FRED Film Radio - English Channel

PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Garin Nugroho and Muhammad Khan, director and actor of the film Memories of My Body. 

Director Garin Nugroho premiered his latest film, Memories of My Body, in the Orizzonti section of the 75th Venice Film Festival. Joining him on this interview is the lead actor of the film, Muhammad Khan, as they discuss the origins of the production and Rianto, the man whose story inspired the film, as well as the theme of masculinity and femininity and more.

Memories of My Body: Juno is just a kid when his father leaves him in their village of Center Java. Abandoned and alone, he joins a Lengger dance centre where men transform assuming feminine appearance and movements. But the sensuality and sexuality that come from dance and bodies, mixed with the violent social and political situation of Indonesia, force Juno to move from village to village. Though on his journey Juno gets attention and love from his dance teachers, his weird aunty, his old uncle, a handsome boxer and a Warok, he still has to face alone the battlefield that his body is becoming.

The post Garin Nugroho, Muhammad Khan – Memories of My Body #Venezia75 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Anna Eriksson, director of the film M. 

Filmmaker Anna Eriksson presented her first feature film, M, in the Venice International Film Critics Week, the parallel section of the 75th Venice Film Festival. This is a film that explores the relationship between sexuality and death and that draws inspiration from the legend of Marilyn Monroe. Eriksson talks about the origins of her interest in Monroe, plus the construction of her film (which took her several years to make) and whether she believes it could be screened in other settings besides a cinema screen and more.

M explores the relationship between sexuality and death, which appear to be at opposite poles, but in fact, they merge in all of us, disguising the fear of death or the desire to die, the world of Eros.

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PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Yuan Qing, director of the film The Three Adventures of Brooke. 

Director Yuan Qing talks about her directorial feature debut, The Three Adventures of Brooke, which premiered in the Giornate degli Autori, the parallel section of the 75th Venice Film Festival. The director shares with us details of working on this film and with the cast, for this story of identity and the lead character’s experiences in three separate “adventures”. In this interview, she also mentions her admiration for the celebrated French cineaste Eric Rohmer, whom she quotes as one of the main inspirations for this The Three Adventures of Brooke.

The Three Adventures of Brooke:  Xingxi travels alone to Alor Setar, a town in Northern Malaysia. As a consequence of a blown tire, she experiences three separate adventures. She introduces herself to people using different identities that harbor mysterious secrets. In return, what the journey brings her is thoroughly unexpected. In the first adventure, she is Brooke, a traveler; in the second adventure, Brooke is an anthropologist; in the third, Brooke is a divorcée. She is a disheartened woman who comes across a French writer named Pierre. The two lonely travelers become instant friends. Their age gap enables them to share their respective insights into life and death. Meanwhile, it is not until the enigmatic side of Alor Setar begins to unfold that Brooke tells Pierre the true reason why she has come. They seek to understand the interaction between love and life. As the story comes to an end, Mother Nature shows her beauty, with the magical ‘Blue Tears’ phenomenon on prominent display.

The post Yuan Qing – The Three Adventures of Brooke #Venezia75 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST| Angelo Acerbi interviews Petra Szöcs, director of the film Deva.

Petra Szöcs was told the story she tells in the film by al little albino girl named Kato in the town of Deva. This is why the film is shot there and has the city’s name and the lead character has the name Kato. She took inspiration from the atmosphere of the city and the story she was told but then she moved on to a bigger story, with the help of an astounding lead actress.

Deva: In the small Romanian town of Deva, Kato, a teen girl living in an orphanage, gets electrocuted while drying her hair. This apparently banal event will completely turn things upside down around her. The orphanage is invaded by electricians, and a new volunteer, Bogi is hired to help restoring the order. Kato will become infatuated by her to the point of reconsidering the way she views her world.

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PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Francesco Zippel, director of the film Friedkin Uncut. 

Director Francesco Zippel presented his film Friedkin Uncut, an introspective glimpse of the life and artistic career of filmmaker William Friedkin, at the Venice Classics Documentary Films section of the 75th Venice Film Festival. Zippel talks about the origins of his works with Friedkin, and his opinion on his films – a filmmography that includes such influential titles as The French Connection, The Exorcist and Sorcerer.

Friedkin Uncut offers an introspective glimpse of the life and artistic career of William Friedkin, the extraordinary and unconventional director of cult movies such as The French Connection, The Exorcist, Sorcerer, Cruising and To Live and Die in L.A. For the first time Friedkin has decided to lay himself bare and guide viewers on a fascinating exploration of the themes and stories that have had the greatest influence on his life and his work. The title of the documentary reflects at one and the same time Friedkin’s candor and eccentricity, elements that have contributed over time to the shaping of his exceptional skills as a storyteller. But Friedkin is not alone in this long and impassioned narration. A “stellar” cast of friends and collaborators have chosen to take part in this film, which from a simple tribute is transformed as the minutes pass into a genuine study in which great directors, extraordinary actors and even celebrated conductors join Friedkin to reflect on the significance of being artists and on the beauty of bringing yourself into question in the name of an artistic calling experienced in the authentic dimension of a work. A work which requires you to call on all of your talent.

