Director Parker Finn discusses his new film, Smile 2, with fellow Director Mike Flanagan in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how he returned to the idea to explore the same concept through a vastly different lens, working with Actor Naomi Scott to bring the duality of her character’s public persona and isolation to life, and choreographing color-laden horror scenes for his pop star character in what he describes as “inspired by Wes Craven as it is Bo...
Nov 21, 2024•34 min•Ep 502•Transcript available on Metacast Director RaMell Ross discusses his new film, Nickel Boys, with fellow Director Channing Godfrey Peoples in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses approaching his adaptation differently from the book while still trying to stay true to it, working with his actors and DP to capture his unique perspectives for the narrative, and his considered approach to imagery with this subject matter, given the historical imagery preceding it. Based on the novel by Colson ...
Nov 18, 2024•33 min•Ep 501•Transcript available on Metacast The 500th episode of The Director's Cut! To celebrate, we are highlighting some of our most notable discussions over our nine years on the air. We'll be revisiting the futuristic dunes of Arrakis, the streets of 1970s Mexico City, the trenches of WW1-era Europe and more as filmmakers give insight into their process of building incredible cinematic experiences. Thank you so much to everyone who has participated in our conversation series over the years, and to you, our listeners, for supporting o...
Nov 13, 2024•2 hr 30 min•Ep 500•Transcript available on Metacast Director Hallie Meyers-Shyer discusses her new film, Goodrich, with fellow Director Max Minghella in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses creating the titular role with Actor Michael Keaton in mind, having audiences react in the way she hoped after modeling the film off of personal experiences, and assembling a crew that helped her craft her desired feel for the film. The film tells the story of Andy, whose wife unexpectedly checks herself into rehab, l...
Nov 04, 2024•29 min•Ep 499•Transcript available on Metacast Director Jason Reitman discusses his new film, Saturday Night, with fellow Director Guillermo del Toro in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses originally conceptualizing the film as a one-take to play out in real time, recording the score live on set with the film's Actor and Composer Jon Batiste, and casting his Actors for how well they understood their characters' deeper interests over their recreations of sketch work. Seen through the eyes of a young ...
Oct 31, 2024•32 min•Ep 498•Transcript available on Metacast Director Marc Forster discusses his new film, White Bird, with fellow Director Michael Pressman in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses the use of magical realism in the visuals of the film, filming in an empty Prague during the pandemic and working with young Actors to find character growth between the film’s time jumps. The film follows Julian, who struggles to fit in to his new school after being expelled for bullying a student. When his grandmother hear...
Oct 28, 2024•27 min•Ep 497•Transcript available on Metacast Director Ellen Kuras discusses her new film, Lee, with fellow Director Phillip Noyce in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses how her skillset as a cinematographer informed her directing, how she aimed to reach beyond the constraints of a typical biopic to create something more complex and working with Kate Winslet to capture Lee as a multidimensional character. The film tells the true story of Lee Miller, who in the 1940s decides to abandon her career a...
Oct 25, 2024•31 min•Ep 496•Transcript available on Metacast Director Steve McQueen discusses his new film, Blitz, with fellow Director Barry Jenkins in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses portraying the hidden voices of all those affected by the real life London Blitz, casting the lead child actor as a silent vessel for the audience while being a distinctive character, and utilizing music and dancing throughout the film as a way to reclaim humanity in the face of war. The film tells the story of George, a nine-y...
Oct 23, 2024•35 min•Ep 495•Transcript available on Metacast Director Mohammad Rasoulof discusses his new film, The Seed of the Sacred Fig, with fellow Director Ramin Bahrani in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses his utilization of modern online spaces in the film as a reflection of current sentiments, shooting the film clandestinely to avoid castigation, and using his own personal experiences as reference for events within the film. Screened as part of the DGA’s Global Cinema Series, the film tells the story of Im...
Oct 11, 2024•31 min•Ep 494•Transcript available on Metacast Director Azazel Jacobs discusses his new film, His Three Daughters, with fellow Director David Zellner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how his personal experiences informed the film, working with his cast to capture performances against their usual types, and shooting scenes in the same order as they happen in the film to allow the performances to evolve with the story. The film tells the story of Katie, Christina and Rachel, who reunite for the ...
