She Does Podcast

Charlotte Cook is a documentary film programmer, curator, producer and co-founder of Field of Vision. Charlotte was the Director of Programming at Hot Docs film festival for four years before she left in May of 2015 to start Field of Vision, a visual journalism film unit that aims to commission 40 to 50 original episodic and individual short non-fiction films each year. Charlotte co-founded Field of Vision with Academy Award-winning director of “Citizenfour,” Laura Poitras, and filmmaker and founder of Cinema Eye Honors Aj Schnack. In this episode, we talk about Charlotte’s journey to programming Hot Docs, including her time at The Times, BBC Storyville, and The Frontline Club. Charlotte also walks us through what Field of Vision is looking for and how you can be part of it.

RELATED LINKS

• Charlotte on Twitter
• Field of Vision
• Frontline Club
• Medium: Charlotte on leaving HotDocs
• Interview with the Field of Vision co-founders

CLIPS USED IN SHOW

• Notes from the Border - Field of Vision short film by Iva Radivojevic
• Peace in the Valley - Field of Vision short film by Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher
• World in Action - The Nazi Party 
• World in Action - 1970s titles

Name: Charlotte Cook

Current City: New York

Current Gig: Co-Creator and Executive Producer of Field of Vision

What are you listening to now? I find it impossible to pick favorites but the two songs that I listen to the most, because they soothe my soul, are "The Weight of My Words" a Four Tet Remix by Kings of Convenience and "Girlfriend" by Phoenix. And my favourite album of last year was Jamie xx, "In Colour."

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? One of my roommates at university was working on an art project and became obsessed with the documentaries "Party Monster: The Shockumentary" by Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey, and The Legend of Leigh Bowery by Charles Atlas. He would watch them everyday and I became sucked in by them while I was helping to photograph his work. They were not only my introduction to seeing how non-fiction could really speak to someone and mean so much to them, but also to documentaries that were outside of the more informative, issue films, and spoke to different subcultures and voices. It began my path of ferociously watching non-fiction.

"Fourteen Days in May" by Paul Hamann opened my eyes to the power of documentary and "Portrait of Jason" remains my favorite documentary of all time. The exploration of performance and representation of reality and storytelling is still very powerful to me.

I've always been a huge Steven Soderbergh fan. His use of color in "Out of Sight" was something that really made me fall in love with exploring how directors use visuals in storytelling. I will always pay attention to the work Kyle Cooper makes, I find it fascinating and inspiring.

Who is your career role model? I've always really admired how Ben Hammersley has navigated his career. From the diversity of ways he works, in different mediums, and being someone who is very multi-faceted. But really my role models are those who are committed to supporting, and advancing the medium or field they work in. Whether it's helping to give other people opportunities, creating discussion or building new avenues or outlets for those in their field.

What is a tool you can't live without? Notebook and Pen. I write by hand, every day, for various reasons. I still find nothing more useful, productive or cathartic.

How do you take your coffee/tea? Milky, two sugars in both, which is sacrilegious for most of my fellow British people.

CREDITS:

• Produced by Sarah Ginsburg & Elaine Sheldon
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Illustration by Christine Cover

MUSIC: in this episode is by Alexandria Hall of tooth ache. Listen and purchase her music on bandcamp! 

Featured songs: Skin, Lazarus, Sediment, Guilt, Wild Horses, Not Even The Moon, Body Heat

Kylie Hastings (left), Allen Martin (center), Kylie Slabby (right) 

Curated by Sarah Ginsburg

Kylie Slabby and Kylie Hastings met on the first day of 6th grade, became best friends, and started making music together in their bedrooms because their parents wouldn’t let them go to the movies on Friday nights like all the other kids did. Along with drummer and guitarist Allen Martin, they became The Daddyo’s, a lo-fi, dream pop, grunge band based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. No matter the genre of their music or weight of their songs, The Daddyo’s will transports you to a very specific time in life. And even if your teenage years and early twenties are nothing like theirs, somehow, you can still fall into their world.

