Author: Simon Hardy Butler
Interviewing Todd Montesi: A Comic’s Take on Film
With the prevalence of professional (and professional-looking) videos on YouTube and other platforms that showcase comedians doing their thing, it’s a challenge to find a creator generating content that stands out from a cinematic perspective. One of those individuals, however, is making a sizable dent in that virtual bubble, and that person is Todd Montesi.…
What Mystery Science Theater 3000 Teaches Us About Making Movies
In my humble opinion, Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1988) should be part of every film school’s Cinema 101 curriculum. Think about it. The show—an American series originated by comedian Joel Hodgson that places a human and his “robot friends” (including the bronze-colored, bird-like Crow and the orb-headed, wiggly armed Tom Servo) in a spaceship within…
Interview: Shannon Lee, Justin Lin and Jonathan Tropper on Cinemax’s ‘Warrior’
Ahead of the release of Warrior, the new series based on an original concept by Bruce Lee, we chat to his daughter Shannon Lee, Executive Producer Justin Lin, and series creator Jonathan Tropper.
Interviewing Madeline Wise: ‘Crashing,’ Trumpisms and a Troupe of One’s Own
There’s nothing “actorly” about Madeline Wise’s film and TV performances, despite her extensive theatrical training and stage-smart knowhow. In fact, this talented, creative thespian is so natural onscreen in shows such as HBO’s Crashing (2017-present)—for which she most recently did a six-episode arc—and web series such as the Adam Goldman-written-and-directed Whatever This Is. (2013) that…
Interviewing Peter Odabashian: Drama in the Documentary Art Form
Veteran documentary filmmaker and Hollywood professional Peter Odabashian is so laid-back and gregarious that you may, while speaking to him, forget that he works in one of the most grueling of industries … one that is informed by strenuous workloads, stiff competition and potentially small financial rewards—if any are reaped at all. Despite these challenges,…