Oct 04, 2024•36 min•Ep 493•Transcript available on Metacast Director Matt Tyrnauer discusses his new film, Carville: Winning is Everything, Stupid!, with fellow Director Ondi Timoner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses his cinema verite approach to the nuances of Carville’s life, puzzling where and how to include Carville’s wife, Mary Matalin in the film, and finding a new wind in his documentary following Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race. Screened as part of the DGA’s Documentary Series, the film ...
Oct 01, 2024•43 min•Ep 492•Transcript available on Metacast Director Megan Park discusses her new film, My Old Ass, with fellow Director Siân Heder in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses finding and the means of capturing her tone, discovering scenes with the help of scouting the locations and the process of casting of Maisy Stella and Aubrey Plaza as the two leads. The film tells the story of teenager Elliott who, after her first time taking mushrooms on a summer vacation, is visited by a 39-year-old version o...
Sep 27, 2024•30 min•Ep 491•Transcript available on Metacast Director Austin Peters discusses his new film, Skincare, with fellow Director Mimi Cave in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses striving for a more authentic LA than the Hollywood image, creating something within the “Sunshine Noir” genre and working with Elizabeth Banks to discover her character. The film tells the story of skincare mogul Hope Goldman, whose business is thrown off the rails when a rival beauty parlor arrives in her neighborhood. With th...
Sep 24, 2024•30 min•Ep 490•Transcript available on Metacast Director Fede Alvarez discusses his new film, Alien: Romulus, with fellow Director Leigh Whannell in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses his process for crafting scenes, creating a believable relationship between a human and android character, and working with the effects team from previous films. This continuation of the Alien franchise tells the story of a group of young space colonizers with a plan to scavenge a derelict space station. Instead, once ...
Sep 09, 2024•30 min•Ep 489•Transcript available on Metacast Director Lee Daniels discusses his new film, The Deliverance, with fellow Director Adam Shankman in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses making a horror film for the first time with his characters at the forefront, playing with serious and campy tonal points, and discovering his portrayals of religious imagery while considering his own beliefs. The film tells the story of Ebony, a struggling single mother who moves her family into a new home for a fresh ...
Sep 04, 2024•31 min•Ep 488•Transcript available on Metacast Director Irene Taylor discusses her new film, I Am: Celine Dion, with fellow Director Ondi Timoner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses discovering the purpose of her film as she was making it, Celine’s effort to participate more in the making of the film and being deliberate about how much she wanted to explore Celine’s stardom alongside more sensitive topics in her home life. Screened as part of the DGA’s Documentary Series, the film tells the stor...
Aug 28, 2024•47 min•Ep 487•Transcript available on Metacast Director Greg Berlanti discusses his new film, Fly Me to the Moon, with fellow Director Dan Gilroy in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how his past work in film and television lead to him creating this film, utilizing authentic digital and practical production design to recreate aspects of the Apollo missions not seen before onscreen, and working with his actors to channel the tone of a classic workplace romantic comedy genre. The film tells the stor...
Jul 30, 2024•35 min•Ep 486•Transcript available on Metacast Director Ti West discusses his new film, MaXXXine, with fellow Director Sean Baker in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses filming his X trilogy without pause, working with Actor Mia Goth to develop her characters between each film, and using familiar film production steps as horror setpieces. The third entry in West’s trilogy of X films tells the story of Maxine, an adult film star looking to break into mainstream cinema in 1980s Hollywood. But when a m...
Jul 18, 2024•34 min•Ep 485•Transcript available on Metacast Director Tony Goldwyn discusses his new film, Ezra, with fellow Director Michael Pressman in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses accurately casting the role of Ezra, utilizing selective shooting styles to capture the emotion he aimed for, and working with his friend and screenwriter - whose own experience the film is based on - to craft this story. The film tells the story of Max, a stand-up comedian struggling to co-parent his autistic son, Ezra, with his...
Jul 08, 2024•29 min•Ep 484•Transcript available on Metacast Director David Leitch discusses his new film, The Fall Guy, with fellow Director Jerry Zucker in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses striking a balance with the tension between jokes and action sequences, working with his actors to allow space for improvisation, and filming a meta-narrative feature that reveals how the magic tricks of movie stunts are accomplished. The film tells the story of Colt, a stuntman trying to win back his ex-girlfriend while r...
