Filmmaker Alejandro M. Flores Aguilar and moderator Giovanni Batz discuss the film Ixiles: Voices from the Shadows of Time. Aguilar details the origin of the project, as well as the historical contexts of Indigenous resistance in the Ixil region of Guatemala. They also discuss issues surrounding ethnographic research, the responsibilities of academ…

Filmmaker Anthony Banua-Simon joins moderator Patrice Petro to discuss his documentary film Cane Fire. They explore the historical and colonial relationships between the plantation economy, the film industry, and tourism in Hawai’i, and larger questions posed by the film. Banua-Simon also discusses his approach to interrogating Hollywood history an…

Writer/producer Gabe Liedman and moderator Tyler Morgenstern discuss the film Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, a screening programmed alongside a workshop on comedy writing. Liedman discusses the collaborative work of comedy and the unique comedic style of the film. He also shares his favorite jokes and moments in the movie, and how the film has …

Director Arthur Jones and producer Giorgio Angelini join moderator Chelsea Kai Roesch from UC Santa Barbara to discuss their film "Feels Good Man." They talk about working with artist Matt Furie and unpack the social and political contexts behind Pepe the Frog and its cooptation by the alt-right. They also reflect on the cinematic challenges in tel…

Timothy Corrigan of the University of Pennsylvania joins moderator Patrice Petro to discuss Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s classic film Ali: Fear Eats theSoul. Together, they examine the larger body of work and influences of the German filmmaker, which include Brechtian aesthetics and classical Hollywood melodramas like that of Douglas Sirk. They also …

Filmmaker Sam Kadi joins moderator Juan Campo, professor of religious studies at UC Santa Barbara, for a discussion of the film Lamya’s Poem. Together, they consider how the film employs magical realism to interweave scenes from the lives of contemporary Syrian refugees with the experiences of 13th century poet Rumi. Kadi discusses the uses of anim…

Māori novelist Witi Ihimaera, author of the 1987 novel The Whale Rider, joins moderator Nicola Daly (University of Waikato) for a post-screening discussion of Niki Caro’s 2002 film Whale Rider. Ihimaera discusses the novel’s relationship to Māori stories and cultural practices, his writing process, and the film’s enduring legacy. This event was pre…

UC San Diego Library’s Signature Event Series kicks off with a conversation with filmmaker and author Mason Engel. Engel talks about his current work, “Books Across America,” as well as his past films and his novel “2084.” The discussion is moderated by Audrey Geisel University Librarian Erik T. Mitchell. Series: "Writers" [Humanities] [Show ID: 39…

Professors France Winddance Twine (Sociology, UCSB) and Lisa Parks (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) join Marc Francis (Assistant Editor of Film Quarterly) in a conversation about power dynamics and inequality in the tech world of Silicon Valley, showing and discussing clips of the shows Super-Pumped and WeCrash. The topics they discuss expand upon th…

Writer/director Todd Field joins moderator Tyler Morgenstern (Assistant Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center) in a post-screening discussion of TÁR. Field details the origins and development of the film, including the creation of protagonist Lydia Tár. He elaborates on the public persona she curates in the film and larger thematic questions of exploi…

Director/executive producer David Mandel joins Patrice Petro (Dick Wolf Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center) for a post-screening discussion about the HBO miniseries White House Plumbers. In their discussion, Mandel details the origins of the show and distinguishes it from other noteworthy historical adaptations of the Watergate scandal, emphasizing…

Shelley Stamp (Film & Digital Media, UC Santa Cruz) joins moderator Kelsey Moore (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) in a post-screening discussion on George Cukor’s classic 1944 film Gaslight, sharing thoughts on genre, the origin of gaslighting as a term, and the film’s historical legacy. Their conversation also dives into the complexities of gender a…

Director Yoruba Richen joins moderator Mireille Miller-Young (Feminist Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of her film The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks. Richen elaborates on the overlooked but significant breadth and impact of Rosa Parks’ lifelong contributions to the Civil Rights movement in and beyond the Montgomery bus boycott, …

Del Zamora (writer, director, and producer) joins moderator Ben Olguín (English, UCSB) in a post-screening discussion of The Last Brown Beret, an adaptation of a play by Alfredo Ramos that explores Chicanx activism and history in Los Angeles. Together, they discuss the impact of the civil rights movement that arose in the 1960s and the connections …

Writer Eliza Jiménez Cossio joined moderator Chip Badley (English, UC Davis) for a post-screening discussion of the show Our Flag Means Death. Cossio shares her experiences as a writer and details various casting insights during the pre-production of the show, including their unique approach to adapting familiar characters and bringing in guest sta…

Yvett Merino (Producer, Walt Disney Animation Studios) joins moderator Dolores Inés Casillas (Chicana and Chicano Studies, UCSB) in a post-screening discussion of Encanto, the acclaimed Disney animation film about a multigenerational family with magical powers in the mountains of Colombia. In their conversation, they discuss the importance of Latin…

