Athens (a poem)
Sorbonne
I’ve been accepted to Sorbonne University, Paris IV, for an MA in French Literature. Very excited.
This is propelling me to study 5-6 pages of Flaubert a day. The accumulation in vocabulary is making a difference already, and reading Flaubert is distinctly pleasurable for me, even compared to reading Camus. And Bergson fulfills the side of me that enjoys neuroatypical rhythms and volumes of language…
The Meadow
My student Eileen wrote this story last year when she was in sixth grade. It went up on “Stone Soup” today. I’d mentioned that just after she wrote this, I was in London and saw a fox from my balcony. Prophecy! Here’s an excerpt – please read all of it at https://stonesoup.com.
Acceptance to French Literature Programs
It’s been a long and detail-oriented past couple of years getting back into French, but I passed my C1 exam at the French Institute in December just a week or two after I returned from Athens (it was cutting it close, but I made it!), and then I got accepted to four French Literature Master’s programs: three at the Nouvelle Sorbonne of Sorbonne University, and one at Columbia University.
I’m still waiting to hear from Paris IV Sorbonne University, whose professors have given me some inspiring feedback on my research proposal, and where I hope to be accepted…
Regardless, the likelihood is that I will be studying Henri Bergson and Flaubert in French this autumn, thus merging my previous studies of cinema and literature. Excited, especially because I also expect that the script I’ve been working on for many years now will be completed before then.
self-portrait in car, august 22, 2020
Brighton Fourth
Very happy that my NYU film mentor, who I interviewed for “Cineaste Magazine” in 2020, recently won an award for Best Screenplay in an International Feature at the Tribeca Film Festival for “Brighton Fourth,” and that the film, directed by my classmate Levan Koguashivili, won Best Film and Best Actor in the same category.
I recommend the film, especially in light of the situation in Ukraine, which has been somewhat similar in Georgia (the film is about Georgian immigrants to Brooklyn). Please check out the interview I did with Boris just prior to this festival win about his fascinating early years among greats Kozintsev and Shostakovich: https://www.cineaste.com/summer2020/from-minimalism-to-neorealism-boris-frumin-interview
Stone Soup Book Contest
Very happy to announce that one of my students, Olivia Lee, ten years old, was on the list of Honorable Mentions for the 2021 “Stone Soup” Book Contest. She wrote a 20,000 word book that we worked on from April to August of 2021!! I now have several other students working on their first books for the same contest.
Stone Soup
After a couple of years of working with new students, I’m extremely happy to announce that two of their short stories will be published in the children’s magazine “Stone Soup”!!
I’ve become more intrigued by the magazine after reading that it was established in Santa Cruz in 1972 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Soup_(magazine)), and finding out more about the current Editor, Emma Winsor Wood (https://www.emmawinsorwood.com/).
I will post the stories when they appear online and in print.
FooBi Films Page
Contact
Wendy Cheng can be contacted at wseoling22@gmail.com (preferred), 201-786-8134 (voicemail or text), or Wendy Cheng on What’sApp. Wendy has taught at the School of Visual Arts and many tutoring companies and welcomes not only inquiries about freelance writing and the books and film scripts she is currently working on, but also teaching gigs and writing assignments. One can find her tweeting often at @battening.