LINKS:

LISTEN: The Daddyo's Bandcamp & Soundcloud, Kylie Slabby's other band Who and The Fucks Bandcamp, Kylie Slabby's solo project Ramona & The Phantoms Soundcloud

WATCH: "Crop Top"

FOLLOW: Twitter, Facebook

Cocoon Central Dance Team is a New York-based comedy dance troupe made up of three talented women: Sunita Mani, Eleanore Pienta and Tallie Medel. They are each up-and-coming actors in their own right, landing roles in indie films, big music videos and on television. But their work as a trio, as Cocoon Central Dance Team, is what we focus on in this episode because they truly are a remarkably talented, gut-busting, thigh slapping, absurd outfit wearing, glitter throwing, dance-until-you-laugh-until-you-cry group of women. Cocoon has performed at Upright Citizen’s Brigade, MoMa PS1, The Pit, Showgasm with John Early and Cast Party. They’ve opened for Broad City Live, the 2013 New York City Marathon, have been back up dancers for HUSH HUSH and have a successful web series called Rehearsal. Cocoon Central Dance Team breaks rules and plays with the forms of dance and comedy, making them an undefinable act, which is one of the greatest things you can be in today’s comedy and dance landscape.

VISIT Cocoon's website FOLLOW them on Twitter and on Youtube.

Name: Eleanore Pienta

Current City: New York City

What are you listening to now? James Booker - Sunny Side of the Street, Kendrick Lamar feat Anna Wise - Real

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? Tamy Ben-Tor's video "Normal".

Who is your career role model? Drew Beattie

What is a tool you can't live without? Tiny spoons. 

How do you drink your coffee/tea? Coffee with Cream, Tea straight up. 

What's your spirit animal? African Elephant. 

CLIPS FEATURED IN SHOW:

• Cast Party (Teaser)
• Uncertain Terms (Feature Film)
• Inside Amy Schumer - Doggy Daycare (Episode)
• DJ Snake, Lil Jon - Turn Down For What (Music Video)
• See You Next Tuesday (Feature Film)
• HAPPY a show by Eleanore Pienta (Teaser)
• Hounds of Love by Kate Bush (Song)
• Cocoon Live at the Moon - Baseball Dance
• REHEARSAL: Bloood (Episode)
• REHEARSAL: Talking and Dancing (Episode) 
• REHEARSAL: Excerpt from the Motion Picture Bouncin' (Episode)
• 2013 NYC Marathon Opening Ceremony

CREDITS

• Produced by Elaine Sheldon & Sarah Ginsburg
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Sound recording by Henry Molofsky
• Illustration by Christine Cover
• Production Assistance by Alijah Case

Name: Sunita Mani

Current City: Brooklyn, NY

What are you listening to now? I'm sprung for Justin Beiber's "Sorry" and for Wye Oak's album "Shriek" 

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? Seeing Maya Rudolph on Saturday Night Live. I didn't realize until later that she was such a strong benchmark for me. I hadn't seen a woman of color on SNL yet with such a variety of talents--musical, comedic, and a strong stage presence. She also had the ability to represent many ethnicities which was a strength! I think I had only thought of ethnicity on TV as a limitation at that point? Or maybe I just didn't have the possibilities in mind until I saw her do it first, especially being associated with a comedic institution that I was obsessed with at a young age!

Started reading the new Ms. Marvel comic book series with Kamala Khan as the hero. It gives me hope and makes me feel strong.

Really want this piece of media to change me so I keep listening to it: Audre Lorde reading from her essay "Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic as Power

Who is your career role model? Rihanna. She has such a coolness and almost laziness about her; she seems so comfortable with herself. I like how much she changes her look while still making THE HITZ.

What is a tool you can't live without? notebook and an ink pen

How do you drink your coffee/tea? with ceremony: strong black tea with milk, no sugar. 

What's your spirit animal? Probably a tortoise who thinks she's a hare.  

Name: Tallie Medel

Current City: Ridgewood, NY

What are you listening to now? Albums: TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY (Kendrick Lamar), A VISION (Seapony), HALF FREE (U.S. Girls), MULTI-LOVE (Unknown Mortal Orchestra) Songs: "Sorry" (Justin Bieber), "WTF" (Missy Elliott & Pharrell), "Fuck and Run" (Liz Phair), "Crowded Stranger" (Girlpool) Podcast: MYSTERY SHOW (Starlee Kine)

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? FILM /// FIELD NIGGAS (dir. Khalik Allah). I don't want to try to explain it because it has to be seen, so go see it.
BOOK /// I've been reading a lot of Lydia Davis, and I'm re-reading FOUR FISH (Paul Greenberg) and A PEOPLE'S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES (Howard Zinn). BITCH PLANET (Kelly Sue DeConnick). You like comics? You'll read this and then your head will catch on fire.
SHOW /// STRANGERS WITH CANDY, FISHING WITH JOHN, SPACE GHOST COAST TO COAST, THE OFFICE (BBC), NATHAN FOR YOU, FARGO, BURNING LOVE, RUPAUL'S DRAG RACE, MONONOKE < that's a really gorgeous animated series you oughta know, I always think I dreamed it when I recall it later
MEDIA /// IN THE HEART OF AMERICA AND OTHER PLAYS by Naomi Wallace, choreography by Ashley Byler, psychedelic-Native Alaskan work by both Stephen Jackson and Donnie Varnell, watching Daniel Scheinert shoot comedy shorts in college, Reductress.com

