The Oscar Project Podcast

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Today's episode is my conversation about the 1929 film Hallelujah. I'm joined by Jonathan Hammond, film director who has multiple shorts on the festival circuit this fall. We talk about many of the problems of the film even though it does include an all African American cast, some interesting images of what life was like at the time in the South, whether or not the film qualifies as a "musical" as we would define it today, and what representation looks like in film both in the past and today.

You can watch Hallelujah on YouTube and be sure to give Jonathan a follow on Instagram @jonohamm.

Other films mentioned in this episode include:

• The Crowd directed by King Vidor
• Weary River directed by Frank Lloyd
• Brokeback Mountain directed by Ang Lee
• The Birth of a Nation directed by D. W. Griffith
• Sinners directed by Ryan Coogler
• Highest 2 Lowest directed by Spike Lee
• High and Low directed by Akira Kurosawa
• Him directed by Justin Tipping

Other referenced topics:

• Daniel Haynes's quote in support of the film
• The Migration of Musical Film: From Ethnic Margins to American Mainstream by Desirée J. Garcia referencing William Fountain's objection to his lines in the film
• "Rediscovering Hallelujah (1929), director King Vidor’s sensitive film with all-black cast" by Bernd Reinhardt

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Today's episode is part of my series of double episodes featuring conversations with 2025 Student Academy Award nominees.

My first interview today is with 2025 Student Academy Award winner Tatiana McCabe, director of the documentary short film "Tides of Life." We discuss how she came to wildlife filmmaking to help realize a lifelong dream and the challenges that come with being a one woman show filming a documentary.

Following that I chat with 2025 Student Academy Award Winner Xindi Zhang, director of the film "The Song of Drifters." We talk about the inspiration for the film in her own experience and the viability of AI as a tool to use in filmmaking.

Films and TV shows mentioned in this episode include:

• "Tides of Life " directed by Tatiana McCabe
• "The Song of Drifters" directed by Xindi Zhang
• The Rescue directed by Jimmy Chin and Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi
• Fire of Love directed by Sara Dosa
• All That Breathes directed by Shaunak Sen
• News From Home directed by Chantal Akerman
• Perfect Blue directed by Satoshi Kon
• Black Swan directed by Darren Aronofsky
• Yi Yi directed by Edward Yang
• The Addams Family directed by Barry Sonnenfeld
• A Clockwork Orange directed by Stanley Kubrick
• Alice in Wonderland directed by Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske

Follow Tatiana on Instagram @tatianamccabe and Xindi at @xindizhangfilm. You can also check out the website for Tatiana's film studio SecondHeart at secondheart.tv and Xindi's website at www.xindizhangart.com.

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Today's episode is the first film discussion episode of the 3rd Academy Awards and my conversation about the 1929 film Bulldog Drummond. I'm joined by Gareth Bradwick from the "Popped" newsletter and we talk about the film's influence on subsequent films in the genre, how the absence of music affects the overall mood of the film, and how this early example of a franchise film is different from what see today.

You can watch Bulldog Drummond on YouTube and be sure to check out Gareth's  newsletter.

Other films mentioned in this episode include:

• Blackmail directed by Alfred Hitchcock
• James Bond (films)
• Dracula directed by Tod Browning and Karl Freund
• The Broadway Melody directed by Harry Beaumont
• The Hollywood Revue of 1929 directed by Charles F. Reisner
• Mission: Impossible directed by Brian De Palma
• Frankenstein directed by James Whale
• The Valiant directed by William K. Howard
• Bulldog Drummond Strikes Back directed by Roy Del Ruth
• The Return of Bulldog Drummond directed by Walter Summers
• Bulldog Drummond at Bay directed by Norman Lee
• The Divine Lady directed by Frank Lloyd
• Disraeli directed by Alfred E. Green
• Dark Shadows (series)
• Susperia directed by Dario Argento
• Gone with the Wind directed by Victor Fleming
• Arrowsmith directed by John Ford
• Dodsworth directed by William Wyler
• Babylon directed by Damian Chazelle
• The Great Dictator directed by Charlie Chaplin
• King of Jazz directed by John Murray Anderson
• Lord of the Rings directed by Peter Jackson

Other referenced topics:

• James Bond (books)
• Agatha Christie novels
• Bulldog Drummond (novel) by Sapper (aka H. C. McNeile)
• William Cameron Menzies: The Shape of Films to Come by James Curtis
• New York Times review
• Variety review
• Kingston Gleaner review

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Today's episode is part of my series of double episodes featuring conversations with 2025 Student Academy Award nominees.

My first interview today is with 2025 Student Academy Award semifinalist Tushar Bhojwani, director of the animated film "Roar of the Tiger." We discuss his experience growing up in what's known as "the land of urban tigers" in Bhopal, India and the delicate balance between humans and nature.

Following that I chat with 2025 Student Academy Award Winner Mati Granica, director of the film "flower_gan." We talk about what actually happens when you ask an AI like ChatGPT to generate an image and the implications of using copyrighted content to train AI models.

