Sup Doc: A Documentary Podcast

Hosts Paco and George review the 1989 Michael Moore debut Roger & Me. Foundational to modern American documentary, this is a biting, vital, and angry film that is sadly still relevant today.

Michael Moore demands answers when General Motors suddenly closes the doors of all its auto plants in the Flint, Michigan, the city where he grew up. With over 30,000 people out of work, Flint is economically devastated, and Moore aims to track down GM CEO Roger Smith to make him answer for his actions. While on the search, Moore also chronicles the emotional effect the closings have had on his family and friends, while violent crimes begin to skyrocket in Flint. As Moore pokes around what has been described by one magazine as "the worst place to live in America", he finds out how the local populace is coping with GM's betrayal of the American Dream. Among those visited are a family who is evicted just before Christmas, and an enterprising middle-aged woman who set up a thriving business slaughtering and skinning rabbits. Never feigning objectivity, Moore contrasts the impact of the shutdown on the average Joes and Janes with the diffident reaction of Flint's power elite. The latter's patronizing attitude towards the unemployed multitudes is succinctly captured in the scenes in which visiting celebrities Robert Schuller, Anita Bryant, Bobby Vinton and Pat Boone exhort the citizenry to grin and bear it. Even more out of synch is "Miss Michigan" Kaye Lani Rae Rafko, who in her morale-boosting speech to the disenfranchised GM employees begs them to pull for her in the upcoming Miss America pageant! The film's throughline is Moore's futile effort to locate GM chairman Roger Smith, so that he can show Moore first-hand the utter devastation of Flint. Roger & Me is very funny, but it is the gallows humor of soldiers about to embark on a suicide mission.

In 1992, Michael Moore more or less updated Roger & Me with his half-hour short subject Pets or Meat: The Return to Flint.

We also learn about Paco's time working third shift in a GM plant, why no one in San Francisco works, being a living statue, '80s fashions, woke branding, and debate whether soda is food.

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This episode we watched Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich a four-part Netflix docuseries directed by Lisa Bryant. Based on James Patterson’s 2016 book, Filthy Rich takes a look at the stories of Epstein’s abuse survivors, so - Trigger Warning! 

Our guest is Haley Hoffmeister an actor and comic from Eugene, Oregon currently living in Los Angeles. She can be seen on Amazon Prime’s “My First Comedy Special.” She also has a very funny TEDX talk entitled “Being a Woman is Not That Hard”. 

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Twitter: @mynameishaley

Instagram: @haleyhoffmeister

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To conclude our Munchie May series on food documentaries we watched FAT: A Documentary by Peter Curtis Pardini (2019).

Trainer-to-the-stars Vinnie Tortorich exposes the history behind widespread myths regarding healthy eating, fat, and weight loss. Is the American Obesity epidemic a product of culture, government intervention, corporate greed, or lack of will?

And helping us pick through the layers is our medical and comedic guest, Dr. Priyanka Wali, who schools George and Paco on the science behind the doc.

Priyanka Wali is a board-certified Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine physician who graduated from the University of Southern California cum laude as an undergraduate in Los Angeles and continued her training there for medical school. She completed her residency in Internal Medicine at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco She is also a nationally recognized expert on the ketogenic diet and has lectured about the impact of insulin resistance and sexual dysfunction at conferences across the United States. In addition to helping patients as a practicing physician, Dr. Wali truly believes that laughter is the best medicine and likes to cover her bases as a touring stand up comedian. She was named by Refinery29 as "50 Female Stand-Up Comedians You Need To Know" and before Covid-19 she performed routinely all throughout the United States and abroad, including corporate gigs, casinos and comedy clubs. She has been featured on KFOG Radio, Women's Health Magazine, The Today Show, Business Insider, Uproxx, Cosmopolitan, India Currents Magazine, and Healthline.

Follow our food sponsor Honey and Pearl.

Follow Priyanka on:

Twitter: @walipriyanka

Instagram: @walipriyanka

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We roll on with our fifth anniversary and Munchie May, our food documentary theme month.

Our guest is the director of one of our favorite ever food documentaries, City of Gold. Filmmaker Laura Gabbert joins the show to talk about the film and the legacy of the late Jonathan Gold. Jonathan Gold was the Pulitzer Prize winning food critic who came up through The LA Weekly, music journalism, and being a cellist in noise bands. City of Gold chronicles his career, life as a family man, and his love for the diverse cultures and flavors of Los Angeles.

