KUCI: Film School

Peter Case: A Million Miles Away / Film School Radio interview with Director Fred Parnes

Musician Peter Case has lived a life of constant change, soaring highs, and soul-crushing lows. From the frigid suburbs of Buffalo NY, to his early years living and busking on the streets of San Francisco, to formative experiences with punk band The Nerves and leading the LA power-pop legends The Plimsouls, and now his decades-long, Grammy-nominated solo career, this film walks a million miles in the shoes of one of America’s last great troubadours. brilliant, elusive, sometimes infuriating, and always fascinating Peter Case. A gifted musician who had never found the widespread acclaim they deserved, but who had still managed to find a place in the unforgiving landscape of the music business. Peter Case is a unique and compelling artist with a fascinating life story both heartbreaking and hopeful, who had spent the past four decades steadfastly answering his artistic calling. A dynamic performer, a gifted raconteur with a master storyteller’s flair, a passion for social justice, and a ripping sense of humor. Peter Case: A Million Miles Away features many of Peter’s friends and colleagues, including singer/songwriters; Ben Harper, Steve Earle, Victoria Williams, Jack Lee as well as producers; Van Dyke Parks, Mitchell Froom, Steven Soles, Hobart Taylor and Denise Sullivan. Director Fred Parnes (A Man Is Mostly Water) joins us to talk about his riveting portrait of a musician and artist who has made a career out of charting his own course.
For more on Peter Case go to: petercase.com

Wood and Water / Film School Radio interview with Director Jonas Bak

In his graceful feature film debut, WOOD AND WATER, German director Jonas Bak’s thoughtful explanation of a women at a spiritual crossroad moves seamlessly from the tall spires of the Black Forest to the teeming skyscrapers of Hong Kong. Newly retired from her church job, Anke dreams of spending time with her grown children—including her uncommunicative and elusive son, Max, who has been living for years in Hong Kong, and who is unable to join his mother and sister back in Germany due to the ongoing pro-democracy protests. In a daring decision, Anke, though suffering from loneliness and loss, travels to Hong Kong to find Max and perhaps also herself. The people she encounters, and her experience of the city help her to break down the inner walls she constructed years ago, and make way for a new chapter in her life. In his hushed, wholly original approach to this fish-out-of-water set-up, Bak constructs a gentle, ambiguous fable of becoming, shot on 16mm and featuring a wondrous, naturalistic performance by his own mother, Anke Bak. Director Jonas Bak joins us to talk about the casting his mother in the leading role, working the chaotic political struggle taking place in Hong Kong into a very personal story and finding a cast of actors and mostly non-actors to bring out the intuitive talent Anke possesses.
For updates and screenings go to kimstim.com/film/wood-and-water

The Shepherdess and the Seven Songs / Film School Radio interview with Director Pushpendra Singh

Director Pushpendra Singh’s latest film, THE SHEPHERDESS AND THE SEVEN SONGS is a stunningly beautiful feminist fable set in the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir, a lush mountainous region claimed by both India and Pakistan. Based on a folktale by Rajasthani writer Vidaydan Detha as well as the life and poetry of 14th century Kashmiri mystic Lalleshwari, SHEPHERDESS follows a young bride, Laila (Navjot Randhawa, in a ferocious and unforgettable performance) who marries into a tribe of nomadic Bakarwal herders. Already harassed by local police as a minority, Laila finds herself targeted for her remarkable beauty by local officials. Her implacable and ingenious manipulation of the men who want to possess her, and the patriarchy that wants to crush her, plays out in a series of seven chapters – the Song of Regret, the Song of Playfulness – each tied into the rapturously gorgeous score by Naren Chandavarkar and Benedict Taylor. Like the mystical films of Sergei Parajanov, Singh weaves breathtaking visuals and music into a hypnotic and indelible experience. The film’s truly cosmic climax, where Laila attempts to shed the bonds of male desire and infatuation pursuing her, must be seen to be believed. Award winning director and writer Pushpendra Singh joins us for a conversation on the orgin story for The Shepherdess and the Seven Songs, casting Navjot Randhawa in the title role, and beautifully shooting the film in a way that focuses on the context of the story as a way of bringing the content to life.
For updates go to: deafcrocodile.com/shepherdess-the-seven-songs

The Last Mountain / Film School Radio interview with Director Chris Terrill and Producer Olivia Lichtenstein

