FRED Film Radio - English Channel

PODCAST | Nicolò Comotti interviews Katharina Wyss and Loane Balthasar, director and actress of the film Sarah Plays a Werewolf.

FRED has the chance to talk to Katharina Wyss, director of Sarah Plays a Werewolf, who is also joined in our studio by her young talented actress Loane Balthasar. Here in Venice within the International Critic’s Week official selection, Sarah Plays a Werewolf is a stark and sincere study on adolescence, its psychological extremities, and the longing to be accepted.

Sarah Plays a Werewolf : On stage 17-year-old Sarah gives it all. When she performs, there is an instant of suspense, a moment in which she appears to transform completely into her character. What lies behind Sarah’s radical stage presence? A dark secret she is trying to express. A claustrophobic family environment, the longing for a boyfriend, a friend, someone she can confide in. The more Sarah expresses this desire, the more she ends up alienating the people willing to get close to her. A few days in the life of an outsider and her incessant struggle to escape solitude.

For the official page of the film on the Festival website, click here.

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PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Stephen Nomura Schible and Ryuichi Sakamoto, director and protagonist of the film Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda.

FRED has the pleasure of interviewing director Stephen Nomura Schible and composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, who presented the documentary Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda at the 74th Venice International Film Festival. Maestro Sakamoto talked about his personal relationship with cinema and never ending search for sounds, whether at home or in the farthest and most extreme places of the Earth. The composer has a great love for our small planet, and it is also for this reason that in the past few years he has become and activist and member of the anti-nuclear movement: we discuss this aspect of his life with him, and ask him what role art and music in general can play in raising awareness for this cause.

Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda: one of the most important artists of our era, Ryuichi Sakamoto has had a prolific career spanning over four decades, from techno-pop stardom to Oscarwinning film composer. The evolution of his music has coincided with his life journeys. Following Fukushima, Sakamoto became an iconic figure in Japan’s social movement against nuclear power. As Sakamoto returns to music following cancer, his haunting awareness of life crises leads to a resounding new masterpiece. Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda is an intimate portrait of both the artist and the man.

The post Stephen Nomura Schible, Ryuichi Sakamoto – Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda #Venezia74 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Anne Fontaine and Finnegan Oldfield,  director and actor of the film Marvin.

Director Anne Fontaine and actor Finnegan Oldfield stopped at our studio in Venice to talk about their film, Marvin, presented in the Orizzonti section of Venezia 74. The film revolves around the title character, played by Oldfield, who escapes his life of suffering from being singled out as “different.” Fontaine talks about the possibility of doing this through art, while Oldfield chats about how he was able to connect with the character he plays.

Marvin: Martin Clément, born Marvin Bijou, has escaped. He has escaped a little village in the countryside. He has escaped his family, his father’s tyranny and his mother’s resignation. He has escaped intolerance, rejection and the bullying he suffered from being singled out as “different.” Against all odds, he has found allies. First Madeleine Clément, the middle school principal who introduced him to theater, whose surname he will later adopt as a symbol of his salvation. Then Abel Pinto, his mentor and role model, who will encourage him to tell his story on stage. Finally, Isabelle Huppert (who plays herself) will help him get his show produced and bring it to life. Marvin/Martin will risk everything to create this show that represents so much more than success: it is his path to self-realization.

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PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Alireza Khatami, director of the film Oblivion Verses.

Director Alireza Khatami talks about Oblivion Verses, his feature debut, which premiered in the Orizzonti section of Venezia 74. Khatami talks about the film, plot and characters, and driving themes of his movie. But the conversation goes beyond the film itself, as we try to understand his thoughts about categorization in cinema, how the filmmaking process for him begins with a mental image, and what it was like to make a feature debut, which he tells us is completely different from the short film form.

Oblivion Verses: the elderly caretaker of a remote morgue possesses an impeccable memory for everything but names. He passes his days showing corpses to those searching for their lost ones and tending to his beloved plants. When protest in a nearby city breaks out and the militia covertly raid the morgue to hide civilian casualties, he discovers the body of an unknown young woman. Evoking memories of personal loss, he embarks on a magical odyssey to give her a proper burial with the help of a mystic gravedigger who collects stories of the dead, an old woman searching for her long-lost daughter, and a hearse driver tormented by his past.

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PODCAST | Niclò Comotti interviews Nick Hooker,  director of the film Agnelli.

FRED has the pleasure to meet with documentary filmmaker Nick Hooker, here at Giornate degli Autori with his latest work Agnelli.

Agnelli is the story of Gianni Agnelli, the legendary Italian industrialist and playboy, as told by family, friends, lovers, professional confidantes and rivals – and even his butler and cook. The film chronicles Agnelli’s dramatic and colorful life, beginning with his years as one of the most glamorous international playboys of the mid-20th century. Through revealing interviews with his sisters, mistresses and friends, stories of Pamela Churchill, Anita Ekberg and Jackie Kennedy, among other paramours, come to life, highlighted by newly discovered Super8 footage from Benno Graziani. The story then turns to the 1970s and Italy’s “Years of Lead.” The stabilizing role played by Agnelli and FIAT during those dark and turbulent years was critical to the country’s survival. Rich archival footage reveals the revolutionary unrest in the factories and the murderous threat of the Red Brigades, and children of politicians and Fiat executives assassinated by the Red Brigades recall the tension and conflict in Turin in the late 1970s. The story then returns to Gianni’s family and his troubled relationship with his son, Edoardo. Intimate interviews from the inner circle discuss Agnelli’s failings as a father, and his own son’s alienation and ultimate suicide. Henry Kissinger and other friends recall the tragedy of Edoardo’s death and the impact it had on Gianni. When Agnelli died in 2003 there was an outpouring of profound grief from the people of Turin, as well as across Italy and in jet-set outposts around the world.

