Adam Schartoff

This is a roundtable discussion on the subject of filmmaker Paul Schrader. Among the 4 film nerds are yours truly, host Adam Schartoff, filmmaker Jeremy Workman, host of the popular podcast Wrong Reel, James Hancock, and podcast savant Chico Leo.

Aside from being the founder of the movie trailer company, Wheelhouse Creative, Workman is a filmmaker in his own right. His latest documentary, The World Before Your Feet, has its premiere this week at SxSW.

Most of Paul Schrader’s films are easy to stream/download. A quick look on Amazon/Amazon Prime brought up the following SVOD options: Adam Resurrected, Light Sleeper, Hardcore, American Gigolo, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, Blue Collar, Affliction, Auto Focus, Cat People, The Canyons, and more. On iTunes you can stream Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Light Sleeper, The Canyons, American Gigolo, Cat People, Affliction, Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, Blue Collar, Auto Focus, and more.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

[8 mins. 18 secs.] The author of several books on the subject of Hollywood, Ed Sikov, is our first guest. In additions to his biographies on Bette Davis and Peter Sellers, Ed has recently written a new afterward to his highly regarded biography of Billy Wilder, On Sunset Boulevard: The Life & Times of Billy Wilder (University Press of Mississippi, 1998). In this great conversation Ed and I discuss Wilder’s life and times at some length.

[1 hr. 11 mins. 55 secs.] The filmmaker Joseph Lingad has recently launched a Kickstarter campaign for a very worthwhile subject, a documentary called Don’t Look Away: A Film about Adults with Facial Differences. This documentary follows the daily lives and experiences of several adults with facial differences, usually described with pejorative terms like facial deformity or disfigurement. Check out the campaign, the video and this conversation; then consider joining the community around this great project.

Music on this episode is presented by The Kills from their album Ash & Ice.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

[3 mins. 52 secs.] In the first segment, Debra Zimmerman of Women Make Movies joins me for a nuanced conversation about the organization which has been around for 40 years. Zimmerman has been the Executive Director of the non-profit NY based social enterprising organization that supports women filmmakers since 1983. During her tenure it has grown into […]

[3 mins. 30 secs.] The Indies Meet the Oscars! In the first segment of this episode we sit with Kickstarter‘s Director of Documentary Film, Liz Cook Mowe, and Director of Narrative Film, Elise McCave to chat about the organization now going into its 9th year. We also discuss the Oscar nominated animated feature that fundraised […]

[5 mins. 45 secs.] Upon the release of the Henry Fool Trilogy DVD box set, filmmaker Hal Hartley (Trust, Simple Men) returns to the podcast recorded from his Washington Heights apartment. (Hal was last on Episode 191.) A must-have for any Hartley fan, this beautifully designed and crafted box set includes the restored Henry Fool, Fay Grim, and Ned Rifle, and was directly overseen by Hartley himself. It is the first and only time the three films are presented together, with Henry Fool finally in HD and the 5.1 surround sound mix of Fay Grim fully restored. Also included in the package: a 16-page booklet with numerous rare photos from the production of the films and a new essay by Tom McSorley, a long time commentator on Hartley’s work and Executive Director of the Canadian Film Institute; the documentary Making Fay Grim or How Do You Spell Espionage? (2007); and the Promo Clip of Some Days in April (2014). The film is subtitled in English, Spanish, French, German & Japanese. Order your copy either from halhartley.com or Amazon.com.

[56 mins. 25 secs.] Also on this episode, a never before released segment with Hal and Ted Hope, his longtime producer, collaborator and friend. Recorded on July 9, 2014 from the IFC Center in NYC during a screening of Hal’s My America, Hope was at the time head of acquisitions at Fandor while Hal was finishing production on the upcoming Ned Rifle. In addition to discussing My America (now available for streaming on Vimeo), we also discuss Ted’s upcoming book Hope For Film.

The music on this episode is all from the new Hal Hartley instrumental album After The Catastrophe (2017) now available where music is sold, streamed, downloaded, etc. The tracks include Ballad Of Simple Men, After The Catastrophe, Between Jobs, and Trust Me.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

[6 mins. 38 secs.] Filmmaker Sally Potter (Orlando, The Tango Lesson) makes her first appearance on Filmwax Radio correcting a long-standing problem with the podcast… the lack of Sally Potter. Check that one off the ol’ bucket list. Sally has a new film which is currently in theaters called The Party starring an A-list ensemble of actors including Kristin Scott Thomas, Timothy Spall, Bruno Ganz, Patricia Clarkson, Cherry Jones, Cillian Murphy and Emily Mortimer. The comedy concerns Janet (Scott) who is hosting an intimate gathering of friends in her London home to celebrate her political ascension. After her acerbic best friend and others arrive, some with dramatic news to share, an announcement by Janet’s husband (Spall) provokes a series of revelations. As the sophisticated soiree starts to unravel, a night that began with champagne soon ends up with arguments, shouting and a pointed gun. The film is screening at the Angelika Film Center New York & Landmark at 57 West, and at the Landmark in Los Angeles.

