Whirlybird / Film School Radio interview with Director Matt Yoka

In Matt Yoka’s sprawling debut feature, WHIRLYBIRD, he deftly mirrors the peaks and valleys of one unique American family to the city of Los Angeles, showcasing their parallel growing pains and their search for a sense of self. Flying high above Los Angeles in a whirling news helicopter, Marika Gerrard and Zoey Tur (known then as Bob) captured some of the city’s most epic breaking news stories. The two recount the salacious details of their career as a husband-and-wife journalist team doing whatever it took to catch an unfolding story. Their camera captured the extreme adrenaline of the culture of live news and, as a result, the strain it took on their relationship—and, ultimately, a major life transition for Zoey. A wholly unique take on the story of Los Angeles told through stunning aerial footage and remarkable home videos, WHIRLYBIRD reframes many of the city’s pivotal moments of the 1990s, including the O. J. Simpson pursuit and the 1992 riots. Zoey Tur revolutionized news media with her aerial reporting of Los Angeles – and in doing so, defined our recorded memory of the city. Tur's unmatched eye-in-the-sky video archive captures the spectacle of 1990s L.A. while revealing her own personal complexities. WHIRLYBIRD weaves intimate interviews with a stunning archive, illustrating a person as fascinating as the city she flew above. WHIRLYBIRD is a completely original and intricately woven tapestry that reveals the agony and the ecstasy of breaking news. Director Matt Yoka joins is for an illuminating conversation on Tur’s complex personal landscape and his search to uncover a person as fascinating as the city she flew above. For news and updates go to: whirlybirdfilm.com