The next episode of SOUNDS OF FILM features special guest Tessa Blake, the award-winning writer and director of IF I TELL YOU. An alumna of AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women, Blake has worked extensively in film, television and theater, with her films premiering at Cannes and SXSW and receiving recognition from festivals including the Nantucket Film Festival and Human Rights Watch Film Festival.

Set against the rugged beauty of Minnesota’s Boundary Waters region, IF I TELL YOU is a tender and suspenseful family drama based on Lisa O’Donnell’s novel Closed Doors. The film follows 12-year-old Michael, played by Etienne Kellici, as he tries to uncover what happened when his mother, Rosemary (Allison Miller), comes home with a black eye and bruised lip; the cast also includes Carol Kane, Bill Heck, Chris Jackson, Carmela Zumbado, Kennedi Butler, McKenzie Hays, Tiegen Fryberger and Zelalem Oestreich. IF I TELL YOU opened in theaters in Ely and Duluth, Minnesota, on August 21 and opens in select theaters across North America on August 27, 2026. The film has received numerous festival honors, including Best Minnesota Feature at the Twin Cities Film Festival and Best Director honors at both the Ely Film Festival and Montreal Women Film Festival.

SOUNDS OF FILM with Tom Needham is a long-running radio show and podcast devoted to film, music and ideas, featuring conversations with filmmakers, actors, musicians, composers, authors and other cultural figures. Recent guests have included David Saint and Debby Hirshman, Christian Nilsson, Lynn Dow, Cassidy Rast and Odin Wadleigh, Micah S. Harris, Josh Fox, Alex Gibney, Michael Pack, Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine, Ash Mayfair and Yana Alliata. The program has aired for more than 30 years on WUSB and features both new interviews and classic conversations from the SOUNDS OF FILM archive.

Director David Saint and Debby Hirshman, Executive Director of The Center at West Park, join Tom Needham on Sounds of Film to discuss the one-night-only staged reading of The Big Chill, taking place on Monday, August 31, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. at Guild Hall in East Hampton. They discuss bringing the beloved 1983 classic to the stage with an all-star cast, the enduring appeal of its unforgettable characters and themes, and how this special evening supports The Center at West Park’s mission of making arts and culture affordable, accessible, and inclusive.

Presented by The Center at West Park, this special staged reading of The Big Chill continues the organization’s annual summer tradition at Guild Hall following the acclaimed presentation of All the President’s Men. Directed by David Saint, the performance features Marisa Tomei, Matthew Broderick, Amy Brenneman, Spencer Garrett, Frederick Weller, Ilana Levine, and Jumaane D. Williams, with additional guest performers to be announced. Following the reading, audiences will enjoy a talkback with the cast and creative team. Proceeds benefit The Center at West Park’s affordable, accessible, and intergenerational arts programming while supporting its ongoing efforts to preserve the historic West Park Presbyterian Church as a vibrant cultural and community hub.

Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film, music, and ideas radio show and podcast. Over the years, the program has featured an extraordinary range of guests from the worlds of film, music, and culture, including Billy Joel, Rob Reiner, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Jordan Peele, Chuck D, Howard Shore, William H. Macy, Nile Rodgers, Peter Fonda, Barbara Kopple, Cicely Tyson, Kenneth Lonergan, D.A. Pennebaker, Chris Hegedus, and many more, offering listeners engaging conversations with some of the most influential creative voices of our time.

On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes Emmy Award-winning writer, director, and producer Christian Nilsson to discuss his acclaimed feature Westhampton. Nilsson reflects on the film’s remarkable fourteen-year journey from screenplay to screen, its recent theatrical release, and its celebrated encore screening presented by the Stony Brook Film Festival at Stony Brook Southampton’s Avram Theater, where audiences gathered for a special reception and filmmaker Q&A following the screening.

Westhampton follows filmmaker Tom Bell, who returns to his Long Island hometown years after a tragic accident that forever altered the lives of those closest to him. As he screens a semi-autobiographical film inspired by the tragedy, Tom is forced to confront painful memories, fractured relationships, and a community that has never forgiven him, resulting in a moving story about guilt, redemption, and the possibility of self-forgiveness.

Sounds of Film is a long running radio show and podcast hosted by Tom Needham, featuring in-depth conversations with many of the world’s leading filmmakers, actors, composers, musicians, authors, and cultural figures. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Rob Reiner, Jordan Peele, Alex Gibney, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Bob Geldof, Chuck D, Nile Rodgers, Howard Shore, John Densmore, Eric Stoltz, Hannah Berryman, Michael Moore, Stephen Schwartz, DMC, and many more.

On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes writer and director Lynn Dow to discuss her feature directorial debut, Bull Street. Dow shares the personal inspiration behind the film, her family’s roots in Summerton, South Carolina, her transition from a career on Wall Street to filmmaking, and how she crafted a powerful story about family, justice, legacy, and resilience.

