Bringing together members of the ISB community for a unique evening of storytelling, our annual Pecha Kucha night has become one of the signature events of the school year.
In this dynamic presentation format, created in Japan by architects Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham in 2003, speakers present 20 slides, each auto-advancing after 20 seconds, resulting in a concise, engaging talk of precisely 6 minutes 40 seconds.
Pecha Kucha (Japanese for “chit chat”) is an ideal medium for sharing ideas and redefining authentic human connectivity through inclusive social engagement and technology.
Past presentation topics have been wide-ranging—from energizing NYC with solar power to Ragga Morffa, Cuba’s newest musical genre.
This year’s Pecha Kucha will be hosted by Middle School Individuals & Societies Teacher Guillaume Roper-Sirvent and will feature presentations from community members, ranging from a tale of against-all-odds entrepreneurship to an academic breakdown of one particular, poignant quirk of “The Great British Bake-Off” to “The Ten Commandments of Independent Filmmaking,” and much much more! Tickets can be purchased online.
Don’t miss what is sure to be an unforgettable evening embodying the International Baccalaureate ethos of lifelong learning!
Jerome is an internationally recognized expert in the field of placemaking, city management, and urbanism. He is the founder and Principal of Town Square Consulting, a boutique firm offering the advice of outstanding urbanists and public space specialists to Municipalities, Conservancies, Business Improvement Districts, and private real estate owners on how to create, program, finance, design, and manage quality public space. In particular, Town Square focuses on creating or transforming spaces into authentic and lively destinations that promote safety, commerce, investment, and opportunity for people from all walks of life. Jerome spent his formative years working for the Bryant Park Restoration Corporation and 34th Street Partnership and went on to hold senior positions at Friends of the High Line and the Times Square Alliance. He was also the President of the Fifth Avenue Association, one of the original BIDs created to solve urban problems in early 1990s New York, and the steward of one of the most beloved streets in the world. When not pondering how to improve public space, he enjoys being a dad to three daughters.
In the early 1990s, Michael conceptualized the principle of sonic branding and in 1995, at 23, he founded a new kind of music agency, Sixième Son, the first ever sonic branding agency. Since then, Sixieme Son has become the international reference to help brands better succeed using sound and music. With a daily audience beyond 2 billion people, Michael has become one of the most listened-to musicians in the world.
In 2004, with 16k of savings and a desire to be her own boss, Rony Elka Vardi launched Catbird in an old beauty salon around the corner from her Williamsburg apartment. What started as a tiny store of cute things grew into a global jewelry brand with a 50k sq ft headquarters in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, encompassing a world class jewelry studio.
Alyson Gerber is the bestselling author of The Liars Society, a mystery series set at a New England prep school, like Knives Out for the whole family, for readers 8 to 13. The Liars Society is a USA Today bestseller, Barnes & Noble Bookseller Favorite, B&N Best Book of the Year, Roku’s Best Book of the Month, Bookshop’s Favorite New Books, and an American Booksellers Association’s Best Books for Young Readers. It’s also a nominee for the Texas Bluebonnet Award and Indiana’s Young Hoosier Award. The Liars Society #2: A Risky Game will be in stores April 1. Alyson is a graduate of two New England prep schools, has an MFA from The New School in Creative Writing, a BA in English and Theater from Connecticut College, and now lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.
Sean first won international recognition when he co-wrote and played the lead role in Pi, directed by longtime collaborator Darren Aronofsky (re-released by A24 in 2023 and sometimes called a “cult classic.”) Sean’s first feature film as writer-director, Traitors, was about the front woman of an all-girl punk band in Tangier, Morocco who gets into hot water with drug smugglers; it premiered at the Venice Film Festival. He directs and produces documentary films as well. In Sean’s next feature film, Upland, a group of teenage prisoners are evacuated into the harsh mountains of West Virginia in a dystopian near-future.
Matt has owned and operated dozens of hospitality businesses in NYC and beyond. His original full-service restaurant – The Smile – was referred to as “the white-hot center of New York cool” by GQ and spawned two busy takeaway locations called Smile To Go. As the co-founder of Authentic Hospitality, he oversees popular nightlife establishments including Pebble Bar, Jac’s on Bond, Ray’s Hometown Bar, Broken Shaker, as well as previous institutions The Jane Hotel Ballroom & The Westway. In 2014, he founded Black Seed Bagels, which has since grown to ten locations, and also spawned an acclaimed french bakery – ALF Bakery.
Maira Emy Reimão is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Villanova University. Her research is primarily in development economics, and her interests include labor, gender, and migration. Some of her current research projects are on the effect of temporary migration on beliefs and social norms; the relationship between temporary migration and urbanization; childcare and other policies aimed at increasing female labor force participation; and measurements of empowerment and agency. She has current and recent research in Brazil, Guatemala, Ecuador, Bangladesh, and Kenya.
Leila is an Alumnus of International School of Brooklyn’s Class of 2017. Currently, she is a fourth-year undergraduate student at Johns Hopkins University studying Molecular and Cellular Biology and Public Health while on the Pre-Medical Track. Leila will be applying to medical school in the spring, and she hopes to go into Obstetrics and Gynecology and specialize in Maternal-Fetal Medicine. Leila has spent the past three summers conducting research on lung cancer at Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and the past two years conducting research in a reproductive sciences laboratory at Johns Hopkins Hospital. As she prepares for graduation, Leila is excited about this next chapter that lies ahead for her.
Kristen Moreland is ISB’s Director of Admissions & Enrollment and an ISB Preschool parent. Kristen has worked in education for more than a decade in New York and abroad, and she joined ISB in 2018. As a former language immersion trip leader and a multilingual speaker of Russian, Italian, and Azerbaijani, she is passionate about cross-cultural experiences and global education. Kristen was previously an early childhood teacher and takes great joy in seeing ISB’s educational model at work. Kristen enjoys running and biking through Brooklyn, where she lives with her husband and daughters.
Guillaume is a New York based teacher, actor and director, originally from Montpellier, France. Guillaume has been working at ISB since 2019, as Middle School French Language and Literature teacher and as Middle School French Individuals and Societies teacher. In 2015, Guillaume joined L’Atelier Théâtre NY, an organization based in New-York that provides drama classes in French to adults. He was the lead actor in Feydeau‘s La Dame de chez Maxim (2016) and Ionesco’s Tueurs sans gages (2017). In 2018, and in 2022, he wrote and produced two comedy shows, La Lumière à tous les étages, and Le Monde d’@près (both produced at the same time in Paris). He is now the artistic and executive director of the organization, and he is currently working on Beaumarchais’s masterpiece The Wedding of Figaro, which will be produced in May 2025 at the Chain Theater in New-York.
Proceeds from the Pecha Kucha evening support ISB’s Fund for Excellence. This annual campaign provides immediate, unrestricted funds for learning opportunities that are not covered by tuition fees alone—transformative experiences like author visits, field trips, and teacher development.
You can make a gift online at any time. All donations are 100% tax deductible and qualify for corporate matching gift programs, so be sure to check with your Human Resources department. It’s an easy way to make an even greater impact with your generosity.
For further information, please email advancement@isbrooklyn.org or call 718.369.3023.
Thank you for supporting ISB!