THE LAST MOUNTAIN  chronicles Tom Ballard, a British rock climber, alpinist and the son of mountaineer Alison Hargreaves, who perished on K2 in 1995. Mother and son, two of the greatest climbers of all time, died at almost the same age, in the same mountain range, both doing what they loved best. Directed by Emmy award-winner Chris Terrill and produced by BAFTA award winner Olivia Lichtenstein, THE LAST MOUNTAIN  follows Kate Ballard on an emotional journey to say goodbye to her brother on Nanga Parbat. Using archive footage from 1995 and Tom's own extraordinary footage taken up until the days before his death, the film explores what made Tom continue his ascent with Italian climber Daniele Nardi after the other two members of the expedition turned back. Combining years of intimate, unseen family archive with footage of the family that director, Chris Terrill, has shot in the years since Alison’s passing, the documentary tells the unforgettable story of a family who lived - and were prepared to die - for the love of scaling the icy heights of the world’s highest peaks, and explore what it is that drives people to pit themselves against nature at its most ferocious and unforgiving. THE LAST MOUNTAIN features revealing interviews with those left behind, among them: Alison's widower, Jim Ballard, Tom's sister, Kate, Stefy, Tom's girlfriend, Karim Hayat, who left the expedition stating he 'did not want to lose [his] life there,' and Alex Txikon who led the search for Tom and Daniele and found their bodies. Director Christopher Terrell and Producer Olivia Lichtenstein join us for a moving conversation on the dynamics of a family enthralled by the mystery and the danger of the earth’s most forbidding peaks and their own personal journey chronicling the enthralling saga of a caring and loving family willing to risk everything.
THE LAST MOUNTAIN will be released in the U.S. on Digital and on Demand from March 15, 2022. 

I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing / Film School Radio interview with Director Patricia Rozema

I’VE HEARD THE MERMAIDS SINGING is a charming and whimsical story about a daydreamer with artistic aspirations, Patricia Rozema’s fanciful character study follows an amateur photographer Polly (Sheila McCarthy) as she lands a temp job at a Toronto art gallery run by elegant and sophisticated Gabrielle (Paule Baillargeon), who is also a painter. Polly is impressed with Gabrielle’s paintings, but as Polly gets to know Gabrielle’s lover, Mary (Ann-Marie MacDonald), and becomes entangled in their lives, she realizes that Gabrielle isn’t exactly who she appears to be. The absent-minded temp with spiky orange hair and the polished curator with a gift for gab are like night and day, yet a strong connection builds between these two women through their shared love of art, and their genuine curiosity and need for love. Director, producer and writer Patricia Rozema stops by to talk about why I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing was such a a groundbreaking film in 1987, the casting of the pitch-perfect Sheila McCarthy in the title role of Polly, her own career post-Mermaids and the re-release of the film by the prestigious film distributor Kino Lorber.
For news and updates go to: kinolorber.com/ive-heard-the-mermaids-singing

The Pink Cloud / Film School Radio interview with Director Iuli Gerbase

Iuli Gerbase’s eerily prescient debut feature film, THE PINK CLOUD, drops us into a time where life changes for people all over the world when a toxic and mysterious pink cloud has appeared, forcing the world indoors immediately and indefinitely. In Brazil, Giovana (Renata de Lélis) finds herself stuck in her apartment with a man she just met, Yago (Eduardo Mendonça). But their carefree one-night stand grows into a years-long relationship complicated by a child and increasingly divergent worldviews as they try to imagine a future from the depths of a potentially never-ending lockdown. THE PINK CLOUD was written in 2017 and shot in 2019, this stunning, slow-burn sci-fi debut from writer/director luli Gerbase is both an all to familiar reflection of our recent reality and a cathartic exploration of hope and despair, love and fear, and the boundlessness and limits of our ability as humans to adapt. Director and writer Iuli Gerbase joins us to talk about the inspiration for the film, creating a palpable sense of enveloping dread in the look of the film and creating a claustrophobic space for Giovanna and Yago to experience love, death, sex, boredom, parenting, contempt, indifference, and grudging respect.
For news and updates go to: bluefoxentertainment.com/the-pink-cloud

Ultrasound / Film School Radio interview with Director Rob Schroeder

ULTRASOUND follows Glen (Vincent Kartheiser) driving home late at night during a heavy rainstorm, Glen experiences car trouble. Near where his car gets stuck, he spots a house, knocks on the door and is greeted by an oddly friendly middle-aged man, Arthur (Bob Stephenson), and his younger wife, Cyndi, (Chelsea Lopez). The strange couple pours him a drink, and then more drinks, followed by an unexpected offer that Glen can’t refuse. Elsewhere, a young woman, Katie (Rainey Qualley), is feeling emotionally weighed down by a secret romantic arrangement that feels like a textbook case of gaslighting. And at the same time, in a nondescript research facility, medical professional Shannon (Breeda Wool) begins questioning her role in a bizarre experiment, fearing that she’s doing more harm than good. Director Rob Schroeder joins us for a conversation on his collaboration with Conor Stechschulte (Generous Bosoms) and Cinematographer Mathew Rudenberg (Sun Choke) in this mind bending story of deception, manipulation. political power and altered reality.
For news and updates go to: magnetreleasing.com/ultrasound
Watch at home at magnetreleasing.com/ultrasound

