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There’s so few people involved in the film industry that can be referred to by just their first name, but in the case of my guest, Bonnie Timmermann, she is one who achieved that honor. If I asked you to pick 20 films out of the last 25 years, I would bet around 5 would have been cast by Bonnie. The documentary, now available for streaming, BONNIE (2022), is a must-watch.

We go beyond the doc to talk about what she wish was covered, representation in casting, how directors and casting directors should look at TikTok and YouTube influencers, and more.

In this episode, Bonnie and I discuss:

• The challenges of insincerity for a casting director;
• How she got started in casting and whether it’s teachable;
• What the documentary on her life missed from her perspective;
• Representation in casting and when to use an actor (or not use an actor!) of a specific type;
• How she decides whether to work with a director or not;
• Whether in person casting translates to performance on film;
• How directors should look at casting TikTok and YouTube influencers;
• The difference in casting men and women;
• Did she feel like she got a casting decision wrong?
• Epic story about actor Ben Foster taking on a Ridley Scott film;
• How she casts accents;
• What’s next for this amazing casting director. 

Bonnie's Indie Filmmaker Highlight: Brian Swibel

Memorable Quotes:

“I’m an emotional person. I'm terribly sensitive. I can be funny at times. I think humor helps you always. So yes, I think the darkest side of me helped me to see the darkest and the lightest sides of actors.”

“I used to say, and it was true, if you find me, I’m yours because I would never list myself in a phone book or one of those books where you can find people.” 

“You are really the first director. You are directing the actor on film yourself, and you wanna get the best out of them so that when your director sees their work that they get a really good shot.”

Links:

Watch BONNIE (2022) Now

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Let’s put it down right now: Brook Linder has the branded content hit of the year, with his weekly promos for Everybody’s Live With John Mulaney. Vimeo put it out as its own thing, and once you turn on the compilation of promos, you can’t turn it off. It’ll be running on repeat in your head. I warned you.

We go deep in this episode in getting banned from Springfield, Missouri high schools, not just for his film crew but every film crew afterwards, early Kickstarter, what it’s like making branded content, and so much more. As Brook says, let’s go ham.

In this episode, Brook and I talk about:

• Those epic John Mulaney ads (so rewatchable) and why they are the branded success of the year;
• How hard was it for him to give up editing;
• Did his viral success surprise him or was it just the culmination of all the work he put in?
• How shooting on film can be a crutch;
• The expectations when brands call him and how it differs from his personal aesthetic; 
• What music video shoots are really like;
• His origin story — fellow Missourian!;
• His first short, GHOUL SCHOOL (2013), its Kickstarter campaign, and the film that got him kicked out of filming in the Springfield high school system (and everyone else going forward);
• How he does brand work and getting his name out there without pissing his clients off;
• The possibility of an AI Brook Linder video?
• Whether this viral success has helped him with his own projects;
• His new documentary on the band, someone still lives you boris yeltsin, and their trip to Russia;
• How much we love watching trailers but the economics of it — it’s tough!

Brook’s Indie Film Highlight: ARCADIAN (2024) dir. by Benjamin Brewer

Memorable Quotes:

“ We'd blow up a classroom, right? Go ham, and the school would kick us out. “

“ You need to empower an editor and say, Hey look, you gotta make this yours. You gotta tell the story that makes sense to you and not work with the bones of whatever I thought I was gonna do.”

“ I have used film instead of having a very clear concept. I'm a music video guy, so there's a lot of flash involved. Okay. So I've used film when I thought eh, can I be a filmy vibe?”

“Some artists really want them and because it feels if you don't have a music video, you aren't minted in some way.”

Links:

Follow Brook Linder On Instagram

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Every Sunday, I'll post a quick video -- and podcast -- about an indie film from at least a year ago. Today's film: KAJAKI (2014).

