AFS Viewfinders Podcast

On October 14, Austin Film Society proudly presented our Doc Days Opening Night presentation of Todd Haynes' THE VELVET UNDERGROUND. After the film, we were joined virtually by director Todd Haynes for a conversation moderated by AFS's Founder & Artistic Director Richard Linklater.

AFS Lates host and programmer Jazmyne Moreno joined the AFS Discussion Club to talk about the vampy art/horror masterpiece DAUGHTERS OF DARKNESS with Lars Nilsen and AFS members on Oct. 27, 2020.

Enjoy a lively discussion between UT Professor and founder/Executive Director of the Texas Archive of the Moving Image Dr. Caroline Frick and AFS Lead Programmer Lars Nilsen, with input from AFS members. The conversation centers around the 1932 THREE ON A MATCH, starring Joan Blondell, a pre-stardom Bette Davis and Ann Dvorak as three childhood friends who meet up again as adults whose lives have diverged greatly.

Hear about the Austin-shot documentary BOYS STATE from the directors Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss, subject Steven Garza, and AFS-supported filmmaker and BOYS STATE camera operator, Patrick Bresnan (PAHOKEE). Moderated by AFS's Holly Herrick. BOYS STATE is an Apple Original Films and A24 release.

On this episode of the AFS Viewfinders Podcast, trailer editor Trevor Lee discusses how his career developed and what he's learned about editing along the way. Hosted by AFS Lead Programmer Lars Nilsen.

AFS-supported filmmaker Channing Godfrey Peoples and her partner/producer Neil Creque Williams joined us to discuss her debut feature film, MISS JUNETEENTH, now playing in AFS's Virtual Cinema.

Part of an ongoing series. Here, a number of former Vulcan Video employees recount some of the brushes with famous people they had at the late, lamented video rental store locations. Plus an extra bonus section about the rivalry between I Luv Video and Vulcan Video, which came to a peak of intensity in the Trivia Showdowns between the two staffs at the Alamo Drafthouse.

This is the introduction for a series of very candid and, we hope, very entertaining interviews in which the former employees of the recently closed video store chain Vulcan Video tell all about their job experiences, their reflections and more. Vulcan Video was a vital and important part of Austin, and the employees helped to create the Austin film culture we all know today. This is their story. In their submitted interviews, the former employees of the now-defunct Vulcan Video talked a lot about the wonderful customer experiences they had. But, you probably wouldn't click on that if we posted it first, so here are some of the bad, the weird, and sometimes harrowing experiences that Vulcan employees had with their customers. See full videos on AFS's Youtube channel.

Back in October 2019, we were privileged to host director Agnieszka Holland for a screening of EUROPA, EUROPA (1990), her brilliant account of the absurdities of fascism and war. With Criterion Channel just adding it to their lineup last week, we thought you might want to follow up your viewing of that with a listen of this Q&A.

On the latest AFS Viewfinders podcast we are joined by Amanda Reyes, who has certainly staked out a place as one of the preeminent expert on that much-maligned hybrid entertainment form, the Made-For-TV movie. Amanda runs the podcast and site Made For TV Mayhem and has done a large number of disc commentaries, most recently for the excellent TV Movie PRAY FOR THE WILDCATS. She has also lectured all around the world on the subject of TV movies. Her book "Are You In The House Alone: A TV Movie Compendium 1964-1999" is both an essential resource for fans of the form and a very entertaining read. Here, we talk about the origins of the TV Movie, the creative forces behind the best ones, and why they were an important outlet for some very talented women. We also take a moment to discuss the episodic television show CHARLIE'S ANGELS, since our History Of Television screening on that subject was so rudely canceled in light of the current crisis. Finally, Amanda offers some recommendations of Made For TV movies available on Amazon Prime for streaming. Here are Amanda's recommendations for streaming TV Movies, though you will find many more films for your watchlist mentioned in the discussion, so take notes as you listen.

Renée Zellweger visited the Austin Film Society to talk to Richard Linklater take questions from the audience following a screening of her Judy Garland biopic JUDY.

Filmmaker Bob Byington & actress/writer Kaley Wheless talk to AFS programmer Lars Nilsen about their new film, FRANCES FERGUSON in advance of its October 26th screening at AFS Cinema. Byington also discusses casting, the challenges of low-budget filmmaking, and the current state of content distribution. Tickets: https://www.austinfilm.org/screening/frances-ferguson/

AFS’ Lars Nilsen talks with Noah Isenberg, Chair of UT Austin’s Radio-Television-Film department and Edgar G. Ulmer biographer, about our upcoming series, The Films of Edgar G. Ulmer: Prince of Poverty Row. Guest-programmed by Isenberg, the series showcases films by the famously obscure émigré filmmaker best known for his essential noir, DETOUR.

