KUCI: Film School

Get Duked! / Film School Radio interview with Director Ninian Doff

GET DUKED! follows teenage pals from Glasgow Dean, Duncan and DJ Beatroot as they embark on the character-building camping trip — based on a real-life program — known as the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, where foraging, teamwork and orienteering are the order of the day. Eager to cut loose and smoke weed in the Scottish Highlands, the trio find themselves paired with strait-laced Ian, a fellow camper determined to play by the rules. After veering off-path into remote farmland that’s worlds away from their urban comfort zone, the boys find themselves hunted down by a shadowy force hell-bent on extinguishing their futures. From writer-director Ninian Doff — making his feature debut after a slew of award-winning music videos and short films for artists including Run the Jewels, The Chemical Brothers, Miike Snow, Migos, and Mykki Blanco — comes an anarchic satire of generational politics, hip-hop-loving farmers and hallucinogenic rabbit droppings that pits the youth of tomorrow against the status quo of yesterday. GET DUKED! stars Eddie Izzard, Kate Dickie, Georgie Glen, James Cosmo and a breakout young cast featuring Samuel Bottomley, Viraj Juneja, Rian Gordon, and Lewis Gribben. Creator and director Ninian Doff joins us for a raucous conversation on the brilliance of Eddie Izzard, getting a chance to bring his music video chops to a feature film and why the Brits are so attuned to the power of satire.
Watch Get Duked! at amazon.com/Get-Duked!
Social media
twitter.com/NinianDoff
instagram.com/niniandoff
@NinianDoff
@procrastibot

Love Fraud / Film School Radio interview with Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady

Bigamy. Identity theft. Fraud. For the last 20 years Richard Scott Smith has used the internet and his dubious charms to prey upon unsuspecting women in search of love -- conning them out of their money and their dignity. But now his victims have banded together determined to seek sweet revenge. LOVE FRAUD is a 4-part limited documentary series that follows (in real time) a con-man who is on the loose and the dynamic women determined to put him behind bars. Oscar-nominated directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady take viewers on a bizarre, engrossing ride through the twisted mind of a criminal and the chaos he leaves in his wake. LOVE FRAUD premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival on Day One, marking the first time an episodic series was programmed on opening day in festival history. Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady join us for a conversation on the determination of the women who refused to be victimize by a sociopathic abuser and helped bring about some measure of justice, despite the collective ambivalence of law enforcement across several states.
Watch Love Fraud on Showtime at: sho.com/love-fraud
For more on Love Fraud go to: lokifilms.com/love-fraud

Epicentro / Film School Radio interview with Director Hubert Sauper

EPICENTRO, a richly textured portrait of the resilient people of Cuba directed by renowned documentarian Hubert Sauper (We Come As Friends, Oscar-nominated Darwin’s Nightmare). Winner of the 2020 Sundance Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema Documentary, the film launches in virtual cinemas through Kino Marquee starting Friday, August 28. EPICENTRO is an immersive and metaphorical portrait of post-colonial, “utopian” Cuba, where the 1898 explosion of the USS Maine still resonates. This Big Bang ended Spanish colonial dominance in the Americas and ushered in the era of the American Empire. At the same time and place, a powerful tool of conquest was born: cinema as propaganda. In his latest film, Hubert Sauper explores a century of interventionism and myth-making together with the extraordinary people of Havana—who he calls “young prophets"—to interrogate time, imperialism and cinema itself.
For news, screenings and updates go to: kinolorber.com/film/epicentro
Social Media
twitter.com/hubertprivate
#hubertsauper
#Epicentro
#HubertSauper
@KinoLorber

Coup 53 / Film School Radio interview with Director Taghi Armirani and Editor Walter Murch

While making a documentary about the Anglo-American coup in Iran in 1953, director Taghi Amirani and editor Walter Murch (Apocalypse Now, Godfather II) discovered extraordinary, never-before-seen archival material that had been hidden for decades. The 16mm footage and documents they uncovered not only allowed them to tell the story of the overthrow of the Iranian government in unprecedented detail, but it also led to explosive revelations about dark secrets buried for 67 years. Working with Ralph Fiennes (The Grand Budapest Hotel, Schindler’s List, The English Patient) to help bring the lost material to life, what begins as a historical documentary about four days in August 1953 turns into a live investigation, taking the filmmakers into uncharted cinematic waters. Ten years in the making, COUP 53 tells the story of the 1953 the Anglo-American coup d’état that overthrew Iran’s government of Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh and reinstalled the Shah. The CIA/MI6 covert action was called Operation Ajax. It was all about Iran’s oil and who gets to control and benefit from it. BP was at the heart of this story. Shot in seven countries, featuring participants and first-hand witnesses, and unearthing never seen before archive material, COUP 53 is a politically explosive and cinematically innovative documentary that lifts the lid on secrets buried for over sixty-six years. Director Taghi Armirani and Editor / Writer Walter Murch join us to talk about their own journey to tell the definitive story behind one of the 20th Century’s most consequential geo-political events.
For news and updates go to:coup53.com
To watch go to: coup53.com/screenings
Social Media
facebook.com/coup53
twitter.com/coup53
instagram.com/coup53movie