Who is your career role model? Maya Rudolph, Justin Theroux, John Early, RuPaul, Britni West, Lizz Winstead

What is a tool you can't live without? Headphones, so I can live in a fantasy world; video chat so I can see my brother and his family. I have a nephew! Life goes on against all odds and I love it! 

How do you drink your coffee/tea? I like black coffee, hot or iced. Iced makes me go crazy so I don't drink too much of it.

What's your spirit animal? Apes and monkeys. Those ladies and gentlemen are #1

MUSIC in this episode is by Kylie Slabby & Kylie Hastings of THE DADDYO'S. Listen and purchase their music on bandcamp!

Songs you heard: Beatles, Penclawwd Belles, Cat Piss Queen, Shakira, Dishes from the album Better // Crop Top, Damsels, Just A Girl (Daddyo’s Theme), Taco Spaceship from Smother Your Brother //  Boring, Arizona from It’s a tough world out there for a lonely girl

Photo by Estudio Primio

Curated by Sarah Ginsburg

Cécile Schott, a musician and composer originally from outside of Paris, has been making music since she was 15 and she started releasing albums under the name Colleen at age 27. She has 6 full albums and 1 EP in total, her most recent album being Captain of None, released in April of 2015 with Thrill Jockey Records. Our talented sound designer and friend, Billy Wirasnik, has been a long time fan of Colleen. Billy calls her work, “The music a beautiful brain would make if you could plug a quarter inch jack into it.” Cécile uses repetitive loops of old scratchy recordings, instruments like the glockenspiel, guitar, viola da gamba, bells, chimes and a variety of music boxes to make up the sounds in different combinations across her albums, building mysterious atmospheres that can be dark and playful at the same time. Colleen tracks differ from album to album, but are all unified by a tenderness, a curiosity, and a will to experiment and play, always taking you somewhere you weren’t expecting. In this episode, we talk about falling in and out of love with music, taking time to pursue other creative outlets, an artistic response to hardships and tragedy, and really, just living a simple, happy life.                                                                                                                                                

 CONNECT via Colleen's Website and Facebook

LISTEN to Colleen's

READ: NPR's top 50 Albums of 2015, FACT Magazine Interview, NYT Review

PURCHASE Colleen's Albums on Thrill Jockey or on vinyl directly from her

Molly Crabapple is an artist and writer who combines illustration, art and journalism to document societal and political issues. Her work is influenced by her own personal experiences and radical encounters with injustice around the world, and aims to shed light on marginalized communities. She’s written and illustrated stories about Guantanamo Bay, issues sex workers face, the prison system, among many other topics, for Vice, Fusion, The New York Times, The Paris Review, Vanity Fair, The Guardian and Newsweek. Molly’s captivating paintings, and pen and ink illustrations can be seen on book covers, canvases, backdrops, and have accompanied articles written by both herself and by others; her art is featured in MoMA’s permanent collection. She’s the recipient of the Yale Poynter Fellowship, a Front Page Award, and a 2014 Gold Rush award. She was shortlisted for a 2013 Frontline Print Journalism Award for her internationally-acclaimed reportage on Guantanamo Bay.

In Dec. 2015, Molly released “Drawing Blood,” a memoir that details her life as a high school outcast, traveler of the world, Internet model, political activist, illustrator and many moments in between. In this episode, we dive into Molly’s intricate work, discussing the vampiric nature of being an illustrator, the inside of Guantanamo Bay detention camp, beauty as capital, her abortion, underground nightclubs, and using art to fight injustice.

Molly's memoir, Drawing Blood, is out now. Visit Indiebound to find a copy at a bookstore near you, or purchase it at Barnes & Noble or Amazon! 

