John Waters loves to break the rules and make you laugh along the way. The iconoclast has been doing just that over the past six decades with provocative and perverse films like “Pink Flamingos,” “Hairspray,” and “Female Trouble.” Now enshrined as the king of transgressive cinema, Waters is taking on new challenges with his talents. In this episode, he breaks down the creative process behind his first novel, “Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance.” Watch and listen to more from American Masters . This e...
Jan 26, 2023•19 min•Season 6Ep. 2
Actor John David Washington loves to talk about his craft. The star of films like “BlacKkKlansman,” “Tenet” and “Amsterdam” has now set his sights on Broadway with August Wilson’s “The Piano Lesson.” Performing for the stage requires a different skill set from acting for film, and in this episode, Washington describes the intensive process he undertook for this new challenge. To add more layers to his performance, Washington explores the time he spent as a youth in North Carolina with his family...
Jan 12, 2023•31 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Buffy Sainte-Marie is one of the most prolific singer-songwriters of the past century. For 60 years her music has quietly reverberated throughout pop culture, and provided a touchstone for Indigenous resistance. Buffy is a five-part series from CBC Podcasts hosted by Mohawk and Tuscarora writer Falen Johnson and explores how Buffy’s life and legacy is essential to understanding Indigenous resilience. We are proud to share this excerpt from that five-part series, which gives a glimpse into Buffy’...
Dec 19, 2022•5 min•Season 5Ep. 10
How do the world’s finest artists – from actors to musicians and beyond – create work that moves audiences? What challenges do they overcome in their creative process? American Masters: Creative Spark explores what makes a master by interviewing diverse artists and cultural icons from the worlds of music, comedy, poetry, film, and more in a new season premiering January 12th, 2023. Each episode in the new season presents an interview that goes in-depth with a thought-provoking artist about the c...
Dec 12, 2022•3 min
Buffy Sainte-Marie , a Cree musician, artist and activist, has always been ahead of the pack. For six decades, she has fought for Indigenous rights and visibility through her work. She spoke out against the Vietnam War with her song “Universal Soldier,” foresaw the opioid crisis with the eerily prescient “Cod’ine,” and wrote iconic love songs like “Until It’s Time for You to Go.” Her music is always doing something new and bending the limits of the form. In this episode, we talk with Sainte-Mari...
Nov 22, 2022•23 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Comedian Jo Firestone was leading a weekly remote comedy workshop with a group of senior citizens from New York’s Greenwich House when something magical happened. Through in-person sessions, one-on-one interviews and a live public performance, a documentary special emerged called "Good Timing." Join Firestone and her crew of funny seniors as they find joy in the creative act and show how important it is to “make each other laugh in a really scary time.”
Dec 02, 2021•21 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Two-time Oscar-nominated animator, writer and filmmaker Don Hertzfeldt is considered one of the most influential figures in animation. In his first-ever formal podcast interview, he breaks down the long journey that went into making his 2012 feature film, “It’s Such a Beautiful Day.” The existential story at the heart of the film often mirrors many of the challenges Hertzfeldt faces as a fiercely independent animator with a do-it-yourself approach. His process is arduous, to say the least. The l...
Nov 18, 2021•32 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Comedian Atsuko Okatsuka does everything. The touring comic, actress, writer, dancehall dancer and podcast host is everywhere and works tirelessly. She even famously performed a stand-up set in the middle of an earthquake — and got lots of laughs. Okatsuka also just made her late night debut on “The Late Late Show with James Corden,” proving to a national audience that she is a rising star with her quick wit and off-kilter approach. Here she talks about what drives her to create and “nerds out” ...
Nov 11, 2021•17 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Musician and artist Kim Gordon is known for being the coolest person in the room. She is one of the co-founders of Sonic Youth, the band that pioneered alternative rock for 30 years with albums like “Daydream Nation” (1988) and “Goo” (1990). Today, Gordon is focused on her solo work as well as new noisy and avant-garde collaborations. Here the music icon breaks down how she made the satirical song “Air BnB,” a single from her debut solo album “No Home Record,” in this rare glimpse into her creat...
