Ep. 20 - David Klass on Out of Time, Kiss the Girls and Walking Tall

Prolific writer David Klass has explored his unique, exquisite talent for storytelling throughout his career in a plethora of literary media. Since his debut publication, The Atami Dragons, David’s 20 novels have navigated the nuances of themes which include complicated father-son relationships; differences between eco-terrorism and environmentalism; and team dynamics. David’s own significant athletic background nearly always seems to make its way into his novels, which enhances the medium through which his characters communicate with each other. His bibliography includes You don’t know me, named an ALA Best Book for Young Adults; Firestorm, the first book to be endorsed by Greenpeace which was optioned by Warner Bros; Danger Zone; and the transcendent environmental thriller Out of Time. He has written over 40 Hollywood films which include Kiss the Girls (Ashley Judd, Morgan Freeman, Tony Goldwyn); Desperate Measures (Michael Keaton, Andy Garcia, Marcia Gay Harden); In the Time of the Butterflies (Salma Hayek, Edward James Almos, Demian Najera); Walking Tall (Dwayne Johnson; Johnny Knoxville); Runaway Virus; Emperor (Tommy Lee Jones); and Shelter in the Storm, which he also directed. He has written and produced Law & Order: Criminal Intent; and developed several works for television, including Austen’s Razor for CBS and ABC. He is currently the Associate Professor of Professional Practice, Theatre and Film and Co-Head of the Television Writing Concentration at Columbia University. In our conversation, we discussed the difference between writing for film and in the novelistic form; his family pedigree, which includes several accomplished writers; and his incredible journey from Yale to Hollywood.

Opening Credits: M33 Project - Obstination I Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0); Closing Credits: Hernán Samá & Marcelo von Schultz - cósmos I Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

David Klass (Ep. 20)

Penn Media Group

Ep. 19 - Teresa Harris on German architecture, Marcel Breuer and Frank Lloyd Wright

As Head of Classics, Drawings & Archives at Avery Library of Columbia University, Teri Harris holds an important responsibility as it relates to upholding the legacy of legendary architects and artists. While she was earning her B.A. in Art History at Williams College, Teri took a class which changed her life, and established a bent toward architecture. It led her to move to New York City from the rural landscape she had been living in to work at an architectural nonprofit, where she became exposed the in’s and out’s of architectural ingenuity. She then began an MA in Art History at Columbia University in September 2001, a time she recalled during our conversation. After earning her master’s degree, Teri fled the city for greener pasturers in Syracuse, NY where she worked as a project coordinator for the “Marcel Breuer Digital Archive” at the Special Collections Research Center at Syracuse University Libraries. However, she eventually came back to Columbia to earn her PhD; joined Avery Library as Curator of the Classics Collection; which led to her current role. We discussed the formative experiences which compelled her towards art and architecture; the legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright; her doctoral thesis, The German Garden City Movement: Architecture, Politics and Urban Transformation, 1902-1931; the several exhibits she’s been involved with at Columbia; and life in New York City.

Opening Credits: Dee Yan-Key - sisyphus I Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0); Closing Credits: Dee Yan-Key - gone I Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

Teresa Harris (Ep. 19)

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Ep. 18 - Seemab Gul on Sandstorm, Zahida and The Watchmaker

Seemab Gul is the writer and director of the universally-acclaimed short film, Sandstorm, which recently qualified for Academy Awards contention after winning in categories at both the HollyShorts and Flickers’ Rhode Island International film festivals this year. The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival; follows a young Pakistani girl’s story when she is blackmailed by her virtual boyfriend after sending him a provocative video of herself dancing; and participated in, after being invited by 60 film festivals across the world. Seemab’s films ardently explore themes which include race, sexuality, existentialism and matriarchy through her own introspective lens, which is shaped by her own unique set of experiences. We discuss the origins of her passion to become a filmmaker, which led to films such as the fiction-short One Day in Whitechapel — set in the background of racially-divided London — Zahida, an Al Jazeera documentary profiling Pakistan’s first female taxi driver which won the Audience Award at the Tasveer South Asian Film Festival (whose trailer received 20M views); and The Watchmaker, which she produced. We also talked about the value of film and her experience reflecting about the Oscars.

Opening Credits: Ketsa - 03 Wind-it-Up I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0); Ketsa - 08 Not-This-Way Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Seemab Gul (Ep. 18)

Penn Media Group

Ep. 17 - Ben Kegan on Expiration Term of Service, The First Men and John Hughes

Writer-Director Ben Kegan always knew he had a strong passion for character, film and storytelling. His growing up in a John Hughes-esque Chicago suburb is apt considering his eventual exploration of the sex-quest genre of teen movies in college. His evolution through the wrestling biopic short, Team Taliban, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival; the complicated love-triangle surveyed in Commencement, which he shot at Whitman College, his alma mater; the Hypocrite; and After Christmas featuring Chicago theatre legend Barbara Robertson, helped exhibit his versatility as a cleverly-synchronized writer-director. His most recent efforts include the renowned short, The First Men, which featured Maria Blasucci (Ghost Ghirrls, Family Tree, Key and Peele) and the enigmatic, menacing force of Bo Mitchell (Cobra Kai, Eastbound & Down, October Road); Fractions of Speed, a documentary short profiling the mid-distance runner and Olympic hopeful Peter Callahan, which he just shot as a feature film; and the military-themed documentary Expiration Term of Service. In our conversation, the Columbia MFA graduate remarks about the films which impacted his unique approach through the lens of Chicago, improvisational comedy and the subjects he portrays in his films.