MUSIC in this episode is by french composer and musician, Cécile Schott who makes work under the name COLLEEN! Join us next Wednesday (12/9/2015) to learn more about her! In the meantime, listen to her music on Spotify and Soundcloud and check out her website, 

Photo by Thomas Guionnet

SONGS you heard: Holding Horses, I'm Kin, Salina Stars, Lighthouse, Captain of Dub from the album Captain of None (Japanese Version) // Break Away, Ursa Major Find from The Weighing Of The Heart //  What Is a Componium, Pt. 1, Your Heart Is So Loud, I'll Read You a Story from  // Ritournelle, Goodbye Sunshine, Everyone Alive Wants Answers, Your Heart on Your Sleeve, Nice and Simple from Everyone Alive Wants Answers // The Happy Sea from The Golden Morning Breaks // Pista 10 from Les Ondes Silencieuses

RELATED LINKS:

• Sneak Preview of Drawing Blood on BoingBoing
• Molly's work on VICE
• "The Best Path Is the One You Build Out of Your Own Dysfunction" on 99u 
• Week in Hell Project
• VISIT Molly's website and FOLLOW her on Twitter and Instagram!

CLIPS USED IN SHOW:

• How Police Profile and Shame Sex Workers (Animation)

• Locking Up Immigrants For Profit (Animation)

CREDITS

• Produced by Elaine Sheldon & Sarah Ginsburg
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Illustration by Christine Cover
• Production Assistance by Alijah Case

Curated by Elaine Sheldon

Julianna Barwick's truly unique music is built around multiple loops and layers of her voice. Her experimental songs feel spontaneous, sometimes meandering, and always emotional. Julianna has lived in NYC for over 14 years, but she was born and raised in the South--in Louisiana, Missouri and Oklahoma. She grew up singing in choirs at church and school, which has clearly had a lasting influence on her work. 2015 was an exciting year for her; she's finishing up her next album, she played with the Flaming Lips and Philip Glass at Carnegie Hall, and toured in Japan. 

In this episode, we talk about how her work has changed over the years, the collaborations she has worked on, what it's like to play piano for Yoko Ono, and why it's important to teach yourself new skills and be nice to people.

Julianna was the musicmaker from last week’s episode with Alexandria Bombach and Mo Scarpelli.

READ: Pitchfork Feature, Press & Interviews

CONNECT: Website, Twitter, Facebook

LISTEN: iTunes, Bandcamp

Mo Scarpelli and Alexandria Bombach are documentary filmmakers and co-directors of award-winning film "Frame by Frame.” The documentary follows four Afghan photojournalists as they face the realities of building a free press in a country left to stand on its own after decades of war and rule under the oppressive Taliban regime. The film had its world premiere at SXSW 2015, has screened over 50 times, garnered several awards, was voted one of the Top 10 Audience Favorites at Hot Docs Film Festival, and is nominated for a Cinema Eye Honors Award for Spotlight Doc. Right now, Mo and Alexandria are knee-deep in an Academy Award campaign for the film. “Frame by Frame” is opening for a week-long run in New York on Nov 20 at the IFC Center.

Mo and Alexandria are extremely self-sufficient women and filmmakers-- both having worked alone on most of their film projects before this one. They both started their own film companies and both have carved out their own niches; Mo in the documentary and journalism world and Alexandria in the outdoor filmmaking world.

In this episode, we talk about how they came to the medium of film, reporting international stories, filming in Afghanistan, their dedication to stunning cinematography, earning the trust of your subjects, the responsibility and weight of releasing stories into the world, holding onto empathy, the perils of co-directing, how to reconnect with relationships after disconnecting to make a film, and how to maintain belonging and community when living out of a suitcase.

• Request or attend a screening of "Frame by Frame"
• Read press on "Frame by Frame"
• Follow "Frame by Frame" on Instagram, Facebook & Twitter

Name: Mo Scarpelli

Current Location: Portland, OR

Current Gig: Director & Producer at Rake Films

What are you listening to now? "I'm Here Now" by Motopony // Podcasts: SheDoes & On Being :)

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? 

Zack Canepari & Drea Cooper's "California Is A Place" showed me how independent doc shorts for online were possible, and also that they could be quirky, stylized and emotionally resonant. This, along with MediaStorm's short multimedia pieces, opened my world to that wonderful blurry space between film + journalism on the web.

Jason Tippet's "Only The Young" showed me how cinematography in doc can rival that of narrative features, and tell a human story.

Sarah Polley's "Stories We Tell" showed me how a Director's manipulation can morph a simple situation into a riveting and revealing story.

Joan Didion's essays - her tone, her boldness, her levity - has always informed the way I look at the world.