Nov 04, 2021•17 min•Season 5Ep. 5
For decades, filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan has been telling original stories with movies like the Oscar-nominated hit, “The Sixth Sense” (1999), “Signs” (2002) and “Split” (2016). In today’s Hollywood system, this has turned Shyamalan into something of an iconoclast. Here he breaks down his independent approach to making his most recent thriller, “Old,” and how his deep love for moviegoing as a kid continues to drive the way he thinks about his craft. Watch and Listen to more from American Master...
Oct 28, 2021•23 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Poet Jericho Brown won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for his collection “The Tradition.” The poems are vivid works of beauty and agony - each word delivered with a strong sense of urgency. Brown breaks down the process behind writing the collection’s titular poem, “The Tradition,” and the many layers of his ever-changing consciousness that inspired its creation. Watch and Listen to more from American Masters ....
Oct 21, 2021•25 min•Season 5Ep. 3
“A Strange Loop” has a lot to say in a one-act show. The metafictional musical is playwright, lyricist and composer Michael R. Jackson ’s meditation on self-perception, race, sexuality, art, faith, identity and everything in between. The off-Broadway success of this ambitious work earned Jackson the 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. He breaks down the emotional journey behind “Memory Song” - the first song he ever wrote music and lyrics to and the penultimate song in “A Strange Loop.” Watch and Lis...
Oct 14, 2021•27 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Oscar-winning filmmaker Errol Morris broke open the documentary form with his early embrace of re-enactments and stylized lighting and music. His film, "The Thin Blue Line" (1988), put this reputation front and center, and his Oscar-winning film, "The Fog of War" (2003), cemented his legacy. He also has an irresistible attraction to controversial interview subjects - and "American Dharma" is no different. He breaks down the process behind this 2018 film on political strategist Steve Bannon and t...
Oct 07, 2021•32 min•Season 5Ep. 1
How do today’s masters create their art? American Masters: Creative Spark presents narrative interviews that go in-depth with one iconic artist about the creation of a single work. Whether it is Oscar-winning filmmaker Errol Morris explaining the thinking behind a controversial film, comedian Atsuko Okatsuka sharing what makes a joke land, Pulitzer-winning poet Jericho Brown examining the rhythm of a poem, or filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan describing filming during the pandemic, each episode offer...
Sep 23, 2021•2 min
Although he became famous for his work as an actor in films like “Clueless”, “The Princess Bride” and “Toy Story,” Wallace Shawn is also an Obie Award-winning playwright and author, known for his experimental and challenging writing on class politics and morality. Josh Hamilton talks with Shawn about this dichotomy, as the duo explore the ways in which we identify ourselves and find value in our work and life.
Mar 11, 2020•33 min•Season 4Ep. 14
Miles Davis is widely regarded as one of the most innovative, influential and respected figures in music. To celebrate the new documentary on the jazz legend, American Masters - Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, filmmaker Stanley Nelson talks with Miles Davis’ nephew and drummer, Vince Wilburn, Jr.
Feb 26, 2020•27 min•Season 4Ep. 13
The beginning of the universe might be the greatest origin story of all time, and theoretical physicist Dr. Michio Kaku has made a career exploring this subject and others like it. Dr. Kaku is the co-founder of string field theory, which some suggest will crack the final code toward understanding the universe. Dr. Kaku talks about building an atom smasher in his childhood garage, the influence of his hero, Albert Einstein, and why he thinks science is the greatest tool towards progress.
Feb 19, 2020•26 min•Season 4Ep. 12
Fresh off the heels of her brand new stand-up special “Weakness is the Brand,” comedian Maria Bamford sits down to discuss her disarming approach to comedy, including the hilarious ways you can turn life challenges into comedy gold. Recently, Bamford has brought her signature honesty and openness to the new interview series, "What’s Your Ailment?!," where she engages in candid conversations around mental health issues with fellow comedians and artists, all while stressing the importance of commu...
Feb 05, 2020•44 min•Season 4Ep. 11
Noah Baumbach (“The Squid and the Whale,” “Margot at the Wedding,” “The Meyerowitz Stories”) talks about how and why he makes movies. Through equal parts comedy and drama, Baumbach’s films frequently deal with the pains of family life with stunning clarity. His most recent film “Marriage Story,” now nominated for six Academy Awards including Best Picture, explores the complicated fallout of a failing coast-to-coast marriage.
