Written and filmed by:  Mark Goldberg
Produced by:  AVS Production Company
Directed by: Yasunori Tanaka
Edited and Composed by:  Ethan Startzman

IMDB Link

Great news. The film has been featured in a QNS.com article

LIFE IS EL is a documentary that I wrote that will explore all aspects of living and doing business under and around the elevated train tracks in New York City.  There are thousands,  maybe close to a million residents and businesses that are located under or in very close proximity to one of the elevated train tracks in the City of New York.  All five boroughs of the city have areas where New York City Transit,  or other train systems run above ground.  Some are a small stretch, as is the 4/5/6 around 96th Street in Manhattan.  Some have stations that are among the highest in the world as is the case with the Smith-9th Street station.  The film will study the physical, economic, social, environmental and medical problems that arise as of a result of living around or working and doing business under or near an elevated train that is busy 24/7/365 (in most cases.) It will also explore the past, present and future of these elevated train tracks.

We have started filming and one of the most important aspects of the film is the economic impact that the temporary or permanent closure of elevated train stations has had on local businesses. Many times these impacts are negative as in the loss of business due to a station’s closure for repairs and upgrades, but sometimes there are positive impacts in the case of when a business experiences an increase in business as a result of being the next closest station to a closed one.

Do you live next to or under an elevated train in New York City?  We are looking for individuals that want to tell their story. If you would like to be interviewed on camera to share your experiences of living next to an elevated train in New York City, please contact me via email.

We are also looking for business owners that want to tell their story. If you would like to be interviewed on camera to share your experiences of doing business under or around an elevated train in New York City, please contact me via email.

We are also looking for community leaders, politicians, activists and residents that are also interested in sharing their stories about life with an EL, so please contact me via email.

Please also visit and Like and Share our Facebook page here.  

WGA Registration number: I307346

I have conceived of, and written a lot of documentary films, sometimes as many as three a week.  This is in addition to the many other commercial, narrative and TV series work I do.

I've also written several narrative films and a few TV series, but they can't be discussed here.

Interested in picking up one or more of these properties? Mark

The Documentary Factory which is a division of AVS Production Company has many films which are either in production or pre-production. They are:

Life Is EL - Living and working under and around the elevated train tracks in New York City (In Production)

Step Streets - Where did the Street go? (In Production)

Education In Smithtown - Lots of pencils, lots of books, and we loved our teacher's dirty looks (In Production)

Sake in America - The love for and growth of what used to be a Japanese exclusive drink in America (In Production)

Scams Are Us - You have it, we'll take it (In Production)

In Search of Whale Vomit - It'll help you smell better (Pre-Production)

Oh Deer - How we live with our forested friends (In Production)

Life Before Twitter - The history of the digital era (In Production)

Volunteers Of America - Without Volunteers, we would all be in trouble (Pre-Production)

Legendary Smithtown - How a man named Smith settled in for the long ride after a short ride (In Production)

Tea For Two Billion - Our love for the second most consumed beverage in the World (Pre-Production)

The Life Of Death - Who's there at the end (Pre-Production)

Smart Phone, Stupid People - Your phone is getting smarter, but you are getting stupider (Pre-Production)

1 Dollar For You - Yes, you can still get things in NYC for only $1 including great Pizza! (Pre-Production)

The Deadliest Sport - Is Gymnastics the deadliest sport? (Pre-Production)

50 Years of Planting Trees - The history of Earth Day and the related movements (In Production)

The Trees of NYC - Did you know there are over 692,892 trees in NYC? (In Production)

Can It - What's with all that metal around my stuff? (Pre-Production)

Sprout Poop  -  The care, feeding and love for Sprouts and the World's greatest Virtual Air Band (Pre-Production)

Whatever It Takes To Get The Shot - Ken Regan did whatever it took to get the shot (Pre-Production)

It Takes a Second - It can take a second to change your life (Pre-Production)

Drummers - The history of drumming from 5500 B.C. to today (Pre-Production)

Gridded City - Why cities around the World are laid out in grids (Pre-Production)

Blocks of Glass - Why glass blocks are all the rage in construction (Pre-Production)

New York City Subway Art - There are over 342 permanent works of art in the system (Pre-Production)

Roller Derby Kids - Growing up as a child of Roller Derby parents (Pre-Production)

Bill Graham's Gift - He provided us with decades of great music (Pre-Production)

Sous Vide - Is this the best cooking technique? (In Production)

Too Old to Rock and Report, Too Young to Retire - Ageism and discrimination in the news media (Pre-Production)

Garden Bay Manor - One of the most serene neighborhoods in NYC with a rich history (Pre-Production)

It's Still a Long Strange Trip - The Psychedelic Culture still exists (Pre-Production)

Are you hiring? - The second most asked question of a record store owner or manager (In Production)

Are You A Turtle? - The history of Ancient and Honorable Order of Turtles (Pre-Production)

I Seem To Be A Verb - The history and legacy of R Buckminster Fuller (Pre-Production)

You're a Rock N Roll Suicide - The sad history of suicide and accidental death in music (Pre-Production)