This week, host Carolina Groppa and Associate Producer Sarah Bockian dive into the fun world of short film financing, budgeting and producing. Hot tips! Do's and Don'ts! And why production insurance is #sexy. Tune in!
Apr 23, 2024•27 min•Season 1Ep. 98
This week, host Carolina Groppa and Associate Producer Sarah Bockian debate Reese Witherspoon's controversial comments on AI, and "Airhead", a short made using Sora that still required many humans. Links Discussed: thewrap.com/reese-witherspoon-artificial-intelligence-morning-show-paleyfest/ nofilmschool.com/sora-ai-filmmaker-interview youtube.com/watch?v=NXpdyAWLDas&ab_channel=MarquesBrownlee...
Apr 16, 2024•23 min•Season 1Ep. 97
Thrilled to share this inspiring and electric convo with Dr. Rachel Raimist. Rachel is an episodic television director and college professor who’s recently directed episodes of the family fantasy THE SPIDERWICK CHRONICLES (Disney+), the musical UP HERE (Hulu) and the soapy drama SEX/LIFE (Netflix). She has also directed beloved episodes of THE SEX LIVES OF COLLEGE GIRLS (HBO Max), WU-TANG: AN AMERICAN SAGA (Hulu), FANTASY ISLAND (Fox), and DIARY OF A FUTURE PRESIDENT (Disney+). We are opening up...
Apr 09, 2024•1 hr 11 min•Season 1Ep. 97
This week, host Carolina Groppa answers listener questions! Tune in as we breakdown: How to set up contracts with directors for short films and not get pushed out of projects How to networking intentionally and effectively Pros and cons of the indie vs assistant route to producing SAY HI instagram.com/carolinagroppa instagram.com/angleonproducers tiktok.com/@carolina_groppa SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWSLETTER! bit.ly/aop_newsletter...
Apr 02, 2024•21 min•Season 1Ep. 96
We are trying something a little different for the next two months and will be bringing you weekly minisodes to compliment the monthy guest drops. This week, host Carolina Groppa and Associate Producer Sarah Bockian celebrate Women's History Month, Carolina takes us behind the scenes of her panel discussion with Melinda Gates and we explore how AI could empower women and people of color.
Mar 26, 2024•29 min•Season 1Ep. 96
Delighted to share this very special episode with the incredible lady that is Judalina Neira. I’ve been lucky to call her a friend for many years. We met during the early days of our LA journey and now she’s a very impressive Emmy nominated writer/producer known for her work on critically acclaimed shows THE BOYS, DAISY JONES AND THE SIX and THE FLASH. She is currently bringing BEWITCHED back to life on our TV screens in the not-too-distant future. Judalina is also a proud alum of the ABC/NBC/Na...
Mar 19, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 95
We are trying something a little different for the next two months and will be bringing you weekly minisodes to compliment the monthy guest drops. This week, host Carolina Groppa and Associate Producer Sarah Bockian dive into the Oscars, the RUST verdict, and whether Hollywood is still in a steady decline or simply at the end of Act II. Articles Referenced: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/01/opinion/oscars-hollywood-extinction-event.html https://deadline.com/2024/03/rust-movie-armorer-guilty-sho...
Mar 14, 2024•32 min•Season 2Ep. 1
**This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com/AOP to get 10% off your first month of online therapy which you can do from the comfort of your home!** Over the moon to share my chat with Grammy® Emmy® and Tony® Award-winning actress, singer, author and producer, Cynthia Erivo. She is set to star as Elphaba in Universal’s highly anticipated film adaptation of the hit musical WICKED. But before we get to see her all in her green glory, I highly recommend catching her in DRIFT, a p...
Mar 05, 2024•46 min•Season 1Ep. 94
**This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com/AOP to get 10% off your first month of online therapy which you can do from the comfort of your home!** Delighted to share my chat with the inspiring, delightful, and Emmy nominated Coco Francini. An LA native, she began her career as a development intern, eventually becoming Quentin Tarantino’s assistant in 2011 on Django Unchained They formed a solid working relationship and she eventually returned as associate producer on The Hat...
Feb 13, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Season 1Ep. 93
Happy New Year, everyone! Hope you’re back rested and energized for 2024! We are kicking off new beginnings with an old friend…the prolific film and television producer, Monica Levinson. Some of her impressive credits include BORAT, BRUNO, ZOOLANDER, DODGEBALL, Larry David's CLEAR HISTORY, Tara Miele's WANDER DARKLY, David Oyelowo's THE WATER MAN and Aaron Sorkin's THE TRIAL OF THE CHICAGO 7. Starting her career in broadcast news in her hometown of Washington, D.C., Monica transitioned into narr...
