Voices & Visions

Goodness, it has been a very long time, but an interview came along that I didn't want to pass up.  Brad Silberling is best known for some of his very personal albeit mainstream fare like CITY OF ANGELS or MOONLIGHT MILE.  But he's made a couple of children's films as well as independent features where the emphasis is on character and performance. Brad's latest is more the latter, a subdued and intimate character study featuring the legendary Ben Kingsley. AN ORDINARY MAN is now available on-demand and streaming everywhere, and it's definitely worth a look.  Brad shares some stories of his past work as well as what it took for him to return after a very long hiatus (sounds familiar).  Hope you enjoy this brief but insightful discussion with another true talent whose career I've enjoyed since the start! 00:00 - 10:00 - Intro 10:01 - 10:43 - City Of Angels Score Excerpt 10:44 - 25:02 - Interview with Brad Silberling 25:03 - 25:47 - Outro http://voicesvisions.net

Steven T. Hanley is an entertainment journalist, takes photographs, and curates films at Moth Club, Hackney. His work has appeared in Vice, The Quietus, Little White Lies, Huck, The Fanzine and Clash Magazine. He's been a movie fanatic since childhood, contacted me as a result of hearing Director's Club, and has a lot of passionate opinions surrounding the world of pop culture.  We talk about his experiences as an interviewer, such as talking to a few heroes like Marc Maron, Bret Easton Ellis and a personal favorite of mine, Max Richter.  We had a lively conversation despite the fact that I was feeling quite under the weather, and if you're a movie fan in particular, I think you'll enjoy listening to what we discussed.  Thanks again to Steven for joining me for this episode! Check out Steven's Published Works here: http://www.steventhanley.com/publishedworks

Ray Padgett founded the blog Cover Me in 2007 and has run it ever since, growing it into the largest blog devoted to cover songs on the web.  Yours truly has been featured on there several times under different monikers. Ray's writing has appeared in SPIN, MTV, Vice, Consequence of Sound, and more and he’s been interviewed as an expert on cover songs by the Wall Street Journal and the BBC. He lives in New York City and also works as a senior music publicist for Shore Fire Media. His book Cover Me: The Stories Behind the Greatest Cover Songs of All Time is now available to buy and I cannot recommend it more.  As a musician, a lover of cover songs and music in general, it is one of the best reads of 2017 by far. Buy Ray's Book: https://www.amazon.com/Cover-Me-Stories-Behind-Greatest/dp/1454922508 Follow Ray On Twitter: https://twitter.com/rayfp Check Out Ray's Cover Song Blog: http://www.covermesongs.com/

Marissa describes herself as " an incredibly awesome, ambitious geek with a passion for many things," which is quite accurate.  In addition to her podcasting endeavor, love of absurdist comedy and immense musical talent, she has the pleasure of contributing to many projects both past and present.  She's also a joy to talk with and a wonderful friend.  She currently hosts a show with her friend Aaron and plans to contribute more to the world of podcasting next year.  I also had her in the studio to sing a cover of a recent song from CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND that is included as well.  Enjoy this delightful conversation with a truly delightful guest that I'm sure you'll be excited to learn more about.

"NOWHERE MIND is a feature length speculative fiction thriller that rests along the intersection between what we currently understand about the brain and the mysteries of consciousness. The film follows Ivan, a troubled student who has recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia. He is desperate to escape his illness, but traditional methods of treatment only seem to make things worse. He begins studying the ideas of a fringe philosopher who teaches that experimental meditation might allow one to escape the physical trappings of the body." My guest for Episode 50 is an excellent conversationalist about the art of filmmaking. Ben Nissen is a Columbia College graduate with a day job that managed to spend his free time creating a rather unique character study / psychological thriller that explores mental instability and the search for a higher consciousness.  These happen to be topics I'm always fascinated by, so I contributed to the IndieGoGo campaign for the now-completed film NOWHERE MIND, which we discuss at