Apocalypse ’45 / Film School Radio interview with Director Erik Nelson

Erik Nelson’s latest documentary Apocalypse ‘45 draws upon over 700 reels of footage from the National Archives covering the harrowing expanse of the final months of the War in the Pacific. Very little of this material has ever been screened, and none of it has ever been digitally restored, frame by frame, to 4K. Because of Apocalypse ‘45 another treasure was uncovered and restored -- astonishing new footage captured by legendary director John Ford. In essence, a “lost film” by Ford, it depicts the ruins of the Pacific Fleet, and the terrible aftermath of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Also driving the narrative of Apocalypse ‘45 are recently completed interviews with two dozen men who lived through these nightmarish events. All of these men were in their mid to late 90’s, with the oldest, B-29 pilot Thomas Vaucher, 101 years old at the time of his February 2020 interview. Apocalypse ‘45  documents events from the flag raising at Iwo Jima in February to the harrowing kamikaze attacks and vicious ground combat at Okinawa in April to the first test of the atomic bomb in the remote deserts of New Mexico on July 16th. In addition, we witness the air war over Japan in the summer of 1945, and perhaps most astonishingly, the still burning ruins of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, when a U.S Army medical camera crew photographed the devastation to both the city and its inhabitants. Director Erik Nelson (Grizzly Man, A Gray State, Cave of Forgotten Dreams), joins us to talk about the recent discovery of “lost” film, access to hundreds of hours from the National Archive, his conversations with the men who fought in the Pacific and the fate of the American Empire.
For news and updates go to: discovery.com/shows/apocalypse-45
To watch Apocalypse '45 go to: abramorama.com/apocalypse45

Song Without a Name / Film School Radio interview with Director Melina Leon

Based on harrowing true events, SONG WITHOUT A NAME tells the story of Georgina, an indigenous Andean woman whose newborn baby is whisked away moments after its birth in a downtown Lima clinic - and never returned. Stonewalled by a byzantine and indifferent legal system, Georgina approaches journalist Pedro Campas, who uncovers a web of fake clinics and abductions - suggesting a rotting corruption deep within Peruvian society. Set in 1988, in a Peru wracked by political violence and turmoil, Melina León's heart-wrenching first feature renders Georgina's story in gorgeous, shadowy black-and-white cinematography. SONG WITHOUT A NAME is a Kafkaesque thriller that unflinchingly depicts real-life, stranger-than fiction tragedies with poetic beauty. A 2019 Cannes Camera d'Or nominee, SONG WITHOUT A NAME, and winner of more than 30 international awards including "Best Film" at the Lima Latin American Film Festival and "Best Film by an Emerging Director" at the Munich Film Festival, the Latin American period piece has garnered raves around the world. Director Melina León joins us to talk about her starkly beautiful film and the heart-wrenching story of loss, and love against the backdrop of political and social upheaval.
For news and updates go to: filmmovement.com/song-without-a-name
Learn more about Virtual Cinema at filmmovement.com/virtual-cinema-guide
Social Media
facebook.com/cancionsinnombrefilm
twitter.com/melinaneon
#SongWithoutAName
#MelinaLeón
#CanciónSinNombre
#Takymanasutiuq

Accidental Climber / Film School Radio interview with Director Steven Oritt and Subject Jim Geiger

