In ‘The Mandela Effect,’ a man becomes obsessed with facts and events that have been collectively misremembered by thousands of people. Believing the phenomena to be the symptom of something larger, the character’s obsession eventually leads him to question reality itself. In this interview, writer-director David Guy Levy discusses why he’s obsessed with big ideas in film, what it means to make a smart horror movie like ‘Would You Rather,’ and how to make an audience use their imagination to fil...
Dec 19, 2019•23 min
In ‘The Longest Wave,’ audiences are invited to see a rare glimpse into what motivates an athlete who has everything to lose to push his body and mind to the limit. A film about surf legend Robby Naish. Writer-director Joe Berlinger is known for documentaries on Metallica, Oprah, Tony Robbins and Ted Bundy. Recently, he also directed the Netflix fictionalized movie, ‘Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile,’ where Zac Efron stars as Ted Bundy. In this interview, Berlinger discusses commitment...
Dec 19, 2019•19 min
Phedon Papamichael Jr. grew up surrounded by creativity. His father was a Greek cinematographer best known for working with John Cassavetes. Through various influences, Papamichael got involved with photography and then filmmaking. The cinematographer is now known for working on movies like ‘Sideways,’ ‘Walk the Line,’ ‘The Weather Man,’ ‘3:10 to Yuma,’ ‘W.,’ ‘The Descendants,’ ‘Nebraska,’ ‘Downsizing,’ and now, ‘Ford v Ferrari.’ In this interview, Papamichael talks film school through with stri...
Dec 19, 2019•28 min
While attending college in London, Jason Keller discovered he wanted to be a screenwriter. Soon, he fully committed to the profession and moved to Los Angeles with no connections and little to no safety net. Over the years, he worked every job imaginable on a set while studying scripts at night. During his first decade in Los Angeles, he experienced what’s known as “development hell.” Keller sold an array of scripts to people like Mel Gibson and Michael Mann, but didn’t receive his first credit ...
Nov 13, 2019•31 min
Andrew Lyman-Clarke grew up with experimental filmmakers. At a very early age, he started making shorts and even persuaded a teacher to accept a film rather than a term paper. Over time, he worked as a gaffer, best boy, and grip to steal some time on set. In college, Andrew made the feature, ‘Have You Seen,’ then entered the short ‘Follow the Leader’ in a handful of festivals. Soon after, he decided to commit the feature, ‘Night Sweats.’ Based on an unusual, true story producer Seth Panman exper...
Nov 12, 2019•24 min
At an early age, Alice Waddington learned it was possible to create something in and around your small town, that could affect people around the globe. When the financial crisis hit Spain in 2008, she made the decision to pursue her dreams of becoming a screenwriter and filmmaker. Hoping to pay homage to the female heroine, Waddington began a career somewhat in the modern fairy tale, with ‘Disco Inferno’ and ‘Magical Girl.’ In her new film, ‘Paradise Hills,’ she’s taken this mindset even further...
Nov 12, 2019•26 min
Darrin Prescott was attracted to the challenge of stuntwork. Early in his career, he doubled for Arnold Schwarzenegger and Hugo Weaving, thanks to his training in martial arts, driving, motorcycles, and snowboarding, he even competed in the 2001 X-Games. Moving from stuntwork to stunt coordinator, he worked on projects like ‘Eraser,’ ‘Fight Club,’ Jackass,’ ‘Mr. and Mrs. Smith,’ ‘Spider-Man 2,’ ‘The Bourne Ultimatum,’ ‘Drive,’ ‘John Wick,’ ‘True Detective,’ ‘Baby Driver,’ and ‘Black Panther.’ No...
Nov 10, 2019•24 min
Fencing, rugby, and martial arts led Nick Powell down a path to stunt work. Over time, he found himself working as an actor and stuntman on ‘Braveheart,’ ‘Goldeneye,’ ‘The Mummy,’ ‘The Bourne Identity,’ ‘Gladiator,’ and ‘The Last Samurai.’ Thanks to his work helping other first time directors, he eventually came to direct the new film, ‘Primal.’ Starring Nicolas Cage, the movie follows a big-game hunter and trapper who captures a rare white Jaguar, but ends up on a ship with a political assassin...
Nov 08, 2019•16 min
Monty Whitebloom never planned to be a filmmaker. Studying English Literature at University, he was actually sucked into the rave movement in London. While making short films, he started making videos to play along in rave clubs. This unusual journey led him to work with the Sound System, Soul II Soul. Eventually he started making music videos for Duran Duran, Seal, Paula Abdul, Spice Girls, Lauryn Hill, Madonna, and the Rolling Stones. This led to advertising and eventually he was asked to read...
Nov 08, 2019•17 min
Luke Bracey wanted to be a professional rugby player, but fell into acting by chance. Over time, the Australian actor found himself on the long running soap opera, ‘Home and Away.’ His background in the physical and rigorous sport soon guided him into action roles, such as ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation,’ ‘The November Man,’ ‘Hacksaw Ridge,’ and the reboot for ‘Point Break.’ In the new film ‘Danger Close,’ the actor stepped into the role of Sergeant Bob Buick. The story uncovers a Vietnamese rubber plan...
