Showbriz Studios

Ep 400: Onur Tukel Forever

Ep 400: Onur Tukel Forever

Filmmaker and flim flam man, Onur Tukel returns to the podcast for his 8th visit! This makes Onur the most frequent guest on the show and certainly one of the most welcome. Helping me celebrate 400 shows, Onur discusses the making of his latest comedy, Catfight, which stars Anne Heche & Sandra Oh. The film, like most of his others, including: Richard’s Wedding, Summer of Blood, and Applesauce, is available for streaming on iTunes. But that barely scratches the surface. Onur and I also discuss love, sex, politics, censorship and much more. And we have a couple of guest cameos by Ariel Kavoussi (who also appears in Catfight) as well as actor Matt Hopkins. And if that weren’t enough —and after two hours you very well might think it is— the episode is capped off by an original song composed & performed by Onur to honor this auspicious 400th Episode of Filmwax Radio.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes. Also available on Soundcloud, YouTube and Stitcher.

Ep 398: Daniel Clowes & Craig Johnson • Todd Berliner

Ep 398: Daniel Clowes & Craig Johnson • Todd Berliner

The first segment of this episode focuses on Wilson, a new indie comedy adapted from the graphic novel of the same name. Both director Craig Johnson (The Skeleton Twins) and the graphic novelist & film’s screenwriter Daniel Clowes appear on the podcast. Included on this episode are also some clips from the film’s press junket with both Woody Harrelson and Laura Dern. Wilson is being distributed by Fox Searchlight and premieres theatrically on Friday, March 24th nationwide. The film also stars Judy Greer, Isabella Amara & Margo Martindale in supporting roles.

Then in the second segment, we’re joined by the author Todd Berliner whose book, Hollywood Aesthetic: Please in American Cinema, published by Oxford University Press.

Music on this episode is by the inventor of rock ‘n’ roll music, the recently deceased Chuck Berry; with additional music by Jon Brion.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 397: Christophe Honoré • Josh Zeman • Josh Karp

Ep 397: Christophe Honoré • Josh Zeman • Josh Karp

[5 mins. 30 secs.] Josh Karp, author of the book Orson Welles’s Last Movie: The Making of The Other Side of the Wind comes back on the podcast to discuss Netflix’s recent announcement that they would be financing the finishing of Orson Welles final film The Other Side of the Wind.

[15 mins. 15 secs.] Then we are joined by one of France’s filmmaking stars, Christophe Honoré (Love Songs, The Beloved). Honoré’s new film Metamorphoses, a contemporary adaptation of Ovid’s work of the same name, will be having a theatrical engagement at The Spectacle Theater in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, beginning on Thursday, March 23rd.

[40 mins. 10 secs.] Film producer Josh Zeman (Cropsey) stops by to discuss his documentary series, The Killing Season (Executive Produced by Alex Gibney), the first season of which ran on A&E and is now available for streaming on Amazon. The interview was recorded at the offices of Gigantic Pictures.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 396: Frank V. Ross Returns

Ep 396: Frank V. Ross Returns

Chicago-based filmmaker Frank V. Ross (Tiger Tail in Blue) returns to the podcast as a guest and co-host on the same episode! Tune in and find out how this came to be. Frank’s latest film, Bloomin Mud Shuffle, opens theatrically at Facets in Chicago on March 24th as well as on iTunes! The film follows Lonnie (Filmwax Radio friend James Ransone) whose life hasn’t changed much in the 16 years since he graduated high school. Still painting houses, still drinking too much, still hanging out with the same old friends. As far as he can see, his only hope for the future lies in taking his physical relationship with coworker Monica (Filmwax Radio friend Alexia Rasmussen) to the next level. The rest of the film’s cast includes such Filmwax Radio luminaries as Alex Karpovsky, Kent Osborne & Joe Swanberg, as well as Rebecca Spence & Natasha Lyonne. To view Frank’s earlier films subscribe to Fandor.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films.Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 395: Raj Roy • Ferne Pearlstein • Rosemary Rodriguez & Jack McGee

Ep 395: Raj Roy • Ferne Pearlstein • Rosemary Rodriguez & Jack McGee

[7 mins.] The Celeste Bartos Chief Curator of Film at the Museum of Modern Art, Raj Roy returns to the podcast (he last appeared on Episode 123) to talk with me about the 46th edition of New Directors/New Films. The annual festival which showcases emerging filmmakers from around the world takes place from March 15 — 26th at both the museum as well as at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Tickets are currently available for most of the screenings. Raj Roy co-chairs the festival with the Film Society’s Dennis Lim.

[32 mins.] Documentary filmmaker Ferne Pearlstein stops by to talk about her new film, The Last Laugh a feature documentary that proceeds from the premise that the Holocaust would seem to be an absolutely off-limits topic for comedy. But is it? History shows that even the victims of the Nazi concentration camps themselves used humor as a means of survival and resistance. Featuring such talking heads as Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Sarah Silverman, Robert Clary, Rob Reiner, Susie Essman, Harry Shearer, Jeffrey Ross and others, the film will make you ask the question “how dark is too dark?” The film which just enjoyed a theatrical in NYC and is opening today at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Theater in Toronto and at will be opening at the Laemmle Theaters in LA next Friday, March 16th. For a complete list of screenings visit The Last Laugh’s website. The film will have its broadcast premiere on Independent Lens | PBS on Holocaust Remembrance Day, April 24th.