Films and TV shows mentioned in this episode include:

• "Roar of the Tiger " directed by Tushar Bhojwani
• "flower_gan" directed by Mati Granica
• Interstellar directed by Christopher Nolan
• The Social Network directed by David Fincher
• Arrival directed by Denis Villeneuve
• Deadpool directed by Tim Miller
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl directed by Gore Verbinski
• The Hangover directed by Todd Phillips
• Ted Lasso (series)
• Fantastic Mr. Fox directed by Wes Anderson
• Midsommar directed by Ari Aster
• About Time directed by Richard Curtis
• Don't Look Up directed by Adam McKay
• The Secret Life of Walter Mitty directed by Ben Stiller
• Paddington directed by Paul King
• "The Fawn and the Blue Heron" directed by Thomas Keevil

Follow Tushar on Instagram @tusharbhojwani_wildlife and Mati at @matigranica. You can also check out Mati's website at https://matigranica.co.uk/.

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Today's episode is the beginning of my conversations about the films nominated at the 3rd Academy Awards. I'm joined by Beth Lisogorsky who writes the Beth's TV & Film Recommendations newsletter and we break down some of the history of the 3rd Academy Awards, all of the nominees, and take some a few moments to discuss the one missing film that won't get an individual episode this season.

You can check out a short clip of some of the awards being handed out on YouTube along with the video Beth mentioned in the episode from Awards Contender on YouTube.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get all the news episodes delivered to your device every Friday from now through February 2026 and if you want to be a guest for a film from the 4th Academy Awards, send me a message replying to this episode and let me know you're interested.

Nominees of the 3rd Academy Awards (linked films will take you to where you can watch the film online as of the recording of this episode):

• Bulldog Drummond
• Hallelujah
• Disraeli
• The Trespasser
• Condemned
• The Love Parade
• Sally
• Their Own Desire
• The Rogue Song (reconstruction only)
• Street of Chance
• The Green Goddess
• The Vagabond King
• Anna Christie
• Sarah and Son
• The Case of Sergeant Grischa (unavailable), book is available online for free
• King of Jazz
• The Divorcee 
• All Quiet on the Western Front
• The Big Pond
• The Devil's Holiday
• Song of the Flame
• Hell's Angels
• With Byrd at the South Pole
• The Big House
• Raffles
• Romance

Wikipedia article about Oscar nominated families.

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Today's episode is the first of a series of double episodes you'll be getting throughout the month of September all featuring conversations with 2025 Student Academy Award nominees.

My first interview is with 2025 Student Academy Award Winner Lucas Ansel, director of the animated film "The 12 Inch Pianist." We discuss where he found the story the film was based on and some of what went into making the setting seen on screen.

Following that I chat with 2025 Student Academy Award finalist Zolomon Zelko, director of the film "PhotoPlay XX." We talk about how the film is an emotional character arc instead of a narrative arc and getting the perfect abandoned house ready to film in.

Films and TV shows mentioned in this episode include:

• "The 12-Inch Pianist" directed by Lucas Ansel
• "PhotoPlay XX" directed by Zolomon Zelko
• Shrek directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson
• Paris, Texas directed by Wim Wenders
• Cool Hand Luke directed by Stuart Rosenberg
• Ratarouille directed by Brad Bird
• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl directed by Gore Verbinski
• The Big Lebowski directed by Joel Coen
• The Lord of the Rings trilogy directed by Peter Jackson
• The Silence of the Lambs directed by Jonathan Demme
• The Girl with the Needle directed by Magnus von Horn
• She is Conann directed by Bertrand Mandico
• Megalopolis directed by Francis Ford Coppola
• Spy Kids directed by Robert Rodriguez
• Titus directed by Julie Taymor
• Ponyo directed by Hayao Miyazaki
• Star Wars directed by George Lucas

Other topics referenced in this episode include:

• "Guy Walks Into a Bar" by Simon Rich
• Charming Disaster (musical duo who comprise the cast of "PhotoPlay XX")
• Kotorino (musical project of Jeff Morris from "PhotoPlay XX")

Follow Lucas on Instagram @lucas_ansel and Zolomon at @swampzik.

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Today's special episode is a conversation I had with my son Joshua about the 1926 film The General, written by, directed by, and starring Buster Keaton. Joshua recommended this film to me after he saw it in a Film Studies class in school and when I realized I'd never seen the entire thing, we decided to make a podcast episode about it.

You can watch The General on YouTube and a huge thank you to Joshua for helping me edit many podcast episodes over the last few years.