ACCIDENTAL CLIMBER tells the story of Jim Geiger, a retired forest-ranger and amateur mountaineer from Sacramento, CA who at 68 years old, attempts to become the oldest American and first great grandfather to summit Mt. Everest. The world’s highest mountain is known to torture the mind, body, and soul of those who dare to do what few have ever achieved. ACCIDENTAL CLIMBER follows Jim as he embarks on a journey to transform from a weekend hiker to attempting one of the most extreme and physically demanding feats known to man. Driven by a desire to prove that age is just a number, Jim pushes his body to the limits in the quest to summit the world's tallest mountain. What ensued however, was the worst disaster in mountaineering history, leaving sixteen climbers dead in a tragic avalanche and forever changing Jim's life. Director Steven Oritt joins us to talk about getting to know Jim Geiger, working through the multiple challenges of shooting in high altitude and Jim Geiger talks about the rigors of climbing in the Himalayans and the emotionally wrenching experience he witnessed during his journey to conquer the world’s highest peak.
Social Media
facebook.com/accidentalclimber
instagram.com/accidentalclimber
#ClimbYourOwnEverest 
#AccidentalClimber

Ravage / Film School Radio interview with Director Teddy Grennan

In this taut psychological thriller, RAVAGE, Harper (Annabelle Dexter-Jones), a young nature photographer on assignment in the woods of the Watchatoomy Valley, captures a disturbing event of a man being brutally whipped and beaten in the woods. After reporting the incident to the local sheriff, she is quickly captured by the culprits and taken to an abandoned farm in the woods to be tortured. Due to Harper’s experience as a survivalist she is able to escape but is on the run and has to quickly outsmart capturers. Harper explains to the Police how she fought her way out of the Watchatoomy Valley, they dismiss her crazed and violent story as a meth-induced nightmare. The RAVAGE also features two-time Oscar-nominee Bruce Dern (ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD, PEANUT BUTTER FALCON, NEBRASKA, COMING HOME) and Robert Longstreet (DOCTOR SLEEP, HALLOWEEN KILLS). RAVAGE Director / Writer Terry Grennan joins us to talk about his skillful blending of the sights and sounds that produce a heart-pounding story that ranges from the damsel in distress to a bad-ass warrior woman a la Ripley.
For news and updates go to: brainmedia.com/films/ravage
RAVAGE opens at select drive-ins on August 14th and August 21st via video on demand everywhere you can rent or buy movies. 

Desert One / Film School Radio interview with Director Barbara Kopple

In 1979, soon after Ayatollah Khomeini took power in Iran and the ousted Shah found shelter in the United States—to the great frustration of Iran’s new leaders—a group of revolutionaries attacked the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and took 52 Americans hostage. They were held captive there for 444 days. President Jimmy Carter announced that he wanted to resolve the situation through diplomatic channels, but later on he planned a secret military rescue mission. DESERT ONE is a fast paced as a thriller from acclaimed director Barbara Kopple. Kopple draws upon a wealth of unearthed archival sources, as well as intimate interviews with President Jimmy Carter, Vice President Walter Mondale, Ted Koppel, former hostages, journalists, and Iranian student revolutionaries who orchestrated the take-over of the American Embassy in Tehran—to meticulously reconstruct this defining period in history when U.S.-Iranian relations were on the brink of disaster. Illustrated with animations and lots of archive footage, the story focuses on the woefully unsuccessful rescue mission and the political wrangling in the background, culminating in Carter’s landslide loss to Ronald Reagan in 1980. Director and Producer Barbara Kopple, Ambassador John Limbert and Staff Sergeant Taco Sanchez joins us to talk about the roller coaster story that includes a game-changing sand storm, equipment failure, a deadly crash and a US President willing to take responsibility for a mission gone wrong. The fallout from the failed mission still hangs heavy over the fractured US-Iranian
relationship.For news, updates and screenings go to: film/desert-one

Nena Erb / Film School Radio interview with Emmy-nominated editor (Insecure) Nena Erb

Nena Erb, an ACE and Emmy®-winning editor, for her work can be seen on HBO's Emmy®  nominated and Peabody award-winning series INSECURE, episode Lowkey Trying directed by Kerry Washington. As both an Asian American and person of color, she is committed to advancing the stories of others. She is thrilled to be a continuing part of the team showing the reality of life for modern women of color in America.  Her work can also be seen on Apple TV’s groundbreaking Little America series.  As an immigrant herself, she’s excited to help shape standout episodes for this series this season including The Son, tackling a gay man’s struggle for safety and love as he attempts a harrowing immigration to the United States and The Silence, which charts love among immigrants in a situation where sound/speaking is forbidden. Emmy nominated editor Nena Erb joins us to talk about the career decision that brought her to the editing suite and why mentoring others is her way of helping others “get into the room” where they can have a positive impact on the stories being told.
For the latest on the work of Nena Erb go to: nenaerb.com
To find out more go to: hbo.com/insecure