[57 mins. 53 secs.] Filmmaker Rosemary Rodriguez, director of the new indie comedy, Silver Skies, is the guest on this final segment. Rosemary is joined from one of the cast members, Jack McGee. The film concerns the sale of a senior residence and the attempt by its residents (which also include the late Alex Rocco, Valerie Perrine, Barbara Bain, George Hamilton & Mariette Hartley) to fight back. The film opens in Florida today and will be available for rental on Netflix in May.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 393: Barbara Kopple • Ashley Rae Spillers & Alex Dobrenko

Ep 393: Barbara Kopple • Ashley Rae Spillers & Alex Dobrenko

Barbara Kopple returns to the podcast; check out Episode 200 for a career spanning conversation. On this episode Barbara discusses recent screenings of her debut feature film, Harlan County USA, last week at the Metrograph​ cinema; her newest film, the documentary This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous​, currently streaming on YouTube Red​. We also talk about the Sharon Jones, the subject of Barbara’s recent documentary, Miss Sharon Jones​, and who recently passed away.

After that, Alex Dobrenko (Krisha) and Ashley Rae Spillers (Vice Principals) wax about their new project, Distance, a web series about the tribulations of a young couple living on opposite coasts. An additional component to this web series which makes it stand out is that there are two versions of each episode one from each character’s perspective. Alex currently has a Seed & Spark fundraiser going on for the series which ends mid-March. The conversation was recorded at the Austin Convention Center during SxSW 2016.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 391: Damani Baker • Matthew Newton

Ep 391: Damani Baker • Matthew Newton

Damani Baker (Still Bill) stops by to discuss his new documentary, The House on Coco Road, a moving personal and historical account of how he and his family were caught up in the 1983 U.S. invasion of Grenada. The result is a fascinating and under-reported chapter in the never-ending struggle for justice on behalf of black men and women worldwide, as well as a scalding appraisal of Reagan-era racial attitudes at home and abroad.

Then Australian transplant, filmmaker Matthew Newton, discusses his new feature, From Nowhere, about three undocumented Bronx teenagers who work toward graduating from high school while also struggling to secure their papers to stay in America. A most timely film indeed. Matthew’s film opens theatrically in NYC at Village East Cinema on Friday, February 17th.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 390: Larry & Jack Fessenden • Kenneth Eng

Ep 390: Larry & Jack Fessenden • Kenneth Eng

Kenneth Eng has made a documentary about his father’s story called My Life in China. Yau King Eng fled China’s Cultural Revolution in 1966. After risking his life to get to America, he started a family in Boston. But when his restaurant went bankrupt and his wife mom sick, he began to feel like he’d failed at the American Dream. My Life in China is a story of migration passed down from father to son; the film attempts to retrace the precarious steps Ken’s father took in search of a better life. Ultimately asking the question, what does it mean to be both Chinese and American? The film has recently streamed on America Reframed and is currently available on iTunes.

Jack Fessenden, 17 years old, has been making short films for years now. Making them is an understatement. He writes, directs, acts, edits, and scores them. Stray Bullets is Jack’s feature debut and stars himself, his Dad Larry Fesssenden, James LeGros, and Kevin Corrigan. Beginning on Friday, February 10th, Stray Bullets, a crime caper, will enjoy a theatrical engagement in about 10 cities around the US including at the Village East in NYC and at the Laemmle in LA. It will also be available on various digital platforms.

All music in this episode is by Morricone Youth from their new vinyl album Mad Max (Country Club Records/Light In The Attic/ Revolver USA), a frantic and high-powered original live re-score for George Miller’s classic 1979 Australian dystopian action film.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Subscribe on iTunes.

Ep 389: Poet Nick Flynn

Ep 389: Poet Nick Flynn

The writer Nick Flynn (Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, My Feelings) is the sole guest on this episode. In addition to talking about his life, his experiences after the movie adaptation of his memoir, and his marriage to the actress Lili Taylor (Episode 199), Nick reads  some passages by William Blake, a poet who […]

Ep 387: Jay Rinsky • Jen Ponton • Raafi Rivero

Ep 387: Jay Rinsky • Jen Ponton • Raafi Rivero

[5 mins.] The Little Cinema is an immersive film series founded by audio visual artist CHNNLS aka Jay Rinsky —my first guest— with the support and partnership of House of Yes. The series is dedicated to using cinema as raw creative material to incorporate and blend live performance into it in new creative ways. For the premiere of Little Cinema’s 2nd year, they will be reprising the first event they last year: the David Bowie movie Labrynth. The event will take place on Tuesday, January 17th. Tickets are available.

[29 mins. 14 secs.] Actress Jen Ponton appears in the new movie Love on the Run directed by Ash Christian. The film is currently available for streaming on various platforms including iTunes. Jen talks about taking a deliberate direction with her acting career and much more.

Last up is filmmaker Raafi Rivero who recently directed a film called 72 Hours: A Brooklyn Love Story? which is currently in the film festival circuit and was produced, in part, by our friends at Reel Works.

This episode of the podcast is sponsored by Audible.com. Get a free download and trial membership by going to www.audibletrial.com/filmwaxradio.

Filmwax Radio is part of the ShowBriz Studios podcast network and presented by Rooftop Films. Like us on Facebook.

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