Director: Paul Katis

Writer: Tom Williams

Cast: David Elliot; Mark Stanley; Scott Kyle; Ali Cook

SYNOPSIS

Helmand Province in Afghanistan, 2006. A company of young British soldiers encounter an unexpected, terrifying enemy: a dried-out river bed, and with every step the possibility of an anti-personnel mine that could kill.

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You’d expect comedy out of a comedian turned actor and then director, right? Think again. My guest, filmmaker Ali Cook, turns what you’d expect upside down. So far, he’s written two short films, directed one, and is working now on his first few features. He acted in a truly phenomenal Afghanistan war film, KAJAKI (2014), sometimes known as Kilo Two Bravo, and he’s got more insight than we could possibly cover in 30 minutes. 

I tried to keep my laughter to a minimum, but come on. Go watch his films. Ali is talented and funny. 

In this episode, Ali and I discuss:

• What his goals are for an exquisitely filmed short film in THE PEARL COMB (2025) and previously THE CUNNING MAN (2019);
• How a comedian and magician in Britain became an indie film actor, writer and director; 
• His website lists his skills as directing, writing, producing, acting — does he have a favorite?
• What he took away from his first short film;
• Whether a high profile social media account helps his indie filmmaking career — “I think it’s a little bit different in the UK”;
• What to expect to see when they watch THE PEARL COMB and how he structures his films like a magic trick;
• How he brings the showman’s ability to filmmaking;
• What draws him to the Victorian look for his films
• His experience of watching his films in a theater and with an audience;
• The “awful” game you are playing trying to find honest feedback for a film;
• The clues in THE PEARL COMB that explain the ending;
• The best compliment you can give a short film — you have to rewatch it;
• How deflating it must be for a film with a big festival run to just be uploaded to YouTube;
• The brilliance of KAJAKI (2014) as a war film and his reflections on the film;
• what's next for this talented and funny filmmaker.

Ali's Indie Film Highlights: KAJAKI (2014) dir. by Paul Katis; THE SCHOOL DUEL (2024) dir. by Todd Wiseman Jr

Memorable Quotes:

“The structure of a one-man show is very similar to a film, really. And then I just realized there was a lot of inherent skills that I knew, the most brutal one being, having a pretty good sense of when people are getting bored.”

“ I think my least favorite is producing. But you need to be a great multitasker and I'm not, and you have to have excellent people skills of which mine are debatable.” 

“ The game of a comedian and the game of a magician is to paint thoughts in the audience's mind via assumption. So every joke is when you shatter an assumption.”

“I actually watch the audiences. So when the surprises are coming, I like to watch someone two or three rows in front of me, and I like to see if they're gonna jump or not.” 

“ The ending ideally should be surprising yet inevitable.” 

Links:

Follow Ali On Instagram

Follow THE PEARL COMB On Instagram

Ali Cook's Website

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I feel like this would be a good plotline for a gonzo Mission Impossible movie: make romcoms and comedy dramas relevant again. In one sentence, my guest, director and podcaster Charles Hood, declared “comedies and comedy dramas are dead, sadly” but also came back in the next few sentences with the announcement, I’m releasing a romcom feature later this year. 

This sounds exactly like a challenge, if you choose to accept it, for one of the co-hosts of the official Mission Impossible podcast. And here’s to thinking he’ll be successful. 

In this episode, Charles and I talk about:

• His journey to hosting the unofficial — and then the official — Mission Impossible podcast, “Light The Fuse”;
• Why more filmmakers aren’t podcasting and what it takes to be successful in the medium;
• How he got his start in filmmaking;
• Should you make a microbudget feature like Charles’ first film, FREEZER BURN (2007), or a great short film?
• How he found himself in the comedy-drama romcom space;
• The ten year anniversary of NIGHT OWLS (2015), his reflections on the film, and his focus on screenplay structure going into making the film; 
• His work at go90, a Verizon “mobile-oriented social entertainment platform” (who knew about that?!);
• The value of structured, well written script;
• Whether the official MI podcast helped him get “above the noise”;
• When we should expect his next project, THERE SHE GOES
• How the vote of actors participating in an indie film project is so important.

