The No Film School Podcast

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Charles Haine wonder if the massive decline predicted for summer box office returns is a hidden boon for indie filmmakers. We also discuss the new rules that might affect every freelancer, new E-mount lenses from Sony, an obituary for the MP3, and why the war between Netflix and movie theaters rages on even at the Cannes Film Festival. In Ask No Film School, we reveal the best way to set up a 4:3 timeline (and whether you’d really want to). As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. http://nofilmschool.com/2017/05/indie-film-weekly-051817-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Renée Felice Smith and C.A. Gabriel, co-writers and directors of ‘The Relationtrip,’ join No Film School’s Liz Nord after the film’s SXSW premiere to discuss how they parlayed everything they’ve learned on other people’s sets (Smith as a lead actress on 'NCIS: Los Angeles' for eight seasons, and Gabriel as a commercial composer for high-profile brands) into their own utterly charming indie feature. They made the film with their best friends, and used low-budget practical effects to make their weirdest fantasies real on screen, including spending six whole hours out of a 16-day shoot on an eleven-second stop motion animation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder introduce a filmmaker who learned how to tell whether festivals have actually watched his movie, and mourn the inimitable David Lynch's retirement from cinema. We also discuss what the annual Newfronts advertising presentations can tell you about where to pitch or sell your films, the closure of Facebook's VR production wing Oculus Story Studios, and whether or not other movie awards should follow in MTV's footsteps by eliminating gender-specific acting awards categories. Charles Haine joins us to report on the latest filmmaking tools, including a new wireless light meter that might change the way you evaluate a scene. Charles also answers an Ask No Film School question about the necessity of director's viewfinders. As always, we also bring you this week’s indie film releases, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does it take to be a fantastic documentary producer? From sitting in a ditch in Greenland’s below freezing weather, to pulling out an intensely personal story from a cut that may be a few hours too long, experienced producers Kate McLean and Glen Zipper embody the sort of intrepid attitude that a producer on a non-fiction film tends to need. What exactly does a documentary producer do, and why become one? No Film School's Oakley Anderson-Moore sat down with Kate and Glen at SXSW after the premieres of their latest respective films, Bill Nye Science Guy and Ramblin' Freak. Together they discuss the adventurous steps necessary to take on the role of an ace documentary producer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special festival episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord and Emily Buder ask whether the Tribeca Film Festival has a secret identity, and talk about why everyone is talking about 'The Handmaid's Tale.' We share tales and trivia from our on-the-ground coverage of Tribeca, including fest acquisitions, awards, dystopian premonitions, plant musicians and the most memorable festival films to look out for. We also discuss recent news outside of the festival bubble, including a major update on the Writers Guild of America negotiations, and a labor strike at camera stalwart B&H photo. As always, the show also brings news you can use about upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chances are, you know John Carroll Lynch’s face even if you don’t know his name. The actor, whose perhaps best known for his role as the Zodiac killer in David Fincher’s Zodiac, has a staggering 110 acting credits to his name. At this year’s SXSW, Lynch finally added another role to his resume: Director. His debut feature, Lucky, stars the legendary Harry Dean Stanton, another actor who is no slouch when it comes to having a prolific acting career. In fact, the ninety-year-old vet has amassed 199 acting credits to his name throughout his career. The film is a character study of an elderly, yet spirited atheist living in small town Texas. Lucky must come to terms with the fact that he may be in the midst of his last few years of life. Lynch has worked with some of the best directors of our age, a list that includes everyone from Fincher to Scorsese to Clint Eastwood. We talk the techniques he brought with him from his favorites of the bunch, the transition from actor to director, and what it's like directing David Lynch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this special episode of Indie Film Weekly, Charles Haine, Micah Van Hove and Jon Fusco broadcast live from the historic Plaza Hotel in downtown Las Vegas. The trio of No Film School editors come together for a moment of solace to discuss a week of non-stop coverage at the annual NAB Show. What they identify is a worrying trend. Another year with no huge gear announcements and technological advances which signal the further automation of filmmaking. As cameras and accessories get more sophisticated, it appears that some human elements of filmmaking may be in jeopardy. It wasn't all bad though. Whatever news was missing from the usual suspects, the emergence of some smaller start-ups they found while exploring the halls of the convention center more than made up for it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adam Leon made only one short before breaking onto the indie scene with his SXSW winning debut