The Subterranean Penthouse: The Story of WKWZ began with my curiosity about the history of WKWZ 88.5 FM and the generations of students who came before me. As a second-generation WKWZ DJ, I grew up hearing my father’s stories about his time at the station, and when I became a member myself, I wanted to understand how this student-run radio station had evolved since it first went on the air in 1973. What started as a simple idea quickly grew into an independent documentary that I spent nearly two years researching, producing, filming, writing, directing, and editing while I was a student at Syosset High School.
Producing the film took me through more than five decades of WKWZ history. I interviewed over 100 alumni, former faculty advisors, engineers, administrators, and current students, while uncovering photographs, recordings, tapes, documents, and other archival material that helped bring their stories to life. I had the opportunity to speak with notable alumni including Judd Apatow, Linda Kenyon, Bob Galerstein, Bob Goodman, and Jake Asman, along with many of the people who helped build and shape WKWZ. One interview often led to another story, another person, or another piece of the station’s history, and the project became much larger than I ever imagined when I started.
Ultimately, I realized that The Subterranean Penthouse was about more than preserving the history of a high school radio station. It was about capturing the stories of the people who created that history while they were still here to tell them in their own words. The film was incredibly well received, generating significant media coverage and earning two coveted Telly Awards. Most meaningful to me, however, was seeing the film embraced as a welcomed and cherished gift to the WKWZ staff and generations of alumni whose connection to the station spans more than 50 years. I began this project wanting to learn about the people who came before me; by the time I finished, I realized that I had become a small part of the story I was trying to preserve.
Documentary Film:
The Subterranean Penthouse
The Story of WKWZ
2026 | Runtime: 1hr 40min
The full length documentary film is available to view online here.
For more information on this project, please visit subterraneanpenthouse.com
Podcast Series:
MATT on LAX
2022-2023 | 10 Episodes
MATT ON LAX was one of my earliest adventures in creating and producing original media. Developed as both a video and audio podcast series, the show combined my growing interest in broadcasting and production with my younger brother Matt’s passion for lacrosse. Matt became the personality in front of the camera, while I worked primarily behind the scenes producing, directing, shooting, editing, developing segments, and helping shape each episode. What started as a fun project between two brothers quickly grew into something much more ambitious—and became one of my first opportunities to take an idea and build an entire media production around it.
One of the things I’m most proud of was the incredible group of athletes and personalities who gave their time to the show. We interviewed some of the biggest names in lacrosse, including Grant Ament, Rob Pannell, Greg Gurenlian, Jerry Ragonese, Sammy Jo Tracy, Mitchell Pelke, Kylie Ohlmiller, Garrett Epple, and TD Ierlan. Each conversation gave us a different perspective on the sport, from competition and training to the personalities and culture that make the lacrosse community unique. We also took MATT ON LAX beyond the traditional podcast format, producing long-form segments from the annual LAX CON convention in Baltimore, Maryland. Being on location allowed us to interact with players, coaches, fans, manufacturers, and others throughout the lacrosse world while learning how to produce content in a fast-moving live environment.
Created during the COVID era, MATT ON LAX became an important early chapter in my development as a media creator. It taught me how to find a story, conduct an interview, work with talent, adapt when things didn’t go according to plan, and turn hours of raw material into something people would actually want to watch or listen to. More importantly, it showed me how much I enjoyed working behind the scenes to bring a project to life. Many of the skills I first experimented with on MATT ON LAX would eventually find their way into my work in radio, sports photography and broadcasting, music programming, and documentary filmmaking. Looking back, it was much more than two brothers making a lacrosse podcast—it was one of the places where I first discovered my interest and abilities creating media.
For more information on this project, please visit the series page here.