Documentary director Laura Gabbert’s critically acclaimed films deploy full measures of humor and drama to unflinchingly put a human face on a range of social and cultural issues. NO IMPACT MAN (Sundance ’09), which the LA Times called “terrifically entertaining, compelling and extremely funny,” played theatrically in over 30 cities. Her previous film SUNSET STORY (PBS) won prizes at Tribeca and LAFF. About it, the New York Times wrote, “Sunset Story may break your heart, but it will also make your day.” Gabbert directed the feature film CITY OF GOLD (Sundance 2015) about Pulitzer Prize winning food writer Jonathan Gold. The film played theatrically in over 50 markets. About it, the New York Times wrote “the film does as much to demystify and yet romanticize Los Angeles as any Chandler novel.” Vogue Magazine included CITY OF GOLD in their list of the “the 60 best documentaries of all time.” In 2017 Gabbert was a director on the Netflix show UGLY DELICIOUS and directed the Field of Vision short film MONUMENT | MONUMENTO about a unique spot on the US-Mexico border. Most recently, she directed the feature documentary OTTOLENGHI AND THE CAKES OF VERSAILLES about a collaboration between chef Yotam Ottolenghi and the Metropolitan Museum of Art. She is currently co-directing the seven-part non-fiction series THE POWER OF FILM based on the lectures of legendary film scholar Howard Suber. Most recently, Gabbert is working on a Covid-19 food supply chain documentary, collaborating with author/editor, Ruth Reichl. 

This episode we shout out our friends at Chelsea Got Cakes! 

Follow Laura on:

Twitter: @lauragabbert1

Instagram: @lauragabbertfilms

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This is our Munchie May series on food documentaries. 

We watched Les Blank’s 1980 classic film Garlic Is As Good As Ten Mothers. Blank celebrates the virtues of garlic from Berkeley's Chez Panisse to the Gilroy Garlic festival. It’s a short but thorough look at the cultural stereotypes and medicinal qualities of the stinking rose, down the supply chain of farm workers. 

You can watch the film on the Criterion Channel.

This doc was picked by our guest, Richard Parks the Third, a James Beard Award-nominated writer, filmmaker, cookbook author, and the host of Richard’s Famous Food Podcast.

Richard is the co-author of the Guerrilla Tacos cookbook and The Boba Book. He’s written for Lucky Peach, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and produced radio stories for Snap Judgement, KCRW’s Lost Notes, and McSweeney’s, where he collaborated with The Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne.

Richard also teaches us how to Spatchcock a chicken!

This episode we shout out our friends at Hoppin Hot Sauce!

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Twitter: @reechardparks

Instagram: @reechardparks

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May 2020 is the five-year anniversary of Sup Doc.

To celebrate we’re talking food documentaries all month long for Munchie May, our brand new theme series.

We talk to comedian Derek Sheen about his pick, NOMA: MY PERFECT STORM (Pierre Deschamps 2015). 

For three years running, Noma in Copenhagen was voted the "Best restaurant in the world." This puts an immense amount of pressure on René Redzepi, the driven chef who has up-ended the food world and put Nordic cuisine on the map. He has an attitude and brilliance that is undeniable but he starts questioning his own motivations and ideas about success. Along the way we meet the foragers, suppliers, staff, and critics who all have their lives changed by Noma.

Our guest Derek Sheen is a cuddly mess of insecurities and a gifted, one-of-a-kind storyteller. His dark humor has made Derek a cult favorite of comedy nerds everywhere. He has amassed a loyal fan base touring with comedy legends Brian Posehn, Patton Oswalt, and Janeane Garofalo. Derek has released four critically acclaimed albums on Stand Up! Records, with Grammy Winning producer Dan Schlissel. The most recent, "Macho Caballero", just came out on April 24th and is on Streaming Services everywhere.

Our sponsor for this week's show is Berkeley-based Squabisch, artisanal pretzel business that does curbside-pickups (and some delivery within the East Bay). Check out their website and tell them Sup Doc sent you!