feature Gimme the Loot. With a budget around $60,000 the writer/director won the "Someone To Watch" award at the Film Independent Spirits and was able to get his film into almost every notable film festival on the market, including a run in the Un Certain Regard competition at Cannes. How did he pull it off? Hard work and humble beginnings. Leon's work ethic was noticed on set as a PA and as a result of his efforts, he found collaborators and producers that were eager to invest in his future. His latest film, Tramps, debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival last summer and was quickly scooped up by Netflix. It follows a young man and woman as they are unwittingly thrown into the middle of a money drop off gone awry. But for Leon, the real challenge came in crafting a genuine romance without leaning on cliche. To achieve this goal, he turned to his writing partner and producer Jamund Washington early on in the development process. Leon and Washington join us on this week's episode of The No Film School Podcast to talk filmmaking as a collaborative art form, the right way to take notes on your screenplay, and finding partners that won't compromise your vision but help to build upon it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco and Emily Buder get excited about the 16th edition of the Tribeca Film Festival opening this week, and discuss whether (finally!) Netflix might let us see its films in theaters. We also say goodbye to the genius cinematographer Michael Ballhaus and remember his storied career working with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us to share more previews of the big NAB gear expo that starts this weekend. He also answers an Ask No Film School question about creating Digital Cinema Packages for your movie. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com http://nofilmschool.com/2017/04/indie-film-weekly-042017-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three cinematographers with three very different films at SXSW 2017 discuss their favorite gear, what DPs can do to stand out off set, how they make room for their actors or subjects in vulnerable situations, and of course, the shoots that almost killed them. Guests include Autumn Eakin, who shot Jessica M. Thompson's realist, contemporary THE LIGHT OF THE MOON, which won the SXSW Narrative Feature Audience Award; James Axel West, who shot Adam Keleman’s stylish, ‘70s-referencing drama EASY LIVING; and Shane King, who shot Jennifer M. Kroot’s feature documentary THE UNTOLD TALES OF ARMISTEAD MAUPIN which won the SXSW Documentary Spotlight Audience Award. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord and Emily Buder discuss the strike that threatens to bring Hollywood to a halt, while a big move by Netflix attempts to bring a whole new life to production in Tinsel Town. Charles Haine joins us to disclose all of the drone rumors from this year’s upcoming NAB show, and answers an Ask No Film School question about what focal lengths to consider when buying prime lenses. We also talk about what the new Oscar eligibility rules mean for you, and hear from two directors of indie films that are being released this week: Joe Swanberg of ‘Win it All’ and Michael O'Shea of ‘The Transfiguration.’ As always, we bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The docu-fiction hybrid genre isn't necessarily a new thing. In fact, there are some festivals that are entirely devoted to those films that blur the line between what is real and what is written. It's the liberties in which the filmmakers choose to blur the lines where the real magic shines through. Kristoffer Borgli, director of the SXSW standout DRIB and guest on today's episode of The No Film School Podcast, didn't realize the full potential of the genre until he was halfway through making his film. He always knew he wanted to screw around with his audience, but to what extent? DRIB is the true story of performance artist Amir Asgharnejad, a man who amassed a following through fake fight videos he would put up on the internet. For Amir, it was never about getting famous however, it was all just a joke. It seems the joke was lost on an LA based energy drink company who decided Amir would be the face of their new brand. This is a film unlike any other, weaving together an embellished narrative of Amir's story, with real interviews discussing Amir's experience on which the narrative is based, and behind the scenes footage of what it was like making the film itself. If that sounds confusing. It's because it is. Oh yeah, and on top of all that, Amir stars as himself throughout the film's entirety. NFS Producer Jon Fusco sat down with Kris, Amir and co-star Brett Gelman at SXSW to get some insight into the art of play and trickery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

