KUCI: Film School

Gasoline Rainbow / Film School Radio interview with Co-directors Bill Ross IV & Turner Ross

The celebrated filmmaker duo of Bill Ross and Turner Ross (Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets & Contemporary Color, 45365) turn their pioneering hybrid approach to the cinematic road trip that is GASOLINE RAINBOW. This raw and deeply affecting film is an expansive portrait of the new generation as told in their own words. With high school in the rearview, five teenagers from inland Oregon embark on one last adventure together. Piling into a van with a busted tail light, they head out for a place they've never been -- the Pacific coast, five hundred miles away. The plan, in full: "Fuck it." Through desert wilderness, industrial backwaters, and city streets, they connect with outsiders on the fringes and discover their lives will be determined by the trails they blaze themselves. These are forgotten kids from a forgotten town, but they have their freedom and they have each other, hurtling toward an unknowable future -- and The Party at the End of the World. A SXSW and Venice Film Festival selection, GASOLINE RAINBOW depicts a wild and true coming-of-age. With a beating heart and an irrepressible spirit, this rhapsodic look at today's American West reminds us of the timeless joys of community. We are joined by the co-directors Turner Ross and Bill Ross to talk about the immensely challenging logistics of the shoot, working with a young cast of actors, and embracing the chaos and opportunities that made Gasoline Rainbow the remarkable cinematic experience that we see on screen.
Watch at: mubi.com/gasolinerainbow beginning May 31
See Gasoline Rainbow at a theatre near you

I Am Gitmo / FIlm School radio interview with Director Philippe Diaz

Based on real events, I AM GITMO follows the reaction the United States to the 9/11 attack and the human cost that came about from the implementation of the War on Terror. The film focuses on Gamel Sadek, a Muslim schoolteacher as he is taken from his home and delivered to Bagram Air Base, a CIA black site, where he is questioned on the whereabouts of the 9/11 mastermind, Osama Bin Laden. He is tortured when he denies knowing him. Chained and hooded, he is put on a cargo plane to Guantanamo Bay. John Anderson, a military interrogator, is brought out of retirement and assigned to Gamel’s case leaving his daughter behind in New York. Despite relentless beatings, starvation, and torture in Gitmo, Gamel maintains he has no affiliation with Al Qaeda or Bin Laden. John struggles to accept the new torture methods imposed by General Miller, newly in command of the prison, and the mandate to force a confession at any cost. As Gamel prepares for a hearing on his status as an enemy combatant, he realizes he could be held indefinitely, and that John’s testimony will be the deciding factor. Director and writer Philippe Diaz stops by to talk about his inspiration for telling this particular story, the fatally flawed planning, execution and objectives of the War on Terror, the collateral damage done to America’s standing in the world, the staggering loss of innocent human life and the failure of American leadership to acknowledge or compensate the innocent people who were swept up in the overreaction.
For more go to: iamgitmo.com

SLOW / FIlm School Radio interview with Director Marija Kavtaradze

In Marija Kavtaradze’s latest film, SLOW, contemporary dancer Elena meets Dovydas when he is assigned to interpret via sign language in a class she is teaching to deaf youth. Their connection is immediate, kinetic, and frictionless. As they gravitate toward each other, resisting the forces and interventions of their separate daily lives, their bond deepens from platonic to romantic. When Dovydas discloses his asexuality, the couple commits themselves to honoring their individual needs in tandem. As they continue to weave more tightly together, they struggle to negotiate sacrifice and compromise and are forced to discover the edges of their generosity toward the other. The result is an instantly recognizable dance between self and other, this one choreographed with elegance, grace, and love. The two leads, Greta Grinevičiūtė (Elena) and Kęstutis Cicėnas (Dovydas), conjure up undeniable chemistry that is heartbreakingly complicated, stubborn, and humanizing. Director and writer Marija Kavtaradze’s (Summer Survivors) sophomore feature shows off her fine tuned ability to portray intimacy and psychological exploration through dance, tense quietude, and stunningly singular examination of asexuality. Kavtaradze emphasis on the couple’s physicality and how the inherent limitations of a full physical expression plays out with own unique emotional expectations is superbly realized.
For more go to: kimstim.com/slow

The Last Stop in Yuma County / Film School Radio interview with Director Francis Galluppi

