Exclusive interviews with actors, directors, and craftspeople — candid conversations about making movie magic, career, and any other random thought that crosses my mind.
When you think of filmmakers from the sci-fi or horror genre, the first thing that pops into your mind most likely isn’t a young female director. Leigh Janiak though is here with Honeymoon to challenge that assumption. Crafting a modern sci-fi/horror film actually worth remembering, Janiak showcases her razor sharp ability to cull great performances...
This may not be the Zellner Brother‘s first rodeo but it’s likely to be the one to put them on the map. In addition to acting in small supporting roles across a sprawl of independent features, David and Nathan Zellner have stirred up a tight knit circle of fandom with their earlier works Goliath and...
Doing press tour rounds for their upcoming film Need for Speed, star Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) and Scott Waugn stopped by Seattle to sit down and talk about what it took to bring the popular EA Sports video game to the big screen in a big way. They touched on subjects from stunt driving know-how...
The biggest surprise out of Sundance came in the form of a German sexplotation film so aptly named Wetlands. It’s a film that surged with raunch, comedy and genuine drama that had me wincing, bursting out laughing and deeply feeling for all at once. Simply put, it’s a stunner. So all the better that director...
I’ve added another of my favorite films from Sundance, The Guest, to this delightful series of Q&As that’ll give you a peek into the process of how these great works are pieced together as well as what you can expect when these films eventually hit theaters. If you appreciated Adam Wingard‘s early work (You’re Next,...
Continuing a tradition of excellence, Nebraska is Alexander Payne‘s seventh film in 22 years and has all the earmarks of a Payne project. But behind the landmarks that we’ve come to expect from an Alexander Payne film is a script boiling from the page courtesy of Seattle native Bob Nelson. Perfectly blending melancholy drama and...
There’s probably not a person on Earth who couldn’t tell you who Princess Diana is, and yet public knowledge of her is only surface deep. Oliver Hirschbiegel (Downfall) aims to settle that score with his biopic Diana. Known for his unblinking film biographies of historical figures, famous (Princess Diana) and infamous (Hitler) alike, Hirschbiegel hopes...
The name Kimberly Peirce is most closely identified with Boys Don’t Cry, her award-winning independent debut that saw an Oscar win for star Hillary Swank. Just as much as Boys Don’t Cry is a real life horror story, the Stephen King classic Carrie is grounded in issues of schoolyard bullying and overbearing parents. I sat...
Jim Mickle’s We Are What We Are offers a hard-boiled look at a family ruled by dated religious fervor and twisted idolatry. From their human meat munching table, Mickle brings these characters to life and took a minute to speak with me about that process. If you haven’t already, take a look at our...
There is some mystic magic in independent cinema. Having the freedom to express raw emotion without the framework of a studio-approved “story” gives one the freedom to experiment in new mediums. With Welcome to Nowhere (Bullet Hole Road), director William Cusick has captured something raw, something grimy, and something disgusting. While perhaps not for the...