[29 mins.] The Director of Film Programs at the Jewish Community Center (JCC) in New York City, Isaac Zablocki discusses the 10th annual ReelAbilities Film Festival which will run from March 8th through the 14th at the Center as well as various satellite locations in and around NYC. Please check the website for tickets and more details. The opening night film is called Keep the Change which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival last spring.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

[15 mins. 20 secs.] Remembering the legacy of the late documentary filmmaker St. Clair Bourne who is the subject of an upcoming retrospective this weekend at the Metrograph Theater in NYC. Joining me in the first segment, two filmmakers whose lives & careers were impacted by Bourne: Carol Bash (who last appeared on Episode 287) and, making her first appearance on the podcast, Yoruba Richen. The retrospective, to take place this weekend —February 16 through the 19th— will include a number of documentaries directed by Bourne as well as a number of documentaries by filmmakers like Bash and Richen, most of whom will appear at their screenings. Carol’s film, Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band will screen on Sunday, February 18th at 2:00PM while Yoruba’s film Promised Land will screen on Sunday at 12:00 PM. Visit the Metrograph website for full details on all the screenings.

[39 mins. 200 secs.] Then I am joined by first time filmmaker Sophie Brooks whose new romantic comedy, The Boy Downstairs (FilmRise) opens theatrically this Friday, February 16th, at the Village East Cinema in New York City. The film, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival 2017, concerns Diana (Zosia Mamet, HBO’s “Girls”) who moves back to New York City after a few years abroad and finds the perfect Brooklyn apartment for a fresh start. Yet on the first night in her new home, she discovers that her ex-boyfriend Ben (Matthew Shear, Mistress America) lives in the apartment below hers.

This episode includes two songs recorded by musical artists Joe Purdy and Amber Rubarth who were just on Episode 457 with their film American Folk. These two tracks were recorded live from City Winery NYC exclusively for Filmwax Radio. The soundtrack for American Folk is available wherever music is sold.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

On this episode, a rather laid back conversation on the craft of acting and the challenges of creating a career as such. Matthew Maher is an Obie Award winning actor who has been working in theater, film (Gone Baby Gone, While We’re Young) and television (Mozart in the Jungle, Nurse Jackie) for over two decades. But I know him from our summers way back when in a Vermont summer camp. Matthew is a resident of Brooklyn.

[6 mins. 10 secs.] Filmwax Radio’s Sundance correspondent Ronald Wohlman is back reporting on his experience in Park City last week which includes having seen 18 films in 3  1/2 days.

[39 mins. 55 secs.] Film programmer Pawel Wieszczecinski returns to the podcast. He was last on Episode 332 back in January of 2016. Pawel is about to officially launch his indie film streaming service, Kinoscope, and fans of this podcast will not want to miss this. For the very negligible monthly cost of $5.00, you can watch countless hours of great American and international festival films.  Pawel is joined by Filmwax friend Betty Kaplan, on a brief visit from Berlin.

[1 hr. 22 mins. 53 secs.] Last up, filmmaker Matthew Lessner with his dramatically eerie feature Automatic at Sea. Joining us is the film’s producer & lead actor, David Henry Gerson. On a whim, Eve, a Swedish traveler, accepts an invitation from Peter (Gerson) to vacation on his family’s private island off the coast of New England. As a series of unexpected delays prevent other guests from arriving, Eve discovers that she has little in common with the increasingly erratic Peter. Gradually the idyllic natural beauty of the island gives way and Eve finds herself trapped in a state of surreality punctuated by bizarre visions, dimensional shifting and secret soda. The film is currently available for streaming on Vimeo, iTunes & Amazon.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.

A special bonus edition of the podcast today since it’s Henry Jaglom’s 80th birthday. Here’s an hour long conversation with one of the most independent filmmakers in the history of filmmaking.

Henry Jaglom has written & directed 20 feature films today as well as a number of plays. He began his by helping edit Easy Rider with Jack Nicholson and Dennis Hopper. He became part of the BBS group of filmmakers where he would go on to direct his first film, A Safe Place Tracks starring Nicholson, Tuesday Welles, and what would become a decades long friendship with his idol Orson Welles. After that he directed Tracks starring Dennis Hopper. After the BBS organization fell apart, Jaglom continued making his own films, independently financing them all to date. Among the many actors Henry has directed are David Duchovny, Vanessa Redgrave, Melissa Leo, Filmwax friend Zack Norman, and a couple of ex-wives.

Jaglom currently lives in Los Angeles with his wife the actor Tanna Fredericks and their dogs. He’s recently adapted his play Train to Zakapané for the screen, which will be his 21st feature to be released later this year. He shows no signs of slowing down.

Filmwax Radio is presented by Rooftop Films. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. The podcast is also available on iTunes, Stitcher & Youtube.