The No Film School Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Free Range Production Assistants and Billion Dollar Deals Aug 26, 2021

Show notes

Details about Adobe’s multibillion-dollar deal to acquire Frame.io and why film industry workers deserve the same care as free range chickens...

In this episode, we talk about…

Frame.io’s capabilities
The growing reality of video being made by collaborative teams
3 reasons Frame.io is worth what Adobe paid for the acquisition
A common love-hate relationship with Adobe
Letter from top cinematographers addressing long working hours
Why the entire film industry needs 8 hour workdays and why it may never happen
How our culture always romanticizes filmmakers putting in extra effort

Links to Resources:

Frame.io

https://www.frame.io/

Turn Cheap Miniatures Into Awesome Visual Effects

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMuf2bHdGrY

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Check out our new video on lighting night shoots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J66WWsCp7XE

You can read about all this and more at https://nofilmschool.com/. You can also check out our Gear Guides and Entertainment News on the right hand side.

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Creating an Epic Landscape in ‘The Green Knight’ Aug 24, 2021

Show notes

Cinematographer Andrew Droz Palermo takes us through his collaboration with David Lowery on 'The Green Knight’ in today’s interview.

In this episode, we talk about...

Palermo’s previous work as both a director and director of production.
How ‘The Green Knight’ came to be - it’s been a long process!
Some of the really cool production elements in the movie and the equipment used to capture them.
The rich soundscape for ‘The Green Knight’ and the process for creating it.
Inspirations for the lighting used in the film.
How the team created the story from myths and legends, and why they made the choices they did.

Links to Resources:

Learn all about The Green Knight and what it means in our in-depth mega-post: https://nofilmschool.com/Sir-gawain-the-green-knight-explained

The Green Knight - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9243804/

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Toxic Fandom, Tarantino's Mother Issues, and We Play 'Good Deal/Bad Deal' Aug 19, 2021

Show notes

Make sure you listen to the whole episode for a new segment that we’re debuting at the end.

In this episode, we talk about...

How toxic fandom has become incredibly common on the internet.
Director Alan Taylor losing the will to direct due to the toxic fandom he has to deal with.
Why it's good that more big name people call out online harassment and cyber-bullying.
The ways that what people say online can be taken very personally and affect creators’ mental health.
How Quentin Tarantino is still carrying anger towards his mother about a comment she made early in his career.
Whether or not Tarantino’s viral comments should be surprising.
The role of cults of personality in the film industry.
Advances in 3D modeling, including phone apps you can use to scan 3D objects using LiDAR sensors.
Introducing a new segment designed just for the gig economy - Good Deal, Bad Deal.
Ideas for how to make a bad deal better (it’s not what you think) and examples of times you might want to take a bad deal.

Links to Resources:

Check out: https://www.saluteyourshortsfest.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Salty-Pirate/dp/B08B8Z96JQ

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From Caviar With Arnold To 'Cruising' With The Rock Aug 17, 2021

Show notes

Two of the film industry’s most prolific producers - John Davis and John Fox of Disney's Jungle Cruise - are giving us behind the scenes info and stories on many of the huge blockbusters they’ve been a part of.

In this episode, we talk about...

How these producers who work on movies with huge budgets and top stars still have to pitch their films and go through the same process as other filmmakers.
How the two of them decided to become producers and what their early inspirations were.
Each of their earliest jobs in the industry and how they worked their way up.
Fun stories about filming Predator.
How Jungle Cruise came about, got pitched, and got a team together.
The ways that even for big name producers like Davis and Fox, the process of pitching to a studio is still competitive and difficult.
Why you should see limitations as opportunities.
Thoughts about how to respond to and learn from test audiences.

Links to Resources:

Jungle Cruise - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0870154/

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Are Director's 'Hot Takes' Good For Their Movies? Aug 12, 2021

Show notes

Today’s episode covers a range of film current event topics and some important food for thought for your film career.

In this episode, we talk about...

James Gunn’s use of a hot take about his new The Suicide Squad as a marketing tactic and (differing) opinions about whether or not it was ok to do.
General thoughts about filmmakers criticizing each other over social media.
Varying opinions about the new The Suicide Squad.
The update to the 2019 MacbookPros that Apple just announced and tips on how to finance a Macbook if you’re buying it for school or work.
How to handle vendors that don’t deliver what you need.
The importance of learning which tool to use for which job as a filmmaker.
Knowing when to be willing to pay more for gear, and the risks you take when you buy something cheap.
How to best handle rejection, which you will face quite a bit as a filmmaker.
Why what you do with criticism can define you and your career.
When rejection can actually be a gift.
The sometimes fine line between responding to rejection with polite tenacity versus plain rudeness.

Links to Resources:

The Suicide Squad (2021) - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6334354/

https://www.amazon.com/Salty-Pirate/dp/B08B8Z96JQ

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How They Made the Camera Sing and Dance in 'In The Heights' Aug 10, 2021

Show notes

The DP of In the Heights, Alice Brooks, is chatting today about all the things that make this new movie musical so special.

In this episode, we talk about...

How Alice got the job on In the Heights and her longtime love for musicals.
How Alice prepared and gathered inspiration or In the Heights, having not seen it on stage.
Some of the amazing filming locations throughout Washington Heights that were used for the film.
Cinematography decisions that were made and types of equipment that were used for filming.
How the creators approached capturing a place and a culture that were not their own.
Some of Alice’s favorite movies and how they’ve inspired her.