NFS Writer Oakley Anderson-Moore talks with the talented artists behind Felix & Paul studios, one of the leading VR production companies in the film world. The cinematic quality that is a hallmark of their projects is very uncommon in these rudimentary days of VR. Virtual reality has been excelling in the realm of documentary because exhibiting an immersive experience of a location goes almost hand in hand with that genre. With narrative VR, however, it’s been a harder nut to crack. How do you create a character arc in a 360 environment where viewers can look anywhere they want at any moment? It’s a challenge Felix & Paul take head on in their film "Miyubi," the story of a 1980s toy robot through whose eyes we watch a family grow up as he grows obsolete. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When attending film festivals, there is no more exciting prospect than catching a screening of a midnights shorts section. These are generally made up of the strangest, and in many ways, the most innovative projects accepted. They are playgrounds for exploration, coming from filmmakers who are absolutely fearless in exploding the themes and neurosis of their own daily lives. And SXSW selects the best of them. NFS Producer Jon Fusco sat down with a handful of crew members from shorts featured in this year's edition of SXSW, including Drew Maynard and Caleb Dirks from The Saurus, Celine Held and Logan George from Mouse, and Sarah Winshall from Whiskey Fist. We discussed the different favors, planning efforts, and resources it took for each of these filmmakers to get their short into SXSW. There was one constant in every path, however. No one made a short to get into a midnight section or even a film festival. They all just made stories which they felt needed to be told. The stories also just happen to be bat-shit insane. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this week's episode, co-hosts Jon Fusco and Emily Buder discuss what's causing major panic in the studio world, why (and how) you should use Facebook to promote your movies, and why it may finally be time to concede to HDR. We also hear from Richard Kelly, writer/director of 'Donnie Darko,' about how his cult classic scared off distributors at Sundance and then flopped at the box office, and Charlie McDowell, director of Netflix's 'The Discovery,' about why he opted for a streaming deal out of Sundance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Before "Ramblin Freak'," Tacodeli employee Parker Smith had made only one movie featuring sound. The three three-time film school dropout was stuck between a rock and a hard place after realizing his internship at The Austin Film Society was little more than the theater job he had left in Boulder, Colorado to make a name for himself in Texas. Now, the task of making your first feature is a daunting one. Some would think that filming it entirely alone should make things a hundred times more difficult. For Parker, however, being the only member of his film crew provided him with exactly the freedom necessary to experiment, learn and shoot his movie right. No Film School's Jon Fusco sat down with Smith at SXSW to learn how he pulled off making a movie about a guy who doesn't know how to make a movie. From watching five documentaries a night to finding a producer through Instagram, he provides us with tremendous insight into the art of learning as you go. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder dissect Netflix’s balancing act between the indie and studio worlds, and how indie theater guru Tim League threw down the gauntlet against the streaming giant. We also cover why getting your film graded F could be a good thing, according to IMDB, and a sad goodbye to indie film producer Robin O’Hara (‘Raising Victor Vargas’, ‘Gummo’). We hear from two directors whose films are hitting theaters this month, Alice Lowe of ‘Prevenge’ and Sarah Adina Smith of ‘Buster’s Mal Heart’. Charles Haine joins us for gear news, including an app that lets you shoot in LOG mode on your phone and his review of the new Sigma Cinema Zoom lenses. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re kicking off our SXSW coverage on a particularly high note. That’s because this interview features arguably the best voice we’ve ever had on the podcast in Nick Offerman, and also one of the best laughs we’ve ever had on the show in actress Trieste Kelly Dunn. They are joined by acclaimed indie director Bob Byington to discuss the creation of Infinity Baby, a film that premiered to uproarious laughter at the festival last week. The film is a convergence of three separate narratives surrounding a corporation that sells a highly unusual product: babies that never age. So while Byington may have made a name for himself with naturalistic movies like 7 Chinese Brothers, the surrealistic elements of Infinity Baby’s plot act as a springboard to the intricate dialogue of screenwriter Onur Tukel and grounded performances from Offerman, Kelly Dunn and the rest of the cast. We talk about how script supervising may be the best training ground for directors, how Nick Offerman overcame being a "sucky actor," and how sometimes if you want to get your break in Hollywood, all you have to do is make sure you have fresh laundry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Co-hosts Jon Fusco, Emily Buder, Oakley Anderson-Moore and Liz Nord have been running all over downtown Austin, Texas for the past week to bring you insights from America's coolest film event, the SXSW Film Festival and conference. In this episode, we forego our regular show format to share in-depth festival coverage, from keynotes with the likes of Rogue One director Gareth Edwards and legendary Muppeteer Frank Oz, to interviews with festival award-winners, to the best advice from industry panelists. Of course, we ask the perennial question: What is this festival good for, anyway? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode of The New Film School Podcast, writer Oakley Anderson Moore talks with two DPs. Her guests are Andrew Ackerman, who shot the brilliant, colorful underwater documentary "Chasing Coral," and Ante Cheng who DPed the nuanced black and white narrative Gook, set during the 1992 LA riots. While the style of productions are practically polar opposites of each other, from underwater timelapse nightmares to stylized lighting for black and white, they find common ground in the joy of telling a story through the visual image. