CinemaScope

In this episode, we’re speaking with writing, producing and directing pair Jules Jones and Sam Akina, a powerhouse team and real-life partners from the U.S. who unexpectedly found themselves living in Poland after what was supposed to be a short stint for a film there in 2017. Six years later, they have five of the past decade’s highest-grossing films in Poland and a slew of projects in the pipeline. Today, we’re talking about being open to new opportunities and how to build a film career in a foreign country.

Find out more about their work at attackships.com.

In this episode, we’re speaking with director and producer Lesya Kalynska and producer TJ Collins about their documentary film A Rising Fury, which is receiving global attention for exposing Russia's hidden war techniques in Ukraine that have drastic, worldwide implications.

A Rising Fury was more than nine years in the making. Lesya and co-director Ruslan Batytskyi initially sought to make a film about peaceful revolution in Ukraine; but they ended up filming with troops along the frontlines in Eastern Ukraine, learning the secrets of Russia's divide-and-conquer tactics.

Lesya and TJ discuss must-know advice on gaining the trust of the community in documentary filmmaking and the importance of documentary characters understanding the story — despite history unfolding. They also discuss the key role that filmmakers are playing in telling the truth in war and dismantling the propaganda machines that serve as the lifeblood of dictatorships around the world.

The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Festival 2022. Find out more at arisingfury.com.

On this episode of Cinemascope Milt & Jim talk with Jessie Walsh about the cool programs at SFCC.

In this episode, we’re speaking with a European film industry leader who’s dedicated countless hours to helping filmmakers and others in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale war started in February 2022: Irena Gruca-Rozbicka. We're speaking with Irena about what it's like for filmmakers fighting on the frontlines and other Ukrainian filmmakers, as well as the easy ways that listeners can directly help them as they document the truth and fight for democracy. 

Irena has 20+ years in the professional audio-visual production press. Ten years ago, she co-founded an independent publishing house and the FilmPRO Foundation aimed at film education. Since then, she's published and edited FilmPRO – the most prominent Polish magazine about pre-production, production and postproduction. FilmPRO is the official magazine for the Polish Society of Cinematographers (PSC). In 2019, she moved to Germany and started working with Crew United as their European Development Coordinator. When Russia’s full-scaLe war on Ukraine began, she and the owner and managing partner of Crew United formed Filmmakers for Ukraine, which Cinema Scope host Genevieve Trainor is a part of.

This week we are joined by film professional Robert Dennis, who shares his experiences with various film studios including Lucasfilm and HBO, among other fascinating occupations! Dennis helps us explore the extensive diversity of different production types throughout many levels of film studios.

In this episode, we’re speaking with writer and director Clarence Fuller about his unconventional journey as a filmmaker and weaving his own childhood into his first feature, Signs of Love.

Signs of Love was the opening night film at the 2022 Brooklyn Film Festival and stars Rosanna Arquette, Dylan Penn, Zoë Bleu Sidel and Hopper Jack Penn.

More info about Clarence's work and Signs of Love: https://www.clarencefullerstudio.com/film.

In this episode, we’re speaking with pioneering filmmaker Nina Menkes, who’s one of the first women to present a feature film at Sundance and the filmmaker behind documentary BRAINWASHED: Sex-Camera-Power, which premiered at Sundance 2022 and has since screened at other prominent festivals worldwide. BRAINWASHED was released theatrically in October 2022 by Kino Lorber.

Considered a cinematic feminist pioneer and one of America’s foremost independent filmmakers, Nina has shown widely in major international film festivals including multiple premieres at Sundance, Cannes, the Berlinale and Toronto.

Nina has an MFA with high honors from the UCLA Film School (1989). She’s taught film directing at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) and is currently a faculty member at California Institute of the Arts. She is a directing member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS).

Nina synthesizes inner-dream worlds with harsh, outer realities. She was called “brilliant, one of the most provocative artists in film today” by the Los Angeles Times, and her body of work was described as “controversial, intense and visually stunning” by Sight and Sound. Nina has referred to herself as a witch; and Dennis Lim, writing in The New York Times, called her a “cinematic sorceress.” 

Andrew "Rosey" Hayett, Director of Film Prize Jr. New Mexico - a statewide educational initiative that will support classrooms and youth organizations to create short films which will screen at a film festival in Santa Fe in April 2022.

Check out Film Prize Jr. New Mexico at https://www.filmprizenm.com/