It's an absolute honor to talk with actor / co-writer Jerod Haynes, whose collaboration with director Daryl Wein, BLUEPRINT, is one of the best films of the year.  I was absolutely taken with the lead performance from Haynes and I had an opportunity to talk with him for a half hour as we learn about his intentions behind such a personal story about the South Side of Chicago.  So personal in fact, he included family members and friends in the cast.  Our hearts get heavy talking about the horrific violence taking place not just in and around Chicago but on a national level.  We also talk about the acting process and the future for this incredible talent.  Then for the fifteen minutes that follow, I talk my love of BLUEPRINT as well as a few other titles for a short preview of what's to come in the next couple of weeks for the 53rd Chicago International Film Festival.  The three songs you hear throughout the episode are courtesy of Torres, one of my favorite songwriters, who just released a new record entitled T

It's been awhile since I took the crossover approach for an episode, allowing it to exist for both Director's Club & Voices and Visions.  Since my guests today are both tremendously talented filmmakers with a lot of insights, stories and new projects to promote, I decided to include this in both feeds.  After my introduction to the proceedings, I first speak with writer/director Jonathan Milott who alongside collaborator Cary Murnion have recently made a film called BUSHWICK that couldn't be more timely.  We delve into exactly why that is as well as the history between this team who is also responsible for the indie horror/comedy COOTIES.  P.S They're not brothers. At around the 40 minute mark, I then speak with someone I've known for quite awhile since she also happens to be the wife of one of my closest friends and former guests, Mr. Dan Solomon.  Katherine Craft is an established writer in many forms with a lot of success stories, both as an activist and as a creative artist.  Her latest endeavor invo

Attending Elmhurst College was one of the great experiences of my lifetime.  Before going there, I felt intellectually inferior having mainly been a C & D student in high school and struggled initially in the world of academia.  I wound up going to three colleges, Purdue University, Columbia College and finally Elmhurst, which gave me the learning experience I never knew I truly craved.  Professors like my guest today are a huge reason why I have a degree and treated education with integrity and passion, the way I have with the creative arts.  I became instantly enraptured with psychology and philosophy thanks to some truly inspirational figures, some of which I know I will be interviewing in the future. The first of those inspirational figures is Dr. Katrina Sifferd, who holds a PhD in philosophy from the University of London, King’s College. After finishing her PhD, Katrina held a post-doctoral position as Rockefeller Fellow in Law and Public Policy and Visiting Professor at Dartmouth College. Before b

This guest is a special one for me indeed.  I first discovered Sam's talent as a filmmaker since he is responsible for one of my favorite music documentaries, I AM TRYING TO BREAK YOUR HEART, which chronicles a difficult but rewarding series of events from one of my favorite bands, Wilco.  He went on to create his own television broadcast / video podcast by the name of OFF CAMERA, which is an interview show not unlike Inside the Actor's Studio or WTF except it is one-on-one, in B&W, and divested of all props and distractions.  Plus it is documented in both audio and video form!  It happens to be one of my favorite shows and a huge inspiration for this podcast. Sam was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule out in LA to talk with me about his love of radio, humble beginnings, his photography, his own inspiration behind making a music documentary as well as how he feels about the future.  NOTE:  Our connection was a bit inconsistent it turns out, so there is the sporadic choppy sound of cli

Every now and again, Facebook does some good in creating new friendships and connections that I'm grateful for.  Today's guest is no exception.  Jess Hicks is becoming one of my favorite writers about genre films, with a plethora of great essays and reviews out there.  She is a Northeast Ohio native who has loved all things horror and fringe since birth. She has a piece published in a book entitled Trash Cinema about the film ILSA SHE WOLF OF THE SS, writes for a number outlets such as Blumhouse.com and is simply just one of the more passionate enthusiasts for films that I've had the pleasure of speaking with on this show so far.  We talk about being a horror fan from a very young age, how niche message boards helped to shape her writing, self-awareness in modern horror, television anthology shows, as well as the power of the original NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET.   A truly joyful conversation with someone I'll know you'll enjoy listening to whether you're an avid fan of horror cinema or not.  It was a tremendous

