Sifter

BES Teleproductions (now BES Studios) is the longest continually-running video production facility in Virginia and Guy Spiller was the founder. Even after he sold it 1995, Guy continued to have video adventures, including his new company AnalogRetentive. We discuss: – Getting started operating a camera for basketball games at age 12 – The inspiration to open a video facility – Wh...

Robert Kendzie worked in Hollywood before moving to Fredericksburg, where he continues to write and produce. He also started the Northern Virginia Motion Picture Co-Op. We talk about: – Working in development for movies like Clear and Present Danger & Beverly Hills Cop 3 – The famous Paramount Gate – Firing himself in Hollywood – Starting the co-op – Working with...

Joe Carabeo is a multi-talented creator who got his start producing backyard wrestling videos, but went on to write, shoot and direct all manner of short and long films. He also helps run 2 of DC’s most successful short film festivals. We’ll talk about: – How the wrestling videos boosted his career – Project Resolution and RVAtv’s HouseShow in Richmond – Adding...

Raynor Scheine has been a working actor since 1979 (totaling more than 70 movies & TV shows). He’s retired now, living in Ashland and has great stories about his work: – Playing in two August Wilson plays on Broadway – W orking with friend Kathy Bates on Fried Green Tomatoes – Getting recommended by Joe Peschi after My Cousin Vinny – Going from In Living Color to...

If you’ve seen a movie in a theater in the last 20 years, it probably wasn’t from a classic film projector, but from a cinema equipped at DCP (digital cinema package). Stace Carter specializes in creating DCPs and he explains their origins, plus what indie filmmakers need to know when creating projects for projection. LINKS: Stace’s DCP website Criolla DCP The Electone Festival (...

Kathryn J. Hatam has worked as an indie film producer, but more often as an Assistant Director on films. Early in the interview, she explains that an AD is NOT the directors assistant, but part of the production team responsible for lots of logistics and more. She also covers: – The responsibilities of an AD – The difference between a 1 st and 2 nd and 3 rd AD – Being a producer...

Brian Rhodes owns Antique and Classic Automobiles in Staunton. We talk about renting cars for movies and other interesting car stories: – His first car, which he still drives – Getting started with Bruce Elder’s business – Delivering a car with 5 minutes to spare – What’s involved in renting cars for movies – What a classic car license really means –...

Frank Alfono has been working as a stuntman for movies and TV shows, including Joker , Gotham , The Gilded Age and lots more. He performs all kinds of stunts, but fire has become his specialty. Our discussion includes: – What’s different between a Stunt Coordinator and Stunt Performer – From falls to cars to fights to fire: What’s your favorite stunt? – Picking the ri...

Matt Paxton is considered one of the top downsizing and decluttering experts in the country. His show Legacy List with Matt Paxton in on PBS and he’s also been a featured cleaner on the hit television show HOARDERS for 15 seasons. He had so many great stories, that he’s back for a 2 nd week, and we’ll discuss: – How he created his own show Legacy List with Matt Paxton &#821...

Matt Paxton was born and raised in Richmond. He’s considered one of the top downsizing and decluttering experts in the country. His show Legacy List with Matt Paxton in on PBS and he’s also been a featured cleaner on the hit television show Hoaders for 15 seasons. Matt tells great stories about some of the things he’s found. In fact, we had so much fun that I divided this into 2...

The Magic of Horror Festival celebrates the “magic” that goes into making films with screenings, posters, trailers and screenplays. Two of the filmmakers discuss their entries into this year’s featival. Sergiy Pudich is a Ukrainian filmmaker living in Sinapore and Christopher Schrack works in Northern Virginia. The festival runs Sunday, November 5 at The Airfield Conference Cente...

Ricardo Preve is an Argentine filmmaker, photographer and activist, who immigrated to Charlottesville in his youth. He has produced more than 30 films for film and television. His latest doc is personal, because it looks at the continuing struggles of Latinx immigrants in his Virginia hometown. Our interview covers: – Opening the doc with a Gerry and the Pacemakers song from 1965 – How...

In October 2020, Cadence commissioned 5 writers to create screenplays for their Sitelines BLM program. Three of them were selected to be produced by local cast and crews. They’ll be presented at a mini-film fest called ACTION at 1:00pm on Saturday, 10/14 at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture . Admission is free. Omi Green, Professor of Theatre & Africana Studies at William and Ma...