Links to Resources:

In the Heights - https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/in-the-heights/umc.cmc.1zme0ypyl9tz3qggwwi3e5aoi?action=play

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ScarJo Takes on Disney and What Makes a 'Good' Deepfaker? Aug 05, 2021

Show notes

George, Todd, Kath and Charles discuss the drama surrounding Scarlett Johansson’s lawsuit against Disney, Amanda Knox and the burden filmmakers have for research and talking to sources, how deep fakes have led to legit jobs and some exciting tech news!

In this episode, we talk about…

Details about Scarlett Johansson’s contract for Black Widow and why she’s suing Disney
Impact of changes to film releases: theatrical vs. streaming
Disparities in pay within the film industry
Ongoing issues with nonpayments and residual pay and why litigation is often necessary
Choosing to side with the stars vs. the studios
Why we should fight against wage theft at every level
Brief recap of the Amanda Knox story and how it relates to Tom McCarthy’s Stillwater film
What obligation filmmakers have regarding research and how real events inspire fiction
How marketing sometimes becomes a stumbling block for films
What deepfakes are and how they’re getting people jobs
Deepfaking skills and different examples of deepfakes
Exciting Adobe and Blackmagic releases

Links to Resources:

Subscribe to our newsletter for news, contests, deals, and a FREE ebook at https://nofilmschool.com/screenwritingbook.

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What Comes After an Entry-Level Job? Jul 29, 2021

Show notes

Many Americans grew up with the idea that there is a set career ladder that they can climb if they work hard enough - but unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work this way in the film industry.

In this episode, we talk about...

Whether or not Hollywood has a career ladder, whether the way the system currently works makes it impossible to move up in the industry, and who is trying to change the system.
How frustrating it is that when you want to make a slight career change, it’s hard to make lateral transitions without starting at the very bottom.
How opportunities in the industry are still limited to mostly serve people of a certain class, a certain race, and a certain gender.
The fact that there is an expectation for people to spend their twenties working overtime at the poverty level just to move up in their career.
Why there should be more mentorship opportunities in the film industry.
Blender, a free tool for model-building from Adobe!
Whether or not to form an LLC.

Links to Resources:

Blender

Listen to recent episodes for great interviews with M. Night Shyamalan and Tom McCarthy (Stillwater).

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How 'Stillwater' Keeps You Riveted and How 'Let Us In' Found an ‘IP’ Loophole Jul 28, 2021

Show notes

The new movie 'Stillwater' is a tour-de-force and we are joined by writer/director Tom McCarthy as well as his co-writers. Later on, we also talk to the writer/director of 'Let Us In', Craig Moss.

In this episode, we talk about...

How the team for Stillwater decided which elements of the plot to reveal to the audience and when to create an aura of mystery and sustain interest.
The profound and timely themes that Stillwater’s plot explores, and whether the themes or the plot came first when developing the script.
How the team developed characters for the script, and how those conversations informed casting.
How Craig Moss found a bit of a loophole in intellectual property when he created Let Us In by tapping into urban legends.
Moss’s early influences and how he got started in film.
What it was like for Moss to make the jump from producing his own short films to directing a feature.
Moss’s experience creating various parody films.
How Moss and his partner developed Let Us In from the legend of the black-eyed children and other influences for the film, like The Goonies, ET, and Stranger Things.
What it was like for Moss to work with his daughter as the lead actor on the film.

Links to Resources:

Stillwater Official Trailer

Stillwater Official Website

More about Let Us In

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Nine Days is the Film Of Our Times. How the Heck Did it Get Made? Jul 27, 2021

Show notes

Writer/director Edson Oda's first feature NINE DAYS premiered at Sundance 2020, where it won the Screenwriting Award and was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics. A dream come true for a first-time filmmaker, right? The film, which is about social isolation and deep reflection on the meaning of life, was all set to debut theatrically later that year… until COVID-19 had other plans. And socially isolated all of us, and made all of us reflect on the meaning of life. This week it finally hits theaters (NY and LA on July 30, everywhere else in the US on August 6), and if you like ambitious films that ask existential questions, NINE DAYS will have been worth the wait. NFS Founder Ryan Koo talked with Oda and producer Jason Michael Berman (who also produced Koo's own first feature, AMATEUR) about the Herculean task of getting a first feature made — especially one as ambitious as NINE DAYS.

In this episode, we talk about…

Director Edson Oda’s background and early career, including screenwriting.
How film-writing contests can be useful for the purposes of getting a deadline and some external pressure, and less for the results.
The process of going through the Sundance Writers’ Lab, and actually getting a film made out of it.
How the casting process for NINE DAYS went, especially given that the film was unfinanced at the time.
How the team eventually got financing for their movie and the hurdles they faced.
Oda’s preparation process for filming his first feature film and why prep is one of the most important parts of the process.
Why Oda didn’t do a ton of rewriting during filming.
What surprised Oda the most about the experience filming NINE DAYS.
Why you really need to believe in yourself, be resourceful, and not give up when you’re trying to get a feature film made.
Fun stories from the (often stressful) filmmaking process.