Bull Street follows LouEster Gibbs, a small-town South Carolina attorney who faces the legal battle of her life after the death of her estranged father leads to a dispute over her family’s longtime home. Featuring memorable performances from Loretta Devine, Amy Madigan, Malynda Hale, Arielle Prepetit, and Gary Ray Moore, the film explores family, inheritance, race, privilege, and the enduring bonds that connect generations.

Sounds of Film is the award-winning radio show and podcast hosted by Tom Needham that explores the worlds of film, music, and ideas through in-depth conversations with acclaimed filmmakers, actors, composers, musicians, authors, and cultural figures. Over its more than 30-year history, the program has welcomed an extraordinary range of guests, including Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Alexander Payne, Rob Reiner, Jordan Peele, William H. Macy, Howard Shore, Laurie Anderson, Bob Geldof, Dionne Warwick, Chuck D, Morris Day,Pam Grier, Michael Moore, Rory Kennedy, Peter Fonda, Jesse Ventura, Nile Rodgers, Kenny Vance, and many more.

This episode of The Sounds of Film features directors Cassidy Rast and Odin Wadleigh discussing their documentary Body of Work, which was an official selection of the Stony Brook International Film Festival. The filmmakers share the inspiration behind bringing artist Eric Anfinson’s remarkable life story to the screen, the creative choices that shaped the film, and the experience of premiering it before festival audiences.

Body of Work is a cinematic portrait of Eric Anfinson, whose life changed forever after a devastating spinal cord injury during a high school football game at age 16. Through evocative 16mm recreations, intimate interviews, and archival footage, the film follows Eric’s extraordinary journey of recovery, self-discovery, and artistic expression, culminating in a celebrated career as a self-taught painter whose work is collected throughout North America and Europe.

Hosted by Tom Needham, The Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film and music-themed radio show and podcast, featuring conversations with filmmakers, musicians, composers, actors, authors, and other cultural figures. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, Stephen Schwartz, Taylor Dayne, DMC, Chuck D, Rob Reiner, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Dionne Warwick, Howard Shore, Phil Rosenthal, Barbara Kopple, Rory Kennedy, Jay Jay French, Garland Jeffreys, and many more.

On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes writer, director, editor, and Iraq War veteran Micah Stathis along with actor, writer, producer, and editor Clare Louise Frost to discuss their new feature film The Art of Quitting Gracefully. The film, a featured selection at the Stony Brook International Film Festival on Sunday, July 19, 2026, at 9:30 PM, is an intimate drama about creativity, ambition, sacrifice, and the risks involved in pursuing a lifelong dream.

The Art of Quitting Gracefully follows Joan Cantrell, a 41-year-old New York City acting teacher who leaves her job to finally write the novel she has been avoiding for years. As she struggles with financial uncertainty, a failing marriage, and the haunting memory of her mother—an aspiring writer whose own creative ambitions ended in tragedy—Joan must decide whether pursuing her dream will lead to fulfillment or repeat the mistakes of the past.

Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is one of America’s longest-running film, music, and ideas programs, airing for more than 30 years on WUSB and reaching audiences worldwide through its podcast platforms. The show features in-depth conversations with filmmakers, actors, musicians, composers, authors, and cultural figures. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, Stephen Schwartz, Taylor Dayne, Darryl ‘DMC’ McDaniels, Chuck D, Rob Reiner, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Dionne Warwick, Howard Shore, Barbara Kopple, Rory Kennedy, Jay Jay French, and Garland Jeffreys, among many others from the worlds of film, music, and culture.

Skywalkers: A Love Story is a thrilling romantic film that follows a daring couple as they push their relationship to new extremes by attempting to climb the world’s second-highest skyscraper and perform a breathtaking stunt on its spire.

Angela and Vanya, Russia’s top rooftoppers, risk everything to conquer the globe’s tallest buildings. As their acrobatic feats become internet sensations, amassing millions of views, they challenge their love and trust by pioneering a perilous new art form called “skywalking.”

Directed and written by Emmy-winning filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist (Favela Rising, The Two Escobars, Momentum Generation), this documentary, filmed over six years across six countries, captures the intense world of extreme climbing in vivid detail.

Jeff Zimbalist is a multi-Emmy and Peabody-winning filmmaker most known for IDA and Tribeca Film Festival winner Favela Rising (HBO), Emmy winner and Cannes Film Festival favorite The Two Escobars (ESPN, Disney), Emmy and Tribeca Film Festival winner Momentum Generation (HBO, Universal), Pelé: Birth of a Legend (Magnolia, Universal), the Emmy-winning series Remastered (Netflix), Emmy-nominated The Line (Apple), Emmy-nominated 11 Minutes (Paramount+), Emmy-winning Super League: The War for Football (Apple), and Sundance and Tribeca festival favorite Invisible Beauty (Magnolia).

Maria Bukhonina is an American filmmaker, originally from Siberia, Russia. Her producing credits range from Booze Traveler on Travel Channel to Heist for Netflix and such Emmy-winning projects as the Ágnes Keleti commercial for the 100th Olympic Games and the doc series The World According to Football with Trevor Noah for Showtime, along with a wide range of other sports documentaries for ESPN, Netflix, and Showtime. Skywalkers: A Love Story is her co-directing debut

The Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest running film, music and ideas themed radio show. For the past 30 years, the program has delivered a popular mix of interviews and music to listeners all over Long Island, parts of Connecticut and streaming live worldwide on the internet. Past guests on the show include Wendy & Lisa, Morris Day, DMC, Chris Hedges, Michael Moore, Hal Hartley, Alexandra Pelosi, Gary U.S. Bonds, Thora Birch and Laurie Anderson.