Shawn O. Utsey is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at VCU, but his passion is the documentaries he produces on Richmond’s African American history. We discuss: – How he got into filmmaking – Making Until the Well Runs Dry: Medicine and the Exploitation of Black Bodies – Getting an interview Dick Gregory for the movie – The history of Central Lunatic Asylum...

Dennis Madigan has made his career working in the Art Department for numerous movies and TV series. Since many of them were shot in Philadelphia where he lives, it includes almost all of the shows by M. Night Shyamalan. He talks about the brass prop that he slips into their sets and more fun stories about working in the industry, including: – Being a drummer in Single Bullet Theory – W...

This is a double featuring 2 entries at this year’s Richmond International Film Festival (9/26 – 10/1). Rick Wallace was a producer on L.A. Law & Hill Street Blues and EP on The Closer & Major Crimes . He talks about the new film DOUBLE DOWN SOUTH, which he produced with writer/director Tom Schulman (Oscar winner for Dead Poet’s Society ). We cover: – How he started on Hi...

BK Fulton is Founding Chairman and CEO of Souldifly Productions right here in Richmond. The company specializes in uplifting stories for film, stage and books. Bk talks about: – What famous actor he’s named after – Transitioning  from Verizon to producing – Upcoming THE KILL ROOM with Uma Thurman & Samuel L. Jackson – Tony-nominated revival of THE PIANO LESSON &#8...

Joel Haberli was a working actor in Norfolk before moving to New York, where his career in movies and TV took off. We discuss: – His ad lib on And Just Like That – Working with Ice-T on Law & Order – His experience with Anthony Edwards as a director – What John Slattery said to him Adam Rosenberg is an editor and graphics motion artist whose work is genuinely quirky, un...

One of the featured documentaries at this year’s Richmond International Film Festival is The Business of Birth Control , an examination of the relationship between hormonal birth control and women’s health. The film’s Executive Producer Ricki Lake & Associate Producer and Richmond Doctor of Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine, Keith Bell join director Abby Epstein to talk about:...

Daphne Maxwell Reid is an actor best known for playing Aunt Vivian on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air , but she’s been in numerous other films and TV shows, including several with her husband Tim Reid. They’ve been living in Virginia for many years, continuing to act and produce. Just recently, Daphne started sharing hosting duties on Virginia This Morning on CBS-6. We discuss: – Wit...

Cocoa Brown is a Newport News native whose career as a stand-up comic has blossomed into numerous outstanding roles in movies and TV series. This includes working for such iconic directors as Tyler Perry. John Singleton & Ryan Murphy. She can currently be seen in Peacock’s hit The Big Door Prize. We talk about: – Where she got her real first name Farah – How she got into come...

David Glen Russell is a composer and orchestrator for film, TV and video games. He spent a few years in Richmond before moving to LA to work on such projects as Spiderman 3 , Dr. Strange , Wednesday and numerous Star Wars series. We discuss: – What classic guitar solo changed his life – The movie that got him interested in composing – The difference between a composer and an orch...

The Ashland Theatre opened on August 10, 1948. They’re celebrating the 75 th anniversary with 75 cent screenings and lots more fun. Courtney Caldwell, the General Manager, and Hugh Joyce, the VP of their board, talk about: – When the theatre was first opened – The lost years – Why renovate? – How it’s changed Ashland since reopening – Special screenings an...

Swagger is the AppleTV+ series that was shot in Richmond and based on basketball legend Kevin Durant’s life. Creator/showrunner Reggie Rock Bythewood talks about the first season and what we can expect in Season 2, including: – Pivoting from a theatre to screen – How acting in The Brother From Another Planet inspired him – Getting involved with Swagger – Why are episo...

Tim Reid is probably best known as Venus Flytrap on the hit sitcom WKRP in Cincinatti , but he and his wife Daphne Maxwell Reid have lived in Virginia for many years. In the 60s, Tim and Tom Dreesen formed America’s first Black/white comedy duo, Tim and Tom. After they split up, Tom went on to a career that included more than 500 TV appearances and numerous tours, including 13 years as the o...