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder give the secret to shots that smoothly pan from dark to light and introduce a filmmaker whose work has started a global conversation. We celebrate Women’s History Month with Ava DuVernay’s Twitter takeover. We also get advice from four-time Sundance director Tiffany Shlain. Later, we preview this week’s SXSW Film Festival, tech writer Charles Haine joins us with gear news, including our lens test comparing five different Anamorphics on RED Weapon vs. ARRI Alexa, and Dutch director Martin Koolhoven discusses his new film 'Brimstone'. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of the No Film School podcast, Emily Buder sits down with David Ethan Shapiro, CEO of Starlight Studios, and Jacob Schulsinger, editor ("Force Majeure," "Antichrist"), to discuss their Sundance premiere, "Come Swim," Kristen Stewart's experimental short film. We talk the merits of film school and why it's important to recreate that creative atmosphere in your career, the secret to raising money as a producer, why editors should help directors write movies, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 50th episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco and Emily Buder share our final conversation with Bill Paxton and advice on getting your actors to tear up on camera. We discuss what the Academy Awards can teach us about producing, along with this year’s indie-oriented results from both the Oscars and the Film Independent Spirit Awards, and how Netflix is already vying for next awards season with a Martin Scorsese pic. We also say goodbye to Seijun Suzuki and hear from director Ry Russo-Young about her film ‘Before I Fall,’ opening in theaters this weekend. Filmmaker and actress Christina Beck joins us for an Ask No Film School about making actors cry. And, as always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. http://nofilmschool.com/2017/03/indie-film-weekly-030217-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a breakthrough year for virtual reality, No Film School’s Liz Nord sits down with four Sundance filmmakers who learned to get past convention and embrace creating in VR. Each of their fascinating projects are cinematic, but they're certainly not cinema—which didn’t stop them from premiering at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Guests Lily Baldwin of 'Through You', Rose Troche of 'If Not Love', and Yasmin Elayat and Elie Zananiri of 'Zero Days VR' discuss how they brought their groundbreaking stories to life, and which filmmaking rules they had to throw out the window to do so. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder weigh in on how "independent film" should be defined, and share results of our big shootout between the Alexa Mini and Epic-W Helium. We also discuss how the inaugural American Independent Film Awards are helping to redefine awards season, how indie cinemas are banding together nationwide for a cause, a surprising way to increase your film’s profitability, and SAG-AFTRA’s wading into political waters. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us for gear news, including our epic (and contentious) shootout between recent two popular cameras, and a new lens from Fujinon that marks the company’s venture into the world of indie film. In Ask No Film School, we advise on why your videos look so different on YouTube than in your editing system, and how to compensate. As always, we also bring you upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films.You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the world of modern filmmaking—a place where anyone can make anything at any time and put it online pretty much anywhere. Whether or not people actually watch it? Well, that's a different question. With the democratization of film comes the democratization of exhibitors, and in today's new media landscape, the number of platforms through which a filmmaker can show their work can be overwhelming. In this week's episode of The No Film School Podcast, Producer Jon Fusco sits down with a handful of short filmmakers whose projects have either been funded, licensed, or exhibited by the idiosyncratic video website Super Deluxe. The Super Deluxe platform is one that should be a model for innovative filmmakers looking to get their work noticed. Self-described as "a community of creative weirdos making videos that are (we hope) more substantial than much of what you see on the internet," they are truly a service to filmmakers, providing funding, creative freedom, and, most importantly, trust. Kenneth Gug, Pipus Larsen, and Scott Ross started making Instagram videos and are now Sundance alum with their short doc, Deer Squad. Matt Wolf has been making feature documentaries for years, and Super Deluxe funded his doc short, Bayard & Me, a biography about Civil Rights leader Bayard Washington. Anna Kerrigan was brought on as a director for hire for the web series The Chances, following two deaf friends as they navigate the buzzy scene in Los Angeles. There is no right way to go about getting your project recognized, although it's preferable to have a strategy rather than throwing something online and hoping it catches fire. All of these filmmakers came together at Sundance to discuss their own experience within the oversaturated new media landscape and their strategies in tailoring stories for an era of rabid media consumption. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco and Emily Buder reveal which cameras shooters are looking to buy this year, and help you avoid on-set arrests. They discuss the dominance of Panasonic's GH5 in indie filmmaker buzz, while ARRI's Alexa rules over the Academy's Sci-Tech Awards and film sets everywhere. The show covers the potential neutering of net neutrality by the new head of America's Federal Communications Commission, and an upcoming indie-helmed Netflix show that's pissing off white people. We also hear from screenwriter Paul Laverty on his BAFTA-winning film, ‘I, Daniel Blake’ and cinematographer Bojan Bazelli on his collaboration with Gore Verbinski for the wild ride that is ‘A Cure for Wellness’. In Ask No Film School, we cover when (and when not) to ask for permission for public shoots, and other tips for outdoor guerrilla filmmaking. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For all intents and purposes, the Sundance Film Festival is the Holy Grail for many short filmmakers around the world. Need proof? Just take a look at the number of entries to this year's competition: 9,000. It would take an army to sift through that much content. Or at least a highly dedicated and skilled team of programmers. Even with that sort of team in place, it seems like there has to be some element of luck involved with getting into one of the country's most prestigious festivals. In this episode of The No Film School Podcast, producer Jon Fusco and writer Oakley Anderson-Moore conduct a roundtable discussion with crew members from three of the 68 films presented in this year's shorts program. Included in the discussion are Rob Savage, Jed Shepherd and Douglas Cox from Dawn of the Deaf, a sign language zombie movie made with the deaf community in London; Native American filmmaker, Lyle Corbine Jr. who's latest short Shinaab marks his fifteenth film; and Jessica Beshir and Charlie Hoxie, who round out the group with their film Hairat, which details the strange nightly ritual of an Ethiopian man who feeds hyenas by dangling meat from a stick in his mouth. The result is a fascinating dissection of the steps each filmmaker took to find their place at Sundance. You'll find more than a few nuggets of advice in there to aid in your own short filmmaking projects. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss this year’s crop of filmmaker-helmed Super Bowl spots, and debate whether or not participating in America’s biggest day of ad spending helps aspiring directors. Plus, it’s a bumper week for new lenses, awards season marches on, and we say goodbye to tripod innovator Lino Manfrotto. In Ask No Film School, Charles Haine gives tips on creating a film that appears to be shot in one long take. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at http://nofilmschool.com/2017/02/indie-film-weekly-020917-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yiddish is a language developed among the Jewish population of Central Europe in the 9th century as a mix of their Biblical Hebrew, and the German and other modern languages of the day. Before World War II, it was spoken by upwards of 13 million people. Today, in the US, it is estimated to only be spoken by less than 200,000. The scarcity of spoken Yiddish today makes it an especially unusual choice for the script written by American director and native English speaker Joshua Z. Weinstein on his new film “Menashe.” And that wasn’t the only—ahem—unorthodox choice that was made. The movie was filmed with almost all untrained actors from within an insular ultra-orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn, and the script was developed alongside its star, a man who had never seen a movie in a theater. Perhaps even more surprising is that the feature not only made it into this year’s Sundance Film Festival, but got renowned Executive Producer Chris Columbus on board just before the event, and afterwards landed a deal with A24, which distributed last year’s biggest indie hit, “Moonlight.” Editor-in-Chief Liz Nord met up with Weinstein, along with the film’s cinematographer and co-producer Yoni Brook, and lead actor Menashe Lustig, at Sundance just after the film premiered. They discuss the unique production, camera techniques, and their unlikely success in making a film about a widowed man trying to convince his traditional community that he is capable of caring for his young son. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss the Netflix acquisition of Oscar-worthy Mudbound, the highly charged SAG Awards, how the first two weeks of Trump’s term are shaking up the film industry, and which cameras and lenses were most popular among Sundance cinematographers this year. In Ask No Film School, DP Shane King clues us in on cropping 4K footage. As always, we also bring you the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, No Film School producer Jon Fusco sits down with Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion, co-directors of Bushwick, a film that premiered in Sundance’s Midnight Section. The premise for a Neo-Civil War film in America may have seemed insane a decade ago when Millot and Murnion first came up with it; now, it doesn’t seem so far-fetched. Brittany Snow plays Lucy, a student on her way home to Bushwick while on break from grad school. She gets off the subway only to realize that her Brooklyn neighborhood is under siege from an unknown enemy. Later on in the film, it is revealed that Texas and a handful of other states have seceded from the union and are the force behind the attack. With the help of Stupe, a former marine played by Dave Bautista, they attempt to fight their way through the city to safety. For Millot and Murnion, the road to making Bushwick was paved by a ton of hard work and self-education. Neither went to film school, but through a series of successful short film competitions, they were able to capture the eye of a producer at SXSW. That led to a directing gig on the 2014 horror/comedy Cooties. In this podcast, they discuss the steps they took to win that film and how their process of making a movie evolved once they had one in the can. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode of Indie Film Weekly brings reports from the ground on the movies, the acquisitions, and the suspected Russian hacking of independent cinema's beating heart. Co-hosts Jon Fusco, Emily Buder, Oakley Anderson-Moore Liz Nord have been hitting the snowy sidewalks of Park City, Utah, for the past week, to bring you all the most fascinating stories from America's preeminent independent film event, the Sundance Film Festival. They forego the regular show format to share in-depth Sundance coverage, from the lay of the land, to celebrity run-ins, to the most intriguing films and biggest acquisitions. They also cover one of the strangest occurrences in recent festival memory, a cyberattack on the Sundance online ticketing and admin systems. Finally, we bring news of the other biggest event in the film world this past week, the 2017 Academy Award nominations. Find links to all these stories and more about the craft of filmmaking at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Producer Jon Fusco kicks off The No Film School Podcast's Sundance coverage with an incredibly important (and timely) discussion on how documentary film can be utilized as a powerful call to action. "Whose Streets?" picks up moments after the murder of unarmed black teen Michael Brown at the hands of Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. Through a harrowing collage of guerrilla-style filmmaking and archival footage, Co-directors Sabaah Foloyan and Damon Davis place us at the epicenter of the Ferguson community as racial tensions in the city reach their boiling point. The directors, however, don’t focus on the forensics reports or harsh statistics associated with institutionalized racism. Instead, they sifted through nearly 400 hours of footage to deliver their message through the pain and heartbreak of the city’s residents. What we get is a stark contrast to a narrative the media presented back in 2014. And while it might be uncomfortable for some, the truth is made clear as we watch the intimate stories of the men and women who rallied together to push through injustice as the protests unfolded. On this episode, activist Brittany Ferrel joins Foloyan and Davis as we dig deep into the potential of documentary film as a tool for change. Regardless of your political affiliation, giving voice to the voices that usually go unheard is an objective every documentarian should seek to achieve. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, we preview the best that Sundance 2017 has to offer, and reveal why RED's Helium 8K is even better than we thought. No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss the biggest festival buzz, and the films and filmmakers we're most excited to cover as we head to Park City, Utah, to bring you news and interviews from the Sundance Film Festival. We also discuss new filmmaker-friendly divisions at Vice and NatGeo, the Cinema Eye Honors results, and the too-short life of the Lily drone. In Ask No Film School, we advise on how to choose your next documentary camera. As always, the show also brings news you can use about gear, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films.You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the emerging field of virtual reality filmmaking, there are still lots of basic questions about how best to tell a story in VR, which projects even make a worthwhile story in 360, and what conventions from traditional filmmaking that we need to throw right out the window to help pave the way for this medium. On this episode, I speak with some smart people who have been grappling with these questions and made some amazing projects—Ben C. Solomon, video journalist and filmmaker for The New York Times, and Carla Borras, Director of Digital Video at PBS’s long-running documentary series, Frontline. We are joined by Sean Flynn, Program Director of the Points North Institute who invited both Borras and Solomon to the Camden International Film Festival where we spoke, and curated its interactive storytelling lineup. Our guests share their stories and advice from the 360-degree trenches. For more, check out the podcast post at nofimschool.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Co-hosts Jon Fusco, Emily Buder, and Charles Haine discuss Kodak's big reveal at CES—the revival of color reversal film stock Ektachrome—and why trade shows are becoming irrelevant. They also delve into the awards season, which kicked off with Sunday's Golden Globes; George Lucas' new museum; and how to manipulate aperture and light sensitivity. As always, the show also brings news you can use about gear, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, our Ask No Film School segment, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss how the death of America’s Section 181 filmmaking tax incentive will affect indie filmmakers. We also talk about the NoBudge Film Awards and say a sad goodbye to Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds, and TIFF co-founder Bill Marshall. In Ask No Film School, we give some pointers on properly backing up your footage. