☰
Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

Emergent City

Play trailer 1:59 Poster for Emergent City Released Apr 25 1h 35m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 11 Reviews Popcornmeter 0 Verified Ratings
An observational civic epic revolving around Industry City, the largest privately owned industrial property in New York. Global developers seek to transform the waterfront Brooklyn complex into an "Innovation District," or what the New York Times called "the SoHo of Sunset Park." Divergent stakes draw battle lines between the local, primarily Latino and Chinese immigrant communities, the city council and Industry City's developers. Over a decade, within the borders of a single Brooklyn community district, a microcosm of American democracy emerges. Emergent City sheds light on power and process, illuminating systems and giving viewers a front row seat to the public and private spaces where the city is shaped. With extraordinary access, the film explores the profound intersections of gentrification, climate crisis and real estate development, and asks how change might emerge from dialogue and collective action in a world where too many outcomes are constrained by money, politics and business as usual.

Critics Reviews

View More (11)
John Anderson Wall Street Journal That “Emergent City” is such a handsome documentary is a tribute to its subject -- the topographically sublime neighborhood of Sunset Park, Brooklyn -- and to the nimble subjectivity of cinematography and editing. Aug 15, 2025 Full Review Matt Zoller Seitz RogerEbert.com An old-school documentary that tells a story by presenting and arranging information and expecting you to meet it halfway rather than having everything spoon-fed to you. Rated: 3.5/4 Apr 28, 2025 Full Review Siddhant Adlakha Truthdig The filmmakers use techniques normally meant to transition between scenes, but they hold on these shots instead of cutting away, turning them into a central focus. Jul 8, 2025 Full Review Christopher Campbell Nonfics (Substack) The documentary is temporally immersive. By the end, you not only feel like you lived through its decade-long narrative but also through each and every mind-numbing town hall and community meeting. Apr 27, 2025 Full Review Jared Mobarak Hey, Have You Seen ...? The informative and compelling footage the filmmakers have compiled is the main driving force here, but I must make note of the expert editing and structural organization of the whole with just the right amount of contextual exposition. Rated: 8/10 Apr 25, 2025 Full Review Amber Wilkinson Eye for Film While there’s no doubt the directors have a sympathetic slant towards the community, this is a film that is interested in exploring all the angles. Rated: 4/5 Apr 23, 2025 Full Review Read all reviews
Emergent City

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW

Cast & Crew

View All

Kelly Anderson

Director

Jay Arthur Sterrenberg

Director

Kelly Anderson

Producer

Brenda Avila

Producer

Carrie Lozano

Executive Producer

Stephen Maing

Executive Producer

More Like This

View All
The American Question % 95% The American Question Watchlist TRAILER for The American Question Young Plato 100% 100% Young Plato Watchlist TRAILER for Young Plato Lead and Copper 100% % Lead and Copper Watchlist TRAILER for Lead and Copper Love in the Time of Fentanyl 100% % Love in the Time of Fentanyl Watchlist Cirque du Soleil: Without a Net 100% % Cirque du Soleil: Without a Net Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More
View All

Emergent City

Emergent City: Trailer 1 Emergent City: Trailer 1 1:59 View more videos
View All

Emergent City

View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis An observational civic epic revolving around Industry City, the largest privately owned industrial property in New York. Global developers seek to transform the waterfront Brooklyn complex into an "Innovation District," or what the New York Times called "the SoHo of Sunset Park." Divergent stakes draw battle lines between the local, primarily Latino and Chinese immigrant communities, the city council and Industry City's developers. Over a decade, within the borders of a single Brooklyn community district, a microcosm of American democracy emerges. Emergent City sheds light on power and process, illuminating systems and giving viewers a front row seat to the public and private spaces where the city is shaped. With extraordinary access, the film explores the profound intersections of gentrification, climate crisis and real estate development, and asks how change might emerge from dialogue and collective action in a world where too many outcomes are constrained by money, politics and business as usual.
Director
Kelly Anderson, Jay Arthur Sterrenberg
Producer
Kelly Anderson, Brenda Avila
Distributor
Meerkat Media
Production Co
ITVS
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 25, 2025, Limited
Runtime
1h 35m