The Cinephiliacs

Latest Episodes:

TC - Life and Something More: Abbas Kiarostami Remembered Jul 11, 2016

Show notes

Abbas Kiarostami, born in 1940 in Tehran, turned to filmmaking in 1970 when he helped set up the Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults. He had made a half dozen shorts and one feature, The Report in 1977, before the Iranian Revolution changed the public face of his country. While many filmmakers moved away in search of more creative freedom, Kiarostami continued to direct. Around the early 1990s, his films suddenly found an international foothold at festivals via the Koker trilogy and his most famous work, Close-Up. In 1997, he won a Palm D’Or for Taste of Cherry, helping paint the way for Iranian filmmakers to find an audience abroad. His filmmaking only became more cryptic and complex, especially with his early adoption of digital cinema with Ten and the self-reflexive documentary, Ten on Ten. His final films, Certified Copy and Like Someone In Love, were his only made outside his native Iran. Kiarostami passed away on July 4, 2016. In this special episode of the podcast, Amir Soltani, Tina Hassania, and Carson Lund join the podcast to celebrate the life and work of one of the legendary filmmakers to emerge on the world cinema stage.

0:00-2:49 Opening 2:49-46:18 Abbas Kiarostami — Part 1 47:16-52:02 Sponsorship Section 52:48-1:32:07 Abbas Kiarostami — Part 2 1:32:10-1:33:22 Close

TC #81 - Emily Carman (The Misfits) Jun 27, 2016

Show notes

If you know a bit about Classical Hollywood, you probably know that as much as the stars of the 1930s showed glitz and glamour on screen, they were often slaves to the whims of the studios that owned them. Or did they? Emily Carman of Chapman University joins Peter to discuss her book, Independent Stardom: Freelance Women in the Hollywood Studio System, which explores the legal contracts behind stars like Carole Lombard and Irene Dunne, who were able to find control over the films and public image they made in an unprecedented matter decades before the independent takeover. Emily also discusses the importance of thinking about archives in film research, the tactile nature of film studies, and rethinking how to approach a feminist film history. Finally, Emily brings her knowledge of the city of Reno to a discussion of John Huston's The Misfits, a film with stars morbidly moving through a dying space that Peter declares it "the death of classical cinema."

0:00-3:53 Opening 4:42-10:54 Establishing Shots — Tsai Ming-Liang's Goodbye, Dragon Inn 11:40-1:14:57 Deep Focus — Emily Carman 1:15:46-1:20:30 Sponsorship Section 1:21:45-1:43:15 Double Exposure — The Misfits (John Huston) 1:43:20-1:45:15 Close // Outtake

TC - SF Silent Fest 2016 Jun 13, 2016

Show notes

Amazing on location photography in harsh environments...progressive films about controversial political women...groundbreaking special effects that dazzle with a flurry of colors. These films might sound like what showed up at the Oscars last year, but they were all made during the silent era. In his second trip to San Francisco's epic weekend of gems of the first decades of cinema, Peter once again finds himself in awe of the talent on display: whether it be the work of the archivists in discovering and restoring these prints, the cornucopia of musicians providing unique accompaniment, or the grand scale of the Castro Theatre itself. Silent Film devotee Victor Morton once again joins Peter as they tackle films from five countries with hobos, pie fights, cross-dressing, and split screens (take that, Brian De Palma!)

0:00-2:25 Opening 2:25-15:40 Varieté (E.A. Dupont, Germany, 1925) 16:14-25:38 Beggars of Life (William Wellman, USA, 1927) 26:05-37:20 The Battle of the Century (Clyde Brukman, USA, 1927) 38:06-41:42 Sponsorship Section 42:50-52:15 Restoring Napoleón with the Cinémathèque Française 53:17-1:03:42 I Don't Want To Be A Man (Ernst Lubitsch, Germnay, 1928) 1:05:06-1:15:43 The Strongest (Axel Lindblom and Alf Sjöberg, Sweeden, 1929) 1:16:19-1:28:36 Two Timid Souls (René Clair, France, 1928) 1:28:41-1:30:19 Close