The post Francesco Zippel – Friedkin Uncut #Venezia75 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Hermann Vaske, director of the documentary Why Are We Creative?. 

Director Hermann Vaske presented his documentary feature Why Are We Creative? at the 75th Venice International Film Festival in the Giornate degli Autori strand. The documentry finds Vaske asking some of the greatest internationally renowned artists and thinkers a simple question: “Why are you creative?” In this interview, we talk about the idea for this interesting project, discuss the topic of creativity and more. The film will distributed in Italy via I Wonder.

Why Are We Creative?: As part of a personal quest, for over 30 years director Hermann Vaske filmed the world’s most intriguing artists and thinkers, including over 50 luminaries, among them Academy Award and Nobel Prize winners, from the fields of visual art, music, acting, philosophy, politics, business and science, posing the question: “Why are you creative?” Vaske’s subjects include: David Bowie, Ai Weiwei, Björk, Wim Wenders, Philippe Stark, Yoko Ono, John Hegarty, David Lynch, Yohji Yamamoto, Damien Hirst, Angelina Jolie, Nobuyoshi Araki, Quentin Tarantino, Bono, Nick Cave, Neo Rauch, Stephen Hawkins, the Dalai Lama, Peter Ustinov, Marina Abramovic, Diane Kruger, Julian Schnabel, John Cleese, Jimmy Page, Vivienne Westwood, Takeshi Kitano and many others.

The post Hermann Vaske – Why Are We Creative? #Venezia75 appeared first on Fred Film Radio.

PODCAST| Ilaria Gomarasca interviews Bruce Weber, director of the film Nice Girls Don’t Stay for Breakfast.

Bruce Weber introduces us behind the scenes of his last work, presented at Venice Classics.

Nice Girls Don’t Stay for Breakfast: In the late 1990s, iconic photographer Bruce Weber managed to convince Robert Mitchum to appear before his camera for a filmed portrait. Weber shot Mitchum in 35mm and 16mm black and white, hanging with friends and cronies in restaurants and hotel rooms and singing before a microphone at Capitol Records, recording standards for a projected album. When Mitchum passed away in 1997, Weber parked his beloved project and it was some time before he went back into his footage, picked up the camera again to continue, and complete, his tribute to Mitchum.

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PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Haifaa Al-Mansour, director of the film The Wedding Singer’s Daughter.

Filmmaker Haifaa Al-Mansour directed The Wedding Singer’s Daughter, one of the two Miu Miu Women’s Tales short films presented at the 75th Venice International Film Festival and featured in the program of the Giornate degli Autori strand. The director tells us about her choice for the subject of the film, the perception of the role of an artist in her native country of Saudi Arabia, and in honor of Miu Miu’s series, to mention and highlight the work of a woman in film that she particularly admires.

The Wedding Singer’s Daughter: It’s nighttime in 1980s Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Glittery and glamorous heels climb out of cars. Women shrouded in traditional black abayas make their way into a wedding hall. There, they reveal what’s underneath: dazzling dresses and wild hair. Their true selves set free, unseen by male gaze. There are strict segregation rules in Saudi weddings. All eyes and ears are on the wedding singer; until the electricity cuts out suddenly. “This is the worst wedding singer ever,” guests mutter, condescendingly. Will the young daughter manage to save her mother’s dignity?

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PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Dakota Fanning, director of the film Hello Apartment.

Actress Dakota Fanning makes her directorial debut with the short film Happy Apartment, made as part of Miu Miu’s Women’s Tales series, presented at the 75th Venice International Film Festival and featured in the program of the Giornate degli Autori. Fanning tells us about whether she always imagined herself in the role of director, the decision of her film revolving around a home setting and finally, in honor of the objective of the series, to highlight a woman in film that she particularly admires.

Hello Apartment: Ava enters the Brooklyn loft for the first time. It’s empty. Freshly painted but old. Sun streams through the large windows, onto the hardwood floor, worn with marks from previous inhabitants. Ava sits down. This is now home. Her home. This is where she’ll meet a boy and fall in love. This is where wine will be spilt at the party. This is where they’ll scream at each other, and decide it’s all over. The apartment will become a witness to Ava’s personal history – her joy and sadness, hopes and disappointments – the kind of universal space we all find ourselves evolving into adulthood.

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PODCAST| Matt Micucci interviews Marina Abramovic and Masha Alyokhina. 

Performance artist Marina Abramovic and Masha Alyokhina of Pussy Riot sit down with FRED in a chat that starts from cinema and journeys into such topics as death, politics and revolution. Abramovic and Alyokhina are also among the many protagonists of Hermann Vaske’s documentary Why Are We Creative?, which was presented at the 75th Venice International Film Festival in the program of the Giornate degli Autori.

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