Josh Fox joins Tom Needham on this episode of Sounds of Film to discuss his latest documentary and his career as one of the most distinctive independent filmmakers working today. An Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-winning director, Fox is best known for Gasland, Gasland Part II, How to Let Go of the World and Love All the Things Climate Can’t Change, and The Truth Has Changed. In this conversation, he reflects on the origins of his work, the challenges of confronting urgent social and environmental issues through film, and the role documentary filmmaking can play in shaping public debate.

Fox’s films take a critical look at the intersection of politics, the environment, and public policy, often centering on questions of power, accountability, and the human cost of major crises. Through interviews, archival material, and a deeply personal approach, his work explores the impact of corporate and government decisions on communities and the broader lessons that can be drawn from these conflicts.

Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film and music-themed radio show and podcast, featuring conversations with filmmakers, actors, musicians, composers, authors, and cultural leaders. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, Stephen Schwartz, Taylor Dayne, DMC, Chuck D, Rob Reiner, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Dionne Warwick, Howard Shore, Phil Rosenthal, Barbara Kopple, Rory Kennedy, Jay Jay French, Garland Jeffreys, members of Twisted Sister, Public Enemy, The Tokens, and many others. Each episode offers listeners an engaging look at the creative process and the stories behind films, music, books, and important cultural events.

Academy Award-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney joins Tom Needham on this episode of Sounds of Film to discuss his powerful new documentary, Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie.

Widely regarded as one of the most important documentary filmmakers of his generation, Gibney has earned acclaim for such films as Taxi to the Dark Side, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Going Clear, and In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon. In this conversation, Gibney discusses the origins of Knife, his collaboration with Salman Rushdie and Rachel Eliza Griffiths, and the challenges of documenting one of the most shocking attacks on a writer in modern history.

Inspired by Rushdie’s memoir Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, the documentary chronicles the celebrated author’s physical, emotional, and creative recovery following the 2022 attack that nearly took his life. Featuring deeply personal footage filmed by Griffiths in the aftermath of the stabbing, the film explores resilience, free expression, love, and survival while examining the long shadow cast by political and religious extremism. Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival and will open HamptonsFilm’s 2026 SummerDocs series at Guild Hall in East Hampton on Saturday, June 27 at 7:00 p.m., followed by a conversation with Gibney.

Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film and music-themed radio show and podcast, featuring conversations with filmmakers, actors, composers, musicians, authors, and cultural leaders. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Alec Baldwin, Julie Andrews, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, Dionne Warwick, Chuck D, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Nile Rodgers, Howard Shore, Rob Reiner, Barbara Kopple, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Public Enemy’s Chuck D, Jesse Ventura, Rory Kennedy, Jay Jay French, Phil Rosenthal, Rodriguez, and many more. Visit the Sounds of Film archives for hundreds of interviews exploring the worlds of film, music, and popular culture.

The Wall Street Journal Opinion Doc The Lockdown Dissidents Director Michael Pack on SOUNDS OF FILM

Michael Pack joins Tom Needham on this episode of Sounds of Film to discuss The Lockdown Dissidents, the latest documentary from Palladium Pictures and WSJ Opinion Docs. Pack is an award-winning filmmaker whose career spans decades and includes documentaries on subjects ranging from American history and politics to culture and public policy. In this conversation, he discusses the origins of The Lockdown Dissidents, the challenges of revisiting one of the most controversial periods in recent history, and the role documentary filmmaking can play in examining debates that continue to shape public life.

The Lockdown Dissidents takes a retrospective look at the COVID-19 pandemic through the experiences of scientists, physicians, journalists, and policymakers who questioned prevailing lockdown policies and aspects of the government response. Featuring interviews with Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, Dr. Scott Atlas, Dr. Robert Redfield, journalist David Zweig, and Wall Street Journal Opinion editor James Taranto, the film explores questions surrounding scientific debate, public policy, censorship, free expression, and the lessons that can be learned from one of the most consequential public health crises of the 21st century.

Hosted by Tom Needham, Sounds of Film is the nation’s longest-running film and music-themed radio show and podcast, featuring conversations with filmmakers, actors, musicians, composers, authors, and cultural leaders. Past guests have included Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Alec Baldwin, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, Stephen Schwartz, Taylor Dayne, DMC, Chuck D, Rob Reiner, Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Dionne Warwick, Howard Shore, Phil Rosenthal, Barbara Kopple, Rory Kennedy, Jay Jay French, Garland Jeffreys, members of Twisted Sister, Public Enemy, The Tokens, and many others. Each episode offers listeners an engaging look at the creative process and the stories behind films, music, books, and important cultural events.

Listen to the Sounds of Film on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music.