Category: Academics

The Art of Seeing: An Interview with the Expert

1/14/2016

"The Milieu" Newsletter by N.M.

Here at New Summit Academy, the student body is blessed with an incredible opportunity to grow, make lifelong friends, learn new things and meet interesting people. In my time here, there is one who sets the bar of what it means to be interesting. His name is Stephen, a retired filmmaker and photographer who lives here in Atenas and volunteers his time at NSA to teach students The Art of Awareness, another name for photography class.

When he was 10 years old, Stephen saw a movie called The 10 Commandments, which sparked his interest in filmmaking and photography. "It was fascinating," Stephen said as he goes through some photos he took of other teachers for the New Summit Academy website. "It was then that I realized that I wanted to be a filmmaker." However, he didn't take that seriously until he got to college. At that point, the fraternity he was in asked him to take photos of events that were being held and according to him, this is what really got the ball rolling.

Throughout his life, Stephen has found that photography and filmmaking serve as his pathway to mindfulness and that these forms of expression are ways for him to stay in the moment. There's no better example of this then when he spent time in Vietnam. "I did a lot of dangerous shit when I was there," Stephen said. From spending time in firefights to hanging out of helicopters, there was always a chance of injury or death. Yet Stephen found that whenever he had his camera, none of this mattered. He had something that he calls "cinematic immunity". (Click "Read More"...)

Mark Fried: Translating in Sun and Shadow

12/18/2015

"The Milieu" Newsletter Article, written by K.M.

Here at NSA, students vote at the beginning of each quarter to determine a book that they will all read and discuss for the duration of the quarter. For Fall Quarter 2, students voted for Soccer In The Sun and Shadow, by Eduardo Galeano and translated by Mark Fried. The book goes in detail about specific positions, events, and players related to soccer. As part of the integrated reading program, students had an opportunity to interview Mark Fried about the book, Galeano, translating, and his personal life.
Q: What made you want to become a translator?
A: At first it was the desire to share what I learned from living in Latin America, especially the perspective I gained on my own culture. Later on, I found that translating allowed me to use my writing ability creatively, without having to face the greater challenge of coming up with my own content.

Q: How did you get into translating as a career?
A: I was asked by Galeano and his agent to take a stab at translating “We Say No,” a collection of his speeches and journalistic writing. I liked it, they liked me, and we were off. I have done document translation sometimes to make money, and I am paid for the books I do, but I have never made a living at translation. I had too many other interests, and did translation on the side. Only since retiring from my day job two years ago have I worked at translation full time. And literary translation rarely pays well enough to support a family.

Q: What were your first impressions of Galeano?
A: My first impression was from reading “Open Veins of Latin America”. I thought he was a genius. Meeting him face-to-face, my first impression was that he was charismatic, gracious and kind. That proved to be true.
(Click the "Read More" link...)

The Art of Seeing: An Interview with the Expert

Mark Fried: Translating in Sun and Shadow

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