Director Paromita Vohra joins moderator Bhaskar Sarkar (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) in a discussion of her film Partners in Crime, which dives into the world of copyright law, piracy, and the fluid nature of authorship. She dives into concepts like the cultural commons and the complicated nature of artistic value. She also details the social and …

Lucy Fischer (English and Film Studies, University of Pittsburgh) joins moderator Patrice Petro (Dick Wolf Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center) in a post-screening discussion of What Ever Happened to Baby Jane, a psychological thriller about the rivalry between aging Hollywood sisters. In their conversation, they illuminate the similarities between …

Director Ramona S. Diaz joins moderator Miguel Penabella (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of her documentary A Thousand Cuts. She details her experiences closely following Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa and the Rappler team’s fight for press freedom in the Philippines, as well as observations from pol…

Artist Vishal Jugdeo and poet vqueeram join moderator Cathy Thomas (English, UCSB) to discuss their film Does Your House Have Lions, which features a queer household of activists and academics in New Delhi living under the shadow of increasing authoritarianism. They discuss the film’s exploration of different forms of queer intimacy and propose pos…

Filmmakers Joyce García and Alvaro Parra join moderator Alexandra Lippman to discuss their two documentaries on cumbia sonidera, or Colombia-inspired dance music, in Mexico City and Los Angeles, "Yo No Soy Guapo" and “Sonidero Metropolis.” They explore the cultural significance of the sonidero in shaping regional music scenes and tastes, as well as…

Doris Berger, co-curator of Regeneration: Black Cinema, 1898-1971 at the Academy Museum, joins moderator Peter Bloom to discuss the film Carmen Jones and the legacy of actress Dorothy Dandridge. Berger explains the backstory of how the Regeneration exhibition was originally conceived and developed, detailing her experiences digging through archival…

Writer/director Maysoon Pachachi joins moderator Mona Damluji for a discussion of her film "Our River...Our Sky," which tells the story of ordinary people living in Baghdad under occupation. Pachachi details the origin of the project and the film’s early development, including casting considerations and lessons learned from her documentary work. Sh…

Director Julia Mintz and executive producer Eva Haller engage in a post-screening discussion of their film Four Winters, where they provide insights into the making of the documentary. Mintz details the process of collecting and editing footage of countless interview subjects to tell the heroic story of Jewish partisans during the Second World War,…

Roman Koropeckyj, Professor in the Department of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Languages & Cultures at UCLA, joins moderator Sasha Razor for a discussion of Sergei Parajanov’s film Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, sharing insight into Ukrainian culture and history. Koropeckyj discusses the making of the film and details the complexities of Ukr…

In this enlightening conversation, Ray Santisteban, director and producer of the documentary "Time of the Phoenix: The First Rainbow Coalition," shares his insights on activism, coalition politics, and social change. Santisteban delves into his journey of making the documentary and how it marked the beginning of his filmmaking career. He highlights…

Production designer Akin McKenzie joined moderator Mireille Miller-Young (Feminist Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of his work in visualizing the world of The Woman King. The discussion revolved around McKenzie’s extensive research from out-of-print books, photos, and other archival materials to disentangle complex historical events …

Writer/director Antonio Dikele Distefano and scholar/filmmaker Fred Kuwornu discuss the film Autumn Beat with Claudio Fogu. Distefano details his experiences writing books and magazines and his transition to cinematic work, as well as his experiences growing up as a young Black man in Italy. Kuwornu elaborates on the evolving Black cultural renaiss…

Moderator Peter Bloom is joined by Kim Knowles and Carrie Noland for a discussion of how contemporary experimental film represents multi-species relationships and dependencies. Together, they consider how experimental cinema can animate alternative understandings of the relations between human and non-human animals. Addressing questions of genre, s…

Patrice Petro and E. Ann Kaplan discuss Irving Rapper’s classic 1942 melodrama, Now, Voyager. Together, Petro and Kaplan situate the film historically in the context of the Second World War and the changing dynamics of the domestic and public spheres. They also address the film’s unique depiction of psychiatry and psychoanalysis, and consider its c…

Co-writer and co-director Jessica Woodworth joined moderator Stephen N. Borunda (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of her film Altiplano and the process of developing a film about environmental and indigenous exploitation in Peru. Woodworth reflected on the role of music in shaping the emotional experience of the film. S…

Moderator Cristina Venegas joined Chicano and Chicana Studies Professors Gerardo Aldana, Giovanni Batz, and Daina Sanchez to discuss Wakanda Forever and Indigenous Worldbuilding. Professor Gerardo Aldana served as a consultant on the film’s representation of Mesoamerican cultures and played the role of UN assembly chairperson in the film. The panel…

Guests Elizabeth Gabler (President, 3000 Pictures) and Marisa Paiva (Executive Vice President, 3000 Pictures) join moderator Emily Zinn (Associate Director, Carsey-Wolf Center) for a post-screening discussion of their 2022 adaptation of D.H. Lawrence’s classic, Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Together, Gabler and Paiva discuss how they came to adapt D.H. …

