Salt Lake Dirt

On today's show we are joined by underwater cinematographer Ian Seabrook. Ian was the underwater director of photography for the Disney blockbuster film Jungle Cruise. He also worked on M. Night Shyamalan's Old, and as of this posting you can still see it in theaters. Check out his IMDB page to see what other projects he has worked on - I was completely blown away by the scope of his work. It was great speaking with him about his incredible career and I have a new appreciation for underwater photography. Thanks for listening!

I was very excited to have Duncan Birmingham on the show for this week's episode. He is a writer, producer, filmmaker and his new book of short stories, The Cult in My Garage was released today on Maudlin House. Duncan was a writer and executive producer on the IFC series Maron starring Marc Maron. He also wrote on the Jonathan Ames Starz series Blunt Talk starring Patrick Stewart. Two amazing shows if you have not had the change to see them. I absolutely love Duncan's book and I highly recommend that you pick up a copy at Skylight Books in Los Feliz. I'm confident you'll love it too. Thanks for listening!

One of the stand out films of the Berlin International Film Festival this past spring was without a doubt Fred Baillif's LA MIF. Fred is our guest today and it was incredible speaking with him about filmmaking, social work, and 90s American basketball! Enjoy.

LA MIF synopsis:

A group of teenage girls have been placed in a residential care home with social workers. This forced "family" experience creates unexpected tensions and intimacies. An incident triggers a chain of over-reactions. They live under the same roof but they haven't chosen each other, just like a family.

On episode 34 of the Salt Lake Dirt Podcast I speak with the wonderful filmmaker and artist Gretl Claggett. Her film Stormchaser has played all over the world this past year in over 50 film festivals and has won numerous awards. This episodic film really grabbed my attention and I hope to see more from this anthology series in the future! Thanks for listening.

For more on Gretl:

https://gretlclaggett.com/

On today's episode we are joined by cinematographer David McFarland. He was the DP for 12 Mighty Orphans (starring Luke Wilson). The film premiered at Tribeca earlier this month and is now in wide release. I had such a great time talking with David about his work and I can't wait to see what projects he has in store for us in the future. Thanks for listening!

One of my favorite cinematic experiences from the past few months was the Los Angeles Greek Film Festival. This was the first time I had covered the festival and I was completely blown away. The staggering amount of beautiful films there is an understatement. One of my favorite documentaries there was My Rembetika Blues. Remebetika is a form of music I had never heard of before but instantly feel in love with it. It was amazing to be able to talk with filmmaker Mary Zournazi about the project. Thanks for listening!

On Episode 30 of the Salt Lake Dirt Podcast we talk with filmmaker Michelle Bossy. She directed UNDER THE LANTERN LIT SKY which recently had its world premiere at the 2021 Brooklyn Film Festival. If you are a fan of A Streetcar Named Desire, this is a film you don't want to miss. 

Great chat! Thanks for listening!

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FILM SYNOPSIS: Under the Lantern Lit Sky explores the new marriage of a young couple in 1930s Mississippi who in different ways are coming to terms with their sexuality. (Source: michellebossy.com)

On this episode of the Salt Lake Dirt Podcast, we talk to Scott Aharoni & Dennis Latos of Duo Entertainment about their short film LEYLAK which recently played in-person at the Tribeca Film Festival. The festival is running their shorts selection online through June 23, 2021 so there is still time to catch this incredible film. Thanks for listening!

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"In present-day Queens, a Turkish gravedigger (Nadir Saribacak) is unable to face a shattering truth and risks losing the dearest connection left in his life." (Source: Duo Entertainment)

One of the stand out films of this year's Brooklyn Film Festival was American Desert. On this episode of the podcast I spoke with Adrian Bartol (writer/director) and Will Brandt (lead actor) about their process for developing this incredibly important film. 

Thanks for listening!

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FILM SYNOPSIS: It's 2010, Matt Benning (Will Brandt) 24, has returned from Afghanistan  to a wrecked economy. Demons of war haunt him, a romance blossoms, all  as he drags his unwilling soul to normalcy. But for him, destiny is no  cookie  cutter house. A vortex of drug use and violence corners him into  working for a psychopathic meth dealer. His only escape then becomes  surrendering to the majestic and unforgiving isolation of the American  Desert... (Source: american-desert.com)