Jan 22, 2020•28 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage talks about the origin of her Broadway play, “Sweat,” and the time she spent developing the story through her conversations with working class residents in Reading, Pennsylvania. Her focus on the struggles of this de-industrialized Rust Belt town predicted a national conversation around identity, race and economy that remains a focal point of political discussions today.
Jan 08, 2020•41 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Actor, writer and director Ethan Hawke (“Before Sunrise,” “Training Day,” “First Reformed,” “Boyhood”) talks with his close friend and fellow actor Josh Hamilton about formative projects from Hawke’s career, reflecting on his own origin story and musing on how one can prioritize life goals and discover meaning through artistic pursuits. Hawke and Hamilton also discuss Malaparte, the theater company they co-founded in the 1990s to stage their own independent productions.
Dec 16, 2019•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Academy Award-winning actress Lee Grant (“Shampoo,” “In The Heat of the Night,” “Valley of the Dolls”) sits down with American Masters creator Susan Lacy for an in-depth conversation about her upbringing, surviving years on the Hollywood blacklist during the McCarthy era, and her career as an actress and documentary filmmaker. Grant describes how key moments of difficulty in her life emboldened her toward new heights.
Dec 04, 2019•45 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Academy Award-winning writer and actor Tarell Alvin McCraney talks about his semi-autobiographical play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue,” and the Academy Award-winning film “Moonlight” that followed. He discusses the centrality of Florida to his work, and the importance of building a sense of community above all else. McCraney’s recent work includes the TV series “David Makes Man” on the OWN Network, the Broadway play “Choir Boy,” and a run of shows as part of the prestigious Steppenwolf Thea...
Nov 20, 2019•48 min•Season 4Ep. 6
In 2019, Joy Harjo became the first Native American Poet Laureate of the United States. She joins us from her hometown Tulsa, Oklahoma to talk about the responsibilities that come with this honor and the importance of representing rich Native American storytelling traditions. She talks about the transcendent nature of language, our human origins as storytellers, our innate connection to the Earth, and lessons she learned from one of her inspirations, writer N. Scott Momaday.
Nov 13, 2019•36 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Best-selling author R.O. Kwon writes with an empathy that can attract religious and non-religious readers alike. She talks about her debut novel, “The Incendiaries,” a fierce story that deals with faith, loss and fanaticism, and describes how her own loss of faith in high school, and the grief that followed, led to this bold new work.
Nov 06, 2019•35 min•Season 4Ep. 4
One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, Mark Rothko’s signature style helped define Abstract Expressionism. After a screening of the new American Masters documentary, Rothko: Pictures Must Be Miraculous at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Rothko’s daughter and son, Kate Rothko Prizel and Christopher Rothko, sat down with series executive producer Michael Kantor and director Eric Slade to discuss their father’s legacy. This is a bonus episode of the American Masters Podcast....
Oct 30, 2019•31 min•Season 4Ep. 3
A confessional-style comic, Chris Gethard is unafraid to mine his past. He talks about cramming the entire set of his TV show, “The Chris Gethard Show,” into the back of his car’s trunk, and how he pulls off hour-long phone calls with strangers every week on his podcast, “Beautiful Stories from Anonymous People.” Amidst a tumultuous cultural change, Gethard also discusses the current state of comedy and his HBO special, “Career Suicide,” which chronicles his history with depression and anxiety....
Oct 23, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Pop icons and twins Tegan and Sara look back at their early days during the height of grunge and rave culture in a new memoir, “High School,” and companion album, “Hey, I’m Just Like You.” The duo discuss the book’s honest account of the drugs, music and relationships they each explored in their formative years, and how they crafted a new album from recently discovered high school demo tapes.
Oct 09, 2019•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Listen to a preview of what’s to come on Season 4 of the American Masters Podcast, featuring new interviews with artists and cultural figures including musicians Tegan and Sara, playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney, Dr. Michio Kaku, actress Lee Grant, comedian Chris Gethard, author R.O. Kwon and more!
Oct 02, 2019•3 min
What does it mean to stand on the shoulders of giants? Listen to stories from this season of the American Masters Podcast, and learn more about the people who are changing the way we think. Guests include filmmaker Bo Burnham, musician Boots Riley, artist Miranda July, activist DeRay Mckesson, chef David Chang, author Viet Thanh Nguyen and more. Also hear a preview of next season, featuring actress Lee Grant.
Jun 26, 2019•23 min•Season 3Ep. 10