Nov 07, 2019•10 min
Gregory Allen Howard’s cousin introduced him to “what was underneath the movies.” While his cousin wasn’t in the business, he taught Howard that there was so much more underneath the service of something he previously viewed as pure entertainment or escapism. Over the years, the screenwriter used his voice to write and create stories for ‘Remember the Titans,’ ‘Ali,’ and ‘Harriet.’ The latest film uncovers “The extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman's escape from slavery and transformation into on...
Nov 06, 2019•17 min
As a character actor, William Fichtner is known for playing roughneck characters, in films like ‘Crash,’ ‘Drive Angry,’ ‘The Dark Knight,’ ‘Armageddon,’ and ‘Black Hawk Down.’ Recently, he’s also landed a frequent role as Adam on the series, ‘Mom.’ In his writer-director debut, Fichtner took the reins for the film, ‘Cold Brook.’ The story, which follows two ordinary guys in a small town, is a story of adventure. Fichtner stars alongside Kim Coates (Sons of Anarchy) and Harold Perrineau (Lost). I...
Nov 01, 2019•12 min
Logan Mashall-Green was born in the arts, with two parents who taught theater. As an actor, Logan landed jobs in ‘Upgrade’ ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming,’ and ‘Prometheus,’ plus he just stepped into his debut role as writer-director for ‘Adopt a Highway.’ The simplistic description of the new film is, “An ex-felon discovers a live baby left in a dumpster,” but the film is really an experiment. Working with Ethan Hawke, the writer-director wanted to capture something on film that was honest and real. I...
Oct 31, 2019•17 min
Michael Grady spent his 20s shooting shorts and working as an electrician and gaffer. His active approach paid off, as a few shorts got into Sundance, and then he worked his way up through $100,000 movies and new television shows. By immersing himself in the culture, Grady was able to make a career by being relentless. His credits include ‘Easy A,’ ‘Faster,’ ‘Friends with Benefits,’ ‘The Leftovers,’ ‘Ozark,’ and the new Apple series, ‘Morning Show.’ The new series on the new network stars Jennif...
Oct 31, 2019•24 min
Aron Eli Coleite describes himself as a “classic nerd.” Since the age of 11, he’s been going to the comic book store each week when new issues come out, and he grew up digesting comics, film, and television. Stepping into the fandom he so adored, the screenwriter started writing on ‘Crossing Jordan,’ but then moved into writing the series, ‘Heroes,’ which was one of the first hero-centric genre series. In 2017, he got the chance to work on ‘Star Trek: Discovery,’ and now he’s the creator and wri...
Oct 30, 2019•35 min
As a kid, Tom Eagles didn’t have a television, but he loved going to the movies. As he entered the business, he started cutting trailers and promos. As an Editor, he learned that he could shape stories in a creative manner. While cutting drama for television, Eagles eventually met writer-director Taika Waititi. The duo worked together on ‘What We Do in the Shadows’ in 2014, followed by ‘Hunt for Wilderpeople,’ and now ‘Jojo Rabbit.’ In the latest film, “A young boy in Hitler's army finds out his...
Oct 25, 2019•19 min
George Lucas and Steven Spielberg taught Dan DeLeeuw how visual effects lights up an audience. He went to college to learn more and then got a job at Dream Quest, which included miniatures and models. In the 1990s, DeLeeuw worked on films like ‘The Three Musketeers,’ ’The Rock,’ ‘Deep Rising,’ ‘Armageddon,’ ‘Mighty Joe Young,’ ‘Bicentennial Man’, ‘102 Dalmatians,’ and ‘The Skeleton Key.’ As visual effects started to become the norm, he stepped into a supervisor role for movies like ‘Night at the...
Oct 25, 2019•24 min
Ben Smithard spent his childhood watching movies. When he decided to enter the business, he made his way into Cinematography with commercials and music videos. He struggled, but eventually made his way into TV and film, with credits including ‘The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,’ ‘Goodbye Christopher Robin,’ ‘Blinded by the Light,’ and ‘Downton Abbey.’ In this interview, Smithard talks about research before meeting the director, how he uses paintings to describe the hypothetical look of film,...
Oct 24, 2019•26 min
Now in its 26th year, the Austin Film Festival was founded by Barbara Parker in 1993. At the time she had no film experience, but through her leadership the festival has been at the forefront of uncovering new voices in the film industry from all over the world. Plus, the festival sees over 20,000 attendees each year, and notable past participants including Ron Howard, Harold Ramis, Oliver Stone, David Simon, Judd Apatow, Vince Gilligan, and Norman Lear. In this interview, Morgan discusses why f...
Oct 23, 2019•34 min
Timothy Greenberg was almost a scientist. Like many people, from an early age, being making movies didn’t seem like a real career until he met someone in the business and gave it a shot. Around the age of 30, he taught himself how to write screenplays. While writing features as a practice, he also started making short films, and then directed commercials, and eventually got a job on The Daily Show. After 11 years on the show, he decided to pursue fiction writing once more. Currently, Greenberg’s...