Charlie’s Indie Film Highlight: Josh Greenbaum; GHOST BOY (2025) dir. by Rodney Ascher; THE NIGHTMARE (2015) dir. by Rodney Ascher; A GLITCH IN THE MATRIX (2021) dir. by Rodney Ascher

Memorable Quotes:

“ We always talk to everybody about Tom Cruise's hairstyle, their favorite haircut from the different movies. And we also would jokingly talk about how we're in a golden age of dog cinema because there were a lot of dog movies that have come out in the last 10 years.”

“ If you're gonna do a big short with a real budget, you might as well try to figure out how to squeeze that budget into a feature and do a feature.”

“Comedies and comedy dramas are dead, sadly.”

“ Actually if you make a romantic comedy, you get to sneak in a lot of character work that you wouldn't get to do in a lot of other genres.”

“We learned a lot over those years, writing studio comedies and learning structure and that applied to this movie that is mainly just two people talking.”

“So I’m still chasing that feeling again of making NIGHT OWLS.”

“They always say that, you have to know the rules before you can break them. And I was breaking them on FREEZER BURN without knowing them.”

“What Tom Cruise is all about is….serving the audience.”

Links:

Follow Charles On Instagram

Watch Indie Film Highlight: NIGHT OWLS (2015)

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Every Sunday, I'll post a quick video -- and podcast -- about an indie film from at least a year ago. Today's film: PEOPLE PLACES THINGS (2015).

Director: James C. Strouse

Screenplay: James C. Strouse

Cast: Jermaine Clement; Regina Hall; Stephanie Allynne

SYNOPSIS

A graphic novelist /professor (Jemaine Clement) tries to navigate the unfamiliar waters of single fatherhood and dating.

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This is still an indie film podcast, don’t misunderstand, but if I had to do one conversation with somebody who made a studio film, it would be with my guest Ebs Burnough. I’d argue no other person understands the indie film market like he does, especially now with the release of KEROUAC’S ROAD: THE BEAT OF A NATION (2025). The film examines how Jack Kerouac’s iconic novel “On the Road” resonates in contemporary America. 

Ebs has a career that hardly seems repeatable — working for the White House to chairing the Sundance Institute — but those kind of unique stories make for the best documentary filmmakers. And we have a great one here today. 

In this episode, Ebs and I discuss:

• How to make a documentary stand out;
• His incredible story of chairing the Sundance Institute, working at the White House under President Obama, and now filmmaking, and what that means for independent directors looking to follow his path;
• What did he take away from his first doc, THE CAPOTE TAPES (2019), to his new film;
• How the process was different as a studio film and if it’s exactly the film he wanted to make;
• The difficulty for directors in accepting feedback and how he views that challenge;
• The decisions surrounding music in the film and why he decided to go with a more contemporary soundtrack;
• How we get more people in theaters for documentaries;
• Whether the festival system is still working for films and his thoughts on the distribution system;
• What’s next for him and if he ever imagines working on narrative projects.

Ebs’ Indie Film Highlight: W. Kamau Bell

Memorable Quotes:

“Wouldn't it be interesting to talk to people who couldn't have gone on the road like Jack did in 1957, but can today?” 

“ Take some risks. Nothing's guaranteed, but if you don't try, you can't fail. But if you can't fail, you can't succeed.”

“I knew that I wanted to bring ‘On the Road’ into the 21st century.” 

“Sometimes your vision is super clear to you and you show it to 10 other people and they’re, I don’t get your vision.”

“What festivals do brilliantly is curate exceptional content.”

Links:

Follow Ebs On Instagram

US Theatrical Dates For KEROUAC'S ROAD

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I don’t know if we’ve ever had such fire practical advice from a film festival programmer who — I know this is shocking — actually cares about indie filmmakers than the pod does today with my guest, Imani Davis. From how the PROOF Film Festival got started to the advice she gives directors to take notes and cut your short films, this is absolutely the pod for you if you want to make it in indie film today. I’m so excited for you to hear from such an innovative voice in the industry. 