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PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Vahid Jalilvand, director of the film Brawl in Cell Block 99.

S. Craig Zahler presented his second feature, Brawl in Cell Block 99, out of competition at the 74th Venice International Film Festival. He stopped by our studio for a chat about it, along with two of the lead actors of the film: Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Carpenter. Vaughn talks about the physical aspect of his role and the real place from which the story comes from: the latter was able to connect him as an actor with the character he plays. Jennifer talks about how she was able to step into the shoes of her characterl. Zahler shares his thoughts on his film and the possibilities of cinema and the moving image as a medium. Towards the end of the interview, they also reveal that they are currently working on another feature together.

Brawl in Cell Block 99: a former boxer named Bradley loses his job as an auto mechanic, and his troubled marriage is about to expire. At this crossroads in his life, he feels that he has no better option than to work for an old buddy as a drug courier. This vocation improves his situation until the terrible day that he finds himself in a gunfight between a group of police officers and his own ruthless allies. When the smoke clears, Bradley is badly hurt and thrown in prison, where his enemies force him to commit acts of violence that turn the place into a savage battleground.

The post S. Craig Zahler, Vince Vaughn, Jennifer Carpenter – Brawl in Cell Block 99 #Venezia74 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Matt Micucci interviews Samuel Maoz,  director of the film Foxtrot.

Foxtrot marks the return of director Samuel Maoz to the Venice International Film Festival – he won the Golden Lion of the 66th edition with Lebanon. He stopped by our FRED studio for a quick chat about it. We ask him about the story of the film and the idea behind it – such as the exporation of the relationship between things that people can control and things that are beyond one’s control, the use of a three act structure, and his interesting approach when working with his actors.

Foxtrot: Michael and Dafna are devastated when army officials show up at their home to announce the death of their son, Jonathan. Michael becomes increasingly frustrated by overzealous mourning relatives and well- meaning army bureaucrats. While his sedated wife rests, Michael spirals into a whirlwind of anger only to experience one of life’s unfathomable twists which rivals the surreal military experiences of his son.

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PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig, actors of the film Downsizing.

Actors Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig are the protagonists of Alexander Payne’s latest feature, which opened the 74th Venice International Film Festival. They stopped by the Venetian FRED studio for a brief chat about the movie. They discuss the roles of their characters. Damon also praises the director for doing great job in representing a real struggle of our world today. Wiig and Damon also reflect on how they would have dealt with the situation the characters go through in Downsizing if it had happened to them in real life.

Downsizing imagines what might happen if, as a solution to over-population, Norwegian scientists discover how to shrink humans to five inches tall and propose a 200-year global transition from big to small. People soon realize how much further money goes in a miniaturized world, and with the promise of a better life, everyman Paul Safranek and wife Audrey decide to abandon their stressed lives in Omaha in order to get small and move to a new downsized community—a choice that triggers life-changing adventures.

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PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Alexander Payne and Hong Chau, director and actress of the film Downsizing.

Downsizing by Alexander Payne opened the 74th Venice International Film Festival. The director stopped by our FRED studio to chat about it, alongside actress Hong Chau. Payne talks about the writing process of the film, “writing is never fun,” while Chau tells our listeners about the character she plays.

Downsizing imagines what might happen if, as a solution to over-population, Norwegian scientists discover how to shrink humans to five inches tall and propose a 200-year global transition from big to small. People soon realize how much further money goes in a miniaturized world, and with the promise of a better life, everyman Paul Safranek and wife Audrey decide to abandon their stressed lives in Omaha in order to get small and move to a new downsized community—a choice that triggers life-changing adventures.

The post Alexander Payne, Hong Chau – Downsizing #Venezia74 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST | Chiara Nicoletti interviews Andrew Haigh, director of the film Lean on Pete.

Director Andrew Haigh talks about his latest feature, Lean on Pete, presented in competition at the 74th Venice International Film Festival. He stopped by our FRED studio in Venice for a chat, discussing such topics as why he doesn’t think that Lean on Pete is a coming of age movie, how he knows how and when to close his movies (“I think it’s a feeling more than an intellectual understanding), and more.

Lean on Pete follows fifteen-year-old Charley Thompson. He wants a home, food on the table and a high school he can attend for more than part of the year. As the son of a single father working in warehouses across the Pacific Northwest, stability is hard to find. Hoping for a new start they move to Portland, Oregon, where Charley takes a summer job, with a washed-up horse trainer, and befriends a failing racehorse named Lean on Pete.

For the officiale page of the film on the festival website, click here.

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