Director Francis Galluppi’s feature film debut, The Last Stop in Yuma County, is a rockin’ good time of genre hopping mix of Western, Noir and desert dry humor. While awaiting the arrival of the next fuel truck at a middle-of-Arizona rest stop, a traveling young knife salesman is thrust into a high-stakes hostage situation by the arrival of two similarly stranded bank robbers with no qualms about using cruelty—or cold, hard steel—to protect their bloodstained, ill-begotten fortune. THE LAST STOP IN YUMA COUNTY boasts an outstanding ensemble cast of Jim Cummings (The Wolf of Snow Hollow), Jocelin Donahue (The House of the Devil), Sierra McCormick (The Vast of Night), Nicholas Logan (I Care a Lot), Michael Abbott Jr. (Killers of the Flower Moon), Connor Paolo (A Creature Was Stirring), Alexandra Essoe (The Haunting of Bly Manor), Robin Bartlett (The Fabelmans), Jon Proudstar (Reservation Dogs), Sam Huntington (Being Human), Ryan Masson (Good Girls), and Barbara Crampton (Suitable Flesh, Re-Animator), with Gene Jones (Killers of the Flower Moon), Faizon Love (Elf) and Richard Brake (Barbarian). Director / Writer / Producer / Editor Francis Galluppi joins us for a geeked out conversation on the orgin story and cinematic inspirations for this film, gathering together this terrific cast, and his personal filmmaking favorites.
For more go to: wellgousa.com/last-stop-yuma-county

Resistance - They Fought Back, / Film School Radio interview with Co-director Paula S. Apsell (Kirk Wolfinger)

RESISTANCE - THEY FOUGHT BACK provides a much-needed corrective to this myth of Jewish passivity. There were uprisings in ghettos large and small, rebellions in death camps, and thousands of Jews fought Nazis in the forests. Everywhere in Eastern Europe, Jews waged campaigns of non-violent resistance against the Nazis. For decades, the world believed that Jews faced their fate passively during the Holocaust, much like sheep to the slaughter. Most people have no idea how widespread and prevalent Jewish resistance to Nazi barbarism was. This ambitious and groundbreaking film unveils a different story, shedding light on the heroic stories of Jews who actively resisted their oppressors. They engaged in over 60 armed uprisings in ghettos, 25 within concentration and slave labor camps, numbered in the thousands among partisan units in the forests of Europe, and joined in non-violent resistance campaigns against the Nazis. Co-directors Paula S. Apsell and Kirk Wolfinger traveled to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Israel, and the U.S. to illuminate the forgotten, and largely unknown, stories of Jewish resistance during the Holocaust — and honors the fighters' soulful bravery and leadership. Through interviews with historians, survivors, and their families, the film belies a long-held myth and shines a new light on a lost chapter of history.
National release thru abramorama.com/resistance-they-fought-back
For more go to: theyfoughtback.com
Opening May 10 - Laemmle Town Center, Encino

Catching Fire: The Story of Anita Pallenberg / Film School Radio interview with Co-directors Alexis Bloom & Svetlana Zill

For many Anita Pallenberg was at various points in her life a newspaper headline: a “rock n’ roll goddess,” a “voodoo priestess,” and an “evil seductress.” She was accused of trying to break up the Rolling Stones, among other things. What is made clear in co-directors Alexis Bloom & Svetlana Zill’s compelling documentary CATCHING FIRE: THE STORY OF ANITA PALLENBERG those who loved her considered her an exciting cultural force, and a loving mother – and innocent of the accusations. The film includes never-seen-before home movies and family photographs explore life with the Rolling Stones and tell a bittersweet tale of both triumph and heartbreak. From Barbarella to the Swiss Alps, and the Lower East Side to London, Anita Pallenberg was a creative force ahead of her time. CATCHING FIRE: THE STORY OF ANITA PALLENBERG is a vital portrait of the charismatic and fierce rock ‘n’ roller, actress, muse, and mother who rose to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s after a chance encounter with the Rolling Stones. Scarlett Johansson voices Anita (based on the words of her unpublished memoir) and the film includes her children, Marlon and Angela Richards, and their father, Keith Richards. Co-directors Alexis Bloom & Svetlana Zill join us to talk about setting out to give voice, figuratively and literally, to a spirited woman who lived many lives in one lifetime. Working with producer and son of Anita and Keith Richards, Marlon, together they have succeeded brilliantly.
For more go to: magpictures.com/catchingfire

Enter the Clones of Bruce / Film School Radio interview with Director David Gregory