Oct 23, 2019•27 min
Christine Leunens describes herself as a “very, very bookish child.” She started writing 20-page letters to friends and they were so long that her grandfather said, “I think you’re going to be a writer one day.” While living in Paris, she started writing comedy and dramedy scripts as plays. After some frustrations due to major changes to her work, she decided to give up her contracts and focus on novels. “It felt so meaningful for to me to go and write the story I wanted to tell.” The New Zealan...
Oct 21, 2019•22 min
In the latest film from Henry Alex Rubin, Leighton Meester, Finn Wittrock, and Jay Courtney star in ‘Semper Fi.’ In the story, A police officer who serves in the Marine Corps Reserves is faced with an ethical dilemma when it comes to helping his brother in prison. This idea has been rattling around the mind of Rubin for over a decade. While working on the documentary, ‘Murderball,’ the writer-director got lost in the idea of telling future stories about soldier dealing with PTSD. In the document...
Oct 17, 2019•17 min
Matt Eskandari believes filmmakers learn by doing. While making shorts like “The Taking,” he was chosen by Mark Burnett and Steven Spielberg to participate in the Fox Filmmaker Competition, On the Lot. Soon after, he filmed a handful of Indies, like ‘Victim’ and the contained thriller, ’12 Feet Deep.’ Now, Eskandari is working directly with Bruce Willis on two films: ‘Trauma Center’ and ‘The Long Night.’ The first is about a woman trapped overnight in a trauma center, while two men are out to si...
Oct 16, 2019•41 min
Anna Robbins made an unlikely shift from Scottish law to costume design, which began as an attempt to satisfy a creative urge and then move back to something “more sensible.” With credits such as ‘Perfect Sense,’ ‘Your Highness,’ and ‘The Eagle,’ Robbins is best known for her work on the series and film, ‘Downton Abbey.’ Like the series, the costume designer works to incorporate authentic wardrobe from the 1920s into the film, but finer details can be seen in cinema that aren’t necessarily notic...
Sep 23, 2019•24 min
Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas forged her own path to become an agent, a screenwriter, and a producer. With role models like Sue Mengers and Toni Howard, she battled to become an agent while most women were forced into the role of secretary. Soon, she helped represent Julia Roberts, Andie MacDowell, Susan Sarandon, Madonna, and Jennifer Lopez. For these female stars, it was equally as important as saying “yes” to films and saying “no” to films. Then, she produced films like ‘Maid in Manhattan,’ ‘Mona L...
Sep 13, 2019•16 min
Filmmakers Scott Beck and Bryan Woods first met as sixth-graders in their hometown of Bettendorf, Iowa. Known for ‘For Always,’ ‘Her Summer,’ and ‘ Spread,’ their big break came from the success of ‘A Quiet Place,’ where “a family is forced to live in silence while hiding from monsters with ultra-sensitive hearing.” In the new film, ‘Haunt,’ “A group of friends encounter an extreme haunted house that promises to feed on their darkest fears. The night turns deadly as they come to the horrifying r...
Sep 06, 2019•15 min
When Jonathan Eig realized there hadn’t been a biography on Muhammad Ali’s entire life, he knew he found his next project. With other books on Al Capone, Lou Gehrig, and Jackie Robinson under his belt, he felt confident in his task, but also didn’t know anyone in the world of boxing to begin. Eventually, Eig was able to launch conversations with the key people from Ali’s life, including his three surviving wives and past managers. Conducting over 500 interviews to gather information for the unau...
Aug 30, 2019•31 min
Ric Roman Waugh got his start as a stuntman. Working on films like ‘True Romance’ and ‘Days of Thunder,’ he got to know experts like Tony Scott and Jerry Bruckheimer, which led to him writing and directing films like ‘Felon,’ ‘Snitch,’ and ‘Shot Caller.’ Now, he’s in the director’s chair for the third installment of the Gerard Butler trilogy, ‘Angel Has Fallen.’ In the new film, “Secret Service Agent Mike Banning is framed for the attempted assassination of the President and must evade his own a...
Aug 29, 2019•28 min
“The Man in the High Castle” is based on Philip K. Dick’s science fiction novel depicting an alternative history where the Axis powers won World War II. Mercifully this is a “what if” scenario which meant Production Designer Drew Boughton and his team had to solve their own complex, hybrid equation of addition, subtraction and reconstruction to produce this new reality. It is literally world building. He completely remixed history by building three cultures that are somewhat familiar in history,...
Aug 29, 2019•24 min
Writer-Director Mike Gan was born in Beijing, China before moving to the United States. With two working immigrant parents, Gan spent much of his time in movie theaters to stay out of trouble. Now, he’s known for ‘No Evil,’ ‘Into the Dark,’ and the new thriller, ‘Burn.” ‘Burn’ stars Josh Hutcherson and Suki Waterhouse. According to IMDB, “When a gas station is held at gunpoint by a desperate man in need of cash, a lonely and unstable gas station attendant, tired of being overshadowed by her more...
Aug 26, 2019•21 min