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us to bring the latest gear news, including a CES preview that reveals the full Panasonic GH5 specs, and as always, we update you on upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. http://nofilmschool.com/2017/01/indie-film-weekly-010517-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Giant is a film that's nearly impossible to pin down. Director Johannes Nyholm describes it as a western, a cheesy sports movie, a drama, a surrealistic fantasy, and a dark comedy all rolled into one. It follows the daily life of an autistic and severely deformed little person named Rikard. His main ambition in life is to win the Scandinavian Championship of pétanque, a European bowling game much like bocce ball. Oh, also, there is a 200 foot giant by his side nearly every step of the way. On this week's episode of The No Film School Podcast, we deconstruct the film's veiled themes, and with the aid of it's Swedish director, piece them back together to reveal how surrealism can weave together a more meaningful message than your average run-of-the-mill drama. Nylholm is a DIY filmmaker through and through, he didn’t go to film school instead teaching himself as many tools as he could through shooting, editing, VFX and animation first for music videos and then his own shorts. He is living proof that, with the correct tools in place, you can create a movie that doesn’t cost much even though it looks like it does. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on The No Film School Podcast, Producer Jon Fusco sits down with Justin Kurzel, director of the new Assassin’s Creed movie. The film is, of course, based on the incredibly popular Ubisoft game series. There has yet to be a video game movie release that one could call "excellent," but it's easy to identify the factors that make these adaptations so challenging to do well. This would certainly seem to be a higher profile guest then we usually have on the show, but like many other recent blockbuster directors, Mr. Kurzel is a low-budget filmmaker at heart. His two previous movies, The Snowtown Murders and Macbeth, are a few of the more stylized indie action flicks to have come out in recent years. This same visionary style shines through in Assassin's Creed—whatever unevenness the script presents—making it one of the most enjoyable video game adaptations to date. With an $130 million budget, Assassin’s Creed is a far jump from the $15 million Macbeth, which was already a leap from the $ 2 million spent on The Snowtown Murders. In this conversation, we break down the biggest challenges of making the jump from independent film to blockbuster, where the scale is massive and there are endless voices in your ear throughout production. In the end, Mr. Kurzel insists what’s most important is keeping your vision strong despite all of those voices, and how in doing that himself, he hopes to have broken the dreaded “video game curse." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This special, year-end episode of Indie Film Weekly reveals the best that 2016 had to offer while you were busy making films. This year was full of outstanding indie releases and gear innovations, and in our final episode of 2016, co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, Emily Buder, and Charles Haine share our favorite films. We also unveil top camera choices and review the biggest gear news of the year, namely the launch of Lytro's groundbreaking Cinema Camera. We also discuss our best takeaways from talking to some of the most interesting filmmakers and industry pros on the planet, from Kodak President Steve Bellamy to Gianfranco Rosi, director of Italy's 2017 Foreign Language Oscar contender. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of the No Film School Podcast, we lead a fascinating discussion on how directors can work with young actors to produce astounding performances. Our guests include director J.A. Bayona (The Orphanage, The Impossible), first-time screenwriter Patrick Ness, and 14-year-old Lewis MacDougall, the leading man of A Monster Calls. A Monster Calls, which hits New York and Los Angeles on December 23rd, is not your typical feel-good holiday story. It follows a child as he slips further and further into a fantastical relationship with a tree monster in an attempt to cope with the impending death of his mother. For the actor, screenwriter, and director, the film’s heavy themes posed many questions. How emotionally intense should a screenwriter render a child's role? How does a director encourage a young actor to reach deep into his emotional depths? And what does it take for the actor to get there? It took the efforts of all three to pull the final product off. Here's how they did it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, we reveal your best budget 4K camera options, and tell a cautionary distribution tale from the indie doc ‘Do Not Resist.’ No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, Emily Buder and Charles Haine also discuss The Black List’s annual ranking of the best unproduced screenplays and Emmy Rossum’s “shameless” battle for equal pay on the set of her hit Showtime series, and share clips from our interview with Greig Fraser, DP of the latest Star Wars film, ‘Rogue One’. As always, we update you on the latest gear news, upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, we hear from one of the greatest influencers of modern cinema, Steadicam inventor Garrett Brown, and give our take on how consent issues might affect your filmmaking. No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, Emily Buder, and Charles Haine also discuss Sundance 2017’s full lineup and the new movie app that has J.J. Abrams, Steven Spielberg and Tyler Perry on board. As always, the show brings our Ask No Film School segment, and we update you on upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com