*Brother Theodore

*Man derails train because of conspiracy theory

Follow Derek on:

Twitter: @dereksheen

Instagram: @dereksheen666

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What were you doing in 2007? Mike Ott was starting his first teaching job as a film professor at a community college in Southern California. There he meets a bafflingly confident 18 year old Leigh Harkrider, who thinks his student film, “Enslavence” is going to send him to stardom. What feels like a fictional sitcom is filled with unforgettable characters and youthful hubris, but there is some redemption for Leigh. Kid Icarus is like a spiritual sequel to American Movie for the MySpace generation. You can watch it on Amazon Prime and Kanopy.

Mike Ott studied under Thom Andersen at Cal Arts where he received his MFA degree in Film/Video. His latest film, California Dreams (2017), premiered at Berlin Critics Week and in the US at SXSW. Mike's films have won numerous awards including, an Audience Award at AFI Fest, a Gotham Award and an Independent Spirit Award. Mike lives part time between Los Angeles and Berlin with his wife Isolda Dychauk.

Follow Mike Ott on:

Instagram: @ott_mike

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In this TIGER KING aftershow, Joel McHale talks with Jeff, Saff, Erik and more to get their reactions to the series, their portrayals and their new fame. Did we need this 8th episode? Did Joel McHale need this? Paco and George are joined by super-producer and Oklahoma native Will Scovill.

Plus doc pitches, what we've been watching, and next episode info on Kid Icarus (George interviews director Mike Ott)

*Infant Jesus of Prague, OK

*Three Amigos controversy from Paco

*Flo and Kay savant twins

*Sayde Price

*Kid Icarus

*Also Will drops his latest podcast on the world Cathode Ray Mission!

We are an affiliate marketer for CrowdCow.

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George Chen spoke with directors Puloma Basu and Rob Hatch-Miller about their 2019 film, Other Music.

Other Music was a record store in New York for twenty years and a played a central role in the life of the city’s music scene. The store closed in 2016 and this documentary captures the last month and a half of the store’s activity, with former employees, fans, and musicians all showing up to pay their respects. There are interviews and guest appearances from Martin Gore of Depeche Mode, Jason Schwartzmann, Regina Spektor, William Basinski, Tunde Adebimpe, Cornelius, and Benicio Del Toro. More than the famous talking heads, this feels like a vital reminder of the before-times, a celebration of community. 

The film's release plans had to be altered with the COVID19 quarantine, so instead Other Music has a special online release for a limited time starting April 17th. A "Virtual Cinema release" through Factory25, part of the profitsare being channeled to record stores, book stores, movie theaters, and other retailers shuttered due the the pandemic. Each partner has a custom URL to rent through; find a store you want to support here!

Puloma Basu was born in Buffalo, NY and raised in Kolkata, India. She began her career in film working on Mira Nair's The Namesake and has since worked on numerous TV shows including Bored To Death and Flight Of The Conchords and feature films such as St. Vincent and The Meyerowitz Stories. She and her husband Rob Hatch-Miller directed and produced season one of the standup comedy TV series Night Train With Wyatt Cenac for NBCUniversal's digital platform Seeso. Together they've also directed music videos for artists including Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and Aimee Mann. This is Puloma's first feature film as a director.

While studying Film & TV at NYU's Tisch School Of The Arts, Rob Hatch-Miller began a life-changing job as a staff member at Other Music. Rob has worked on numerous documentary features including Laura Poitras' The Oath and Eugene Jarecki's The House I LiveIn. He directed and produced the soul music documentary feature Syl Johnson: Any Way The Wind Blows, which won the Best Documentary Jury Prize at the 2016 Sidewalk Film Festival and the Best Documentary Audience Award at the 2015 Indie Memphis Film Festival. Rob has also produced numerous music videos, an episode of Adult Swim's Infomercials TV series and dozens of web comedy shorts for Funny Or Die including Hillary Clinton: Between Two Ferns With Zach Galifianakas.

Follow Other Music on:

Twitter: @OtherMusicDoc

Instagram: @othermusicdoc

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TIGER KING: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.

This is the show that is getting us through quarantine. Director Eric Goode stumbles on a story that is well-known in weirdo Americana true crime circles, but there are more than 7 hours worth of conflicting stories in this feud between big cat lovers. So many mysteries remain. Who do you trust, and who can play Joe Exotic in the eventual biopic version?

Hosts Paco and George delve into all theories, play Cast This Doc and follow up with updated news! 

SPECIAL THANKS for Outro music by King Cyrus King - from his quarantine project of Joe Exotic covers, King Tiger King

Here's the Carole Baskin essay refuting the claims of the docuseries.

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