Ashely Villa - Aaron Alvarado - Cydney Jenks - Graduating from Film School in 2026!
This week we welcome recently graduated AMDA/Hushein filmmakers Ashely Villa, Aaron Alvarado and Cydney Jenks who talk about their thesis films, how they got them made, what they think about AI and how they are attacking their careers and films after graduation. After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy!
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14 September 2026, 2:00 pm
59 minutes 21 seconds
Josh Stifter - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 461 from January 2024 featuring writer/directorJosh Stifter who came on the show to talk about directing his latest short film, how he managed to make three features (at the time) and I thought Josh was a good match for our episode with Mehran Torgoley because they are both prolific filmmakers who have made multiple features and show no signs of stopping. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy!
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11 September 2026, 2:00 pm
49 minutes 16 seconds
Mehran Torgoley - Making Indie Feature Number Four in Italy!
This week we welcome writer/director Mehran Torgoley on the show to talk about his fourth feature Golden, which he shot in Italy, how he funded the film, why he shot a film in Italy and how he has written and directed four feature films. After that I’m going to pontificate on the state of AI and filmmaking and hopefully encourage some of you to call in and share your thoughts!
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7 September 2026, 2:00 pm
57 minutes 41 seconds
April Mullen - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 296 from December 2020 featuring writer/director April Mullen where she talks about making her feature Wander and her incredible career in television directing. I thought this was a good match for our episode with Tessa Blake from Monday because they both are prolific TV directors who also direct features but just with a different order of how that played out in their careers. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy!
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Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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4 September 2026, 2:00 pm
52 minutes 11 seconds
Tessa Blake - Taking a Career in Television Directing into 3rd Feature!
This week we welcome writer director Tessa Blake on the show to talk about her latest feature If I Tell You, why she took such a long break from features and what she's took from directing hundreds of hours of Television at a very high level.! After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy!
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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31 August 2026, 2:00 pm
1 hour 25 minutes
Justin Plummer III and Martin Strauss - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 89 from Feburary 2017 featuring Justin Plummer III and Martin Strauss who are two San Francisco Bay Area directors who get paid to direct full time. They talk with us about how they got started and what it's like to sign with a big time LA commercial production company, and why they weren't living in LA at the time. I thought this was a good match for our chat with Michael Naizu and John Wilcox from Monday because they are both brother co-directors who are collaborating in a very different way.. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy!
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Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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28 August 2026, 2:00 pm
1 hour 10 minutes
Michael Naizu and John Wilcox - Co-Directing/Writing Feature #1 Based on a Successful Short!
This week we welcome writer and directors Michael Naizu and John Wilcox on the show to talk about their first feature Bound for Glory, which Michael also stars in alongside Jamie King, Christ Kattan and Blake Jenner. They also talk about how they work as collaborators, how they raised funds for the movie and how their dynamic as brothers plays into their work. After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy!
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Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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24 August 2026, 2:00 pm
42 minutes 44 seconds
Audrey Cummings - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 490 from August 2024 featuring director Audrey Cummings who talks about establishing herself as a genre director. I thought Audrey was a good match for Sophia Banks from Monday because while they have very different careers they are both successfully working in the genre space as feature film directors. After that we play another round of You’re the Expert, enjoy!
Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast
Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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20 August 2026, 2:00 pm
1 hour 10 minutes
Sophia Banks - Bringing a Love of 70s Genre Films to Tilt!
This week we welcome director Sophia Banks on the show to talk about her latest feature Tilt, her inspiration for the film and what it was like to shadow Christopher McQuarrie, among other things. You may remember our episode with Arwen Elys Dayton who wrote Tilt and is one of the other 3rds of Sophia’s production company, so this one is really fun! After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy! Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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17 August 2026, 2:00 pm
54 minutes 38 seconds
Omar Lopex - BONUS Throwback Interview!
On this Thursday bonus episode we are going to play the interview from episode 351 from December 2021 featuring writer/director/producer Omar Lopex who came on the show to talk about directing, Ana who they pulled from the river, and his process as an indie filmmaker. Alrik thought that Omar was a good match for our episode with Glenn Garrabrant on Monday because they both have interesting processes when it comes to making their films, that don’t really feel like they rely on traditional models to make happen. After that we play another round of You’re the expert, enjoy!
Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast
Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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13 August 2026, 2:00 pm
1 hour 2 minutes
Glenn Garrabrant - Making Indie Features and Honing Your Process!
This week we welcome writer/director/producer Glenn Garrabrant on the show to talk about his 2nd feature Local Area Network, how he got the film made and his philosophy as a indie filmmaker, which is great! After that we play another round of the GAME, enjoy!
Don’t forget to support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/mmihpodcast
Leave us a Review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-movies-is-hard-the-struggles-of-indie-filmmaking/id1006416952 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com
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