TC #80 - Kalyane Lévy (Going Places) May 30, 2016

Show notes

In an age where cinephiles are now open to experiences from every little corner of the globe, something about French cinema will always remain a cornerstone of fascination. At the vibrant Cinefamily repertory house near Hollywood, Kalyane Lévy brings audiences into the illusions of the French going experience with her monthly program La Collectionneuse. Kalyane sat down with Peter to discusses her childhood filled with art in France and her migration to Los Angeles. She opens up about the challenges of a programmer of international cinema as well as the rewards of audiences excited about works of esoteric love (as well as the unique atmosphere of the screenings). Finally, the two dissect a very off beat film, Going Places by Bertrand Blier starring Gérard Depardieu and Patrick Dewaere as a couple of horrifying horndogs terrifying the women of France...or perhaps they are actually opening up their desires?

0:00-2:33 Opening 3:53-8:57 Establishing Shots — De Palma 9:42-32:31 Deep Focus — Kalyane Lévy 33:47-35:24 Sponsorship Section 36:24-57:37 Double Exposure — Going Places (Bertrand Blier) 57:42-59:40 Close / Outtake

TC #79 - Thomas Doherty (Out of the Past) May 16, 2016

Show notes

History is a malleable object, and how we understand the past begins with important events, speeches, documents, and objects, and then the connections we make between them. But movies can tell us just as much about the past, and for Professor Thomas Doherty, the story of Hollywood is very much the story of American culture. Doherty sat down with Peter during the annual Society for Cinema and Media Studies conference to discuss how he found his way into the emerging field of film history, and his interest in everything from teenage exploitation films to "the most important man in Hollywood" who had his hands of every studio film. They explore the morality of history, and how one examines "characters" of the past and understanding their perspective (especially when it's their relationship with the Third Reich). Finally, the two look at the ultimate film noir, Out of the Past, and question how and why this seemingly frivolous B-movie has risen to an all time canonical classic.

0:00-2:59 Opening 3:50-10:56 Establishing Shots — Terence Davies's Sunset Song 11:41-1:00:55 Deep Focus — Thomas Doherty 1:02:11-1:04:58 Sponsorship Section 1:05:52-1:22:22 Double Exposure — Out of the Past (Jacques Tourneur) 1:22:26-1:24:04 Close

TC #78 - Eric Allen Hatch (Possession) Apr 25, 2016

Show notes

Baltimore rarely gets a mention on the list of great film cities, but in the 1970s, six different theatres all played Robert Downey's Putney Swope. That's just some of the historical digging Eric Allen Hatch has done, who now continues the legacy by programming the Maryland Film Festival, which has quickly risen the ranks to become one of the most essential micro-film festivals in the nation. In his talk with Peter, Eric discusses his initial entry into classical Hollywood and art cinema, and his desire to keep Baltimore as a place for off-beat culture that appeals across spectrums, as well as his strange obsession with photoshopping Paul Blart into canonical classics. Afterwards, the two talk about the Isabelle Adjani-starrer Possession, perhaps the psychological horror film. Who knew that a film that features a bloody space monster could speak so well to their romantic relationships?

0:00-3:47 Opening4:44-11: 35 Establishing Shots — Eddie Bracken and Grace Moore12:19-40:45 Deep Focus — Eric Allen Hatch41:21-43:39 Sponsorship Section45:31-1:02:56 Double Exposure — Possession (Andrzej Zulawski)1:03:01-1:04:39 Close

TC #77 - Eric Hynes (Quick Change) Apr 11, 2016

Show notes

Eric Hynes may not want to be boxed in for his work on documentaries, but it seems more and more to be where his interests as a writer for Reverse Shot and Film Comment alongside programming duties at the Museum of the Moving Image have taken him. But Eric is so much more, and has become one of the most valued writers of criticism and beyond—someone who shows passion and acute judgement within his sentences without ever condescending nor falling into cliché. In his interview with Peter, Eric traces his way into writing through music criticism and books, his decade-long tenure at one of the most important institutions in online film writing, and a continuing love of Star Wars. Then, the two turn to a truly forgotten gem of 90s cinema: Bill Murray and Howard Franklin's Quick Change, perhaps the last film to show New York City when it was truly the worst, in the best way possible.