Jan 09, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 92
Happy Tuesday! It’s November 21st, my favorite day of the year because it's my birthday! It’s a treat to share this episode with 3Pas CEO, Ben Odell with you as I celebrate another revolution around the sun. Ben grew up in the U.S. before packing up and moving to Colombia in his 20s. After finding success as a writer, his producorial pursuits led him back to the states where he joined forces with the legendary Mexican director and comedian, Eugenio Derbez, to create 3Pas. Their film, RADICAL, wi...
Nov 21, 2023•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 91
Hiii everybody. This week on the show we are flipping things on it's head a little bit. I'm often asked about my story, my journey, my advice...so I figured it could be a fun opportunity to have my associate producer, Sarah Bockian, take the reins as interviewer and put me in the hot seat. Sarah joined the team six months ago at the start of the writers’ strike, and has been working behind the scenes with me to help bring these episodes to life. She comes from the world of development and writer...
Oct 12, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 91
Elated and relieved that a tentative deal has been reached between the WGA and the studios. In between rejoicing and celebrating, I found myself wondering what impact, if any, this new contract will have on my fellow indie producers? Producers Laura Lewis and Brent Emery were recently interviewed by IndieWire on what role producers play in the AMPTP. It compelled me to invite them on to explore why there’s a change.org petition floating around to remove that second “P” from the acronym and the n...
Sep 26, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 90
Thrilled to share my chat with the inspiring and nimble Noelle Green, Director of Physical Production at Netflix on the Original Series. Prior to Netflix, Noelle was a VP in Physical Production at Legendary Pictures and oversaw such projects as Kong: Skull Island and Krampus. The majority of her career was spent freelancing as a production supervisor or coordinator. She eventually began working as a line producer in the 90s where she was often the only woman of color sets of 500 or more people. ...
Jul 26, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 89
Delighted to share my chat with the inspiring writer/producer Gabby Lugo. We met at a networking event for the Latinx community and were quickly magnetized to each other. We bonded over the various parallels in our path and I simply had to share her story with you. After finding major success as a line producer on projects like the original short for Damien Chazelle’s film "Whiplash" and the anomaly indie hit that was the feature "Palm Springs", she was faced with making a decision that would ha...
Jul 05, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 88
This week on the show we hear from the energetic Nicole Tossou who lives by the mantra: If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready. A child of immigrant parents and proud native of Washington D.C, Nicole’s career began in the NBC Page Program in New York, working on iconic programs such as THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JIMMY FALLON, TODAY, and SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE. She worked at A+E Networks & A+E Studios for five years before heading west and landing at Springhill Entertainment, where she was de...
Jun 19, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 87
Elated to dive into the captivating world of animation through the incredible career of Melinda Dilger, Global Head of Animation Production @ Riot Games. Animation has the power to transport us to new dimensions, ignite our emotions, and bring fantastical worlds to life. One series, in particular, has been capturing the hearts and minds of viewers worldwide…myself included. Arcane is a visionary show born from the collaboration between Riot Games, Fortiche and Netflix. Set in the universe of the...
May 31, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 86
So excited to share my rich and nuanced convo with Attica and Tembi Locke. I discovered this dynamic sister duo after devouring their Netflix limited series, FROM SCRATCH, starring Zoe Saldana. Once my tear ducts could no longer produce any more tears, I immediately had to find out who was behind this beautiful show. Tembi is a New York Times best-selling author, TV producer, actor, and screenwriter. Her memoir, From Scratch: A Memoir of Love, Sicily, and Finding Home , is a 2019 Reese’s Book Cl...
May 16, 2023•1 hr 12 min
On this special episode, I answer three of your questions, such as: How to crack the line producer path. My biggest “DON’T’s” for someone trying to break into the industry and work as a producer That time I took a chance on yourself and had no idea if it was going to work out. WGA strike captain Victor Dueñas also stopped by for a quick chat and broke down what is being negotiated, why now, and what is at stake for writers.
Apr 25, 2023•46 min•Season 1Ep. 84
📣This episode is brought to you by Arc Studio Pro, a well-designed screenwriting software that is quickly growing to become the new industry standard. Head to ArcStudioPro.com to get started for free! 📣 Go to arcstud.io/carolina for $30 OFF! Our latest and greatest episode features Ilana Peña, my fellow South Florida sister. We grew up near each other, hanging out in the same mall (when that’s what the cool kids used to do) and we only pieced all of this together decades later after meeting he...
Feb 23, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 83
At this year’s ☀️ Sundance festival ☀️, I met a wide array of talented people. Among them is Rocío Jadue, a Chilean producer that runs the Latin-American film division at Fabula. She is best known for the film A Fantastic Woman (2018), directed by Sebastián Lelio, which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. 🎞 Special shoutout to Maylen Calienes, founder of Latino Filmmakers Network for graciously hosting AOP at her Sundance case. Gracias amiga! Rocío’s career at Fabula dates bac...