Composer and filmmaker Clarence Barlow joined moderator Peter Bloom (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Barlow’s pioneering work on composition and experimental film, including: Uccelli Ungheresi (1988), Kuri Suti Bekar (1998), Estudio Siete (1995/2015), )ertur( (2015), Evanescent Evidence (2021), and Zero Crossing (20…

Guests Trinankur Banerjee (Film & Media Studies, UCSB) and Bishnupriya Ghosh (Global Studies & English, UCSB) join moderator Bhaskar Sarkar (Film & Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Satyajit Ray’s The Hero (1966). Together, Ghosh, Sarkar and Banerjee discuss how The Hero became one of Ray’s most iconic films thanks in part to …

Guests Pujita Guha (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) and Bishnupriya Ghosh (Global Studies & English, UCSB) join moderator Bhaskar Sarkar (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion of Satyajit Ray’s The Golden Fortress (1974). Together, Guha, Ghosh, and Sarkar discuss the literary origins of Ray’s film, its popular appeal in the 19…

Director James Hayman joins moderator Patrice Petro, (Dick Wolf Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center) for a post-screening discussion of episode 51 of The Sopranos. Together, they explore how Hayman created a riveting, nuanced portrait of mafia and family life. Hayman offers insights into matching the darkly comedic style of the series, and how his e…

Moderator Ben Olguín joined filmmaker Ellie Walton and poet Sami Miranda for a post-screening discussion of the documentary La Manplesa: An Uprising Remembered. Together, they discussed the importance of artistic collaboration and community, the relationship between art and activism, and current events that echo the story of injustice in DC’s Mount…

We are the FILMDRIFTERS -- bringing you open and honest reviews about everything you're watching as you journey down the road of life. For today's episode, we talk Golden Globe nominations, and we review THE WHALE as well as THE BANSHEES OF INISHIRIN. Make sure to tune in each week to hear the latest in reviews and entertainment news!!…

Moderator Mireille Miller-Young joined Diversity in Cannes founder Yolonda Brinkley and filmmaker Wendy Eley Jackson to discuss this important initiative and to celebrate the achievements of global Black women in film. Collectively, they outlined the background and impact of the initiative and strategies for Black women and their allies to create g…

Screenwriter Katie Silberman discusses the writing process for the hit coming-of-age film “Booksmart” with moderator Matt Ryan. Silberman reflects on her work with director Olivia Wilde and the creation of key scenes and themes in the film. Breaking down the script, Silberman explores the importance of pacing, character development, and emotional a…

Adapted from the 1998 short story “Story of Your Life” by acclaimed science fiction author Ted Chiang, “Arrival” (2016) centers on communicating with tentacular alien visitors, whose language changes one’s experience of time. Introspective and immersive, “Arrival” imagines a fantastical calligraphy alongside questions of alienation, race, and mothe…

Paul Espinosa, an award-winning filmmaker and producer, is the President/CEO of Espinosa Productions, specializing in films focused on the U.S.-Mexico border region. He has been involved with producing films for over 35 years and is professor emeritus in the School of Transborder Studies at Arizona State University. He has worked with public televi…

Writer/director Oualid Mouaness discusses his film 1982 with moderator Paul Amar (Global Studies, UCSB). Mouaness details the development of the film and the importance of depicting an honest representation of the war in Lebanon, especially as a means to bridge gaps between older and younger generations. He explains the significance of telling 1982…

Acclaimed co-writer/director Abderrahmane Sissako discusses his film Timbuktu with moderators Richard Watts and Peter Bloom. Sissako details the development of the script and its connection to real-world news stories from Mali. He also recalls the political and logistical challenges during the film production. Watts and Bloom discuss the poetic qua…

Professor Stephanie Malia Hom (French and Italian Studies, UCSB) joins moderator Anna Brusutti (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) to discuss Italian series Inspector Montalbano to conclude a yearlong screening series on global television. Brusutti provides a thorough breakdown of the history of Italian television broadcasting and distinguishes it from …

Director/co-writer Pamela B. Green and producer/co-writer Joan Simon discuss their documentary "Be Natural: The Untold of Alice Guy-Blaché" with moderator Cynthia Felando. Green and Simon explain the 10-year-long process of researching to make the documentary, as well as their respective inspirations for discovering more about the pioneering film m…

Moderator Jean Beaman joined doctoral candidate Leonard Cortana and Professor Ricado Jacobs to discuss Murder in Paris: The Assassination of Dulcie September. They explore the legacy of Dulcie September, her antiapartheid activism and work in the African National Congress (ANC), and the aftermath and ongoing investigation of her assassination. Cort…

Screenwriter David Koepp discusses with moderator Matt Ryan how wrote the iconic film, Jurassic Park. Koepp breaks down his process of adapting the novel by Michael Crichton, as well as how he worked with director Steven Spielberg to bring the film to life. He describes working from Spielberg’s storyboards to draft key sequences such as the entranc…

Rick Rosen, WME Agency co-founder and representative for writer/director Hagai Levi, discusses Scenes from a Marriage and the state of global television with moderator Patrice Petro. Rosen details the development of the HBO miniseries and the challenges of adaptation from Ingmar Bergman’s original Swedish television series. He explains the vision o…