Meet the crew
Mateo and Gia met in a college class called Children, Youth, and Digital Culture. Their arguments after class turned into open media nights in the Common Room, a shared room above a bookshop in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, and seven friends and neighbors kept coming back.
They’re 16 to 24: high school students, college students and young workers. In every lesson, you work through a problem with them.
The nine friends
Each card opens a full profile: what they study or where they work, what they do off the clock, their wardrobe and the lessons they lead.
Who leads each unit
Mateo
he/him22Communication senior who books the Common RoomPuerto Rican and Cape Verdean, from New BedfordLeads Lesson 9Open Mateo’s profileGoes back for the missing part
Gia
she/her21Communication junior, café shifts, audio storiesAfrican American and Italian, from Fort GreeneLeads Lessons 3, 5 and 19Open Gia’s profileRuns the group chat
Rafa
he/him18First-year commuter, family groceryFilipino AmericanLeads Lessons 6 and 15Open Rafa’s profileChecks the route
Sami
she/her23Design student and print-shop regularBangladeshi American and MuslimLeads Lessons 10, 16 and 20Open Sami’s profileNotices what’s missing
Jordy
they/them20Community-college film student, event crewBlack AmericanLeads Lessons 1 and 11Open Jordy’s profileAsks before sharing
Caio
he/him24Freelance video editor, film nights at the bookshopJapanese BrazilianLeads Lessons 8 and 14Open Caio’s profileTests the argument
Anika
she/her16High-school junior on the stage crewIndian AmericanLeads Lessons 12 and 17Open Anika’s profileMakes room for another story
Mari
she/her19First-year student who closes the bookshopPuerto Rican, from ViequesLeads Lessons 4, 7 and 18Open Mari’s profileConnects it to the everyday
Dec
he/him17High-school senior, drummer, stage crewWhite and Irish AmericanLeads Lessons 2 and 13Open Dec’s profileHow everyone met
Gia grew up on this block and knows almost everyone. Mateo moved here for college and brought the room.
Mateo and GiaA Children, Youth, and Digital Culture class. Their arguments after class became the open media nights.
Gia and RafaThe school newspaper
Gia and SamiAcross the courtyard
Gia and AnikaSame building
Gia and JordyEvent shifts
Mateo and CaioA borrowed camera
Mateo and MariCarrying chairs into the Common Room
Anika and DecThe theater crew
Gia and MalikGia invited him to the media nights.
Mateo and PalomaMateo helps her keep the source beside the script.
Younger neighbors
Malik, 13, and Paloma, 14, come to the media nights with their own projects and their own questions.
Mentors
When a lesson runs into a rule, a record or a decision nobody in the crew can explain, they call someone whose job it is to know. Five mentors each lead a unit. Jordan Brooks coaches the writing.
Marta Reyes
she/her55Editor, a neighborhood news siteCall her when a clip, quote or screenshot is spreading and nobody has the original.Lessons 1, 7, 14 and 20Open Marta’s profileLeads Unit 2: Read the fine printArjun Doyle
he/him44Investigator, city office for consumer and worker protectionCall him when a pay statement, contract, offer letter, sponsored-post deal or internship listing doesn’t add up.Lessons 5, 8, 11 and 15Open Arjun’s profileLeads Unit 3: Find who’s responsible
Dev Arora
they/them34Disability and workplace rights lawyer at a legal aid clinicCall them when you need to know which rule applies and whose job it is to follow it: a school, a college, a landlord or a city office.Lessons 6, 10, 12 and 16Open Dev’s profileLeads Unit 4: Put it to the test
Dr. Maya Bennett
she/her46Education policy researcherCall her when someone uses a score, a count or “the results show” to make a decision.Lessons 2, 13 and 17Open Dr. Bennett’s profileLeads Unit 5: Take it public
Grace Okafor
she/her33Legislative aide, city councilCall her when a decision is coming and you want to know who makes it, when, and how to be heard.Lessons 4, 9, 18 and 19Open Grace’s profileWriting coach
Jordan Brooks
he/him43Communications director, city librariesCall him when you have to tell people something went wrong or something changed, and you want them to understand it the first time.Lesson 3Open Jordan Brooks’s profileCompanions
Six small characters show up in the lessons. Each one asks the same kind of question every time, so you can learn to ask it too.
Questions
Duda
“Wait. What are we really asking?”
Call on Duda when everyone’s arguing and nobody has said what the question is.
Evidence
Lupa
“Can we check the original?”
Call on Lupa when a screenshot, clip or photo has no source.
Rules
Pauta
“Who decided it should work this way?”
Call on Pauta when someone says “that’s the rule” and nobody knows who wrote it.
Impact
Onda
“Who does this land on differently?”
Call on Onda when a decision sounds small until you ask who it lands on.
Connections
Nexo
“What else is this connected to?”
Call on Nexo when something reminds you of something else, and you want to check how far the comparison goes.
Next steps
Voz
“What could you do with this?”
Call on Voz when you know something now and want to decide what to do with it.
Where they hang out
Everything happens within a few blocks of the Common Room. Here’s where each friend goes when they get a minute.
- MateoThe top of the steps in Fort Greene Park at sunset, where he shoots skyline shots for film-night intros.
- GiaThe café window seat, on her day off.
- RafaThe bench outside the family shop during the 4 p.m. lull.
- SamiThe print shop after closing, with the drying rack full.
- JordyThe back row at film night, next to the sound board, where they can see the captions and the crowd at once.
- CaioThe $1 book cart outside the bookshop.
- AnikaThe school scene shop after rehearsal, when the saws are off.
- MariThe stool behind the bookshop counter at closing.
- DecThe lighting booth above the school auditorium during tech week.