0:00-3:37 Opening4:22-54:46 Deep Focus — Eric Hynes55:52-1:00:23 Sponsorship Section1:02:08-1:21:46 Double Exposure — Quick Change (Billy Murray and Howard Franklin)1:21:51-1:23:30 Close

TC #76 - David Wilson (Gummo) Mar 28, 2016

Show notes

David Wilson had a vision for his dream film festival—and now he has it. The co-founder of Columbia, Missouri's RagTag cinema and now one of the creative heads behind the True/False Film Festival, David has succeeded in transforming the way people can think, imagine, and design a film festival without the prohibitive nature of bending to the economic whims of Hollywood, while also engaging with the most aesthetically groundbreaking cinema without alienating audiences. Peter was lucky to catch David right in the middle of the flurry, and talk to him about his interest in coming back to the Midwest, his own documentary work, and why True/False captures the heart of so many filmgoers, whether they would call themselves cinephiles or not. Finally, the two discuss Harmony Korine's Gummo, a film that David hated so much because of its fictional representation, until it began to appear more and more like a documentary.

0:00-3:10 Opening4:03-10:30 Establishing Shots — Desperately Seeking Susan and Lá-Bas11:15-39:50 Deep Focus — David Wilson40:37-44:10 Sponsorship Section45:38-1:01:54 Double Exposure — Gummo (Harmony Korine)1:01:57-1:03:35 Close

True/False 2016 Mar 14, 2016

Show notes

One might not expect much from a film festival right in the dead center of America's Heartland, but for thirteen years, True/False has been changing the way to think about the micro-film festival as well as the form of cinema in major ways. In this dispatch from Columbia, Missouri, Peter sits with critics Sam Adams, Tim Grierson, and (eventually) Scott Tobias to look at how the documentary-oriented festival puts aesthetics into the conversation while remaining politically engaged. While the subjects can be galvanizing—the US prison system, delinquent teenage girls in Tehran, Chinese miners, the fall of Iraq—the films continually break the mold for how one thinks about the format by exploring the relationship between the filmmaker and their subject. Plus, a discussion about Concerned Student 1950, a student-made documentary addressing the issues of the University of Missouri protests in 2015, and what its premiere could mean for the future of the festival.

0:00-2:50 Opening2:50-8:00 Concerned Student 19508:00-49:35 True/False Favorites50:47-54:16 Sponsorship Section55:05-1:19:05 True/False Favorite Scenes1:19:08-1:20:47 Close

TC #75 - Blake Williams (INLAND EMPIRE) Feb 29, 2016

Show notes

What does it mean to view a stereoscopic image, to see films in a way that's at once closer to our daily life perception while also expanding it beyond anything we could ever see? Blake Williams is one of many filmmakers working in the avant-garde who has been exploring this question—through filmmaking, criticism, and historical research. Williams joins the podcast to trace his lineage as both a critic and a filmmaker, and the very nature of 3D images that has made this such an exploratory visual medium to work in, using it to explore heady concepts in both literal and theoretical terms. Peter and Blake then turn to a narrative filmmaker who created his own long experimental: David Lynch's INLAND EMPIRE. The two debate the use of narrative in the film while also examining the nature of its low-grade digital imagery, which can be sublime or absolutely terrifying.

0:00-3:02 Opening3:40-11:14 Establishing Shots — The Mermaid and Mountains May Depart11:59-1:10:24 Deep Focus — Blake Williams1:11:26-1:15:24 Sponsorship Section1:16:39-1:39:33 Double Exposure — INLAND EMPIRE (David Lynch)1:39:36-1:41:14 Close

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