Feb 02, 2023•51 min•Season 1Ep. 82
📣 Helloooo 2023! Happy New Year Beyond excited to kick off the new year with my chat with UK producer Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor. A true multi-hyphenate, she produces, writers and directs. She runs Joi Productions, a company focused primarily on Queer, Black and female work. In 2019, she produced the hit Blue Story, which became the top grossing film of its genre. In 2020, she was named a Screen International Star of Tomorrow and a BAFTA Breakthrough, as well as Joi Productions receiving a BFI Visio...
Jan 17, 2023•57 min•Season 1Ep. 81
Very excited to share my chat with Herman Phillips (COO) and Heather Wagner (Co-Founder/Product Architect). They are two of the brains behind Cinapse, our sponsor for the last 3 episodes. Cinapse is an app that streamlines workflows for film and television crews, cast members, and studio employees. By digitizing the background voucher system, a painful process that usually requires a TON of forms, data entry, and frustrated individuals, Cinapse is revolutionizing production at large. It's one of...
Nov 29, 2022•35 min•Season 1Ep. 81
**This episode is brought to you by Cinapse. Cinapse is an app that streamlines workflows for film and television crews, cast members, and studio employees. What they are building is truly game changer and I’ll be doing a deep dive with them in the upcoming weeks. Follow @cinapse for more.** _______ Here we are, the final episode of 2022! I can’t believe how fast the year has flown by, can you? As we wind down and cozy up into this season of rest and reflection, I hope you truly take the time to...
Nov 15, 2022•58 min•Season 1Ep. 80
***This episode is brought to you by Cinapse. Cinapse is an app that streamlines workflows for film and television crews, cast members, and studio employees. What they are building is truly game changer and I’ll be doing a deep dive with them in the upcoming weeks. Follow them @cinapse for more.*** Barbara Whitman is a theater producer who made her Broadway debut producing A Raisin in the Sun , starring Sean Comb and Phylicia Rashad, An impressive lady, she has won multiple Tony and Drama League...
Oct 17, 2022•57 min•Season 1Ep. 79
***This episode is brought to you by AOP's first official sponsor, Cinapse. *** Cinapse is an app that streamlines workflows for film and television crews, cast members, and studio employees. What they are building is truly game changer and I'm stoked to partner with them. Check 'em out @ cinapse.io. Thrilled to share my chat with the fierce Elizabeth Cantillon. She is a producer and principal of Bisous Pictures, a romance label under MRC Film. She most recently produced an adaptation of Jane Au...
Sep 27, 2022•54 min•Season 1Ep. 78
Kara Durrett is an independent producer who recently produced Adamma Ebo's HONK FOR JESUS, SAVE YOUR SOUL which premiered at Sundance 2022. Kara is the reason I was brought on to HONK as a physical producer and in the process of making that film, she became a bud. She is fun to work with, in fact, she is a great time! (direct quote from Kara!) Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown give phenomenally funny performances worthy of an hour and 42 minute of your time. The film premieres on September 2nd i...
Sep 02, 2022•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 77
Amy Baer currently serves as President of Landline Pictures, a label within MRC Film that makes feature films about and for the 50+ audience. Launched in 2020, their first movie, JERRY & MARGE GO LARGE , directed by David Frankel, who did MARLEY & ME, is streaming now on Paramount+. Starring Bryan Cranston and Annette Bening , the film is based on the true story of a married couple who used a loophole in the Massachusetts State Lottery to win $27 million. I watched it with my dad a few w...
Jul 19, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Season 1Ep. 76
Celebrating 75 episodes of the show!!! Jordana Mollick is Semi-Formal’s President of Development and Production. Originally from Milwaukee, she’s worked in theater, film, television, and digital media, as well as literary management. She co-founded Black Sheep Management and Productions, which then merged with Haven Entertainment where she was a partner. In 2018, she joined forces with Michael Showalter to form Semi-Formal Productions . She produced Susanna Fogel’s first film LIFE PARTNERS , NIG...
Jun 07, 2022•53 min•Season 1Ep. 75
Jenifer Westphal is the Founder and CEO at Wavelength, an Emmy-Winning film studio committed to developing, producing and financing films that tell great f**king stories. She raised and homeschool ed her 3 now adult sons — including one who is in Autism Spectrum. Once the youngest had gone off to college, she looked around her empty house and said to her husband, “I’m going to start a film company.” Jenifer was in her 50s when she decided to make the leap to producing films. Named one of Variety...
May 10, 2022•53 min•Season 1Ep. 74