Imani and I talk about:

• How she started a film festival that — this seems like it would be a low bar but here we are! — actually supports independent filmmakers;
• How she developed the idea of a proof of concept festival and how the board of American Cinematheque reacted;
• How PROOF works and what she learned for the third year, including partnering with CALLO and how they are prepping for accepting documentaries in 2026;
• Her thoughts on serving on the 2025 jury for NFFTY, the largest youth film festival in the world, and what it means for the future of filmmaking;
• How she handles when someone contacts her outside of the normal route of submission and how film programmers should handle this; 
• What does she wish more filmmakers knew about before they applied for the festival;
• Why so many filmmakers do not request feedback;
• How film festivals should handle representation for filmmakers; 
• The future of Los Angeles for indie filmmakers;
• What’s next for PROOF and this exciting filmmaker, including a PROOF development fund.

Imani’s Indie Film Highlights: SCOTTY’S VAG (2023) dir. by Chaconne Martin-Berkowicz; QUAKER (2025) cinematography by Vittoria Campaner; MAKE ME A PIZZA (2024) dir. by Talia Shea Levin

Memorable Quotes:

“And then I started this process of really fleshing out what this could look like, and presenting it to our Board of Directors, and our executive director was like that’s the most enthusiastic I’ve ever seen the Board about anything.” 

“Our whole maybe pile could be a whole other festival.”

“When I press play, I’m rooting for every film…I want this to be so good.”

“We just naturally have parity…and that speaks to process.” 

Links:

Follow Imani Davis On Instagram

PROOF Film Festival

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Every Sunday, I'll post a quick video -- and podcast -- about an indie film from at least a year ago. Today's film: COME AS YOU ARE (2019).

Director: Richard Wong

Screenplay: Erik Linthorst

Cast: Grant Rosenmeyer; Hayden Szeto; Ravi Patel

SYNOPSIS

A travelling nurse takes three disabled men on a road trip to Montreal so they can lose their virginity at a brothel.

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“Creative director, curator, publisher, collector” and founder of Sixteen World Xavier Encinas joins me on the podcast for this episode. I’d argue you could also add great podcast guest because he pushes back against this idea that France is a great haven for independent film. 

As part of his Sixteen artistic venture, he curates the Sixteen Film Institute, with a new film weekly, mostly from around the world, not France. Let’s not misstate his argument — he has nothing against French cinema, he lives there. He’s planning film events in Paris for this Fall. He’s saying, the world of filmmaking especially in Asia is just as exciting. 

I couldn’t be more on board. If you haven’t heard of the Sixteen Film Institute platform, you should — and cheers to the creatives making it happen for independent filmmakers. 

In this episode, we discuss:

• How he defines himself as an artist;
• Why he started Sixteen in (no pun intended) 2016 while he was working in advertising and fashion;
• If ad agencies are okay with second gigs like this and how he combines Sixteen with his career;
• How he isn’t bullish on Paris and France cinema — “we show very few short films from French directors” — and why he thinks that might be;
• What is the Sixteen Film Institute and the process of how it works; 
• Are filmmakers being too precious with their short films and the place of Sixteen in the market?
• The audience in France for arthouse films;
• How Sixteen will start to have events in Paris in October and his plans to grow the company…with humility and sustainability. 

Xavier's Indie Filmmaker Highlights: Theo Angelopoulos; Chloe Zhao

Memorable Quotes: 

“ I don't think that I would've been to be able to publish the greatest photographers alive if that would've been a commercial artist.” 

“The global stage is the stage and France is trying to catch up with it.”

“ Yes, the state gives you money, but doesn't make your work visible.”

“I value so much the relationship that I have with the artists.” 

Links:

Follow Xavier On Instagram

Follow Sixteen Film Institute On Instagram

Sixteen Film Institute Website

Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/first-time-go/exclusive-content