Another wonderful guest that I am blessed to call a co-worker.  Fellow educator Erisa Apantaku has lead quite a life, having lived and traveled overseas, competitively swam in high school, and more recently, has become a radio broadcast journalist with a lot of success over at WHPK.  Erisa writes fiction short stories and film scripts, produces a podcast in which she interviews people about their identities, and writes little songs with her guitar. She loves collaborating with people on almost anything that involves “making art.”  Needless to say, we get along swimmingly and this conversation brings a lot to the table that previous guests haven't before!  She's one of the more ambitious and dedicated people I know and I can assure that you'll enjoy learning about her just as much as I have! Check out Erisa's Blog: https://apeandtaco.wordpress.com/ Follow Erisa on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apeandtaco/ Check out South Side Weekly: https://southsideweekly.com/

Self-taught glitch artist, out of the box creative thinker.  Today’s guest Sara Goodman works with me at Fusion Academy in Evanston and always has an interesting project to share or is traveling both near and far for exhibitions and digital media showcases.  Sara has designed cover art for electronic bands, expressed themselves through video art and experimental music and will also be publishing a book of poetry in the near future.  I decided to take an opportunity to interview most, if not all, of my many great co-workers and Sara was definitely the first to avidly volunteer to talk with me about her creative process, vaporwave, glitch art, and so much more!  Please check out her work via the links below and stay tuned for more great work from this remarkable talent and other great educators soon! https://society6.com/saranaomigoodman https://youtube.com/user/MascaraAndNineEyes https://soundcloud.com/telesphorosnine https://mascara.bandcamp.com/ http://cargocollective.com/glitchartistscollective/Sara-Goodm

Friend and podcast host Bill Ackerman joins me to discuss a range of topics from music, film, writing, audio commentaries, technology and much more for a very enlightening conversation with another talented contributor to the fine arts.  I was lucky enough to first encounter him through e-mail correspondence throughout my last podcast, Director's Club.  He later came on as a guest, then we became friends and met up one day in NYC, and eventually I would go on to ask Bill to become a podcaster of his own with one of the best shows out there about film culture entitled Supporting Characters.  He's had a successful run on that show with a plethora of great talent to the point of inspiring and influencing this here podcast after I left Director's Club.  Bill is a huge fan of the creative arts and has contributed a lot himself going all the way back to his experiences playing in bands.  Learn about his own personal history and overall philosophy here, that might even serve as a teaser for a Supporting Characters

Buckle up for KING COHEN, an upcoming new documentary of writer, producer, director, creator and all-around maverick, Larry Cohen (BONE, BLACK CAESAR, THE STUFF, GOD TOLD ME TO, Q THE WINGED SERPENT). Told through compelling live interviews, stills and film/TV clips, the people who helped fulfill his vision, and industry icons such as Martin Scorsese, John Landis, Michael Moriarty, Fred Williamson, Yaphet Kotto and many more, including Larry himself, bring one-of-a-kind insight into the work, process and legacy of a true American film auteur. Few can boast of a career as remarkable or prolific, spanning more than 50 years of entertaining audiences worldwide!  KING COHEN will premiere at this year's Montreal Fantasia Festival so do not miss it. First on today's episode, I start with a quick introduction in regards to the Patreon account I've begun, then we launch into a really informative discussion about the art of documentary filmmaking with KING COHEN director Steve Mitchell.  (The same creative mind behin

Today's guest and I go way back, perhaps a whole decade at this point!  In fact, we did a bonus episode for Director's Club a couple years ago music that had a lot sound clips and digressions.  This time I decided to just focus on the conversation, bypassing the usual song and sound clips until the very end. One of my smartest and more talented friends joins me to focus mainly on songwriting, music, and the art of self-expression.  Patrick Ripoll performs and records under his own name and after hearing some of his more recent songs, I became instantly excited to have a conversation about the past, present, and future.  We do touch upon his solo podcasting endeavor, Tracks of the Damned, social media, hip-hop and how we differ in our approach to creating art.  Also, stay tuned until the very end where I put together a weird sound collage inspired by the latest episode of Twin Peaks (yes that episode where it used classical music in an unforgettable, 2001-esque manner).  Thanks so much for listening and be su