George Orwell's essays also have been an influence for me since I first picked up "All Art is Propaganda." I don't know if I realized at the time that what drew--and continues to draw--me to essays is how they can be like cinema verite; meandering and observing and leaving so much up to the reader to interpret what the writer has experienced.
 

Who is your career role model? I have three. My mom, Joan Didion, Margaret Bourke-White. I should have a filmmaker on here, I know...I'm still learning the doc film world and have met a ton of people in the past couple years who deserve admiration. Hard to name just a few, so I'll stick with the oldies.  

What is a tool you can't live without? Black notepad + pen. I'm naked without it.

How do you drink/take your coffee/tea? With a splash of soy or almond milk 

RELATED LINKS:

• Personal Website
• Twitter
• Instagram

Alexandria (left) Mo (right)

Name: Alexandria Bombach

Current Location: On The Road

Current Gig: Red Reel

What are you listening to now? Broken Social Scene, "Sweetest Kill"

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? Too many to list. Right now it's the film "Bitter Lake" & the book "No god but God"

Who is your career role model? Ava DuVernay & Lucy Walker  

What is a tool you can't live without? YELP. I live on the road and never know the best spot for a quick bite or a place to set up and work - YELP hasn't failed me yet. 

How do you drink/take your coffee/tea? French Press coffee with honey

RELATED LINKS:

• Personal Website
• Twitter
• Instagram

Julianna Barwick

CREDITS:

• Produced by Elaine Sheldon & Sarah Ginsburg
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Illustration by Christine Cover

MUSIC BY: Julianna Barwick

Listen, Purchase, Connect

Tracks featured in show: Vow, The Harbinger, Adventurer of the family, Vow (Diplo & Lunice remix), Prizewinning, Envelop, White Flag, One Half, Crystal Lake

Photo by Sara Allyson

Curated by Sarah Ginsburg

Living in Boston where I mostly walk, bike, and take the train, I don’t often get to scan through the radio in a car like I would when I zipped around the suburbs back in high school. But a few months ago, I found myself enjoying a car-driving, radio-listening experience. I stopped the radio from scanning stations and settled into an unfamiliar but uplifting track that was hard to ignore. Warm, locomotive synth tones filled the car, rising and falling to different levels of intensity. The 12 minute long track is called Grays (Doom and Gloom Mantra) and it’s from Stag Hare’s 2014 album titled Angel Tech. This song, much like the rest of Stag Hare’s music, made me feel alive and present in each moment as they happened. The maker behind Salt Lake City based Stag Hare is Zara Asha Moonbeam Biggs-Garrick, a kind and thoughtful soul that I had the pleasure of speaking with. Listen to our conversation and enjoy her music as it soundtracks Episode 22 with Andrea Sisson.

LINKS:

Read: TOME TO THE WEATHER MACHINE on Stag Hare, Sputnik Music Review

Listen: Bandcamp, Soundcloud

Connect: Website, Facebook, Instagram

On November 11th, Stag Hare released Tapestry, a collection of 16 tracks commissioned by individuals and recorded under the inspiration and direction of each patron between December 2014 and July 2015. Released by Inner Islands as a box set of 4 cassette tapes clocking in at 4 hours total, Tapestry is a project inspired by the history of art patronage. Purchase Tapestry!

Andrea Sisson is a multidisciplinary visual artist who creates films, photos and performance art pieces for the design, art and fashion industries. Her work has been shown online and offline, in places like the São Paulo Museum of Image and Sound and on NOWNESS, where she featured Sia’s choreographer Ryan Heffington. She’s the co-director of “Everything Beautiful is Far Away,” a pop art sci-fi feature currently in post-production, and a feature documentary “I Send You This Place,” which Andrea made as a 2010 Fulbright Design Fellow. In 2013, Andrea and her husband Pete Ohs were selected as a duo for Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. Andrea’s work is heavily influenced by the people, the colors, the environment and design that surrounds her. In this episode, we talk about Andrea’s love of travel, what it feels like to rediscover your teenage years, the intensity of falling in love, why we need to reassess mental illness, and how even “This American Life” gets online hate. Oh, and robot head girlfriends of course.