On this episode of the AFS Viewfinders podcast, Chale Nafus, former Director of Programming at AFS, talks with Karen Grumberg, Director of UT's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, about upcoming film series Children of Abraham/Ibrahim: Films from the Middle East and Beyond featuring new films CAPERNAUM, HARMONIA, THREE FACES, and MARJOUN AND THE FLYING HEADSCARF (directed by Susan Youssef, recipient of several AFS grants). Erica Deiparine-Sugars also joins in the conversation to talk about the AFS grant and its impact on women in independent film. Now in its 13th year, the Children of Abraham/Ibrahim film series is guest programmed by Nafus and Grumberg and continues to feature some of the best new cinema coming from the Middle Eastern region. From the retelling of a story from the Book of Genesis to a coming of age film that follows a Muslim American teenager in Little Rock, Arkansas, this year's films will touch both your heart and mind as well as create a deeper understanding of a region that we may often only experience in newscasts. Listen in as Nafus and Grumberg discuss the 2019 line-up what to expect from this essential film series.

On this episode of the AFS Viewfinders podcast, we visit with the team behind the American Genre Film Archive (AGFA)—founders Joe Ziemba and Sebastian del Castillo, and Director of Business Affairs Alicia Coombs. Now in its 10th year, the Austin-based non-profit was formed to preserve the legacy of genre movies, the more obscure the better. Specializing in horror, sleaze, action, and independent regional filmmaking, as well as international genre cinema with an emphasis on films from Hong Kong, AGFA has quickly become one of the most sought-after archives in the world. The archive counts among its board members and advisors Alamo Drafthouse founders Tim and Karrie League, filmmakers Nicolas Winding Refn and Paul Thomas Anderson, film fans, and Austin area film programmers including AFS's Lars Nilsen. Housing over 6,000 film prints—some of which are the only copies in existence—a 4K film scanner, and theatrical and home video distribution arms, AGFA will never rest until genre movies rule the world. In this conversation, Lars Nilsen talks with Joe, Sebastian, and Alicia about going on ten years strong, how it all got started in a cluttered projection room of the Drafthouse Village, and current projects like the newly released films of Sarah Jacobson, Queen of the '90s Underground Cinema.

On this episode of the AFS Viewfinders podcast, we visit with John Doe, one of the leaders of the seminal Los Angeles punk band X. Since the band’s beginning in the late 1970s, Doe has carved out a special place for himself in music history. But that’s only half the story. The same love of storytelling and characterization that makes his songwriting come alive has also produced a multi-decade career as an actor, often in small but important character roles. In this conversation, Doe talks with AFS’s Lars Nilsen about growing up in Baltimore and knowing John Waters, how he got into music and film, the LA years, and going to see movies.

For this episode of AFS Viewfinders, AFS Head of Film and Creative Media Holly Herrick talks with director Lulu Wang at our sneak preview screening of her new feature film, THE FAREWELL. Based on an actual lie, Wang’s feature explores the ways in which family can unite and strengthen us, often in spite of ourselves (A24). Listen in as we discuss Wang’s process and inspiration for the critically-acclaimed film. Please note that there may be discussion about important plot details.

For this AFS Viewfinders podcast, Lars Nilsen speaks with Writer/Producer Zack Carlson (Destroy All Movies, DAMSEL, JUNGLE TRAP), who presents a Walter Hill series at AFS Cinema this November. This podcast covers filmmaker Walter Hill (THE WARRIORS, STREETS OF FIRE), including his directing choices and casting THE WARRIORS ensemble. On top of that, the conversation cracks open the entire action movie genre—from LETHAL WEAPON to PREDATOR—discussing just what makes an action movie work (and not work), including characters, authenticity, stunts, and special effects. Plug in and sit down for this hour-long discourse between Zack Carlson and Lars Nilsen. austinfilm.org Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

On this episode of the AFS Viewfinders podcast, we visit with Austin-based filmmaker Michael Tully, whose new feature film DON'T LEAVE HOME opens September 14 at AFS Cinema. Tully has been immersed in the film world for years, not only as a filmmaker but also as a writer, cinephile, and now teacher. His previous features include SEPTIEN (2011) and PING PONG SUMMER (2014), both of which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. In this conversation, Tully talks about his experiences teaching film classes, hitting the international festival circuit, why he had to shoot his new gothic horror film in Ireland, what makes sound design key to making an effective horror film, and more.