Sifter

Andy Umberger was born in Portsmouth, went to VCU and ended up in New York on Broadway before moving to LA, where’s he’s appeared in more than 100 movies and TV shows. Our lively discussion includes: – His Broadway credits including City of Angels, Passion & Company – His wife played Christine in Phantom of the Opera – His first gig on The Drew Carey Show –...

Richmonder Rex Teese has worked in the editing department for major films and TV series. We discuss: – How a fateful car ride turned into his career – Starting as a projectionist – Creating videos for Carbon Leaf – Post producer on The Bronx is Burning – Working for Ridley Scott & getting a personal narration – How Director’s cuts came about – Ed...

Richmond native Caroline Aaron is best known for her role as Shirley Maisel in Amazon’s Primetime Emmy Award-winning series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (which enters its 4 th and final season on April 15). She’s also the featured speaker at the Adolf-Adams JCC Forum on March 16. This 2nd episode of our 2-part discussion includes: – A look at her mother, Richmond icon & activist Nina...

Richmond native Caroline Aaron is best known for her role as Shirley Maisel in Amazon’s Primetime Emmy Award-winning series The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (which enters its 4 th and final season on April 15). She’s also the featured speaker at the Adolf-Adams JCC Forum on March 16. The first episode of our 2-part discussion includes: – Shooting the Wonder Wheel sequence and funnel cakes &#8...

The Atlantic Coast Pipeline was to run from West Virginia to North Carolina thru Virginia, but was cancelled in 2020 thanks partly to the opposition from localities affected by it. This year’s Richmond Environmental Film Festival will feature a video about Nelson County’s response. We’ll discuss: – How it was started – Why the approach to the doc is so basic – What we...

Steve Lack is a sound designer, mixer, engineer and composer. He started his career in LA for shows like Seinfeld and Who’s the Boss and later moved to DC to work on documentaries, including How It’s Made , Myth Hunters , Shark Week and the Puppy Bowl IX . He now makes his home in Richmond and has great stories to tell, including: – What is a re-recording mixer and a dialogue edi...

John Mitchell Jr. founded The Daily Planet in 1904 to chronicle life in Richmond’s Black community. This week’s show features people behind the making of BIRTH OF A PLANET, a documentary about Mitchell and his newspaper: Sylvester Tucker, the Director and Jack Nester, the Producer. The doc will air on VPM Feb 28 at 9pm. We discussed: – What is Tilt? – How this project start...

Michigan Hell House debuts February 19 on the Travel Channel and streaming on Discovery+. This house has one of the most documented and violent paranormal cases in history and we’re featuring 4 people who were involved in the re-enactments that were shot here: director Kevin Hirshberger and 3 actors: Kera O’Bryon, Brian Landis and Chris Korkalo:         We discuss:...

Virginian Gene Poe spent most of his career as an extra in movies and TV. In this second episode he covers: – Working on Ellen , including the famous “coming out” episode – Standing in for Anthony Hopkins on Thor – Kenneth Branagh climbed onto his chest – How he got seats  for extras on sets – Being in bed with Ann Margaret – Sneaking in to meet Luci...

Virginian Gene Poe spent most of his career as an extra in movies and TV. He recounts numerous experiences including: – Posing for Playgirl Magazine – Being a hand model on 1000+ commercials – Being in a porno…or not – Getting cast in the first Star Trek movie by Robert Wise – Playing an American hippie in Fellini’s “Roma” – Being Corin Redgrave’s dr...

Andy Edmunds, Director of the Virginia Film Office, kicked off the first podcast last year and he’s back to look at productions in 2022 and what’s coming up, including: – How “super tourists with a payroll” worked during COVID – Movies, TV shows & commercials shot here in 2022 – The Golden Globes – Two interns who went on to great things –...

Most people don’t know that a Jewish family owned Monticello for 89 years (after Jefferson’s death). Director Steven Pressman is bringing his doc to this year’s Israeli & Jewish Film Festival (Jan 19 – 29 at the WJCC and several other venues). Before he comes to town, Steven and I talked about: – Transitioning from being a print journalist – The 2 docs he’s...