Jun 06, 2024•29 min•Ep 483•Transcript available on Metacast Director George Miller discusses his new film, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, with fellow Director Edgar Wright in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses utilizing Unreal Engine in his storyboarding process, utilizing a mixture of authentic locations and digital effects to achieve his vision, and the evolution of the series leading up to this installment. The prequel to Mad Mad: Fury Road tells the origin story of Furiosa, who was snatched from her idyllic birth...
May 29, 2024•42 min•Ep 482•Transcript available on Metacast Director Chris Pine discusses his new film, Poolman, with fellow Director Patty Jenkins in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses working with Actors as a Director who came from acting, his preference of shooting on film instead of digital, and learning to be intuitive when working with a small budget. The film tells the story of Darren, an unwavering optimist who spends his days looking after the pool of an LA apartment block. But when a femme fatale asks...
May 24, 2024•32 min•Ep 481•Transcript available on Metacast Director Yance Ford discusses his new film, Power, with fellow Director Kristi Jacobson in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses the endeavor of going through hundreds of years of archival material, how he wanted to challenge the notion of traditional experts in a documentary by approaching people from police-impacted communities, and the post production journey that led him to include his narration in the documentary. The film investigates the American poli...
May 24, 2024•39 min•Ep 480•Transcript available on Metacast Director Wes Ball discusses his new film, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, with fellow Director Barry Jenkins in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses the importance of mis-en-scene and notes taken from his time helming the Maze Runner series, working in a production that relied heavily on mocap and digital replacement, and the unique process he underwent with his editors in the cutting process. Set 300 years after the events of the previous apes trilog...
May 21, 2024•26 min•Ep 479•Transcript available on Metacast Director Lucy Walker discusses her new film, Mountain Queen: The Summits of Lhakpa Sherpa, with fellow Director Ondi Timoner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses comparing and contrasting the act of mountain climbing with the struggle of personal life, exploring Lhakpa’s children’s arcs to add to the stakes of the story, and finding and fighting for the end of her feature. The film follows the true story of Lhakpa Sherpa, the first Nepali woman to su...
May 14, 2024•45 min•Ep 478•Transcript available on Metacast Director Michael Showalter discusses his new film, The Idea of You, with fellow Director Kay Cannon in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses the in-depth process of casting the Hayes character, working with a songwriter who writes for real pop bands to make a full soundtrack, and taking care to craft a realistic story that respects the genre. The film tells the story of Solène, who while chaperoning her daughter at Coachella, finds instant chemistry with ...
May 07, 2024•32 min•Ep 477•Transcript available on Metacast Director Ned Benson discusses his new film, The Greatest Hits, with fellow Director Marc Webb in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses filming at landmark Los Angeles locations to ingrain the city as part of the story, working with the cinematographer to artistically convey the time traveling sequences, and working with his composer to craft a soundtrack that compliments a musically-inclined story. The film tells the story of Harriet, who discovers that s...
May 03, 2024•29 min•Ep 476•Transcript available on Metacast Directors David and Nathan Zellner discuss their new film, Sasquatch Sunset, with fellow Director James Ponsoldt in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, they discuss working with actors who are performing in full makeup, their use of live animals throughout the film, and utilizing a score that integrates the sounds of nature as an instrument. The film tells the story of a family of sasquatches living in the misty forests of North America. Over the course of one year,...
Apr 22, 2024•31 min•Ep 475•Transcript available on Metacast Director Robert Lorenz discusses his new film, In the Land of Saints and Sinners, with fellow Director Brian Helgeland in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses retaining the film’s authenticity in its Irish cast and texture of its 1970s setting, balancing the tone with moments of humor and severity, and using landscape shots of the remote Irish location to accentuate the mood of the film. The film tells the story of Finbar Murphy, a man living a quiet lif...
Apr 16, 2024•32 min•Ep 474•Transcript available on Metacast Director Michael Mohan discusses his new film, Immaculate, with fellow Director Adam Robitel in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how his personal background played into his making of the film, his creative partnership with actress Sydney Sweeney on and off the camera, and using Italian locations to try and keep the setting in a timeless state. The film tells the story of Cecelia, an American nun who is offered a new role at a picturesque convent in t...
Apr 09, 2024•34 min•Ep 473•Transcript available on Metacast 