So excited for this week's episode since a form of artistic expression that I have rarely covered before is discussed at length with a tremendously talented writer / director by the name of Olivia Lilley.  Olivia Lilley is a Chicago based writer / director of scripted & devised performance. She is the founding Artistic Director of The Runaways Lab Theatre and has created 9 original shows since moving to Chicago in November of 2012. Some of the highlights include The Portrait of Dorian Gray, THAT's what makes her an icon, Friedrich Schiller Writes The Robbers, Faust (Save me or I'll Die), and The Party House. Olivia has had work developed with Kids Terribles, Playwrights At The Grand, RhinoFest, and Planet Connections Theatre Festivity. She is also a 2017 recipient of the Pivot Arts Residency partnership with Loyola with a wide variety of stories and insights to share!  I learned a lot and became excited all over again for theater, and I have no doubt that you will be too! Learn About Upcoming Shows From

Starting out this short but sweet episode is a quick audio review of the latest film from Ken Loach called I DANIEL BLAKE, which I happily viewed via online screener and very much recommend.  Then I had the pleasure of talking with two very talented filmmakers that have recently released independent films worth seeking out. And both of them involve music! First up, Zoe Lister-Jones' feature film debut is BAND AID, a refreshingly authentic portrayal of relationship dynamics and marital strife.  It's essentially a 90-minute indie pop rock song, fueled by Jones' personal experience as well as a love of music, for the couple portrayed in the film work out their issues together by forming a band and writing songs.  I thought this film was remarkably entertaining, smart, and surprisingly moving as it goes along.  Plus you've got co-star Fred Armisen on drums! Secondly, I often freelance for Troy Anderson of Andersonvision.com, who set me up with an interview of the director of PAST LIFE.  Avi Nesher joins me to t

Last year, I had the immense pleasure of talking with one of my favorite character actors and directors, Keith Gordon. You know him from his work with directors like DePalma, Carpenter, and films such as BACK TO SCHOOL among many others.  He's also an accomplished filmmaker in his own right, having made several terrific features many of which were covered the first time we spoke, which can be listened to here: http://www.directorsclubpodcast.com/blog/keithgordon This time around, we talked about his last feature, THE SINGING DETECTIVE, working on shows such as FARGO & BETTER CALL SAUL, having the pleasure of directing an actress like Carrie Coon, as well as a conversation about directors he considers to be underrated.  One of the highlights of this episode is an in-depth look at how television is changing the way directors like himself find work, which has been both good and bad.  I can't thank Keith enough for joining me again, and can't wait to nerd out some more in the future about the past, the pres

Every year, I do a retrospective going back either 30 years for movies and 20 years for music.  Earlier in February, I had two friends on to discuss our favorite 1987 movies.  This time it's all about records from 1997. A lot of it does stem from my nostalgic tendencies, but it’s also to deconstruct my two favorite art forms to see what holds up, what doesn’t, and how pop culture has changed over a span of a couple decades.  It’s also a chance for you to see where my taste lies, for better or worse, as well as to get to know a close friend of mine. He’s joined me for the past couple of years on Pop Culture Club (which is what this show was called last year) and once again, Austin-based journalist Dan Solomon is back to discuss our favorite records from 1997.  We also share memories, talk about the year in general, and have some laughs.  Included are several song clips and hopefully a surprise or two along the way!  Thanks as always to Dan for joining me on this adventure through time and space and memory.Jim

Meghan Lamb is the author of Silk Flowers (Birds of Lace) and Sacramento (Solar Luxuriance). She's also a lifelong friend of mine, who appeared on Director's Club many years ago, and recorded several cover songs with me under the moniker, The Anniversary Party.  Regrettably, I was unable to attend her book release party for Silk Flowers, but I was able to grab brunch with her and her husband, and later sit down for a conversation on a gorgeous afternoon in Evanston, IL.  We discussed writing, inspirations, her process, and what else is cooking in that wildly imaginative brain of hers. Buy Meghan's Latest Novel: https://www.etsy.com/listing/519306677/silk-flowers-by-meghan-lamb https://www.birdsoflace.org Read Meghan's Review Of My New Record: https://entropymag.org/silence-while-screaming-inside-a-review-of-g-o-a-t-s-silent-light/ Visit Meghan's Website: http://meghanlamb.com/index.html Listen To Our Music: https://anniversaryparty.bandcamp.com