Opening Credits: One Man Book - Scaffold of Repeated Addition I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0); Closing Credits: Ketsa - Another-Day I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Ben Kegan (Ep. 17)

Penn Media Group

Ep. 16 - Jack Lechner on Good Will Hunting, Blue Valentine and Regis Philbin

Chair of Film at Columbia University, Jack Lechner is a veteran development executive, writer, producer and lyricist behind some of the most iconic films of our time. As head of development at Miramax between 1996-1999, Jack worked on incredibly impactful films such as Good Will Hunting, Guinevere and The Cider House Rules. In 1999, he wrote Can't Take My Eyes Off of You: One Man, Seven Days, Twelve Televisions, which chronicled his experience of being fully immersed into cable and network television for a full week - remarkably, he survived this undertaking, which was inspired by Charles Sopkin’s experience in the 1960’s. Throughout the years, he has been a Drama Desk Award-nominated lyricist for The Kid; producer of the pilot episode of Mad Men; executive producer of the Oscar Winning documentary The Fog of War and the web-series Group; writer of song parodies for the Independent Spirit Awards for 7 years; and frequent contestant on game shows including Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune and Who Wants to be a Millionaire. We discuss these topics through the lens of his book, diverse life experiences and the career undertakings which had the biggest impact on his view of the industry.

Opening Credits: Duncan Reid and the Big Heads - 77 I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0); Closing Credits: Bisou de l'enfant sauvage - After midnight kiss I Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Jack Lechner (Ep. 16)

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Ep. 15 - Elisheva Gavra on In Procession, Eyes and Haunted Buildings

Studio photographer and visual artist Elisheva Gavra creates art which challenges the boundaries of realism; explores the power of spirituality; and investigates the dynamic experience of questioning discord. The latter is a concept with which she has familiarity, growing up in a small Israeli town subsumed by a strong sense of cultural identity and framework. During the pandemic, she paralleled a focus aimed at exploring manifestations of what it means to manipulate reality, which she had experienced photographing others, to herself in a series of self-portraits created during a quarantine in her bedroom. We discuss these topics through the lens of what led up to works like In Procession, Self-Portraits and Eyes, among others in her new studio (which is rather old) in New York City. A Columbia MFA candidate, she received her BA in Art History and Gender Studies from Tel Aviv University, and completed her professional studio photographer training at Studio Gavra.

Opening Credits: Matte Black - 1969 I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0); Closing Credits: Forget the Whale - 10 Days I Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Elisheva Gavra (Ep. 15)

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Ep. 14 - Anita Abdinezhad on POTUS, Eradication and Sideways Smile

Anita Abdinezhad (Ep. 14)

Penn Media Group

Actress Anita Abdinezhad tells stories which capture life and all its trimmings. After earning her MFA from Columbia, she entered her Broadway debut, POTUS: OR behind every dumbass are seven women trying to keep him alive, which has with met rave reviews, understudying for such seasoned performers as Rachel Dratch, Julliane Hough and Lilli Cooper. Her versatility encompasses a unique array of both comedic and dramatic performances in works like Sideways Smile, Eradication, Repetence and Amaceing America. We discuss our mutual upbringing as U.S. immigrants; tenets which motivate her decision-making; what it feels like to be featured in a Tony Award nominated play; and the experience of being also being a writer and filmmaker.

Opening Credits: The Unsacred Hearts - 1978 I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 US); Closing Credits: The Special Pillow - 3rd of July I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Ep. 13 - Vivian Vivas on Absentia, Calcified and San Francisco

Artist Vivian Vivas trancends trivialization. Her immense work in several genres, encompassing moving image, performance art, stop motion and installation work pushes the boundaries of what many deem possible. An MFA candidate at Columbia University, she is a finalist for the 2022 Frankenthaler Climate Award, and has an upcoming group show: In Response: Jonas Mekas at the Jewish Museum. She was the recipient of the 2018 Kodak Award from the San Francisco Art Institute and received the Best Experimental Film Award at the 2019 ARFF Barcelona Film Festival. In our conversation at her new studio in New York City, we discuss her evolution through works including Absentia, Sankofa, Calcified and Phase Three.

Opening Credits: dUASsEMIcOLCHEIASiNVERTIDAS - 01101101 I Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0); Closing Credits: mekoisu - ものしりのそらへ I Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

Vivian Vivas (Ep. 13)

Penn Media Group

Ep. 12 - Directors, Part II

Directors, Part II (Ep. 12)

Penn Media Group

Today’s difficult SCOTUS ruling has bearing on several aspects of our society. Reflect back on the directors who made five films that inspired my understanding about the relationships between women; the impact of choices on policy decisions; and the factors guiding their process of filmmaking, including their decisions, which highlighted integral, unique snapshots of women as they live through each day.

Opening Credits: Irama Gema - Nepalese Gurkha I Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0); Closing Credits: Lahcen Akil - 5-Awnza I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Ep. 11 - Scheherezade

Scheherezade (Ep. 11)

Penn Media Group

Artist Scheherezade Junejo’s exploration of complex topics in her work is a thematic tenet which permeates her art throughout the spectrum of several solo shows, 70 group shows, and significant global recognition. Her unique story is shaped by factors like her familial upbringing in Pakistan; the influence of other boundary-pushing auteurs like Magritte; an anatomically-inspired approach toward portraying the human body through the lens of respect and social cognition; and intrinsic drive shaped by the context of resistance, in the climate of social conservatism. Our transcontinental conversation delved through these components among others which have shaped who Scheherezade is as an artist.

Music Credits: Opening - “A little better” by Alex Figueira I Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0); Closing - “Hey lets do it” by Lobo Loco I Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)