First Time Go

I talk with Patrick Schweiss, executive director of the Sedona International Film Festival.If you can listen to this podcast and not up and make a film specifically so you can apply to Sedona, let me know how you did it. In our conversation, Patrick outlines how the Festival treats its filmmakers like celebrities, what you should have for your festival strategy, what he thinks of hybrid festivals, and what the future of the Sedona Film Festival looks like.When Patrick took the festival over, it was

I talk with Julia Bales about her Vimeo Staff Pick short FOLLOWERS (if you haven't seen it, give it a watch. I think you'll love it. The link is below.)We talk about getting burned out at CollegeHumor, how FOLLOWERS wound up on Vimeo, what she thinks of the short v. feature debate, and what indie filmmaker she'd like to highlight. I loved this episode and I think you will, too.Julia's Indie Film Highlight: Sarah Elizabeth Mintz, GOOD GIRL JANE (2022)Links:FOLLOWERS

I finish my conversation with Joshua Caldwell in part two of our series.In the first episode (#15), we talk about his new feature MENDING THE LINE, a story about two veterans successfully battling post traumatic stress through fly fishing. We also talk about Joshua’s career, how he became a filmmaker, and I highly recommend you listen to that episode before you listen here.In this episode, we talk short films, film school, crowdfunding, and what he calls live environment filmmaking. In an uncertain

I talk with Alexandra Simpson, a French-American indie film director. Recently, she successfully crowdfunded for No Sleep Till, a feature film with the logline of "in a small Florida town menaced by a pending hurricane, a few feel compelled to stay." Her promotional video shows a wealth of knowledge of the craft, and her vision is an important lens to view the American experience in the midst of climate change. We discuss directors she's admired (Brian DePalma, Ingmar Bergman), romcoms,

I talk with Joshua Caldwell, director of MENDING THE LINE. It's part one of a two part episode. In this episode, we talk about making films in high school, the film school of just making films, and how he brought MENDING THE LINE to life in an industry that doesn’t fund military and veteran films.How did he do that? What choices did he make to appeal to the widest audience? Every director who wants to film post traumatic stress scenes should listen to the care Joshua gives the topic in his film

I talk with the director, Sean Spencer and subject, David Waterhouse, of the documentary, Ranger. In this episode, we talk about how the two met and Sean's journey through film school while David served in the military; how RANGER (2022) got started, the challenges facing veteran filmmakers; and whether people are too expectant of the John Wayne shoot-em-up when they turn on Ranger. This is a film made by a veteran that veterans can be proud to watch. Links Referenced in the Podcast:RANGER

Did you know burial and cremation are both bad for the environment? That bartending may be the best training for documentary filmmaking? What about death haikus?I talk to Wendy Corn about her new film, Exit Strategy: From Scared to Sacred, which recently raised over $34,000 as part of a successful crowdfunding campaign on Seed & Spark. Wendy is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose films have been featured at SXSW and other festivals. She gives advice to filmmakers, talks about why Austin