http://nofilmschool.com/2016/12/indie-film-weekly-120816-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cannes-Winning director Alice Rohrwacher was selected to be this year's prestigious Film Society of Lincoln Center Filmmaker in Residence. Rohrwacher grew up in the Tuscan countryside and never saw a moving image until she was an adult. No Film School's Emily Buder discusses faking her way into her first directing gig, boredom's role in producing creativity, and why we need to go into the void to be great filmmakers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, we ask why movie financiers are ignoring box office numbers, and divulge how math might help you tell the best stories on screen. No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss recent studies on the six emotional arcs of storytelling and the surprising relationship between director age and box office returns, along with the Gotham Independent Film Award winners, and how DJI continues to launch great new drones while GoPro’s drones continue to fall out of the sky. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us to bring the latest gear news, and as always, we update you on upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com http://nofilmschool.com/2016/12/indie-film-weekly-120116-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katie Says Goodbye is screenwriter/director Wayne Roberts' first feature. Unlike most first features, however, it had its world premiere earlier this year in front of a packed house in the middle of one of the world's biggest film events: Toronto International Film Festival. In the film, Olivia Cooke throws her name into the best actress ring starring as the titular Katie, an ever optimistic diner waitress who doesn't let the harsh realities of her Arizona homestead break her down. Instead, she focuses on earning enough money to finally break out of her trailer park and make a move to San Francisco. Her preferred method in fundraising? Prostitution. Needless to say, this leads to some challenges in her life, especially when she starts dating Bruno, stoically portrayed by Christopher Abbott, a mechanic with a history of grand theft auto. No Film School’s Jon Fusco sat down with Abbott and Roberts to discuss how a writer's work is best achieved by getting rid of any hesitations and letting their characters speak through them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode of Indie Film Weekly celebrates Jackie Chan's just rewards and helps you get started on creating an indie film budget. Co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco, and Emily Buder discuss other early Oscar disclosures, the future’s best films as presented at last week’s American Film Market, and cinematic goodbyes to songwriter Leonard Cohen and actor Robert Vaughn. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us to bring the latest gear news, including a report from NAB NY and a slew of drone updates from DJI. As always, we also share upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at nofilmschool.com Post: http://nofilmschool.com/2016/11/indie-film-weekly-111716 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Indie Film Weekly, we break down the potential impact of America’s new government on artists and the press. No Film School co-hosts Liz Nord, Jon Fusco and Emily Buder also cover an ambitious Election Day documentary-in-the-making and the Cinema Eye Honors and IDA Awards nominees, say goodbye to French cinematographer Raoul Coutard, discuss how YouTube is branching into HDR, and talk about GoPro’s unfortunate recall of its new Karma drone. In the Ask No Film School segment, we advise on the best website builder for filmmakers. Tech writer Charles Haine joins us to bring the latest gear news, and we hear an excerpt from Liz’s interview with ‘Arrival’ DP Bradford Young. As always, we update you on upcoming grant and festival deadlines, this week’s indie film releases, and other notable things you might have missed while you were busy making films. You can see all the links from this show in this week’s podcast post at www.nofilmschool.com. http://nofilmschool.com/2017/07/indie-film-weekly-111116-podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When No Film School's Liz Nord saw 'The Eagle Huntress' at TIFF this year, she wrote that she may have seen the perfect documentary. It’s got all the elements: incredibly charismatic protagonists, majestic landscapes, underlying social issues, and a classic David and Goliath tale. In this case our "David" is actually a 13-year-old girl named Aisholpan who is determined to learn the dangerous art of hunting game with eagles in the frozen wilderness—and the "Goliath" is the 12-generation-long eagle-hunting tradition that has never, ever allowed a female to participate. Fortunately, Aisholpan's father—a champion eagle hunter himself— agrees to train her, despite objections of the community elders. The story behind the film is almost as dramatic as its subject. Otto Bell's small crew underwent Herculean production efforts to shoot the sweeping film in the mountains of Mongolia. On this podcast, Mr. Bell is joined by producer Stacey Reiss, who came on to shepherd the project to completion when Bell had run entirely out of resources. They discuss the film's year of post-production and distribution adventures, from running a team of post-production translators in Kazhakstan, to getting EP Daisy Ridley on board just shy of their Sundance premiere, to the workload any filmmaker can expect to take on after your film is in the can. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices