“My Grandfather’s Memory Book”, a NY Times Op-Doc by Colin Levy

Colin’s grandfather lived for 94 years — long enough to experience the Great Depression and the Great Recession, the birth of both television and virtual reality — and he chronicled the decades in a staggering accumulation of sketchbooks, each a literal chapter of his life. After he died in 2015, his family faced the intimidating task of cataloguing this legacy and in doing so, they quickly discovered a precious centerpiece of the collection: A book of memories that condenses Byron Levy’s entire life into a series of highly creative illustrations and diary entries. Here were stories of long-lost friends next to struggles at work, moments of historical significance flowing into prosaic family vignettes: kaleidoscopic portals into moments of the prolific artist’s life.

In his short hand-drawn documentary My Grandfather’s Memory Book, filmmaker Colin Levy, along with his dad, take us through a few of the astonishing, funny and whimsical stories that the book evokes. The work is featured in the op-doc section of the New York Times, along with Colin’s brief essay that explores the circumstances of its making.

I got to contribute the audio editing, sound design and mixing duties of the short film, and wrote an old-time jazz piece that accompanies its final part and credits. You can watch the short in its entirety on the NY Times’ Op-Doc page.