RELATED LINKS:

• Filmmaker Magazine 25 New Faces of 2013

• Dresyln

• NYT Review: "I Send You This Place"

• Urban Outfitters features Andrea & Pete

• Twitch film

• Coeval Magazine feature

• This Is Paper feature

• Nowness “Do The Chandelier”

• Paste Magazine features Sam Amidon music video

• Andrea On...Twitter, Instagram, Website

• OHSISSON.com

CLIPS USED IN SHOW:

• Instrumental Clothing (video on Andrea Sisson by Pete Ohs)
• I Send You This Place (feature film trailer)
• "Do the Chandelier" on NOWNESS

CREDITS:

• Produced by Sarah Ginsburg & Elaine Sheldon
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Illustration by Christine Cover
• Production Assistance by Alijah Case

Name: Andrea Sisson

Current City: New York

What are you listening to now? On Being podcast, No No No Beruit

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? Murakami's "1Q84" and "Wind Up Bird." "33 Artists in 3 Acts," (book), as well as "All Pasolini" (film)

Who is your career role model? Marina Abramovic

What is a tool you can't live without? Mm, my computer. Text message - its like an ongoing journal but not just to yourself to friends and people that also journal back. I love text.

How do you drink your coffee/tea? Americano w/milk

MUSIC in this episode is by Stag Hare. Zara is the MusicMaker behind this project and we'll be featuring her story in episode 22.5 on 11/11/2015). Listen to her music on Soundcloud & Bandcamp and visit her website and Facebook.

SONGS you heard: Grays (Doom and Gloom Mantra), T I R E D from Angel Tech // Holy Quinn, Crystal Dust Dream, Oz from Black Medicine Music // y2 Soul Dive, Raga (dream) from Pongdools // To Coyoto to to Hop, Asha Moon Canoes from Spirit Canoes // Pulse Cocoon from Vessel - Part One

Ann Friedman is a freelance journalist who lives in Los Angeles. She writes a weekly column about politics, culture and gender for New York Magazine. She also contributes to the Columbia Journalism Review, ELLE, The Guardian, Los Angeles Magazine, The Gentlewoman, among other publications. She’s the co-host of popular podcast Call Your Girlfriend and reviews books for New Republic and Bookforum. Ann understands the importance of developing your own voice. She understands how our shifting landscape has changed the way people consume media, and how having a personal connection and point of view as an author, allows readers an entry point to trust your voice. Those who trust Ann’s voice look forward to her beloved newsletter, The Ann Friedman Weekly, where she sums up everything she’s written, read, listened to and watched that week. Ann has a broad view of how to tell a story, embracing all sorts of methods from longform, to GIFS, to pie chart, to DIY publishing, she's inventive and knows how to turn it into a paycheck.

In this episode, we talk about the changing role of journalism, getting fired, the importance of building your future network, the perils of aging in the media world, and the importance of self-driven projects. If you’re a freelancer, don’t miss this episode.

RELATED LINKS:

• Ann's website
• Ann's famous newsletter
• Ann on Twitter
• "Shine Theory"
• Ann's podcast: Call Your Girlfriend
• Everything you need to know about GIFs as a journalist
• Real Talk from Your Editor (GIFs)
• GOOD magazine

ANN'S WRITING:

• The Guardian
• Refinery29
• NYMag
• Columbia Journalism Review
• The American Prospect

INTERVIEWS WITH ANN:

• Girl Boss
• The Dreslyn
• Mic.com
• The Rumpus
• On MSNBC (2011)
• Longform Podcast

Name: Ann Friedman

Current City: Los Angeles

What are you listening to now? This is going to make me sound so pretentious, but I have been listening to a lot of Ethiopian jazz lately. It's good working music.

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? I read Susan Sontag's journals (the first collection) when I was in a state of both personal and professional transition, and something about reading her unedited thoughts was really inspiring to me. 

Who is your career role model? It's so hard to pick just one! I am a big fan of Rebecca Traister. She is a fantastic writer and original thinker who takes a long view and backs up her opinions with reporting-- without losing her voice. Also, she's kind to both her sources and to other journalists. It's hard to imagine her becoming embroiled in a petty Twitter fight, which is how you know she's really smart.

What is a tool you can't live without? This is so boring, but my iPhone. Of course.

How do you drink your coffee/tea? Coffee. Usually black.

What's your spirit animal? When I'm tired or hung over, I most identify with a baby giraffe that is still learning to walk.

MUSIC BY:

Our musicmaker is HINDS! Find them on Soundcloud, Bandcamp & Facebook.

Photo by Aarón Serrano

CREDITS:

• Produced by Sarah Ginsburg & Elaine Sheldon
• Sound design by Billy Wirasnik
• Illustration by Christine Cover
• Production Assistance by Alijah Case

CLIPS used in show:

• MSNBC 
• The Power of Narrative Conference