Erik Satie’s “Socrate” – the CSFAC has always been on the cutting edge. This was particularly true after WWII. With an influx of veterans who were students, the CSFAC once again led the region – this time as a nucleus for an abstract painting scene.
With a new, sensitive addition by architect David Owen Tryba, the CSFAC at 75 years old continues to embrace great art and to forge relationships with the art masters (Boardman Robinson, Lawrence Barrett, Frank Mechau, Walt Kuhn, Robert Motherwell, John Waters, Dale Chihuly, etc.) of the 20th & 21st Centuries.
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Watch Past Productions Online, Anytime
Allen True's West
As a young illustrator, Allen Tupper True forged a vision of the American West that was at once romantic and realistic. This CPT12 original production showcases the life and art of Colorado's foremost muralist, whose later work captured the character of a region in transition from wild frontier to the modern West.
Out of Order
Created by award-winning Channel 12 producers, OUT OF ORDER features an eclectic mix of profiles, commentaries and offbeat features as it takes a look at the Front Range from all angles. Designed to appeal to diverse audiences, the series' fast-paced approach offers viewers a dynamic collection of segments.
CPT12 Contacts
Joshua Hassel
Producer / Director
Heather Dalton
Producer/ Creative Services Manager
Tamara Banks
Executive Producer
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