Wildcat is one of the top films streaming on Amazon Prime Video. It follows a young British Afgan war vet who travels deep into the Peruvian rainforest where he works to reintroduce ocelots in the wild. This documentary was created by Richmonders Melissa Lesh & Trevor Frost. We talk about: – Their backgrounds and meeting on the James River – The mental health issues beyond the anim...

Here’s a list of favorite films and series from 2022: Guest Reviewer NATHAN LIVELY Everything Everywhere All At Once The Banshees of Inisherin Nope X Barbarian The Northman Top Gun: Maverick Bodies Bodies Bodies The Batman Jackass Forever Honorable Mentions Prey Violent Night JERRY’S MOVIES DOMESTIC (in no particular order) Confess, Fletch John Hamm as an investigative journalist on a...

Joe Masher is the Chief Operating Officer of Bow Tie Management, which owns and operates Bow Tie Cinemas in 6 states. On the previous podcast, Joe discussed the origins of the family that started and still owns the chain, as well as the evolution of Movieland in Richmond. Subjects this time include: – How streaming affects movie theaters – His collection of thousands of vinyl records &...

Joe Masher is the Co-Owner/Operating Partner of Bow Tie Management, which owns and operates Movieland in 6 states, including right here in Richmond. Our discussion includes: – Magic In The Dark : The origin of the Bow Tie name (It’s actually a place in NYC) – Why the chain moved to Richmond – What’s going on with the Richmond property, including a drive-in and new lux...

The Richmond Film Network also includes a Short Film Series that started in November. Lisa Giles, who created the network, explains what the network is and how the series evolved. The Virginia Video Network is an affiliate of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, but the videos they produce go beyond the newspaper. Creative Services Director Matt Pochily talks about their approach and more. LINKS Tickets t...

The Dominion Energy Christmas Parade is celebrating it’s 39 th year and we went behind the scenes to talk about what’s involved in running the parade and getting it on TV. Guests are CBS 6 anchor Cheryl Miller, who’s co hosted the parade for many years, and Beth Karrer, who’s been the parade director for 9 years. Topics include: – The parade’s history – Ho...

Mary Sader is a successful Richmonder in the TV biz. Her work as a set designer includes a number of high profile shows (see below). She talks about: – Whether theatre or art came first – Power shopping for a shoot – Designing for: HBO hits Succession, Rap Sh!t, Westworld & Big Little Lies CW’s All American and All American: Homecoming Netflix’s You LINKS Mary&#82...

Since Duke Lafoon moved to New York, he’s been in big-name TV series, movies and the lead in an Off-Broadway musical. We talk about: – His stage and screen origins in Richmond – Playing the President in Clinton, The Musical – The appeal of doing commercials – Director David Fincher’s multiple takes in Mindhunter – Being a father in FBI: Most Wanted –...

Constance Wu grew up in Richmond before moving to LA and becoming the star of the sitcom Fresh Off the Boat and the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians . We chat about: – Shooting a video with Jerry in middle school – Why she wrote a book despite her English teacher trauma – Her book’s unabashed approach to sex – Memories of Richmond theatre – Spitballs – Spending...

Kirk Schroder has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® in the field of entertainment law and he lives right here in Virginia. Even though he’s worked on numerous local movies and TV shows, his practice draws entertainment and arts-related clients from around the world. We discuss: – How he discovered entertainment as a specialty – Why IPs have they become so important...

Picturing the Obamas was produced by Richmonders Hannah Brown Ayers & Lance Warren for the Smithsonian Channel. It follows the portraits of Barack and Michelle Obama from the National Gallery on a tour of 5 cities throughout the country. This the latest of several compelling documentaries they’ve created. We discuss: – How they met and how it evolved into a partnership – How...

This week’s show features a quartet of interviews:             Brian Morrison, secretary of Free Blockbuster, talks about the idea of creating “little libraries” for people to exchange DVDs and VHS tapes. Click here to see the map of all locations (including 6 in Richmond). Lowrie Fawley, co-founder of The Magic of Horror, gives us the facts about th...

Ray Bentley started the legendary midnight movies in 1974. In those days, if you wanted to see an art film or an edgy indie or even something outrageous, the cinema was just about the only place (this was pre-VHS). Ray was also a co-owner of the famed Cha Chas during the height of the disco scene. Our fascinating discussion includes: – How he started by showing movies to the neighborhood kid...