Newark Arts recognizes DreamPlay for over a decade of creative media that “illuminates voices, stories, and dreams”
Event photography by KB Visuals.
”We honor DreamPlay Media with the Community Artist of the Year Award for creating platforms where voices matter, stories soar, and joy becomes visible.
DreamPlay Media: Impactful creative media and storytelling with soul
DreamPlay Media is a socially-minded creative media agency, film production company and digital media publisher. DreamPlay became active in 2011, co-founded by brothers Igor Alves and Yuri Alves, first-generation immigrants from Brazil, born to Portuguese parents, who grew up in the Ironbound section of Newark – a city they have championed for over 30 years. In the decade and half since, DreamPlay has arguably become the leading, most prolific storytelling and filmmaking group in the greater Newark area.
On the way to completing close to 1000 projects, DreamPlay has earned the trust of clients, partners and anchor institutions, aiming to elevate expectations (and procurement) around locally-produced, “world-class storytelling.” The company has also won over two dozen industry awards, from video to photography, from web design to graphic design, from film to technical craft.
The DreamPlay Media Journey
In 2013, working from their home studio, Igor, Yuri and a small team created their seminal projects: the “Meet in the Ironbound” city tourism campaign and the “A King’s Love in Newark” Dr. MLK Jr. celebration short films. Since then, key projects include the “20 Stories of Strength” campaign with Prudential, the “Newark 350” city anniversary campaign, and the “Welcome to Your New HQ: Newark” business attraction initiative, as well as work with Nike, Red Bull, NJ Devils, AeroFarms, and Samsung Next.
DreamPlay has been especially committed to spotlighting artist-led projects in Newark, including the “Gateways to Newark” mural on McCarter Highway with Newark Downtown District, “Four Corners Public Arts,” with Project for Empty Space, “Murals for Justice” with Rutgers University-Newark, the “Newark Artist Collaboration” with Audible, the “Harriet Tubman Monument Project” with the City of Newark and Mellon Foundation, and most recently, the “Newark Landmark Sign” with Newark’s tourism agency.
”We recognize DreamPlay as a creative force dedicated to illuminating voices, stories, and dreams that might otherwise go unseen.
Newark Arts
DreamPlay TV Newark: A Deep Investment in Local Cinematic Storytelling
In 2018, DreamPlay took their arts collaboration further by partnering directly with and featuring local artists, poets, dancers and musicians, when they launched a city-inspired, cinematic storytelling hub: DreamPlay TV | Newark: DreamPlay.TV now features 100+ powerful visual stories, performances and films. Notable original series include “DreamPlay Sessions,” “Upgraded,” “One Take Poetry,” and “Artist at Work.”
The platform has represented a massive investment of resources for the small company: its cumulative pro-bono project spend now exceeds an estimated $600K, while DreamPlay’s total pro-bono work, primarily committed to projects performed in Newark, is nearing $1 million.
Beyond this, DreamPlay’s local ecosystem contributions include hiring over 100 people across various projects, hosting over 20 local college interns, helping to kickstart the Newark Office of Film and Television, being a founding community partner at Express Newark – Community Media Center, and organizing 8 memorable film screenings, including at CityPlex12 Cinemas, Sport Club Português, and the Newark Museum of Art.
DreamPlay Films: Award-winning New Jersey Stories Worldwide, including Festival and Emmy® Honors
The company’s DreamPlay Films division, creatively spearheaded by co-founder Yuri Alves, has produced sixteen award-winning short films, almost all filmed in Newark, and has earned close to 30 festival awards and dozens of selections worldwide. Notable titles include: GRIND, On the Cusp, Echoes of Fado, and Broken Clouds.
During the pandemic period of 2020-2021, DreamPlay produced four unforgettable concert films with the New Jersey Symphony: “TRANSCEND” and the “EMERGE” trilogy. The films premiered on NJPBS and streamed nationwide on PBS; and along with GRIND, won 2 Emmy® Awards and 4 Emmy® Nominations in the Mid-Atlantic Region.
More recently, DreamPlay Films produced, “BLACK MOSES RISING: The Making of the Harriet Tubman Monument in Newark,” and “LIBERATION: Poetry Films Inspired by Harriet Tubman,” each earning 1 Emmy® Award nomination in the NY Region.
”In a world saturated with noise, DreamPlay act as curators of clarity, turning dreams into visual narratives, bringing cultural depth to the screen, and uplifting underrepresented perspectives through media.
Newark Arts
All the while, DreamPlay has developed several narrative feature film scripts and film projects. This includes a 15 years-in-the-making effort, led by Yuri Alves, to complete a feature length documentary set in Newark, titled “Paint the Rust.” The film is in the finishing stages after thousands upon thousands of hours of dedication to this stunning film, particularly from Yuri. “Paint the Rust” is a visceral testament to Yuri’s love for cinema and to his fellow artists and dreamers from Newark. The film is currently in consideration at the Sundance, SXSW (South by Southwest) and Berlinale film festivals, among others.
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