The Foreign Film Academy

A story of greed, a lust for power, and ultimate revenge. On this weeks episode, Brittany and Sydney take a look at Akira Kurosawa's 1985 "Ran". Kurosawa’s films represent a unique combination of elements of Japanese art – in the subtlety of their feeling, philosophy, and the brilliance of their visual composition – with a distinctly western feeling for action and drama. This epic film had us most curious by the facts that came along with the filmmaking process. Listen along to hear how Kurosawa and his team managed to pull it off.

This week Britt & Syd watch the Irish animation film Wolfwalkers directed by Tomm Moore and Ross Stewart. The film style in the trailer is what captivated them, and it did not disappoint. Despite being finished in quarantine, Wolfwalkers is fully realized with powerful women characters and beautiful lore. It's definitely recommended for a feel good movie night.

On this episode, Brittany and Sydney take a look at an intense historical film from Denmark. Directed by Jesper W. Nielson, 'The Day Will Come' otherwise known as 'Der Kommer En Dag', takes a look at two brothers journey through a state wide orphanage when their mother falls sick. At the Gudbjerg Home for Boys violence and humiliations plays a part of the everyday life. Based on real stories from Godhavn, where lots of boys were victims and sexual abuse and medical neglect. This film was dark and sad, but brought upon many real conversations around the subject of survival and power. 

On this special episode Britt & Syd talk to Filmmaker / Creator Pietro Gagliano about his dynamic film Agence. This project uses filmmaking authorship, audience interaction, and machine intelligence to create a piece that is never the same twice. This episode is especially exciting as it's close to home... Not only is this a Canadian project but Pietro grew up in the same city as Sydney! Listen in as we discuss production process, AI, the National Film Board of Canada, mistakes, and more in this episode.

This week Britt & Syd watch Ne Zha, a Chinese animation film that was a blockbuster hit. For decades Japanese and American animation has dominated the Chinese animation market, making it difficult to get the industry to be lucrative. Hopefully the success of Ne Zha will launch forward a desire to see more from this genre because we absolutely loved this film! 

Thinking about listening to the podcast? Here's a quick trailer to let you know what we're all about.

Britt and Syd have throughly enjoyed the movies we have watched together for The Foreign Film Academy podcast. However, this week they get a chance to critique a film that was not their taste. “Burning is a social satire, a love story, a whodunit mystery, and it is none of these things. It may just be summarized by a man feeding a cat that might not exist.” This quote drives Britt and Syd insane, while also gaining their respect towards what the filmmakers are trying to accomplish. 

This week was an emotional one as Britt and Syd watched My Octopus Teacher. They investigate the impact of having a filmmaker as a subject, and also dove into the question: When should documentary makers interfere? This episode was full of both laughs and deep discussion about the future of filmmaking and our planet.

This week we talked about the film 'Strictly Ballroom', directed by Baz Luhrmann. We also further discussed his Red Curtain Trilogy, which includes - Strictly Ballroom, Romeo & Juliet, and Moulin Rouge. From the theatrical colours, performances, and camera work. To the plot and technical stance, this film covered many topics. Not to mention how much fun it is to just enjoy a nice film once in a while!

Brittany and Sydney invite their old roommate Amafah to be the first guest to the podcast to talk about the Bollywood film Padmaavat. Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, this film is loosely based off a poem written by Malik Muhammad Jayasi. This epic period drama has been praised for the visuals, the cinematography and Singh's portrayal of Khilji, but also criticised for its storyline, execution, length and adherence to regressive patriarchal mores. Amafah is able to provide Brittany and Sydney with more information on the history and criticism behind the film, further understanding our knowledge of the culture.