Other films mentioned in this episode include:

• The Circus directed by Charlie Chaplin
• "A Horse in Motion" directed by Eadweard J. Muybridge
• "A Trip to the Moon" directed by Georges Méliès
• "The Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat Station" by the Lumière Brothers
• Star Wars directed by George Lucas
• Five Nights at Freddy's directed by Emma Tammi
• Jaws directed by Steven Spielberg
• The Wizard of Oz directed by Victor Fleming
• Gone With the Wind directed by Victor Fleming
• Casablanca directed by Michael Curtiz
• Snow White and the Severn Dwarfs directed by David Hand

Other referenced topics:

• The Great Locomotive Chase: A History of the Andrews Railroad Raid Into Georgia by William Pittenger
• Variety review
• New York Times review
• New York Herald Tribune review
• Orson Wells quote on the Independent Cinema Office

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Today's episode is a replay of the very first interview episode from back in June 2023. My guest was Mia Mask, a professor at Vassar College where she teaches African American cinema, Documentary History, and seminars on topics including horror film and auteurs like Spike Lee, Charles Burnett and Ava DuVernay. She also teaches feminist film theory, African national cinemas, and other genre courses. Her commentary can be heard on NPR and her first book Divas on Screen: Black Women in American Film was published in 2009. She joined me back in 2023 to talk about her latest book Black Rodeo: A History of the African American Western.

Listen to hear about Mia's work with Criterion, including getting to speak with actor Sidney Poitier, what three of her favorite westerns are, and much more.

Books mentioned in this episode include:

• The Western in the Global South by MaryEllen Higgins, Rita Keresztesi, and Dayna Oscherwitz
• Undead in the West: Vampires, Zombies, Mummies, and Ghosts in the Cinematic Frontier by Cynthia J. Miller and A. Bowdoin Van Riper
• Horror Noire: Blacks in American Horror Films from the 1890s to Present by Robin R. Means Coleman
• Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Films mentioned in this episode include:

• The Learning Tree directed by Gordon Parks
• Buck and the Preacher directed by Sidney Poitier
• Thomasine and Bushrod directed by Gordon Parks Jr.
• Queen & Slim directed by Melina Matsoukas
• Bonnie & Clyde directed by Arthur Penn
• Django Unchained directed by Quentin Tarantino
• The Harder They Come directed by Perry Henzell
• Five Fingers for Marseilles directed by Michael Matthews
• The Homesteader directed by Oscar Micheaux and Jerry Mills
• Swingtime directed by George Stevens
• A Raisin in the Sun directed by Daniel Petrie
• Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror directed by Robin Givens, Kimani Ray Smith, Rob J. Greenlea, Director X., Zandashé Brown, and Joe West

Check out Wikipedia for more information about the Lobo Comics mentioned in the interview.

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Today's episode is my recap of everything from the second Academy Awards back in 1930. I run through all the nominees and winners of every category and give a final ranking of all 19 films I was able to watch from this year of the Oscars. If you missed any of the episodes discussing specific films, you can go back in this feed or just tap on the links below.

• 3.28-The Return of the Oscars and Lost Nominees of 1928-1929 with Lewis Beer
• 3.30-Street Angel & Skyscraper with Beth Lisogorsky
• 3.32-Glorious Betsy with Enrico Banson
• 3.34-Our Dancing Daughters with Vicki Lesley
• 3.36-White Shadows in the South Seas with Matthew Brady
• 3.38-A Woman of Affairs with Amanda Kusek
• 3.40-In Old Arizona with Joanne Thornborough
• 3.42-The Broadway Melody with Kevin Pettit
• 3.44-Weary River with Jonathan Hammond
• 3.46-The Leatherneck with Gareth Bradwick
• 3.48-The Divine Lady with Janelle Miley
• 3.50-Coquette with Maria Banson
• 3.52-The Letter with Lewis Beer
• 3.54-Alibi with Jeff Kramer
• 3.56-The Valiant with Matthew Carlson
• 3.58-The Hollywood Revue of 1929 with Chris Mann
• 3.60-Thunderbolt with Jake Myshrall
• 3.62-The Last of Mrs. Cheyney with Shawna Carroll
• 3.64-Madame X with Dan Pal
• 3.66-Dynamite with Murray Mintz

I have a special episode planned for next Friday and then the following week we jump right in with a preview of the 3rd Academy Awards.

And if you want to be a guest for an upcoming episode of the podcast and help me discuss a future Oscar nominated film, send me a message replying to this episode and let me know you're interested. I would love to add your voice to my stellar list of guests for the show.

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In today's episode, I interview Dylan Trupiano, director of the new short film "Recesses," a poignant reflection on hidden childhood trauma and education system.

Listen to hear about the inspiration for the story in his own childhood experience with a teacher for a parent, the nature of childhood memories versus adult memories, and the difficulties of figuring out how to tackle such a serious topic with the right young actor for the film.

Books mentioned in this episode include:

• 2666 by Roberto Bolaño
• Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
• John by Annie Baker

Films and TV shows mentioned in this episode include:

• "Recesses" directed by Dylan Trupiano
• Ratcatcher directed by Lynne Ramsay
• Certain Women directed by Kelly Reichardt
• La ciénaga directed by Lucrecia Martel
• No Country for Old Men directed by Joel and Ethan Coen
• Fallen Angels directed by Wong Kar-Wai
• Eddington directed by Ari Aster

Follow Dylan on Instagram @dylantrupiano and the film @recessesfilm.

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