Hellbender / FIlm School Radio interview with Co-directors Toby Poser, John Adams, and Zelda Adams

In HELLBENDER, 16-year-old Izzy (Zelda Adams) suffers from a rare illness that has kept her isolated on a mountaintop with her mother (Toby Poser) her whole life. As Izzy begins to question her sickness, she pushes back against her confinement and secretly befriends Amber (Lulu Adams), another girl living on the mountain, but her newfound happiness is derailed after she eats a live worm as part of a juvenile game and finds an insatiable and violent hunger awakened within her. To understand the hunger, Izzy must learn the dark secrets of her family's past and the ancient power in her bloodline. HELLBENDER is the latest from upstate N.Y. filmmaker family The Adams, Hellbender is written, directed, produced, scored, and edited by Toby Poser, John Adams, and Zelda Adams — who also star, alongside Lulu Adams. It’s the sixth feature from Wonder Wheel Productions, the family-run production company founded by Poser and Adams and their children, and the family also produced the music for the feature with tracks from their experimental punk band H6LLB6ND6R. Co-directors Toby Poser, John Adams, and Zelda Adams (The Deeper You Dig, Knuckle Jack) join us for a spirited conversation on sharing the on-set responsibilities of being in front of and behind the camera, making movies in the own backyard, and the importance of creating three dimensional characters that resonate with their audience beyond shock and fear.
For updates and screenings go to: yellowveilpictures.com/hellbender

Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic / Film School Radio interview with Director Maria Demeshkina Peek and Stephen Peek

An insider look into one of the largest international child sextortion cases investigated by Homeland Security and the Department of Justice on American soil, Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic begins with an investigation of the sexual extortion--or "sextortion"--of a Virginia teen and a fourteen-year-old girl from Japan. As investigators pursue the case, surprising new details emerge--including the fact that the same suspect is behind both crimes. And further forensic research reveals hundreds of similar victims across the United States. With unique, unrestricted access to government files, victim families, and investigators, Sextortion: The Hidden Pandemic uncovers the hidden world of online enticement and exploitation of children. Tapping into the findings of child exploitation experts, the film spotlights the common tactics of online predators, the signs that a child is being groomed online, and a documented rise in global sextortion cases. Through interviews with families and investigators working these crimes, the filmmaking team had unique unrestricted access to all government documents for an international sextortion case unsealed for this film for the very first time. Director / Producer Maria Demeshkina Peek, and Producer Stephen Peek join us for a conversation on the explosion of this activity in the Inited States and around the world, as well as their hope is that this film will alert people to this disturbing crime.
For updates, screenings and resources go to: sextortionfilm.com

Pasang: In the Shadow of Everest / Film School Radio interview with Director Nancy Svendsen

PASANG: IN THE SHADOW OF EVEREST, brings to life the untold and inspiring story of Pasang Lhamu Sherpa, the first Nepali woman to summit Mt. Everest who, in her quest, awakened her country to the entrenched inequalities confronted and endured by women and in Nepal. As an uneducated, indigenous woman and a Buddhist in a Hindu kingdom, Pasang’s dream to scale the legendary mountain pit her against family, foreign climbers, her own government, and nature itself. PASANG: IN THE SHADOW OF EVEREST follows Pasang as she works tirelessly to pull together the financial and structural support to try for Everest, and the ensuing obstacles and disappointments she had to face and overcome along the way. Her determined pursuit of Everest plays out within the context of her nation’s struggle for democracy and the emergence of a booming commercial climbing industry in the Himalaya. As told by the Nepalis who knew her, by some of the world’s most notable alpinists, and by Pasang herself, PASANG: IN THE SHADOW OF EVEREST reveals the intransigence of the forces who opposed her, and the great burdens and personal costs she endured to gain her rightful chance to try for Everest. Director Nancy Svendsen joins us to talk about the cultural and religious fault lines under the surface of the worlds in which Pasang had been laboring while simultaneously illuminating the high points of her legacy-- the scores of triumphant Nepali women mountain climbers who have carried her torch and since reached Everest’s peak.
For news and updates go to: pasangmovie.com