Within hours of his funeral, Hong Kong movie studios began to produce hundreds of unauthorized biopics, spin-offs and rip-offs starring a competing roster of Bruce Lee lookalikes. Over the next decade, ‘Bruceploitation’ would become a staple of global cinema. Director David Gregory examines this fascinating phenomenon via interviews with Bruce Li, Bruce Le, Bruce Liang and Dragon Lee; martial arts legends like Angela Mao, David Chiang, Phillip Ko and Sammo Hung; and the producers, directors, distributors and experts – along with copious clips from the films themselves – that for the first time reveal the history, controversy and legacy behind one of the most bizarre genres in movie history. Director, cinema aficionado and founder of Severin Films David Gregory (Lost Souls: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley’s Island of Dr. Moreau) joins us for a spirited conversation on the twisted tale of Bruce Lee’s actual career in film, the shadow careers of look-a-likes and the filmmakers willing to push the limits of credibility and propriety to satiate an audience of martial arts cinephiles.
For more go to: severinfilms.com/enter-the-clones-of-bruce
Available at: tv.apple.com/enter-the-clones-of-bruce

Little Empty Boxes / Film School Radio interview with Co-directors Max Lugavere & Chris Newhard

In this quietly powerful documentary, Little Empty Boxes a strong and independent woman, Kathy Lugavere finds herself struggling with her own memory. In a quest to find his mother the best care, 32-year-old son Max moves home to New York City and begins to consult with top health experts to investigate the origins of Dementia, a disease which now affects a staggering 55 million people globally. The deeply personal film chronicles Kathy’s experience with Dementia as Max explores methods outside of prescription medication to slow her illness down. LITTLE EMPTY BOXES presents a raw perspective of Kathy's journey, the hardships of being a caretaker, and a son willing to do anything to save his mother. Co-directors Max Lugavere (Genius Foods) and Chris Newhard (Are You Lonely, Self Tape) join us for a conversation about their loving and observant film about a woman grappling with her own mortality and a devoted son doing his best to help her navigate the relentless cruelty of dementia.
For theatrical screenings and more: littleemptyboxes.com
Or go to: abramorama.com/film/little-empty-boxes

Nowhere Special / Film School Radio interview with Director Uberto Pasolini

James Norton (Bob Marley: One Love, Little Women) stars as John, a 35-year-old window cleaner who has dedicated his life to bringing up his 4-year-old son, Michael (Daniel Lamont), after the child’s mother left them soon after giving birth. When John is given only a few months left to live, he attempts to find a new, perfect family for Michael, determined to shield him from the terrible reality of the situation. Although initially certain of what he is looking for in the perfect family, John gradually abandons his early convictions, over- whelmed by doubts on the decision. How can he judge a family from a brief encounter? And does he know his own child well enough to make this choice for him? As John struggles to find the right answer to his impossible task, he comes to accept the help of a young social worker, opening himself to solutions he would never have considered. And he finally comes to accept his anger at the injustice of his destiny, the need to share the truth with his son, and to follow the child’s instincts on the biggest decision of their lives. Director / Producer / Writer Uberto Pasolini joins us for a conversation on bringing lead actor James Norton (John), how he found BIFA nominated actor Daniel Lamont (Michael), how they became trusted friends before and during the shoot and the story behind this unfettered and heartfelt film.
For more go to: cohenmedia.net/product/nowhere-special

Freedom Hill / Film School Radio interview with Director Resita Cox

After the Civil War, freed African Americans settled in the floodplains along North Carolina's Tar River. This land becomes Princeville, the first town chartered by Blacks in America. FREEDOM HILL is an immersive tour of this historic site that chronicles the ongoing legacy of this community. Guided by Princeville native Marquetta Dickens, the camera captures what makes the town so special: a car caravan to celebrate the106th birthday of a beloved resident, aunties who love to tell stories, and a classic North Carolina barbecue.The town of Princeville sits atop wet, swampy land along the Tar River in North Carolina. In the 1800s this land was disregarded and deemed uninhabitable by white people. After the Civil War, this indifference left it available for newly freed enslaved Africans to settle. Before its incorporation, residents called it ‘Freedom Hill,’ gradually establishing a self-sufficient, all Black town. Resting along the floodplain of the river, Princeville and its residents are not strangers to adversity. The historical town has been inundated with flooding over the centuries. With each flood, a little more of the small town erodes. Yet these moments in Princeville are haunted by the specter of the floods that regularly brutalize the town, forcing people to rebuild their homes time and time again. Filmmaker Resita Cox exposes a history of environmental racism and why ultimately, "Black towns always exist within this larger white governance regime." By sharing the spiritual, ancestral, and political landscapes of Princeville, Freedom Hill pushes against America's historical and present legacy of racist displacement.
For more go to: thefreedomhilldoc.com
Watch at: worldchannel.org/afropop-freedom-hill