film – joshua chamberlain

tunneling to the other side

Last night, I watched If These Walls Could Sing, a documentary about Abbey Road Studios, on Disney+ and had an absolutely ball. What resonated more than anything was the number of musicians who spoke about Abbey Road Studios with a sense of spiritual awe, as though the space itself is a portal to where creativityContinue reading “tunneling to the other side”

recent musings

It’s been a busy couple of weeks. A few highlights:

a recipe for chocolate chip cookies

I was talking to a fellow filmmaker recently who gave me a brilliant metaphor. For years I’ve said that any time I learn a new skill, it becomes another tool in my toolbox. An apt metaphor perhaps, but this filmmaker spoke about the skills she’d developed as ingredients in a recipe. “Imagine making chocolate chipContinue reading “a recipe for chocolate chip cookies”

take care of the work

My dad recently loaned me his copy of The Church of Baseball: The Making of Bull Durham, Ron Shelton’s firsthand account of writing and directing one of the greatest sports films ever made. In a beautiful moment of synchronicity, I was listening to the Team Deakins podcast recently, a series of conversations between legendary cinematographerContinue reading “take care of the work”

steal around

In conversation with Brian Koppelman on The Moment, Paul Schrader talks about the elements he stole from a variety of films to make his 2018 film, First Reformed. “The secret of stealing is that you have to steal around,” Shrader says in reference to the various sources of his material. “You can’t go back toContinue reading “steal around”

thoughts from a detective

In a recent episode of The Moment with Brian Koppelman, writer-director John Hamburg (Along Came Polly, I Love You, Man) touched on a few things that I’ve been turning over in my mind lately. Referencing advice from his therapist, Hamburg says of writing, “Be a detective, not a judge.” I’ve been watching a lot ofContinue reading “thoughts from a detective”

poking the envy

This past weekend, I went to a screening of the film, Poser, an indie feature produced by and featuring artists and musicians from Columbus, Ohio. First, I have to say, I was blown away by the film. It was truly impressive and one of the most original things I’ve seen on screen in quite aContinue reading “poking the envy”

Linklater on time

Linklater has been one of my favorite filmmakers for some time now. From Dazed and Confused to The Before Trilogy, School of Rock to Boyhood, Linklater has always managed to capture youthful enthusiasm in tandem with the human experience of navigating time. While I’d always enjoyed his films, it wasn’t until I saw Kogonada’s videoContinue reading “Linklater on time”

“inviting in”

In a recent piece for Variety, Seth Rogen writes how Mills’ most recent film, C’mon C’mon made him rethink the old adage that good artists borrow and great artists steal. “[Mills] made me realize the best artists include,” Rogen writes. “Mike is the first filmmaker I’ve seen to actually credit other artists for their workContinue reading ““inviting in””

summoning something

Here’s a great interview Mike Mills gave on Bullseye with Jesse Thorn, in which Mills discusses how working on his most recent film, C’mon C’mon, was almost an act of summoning something otherworldly. “I don’t think I’m in any control of what I make or what I do. I feel like you summon things, butContinue reading “summoning something”