Awards Chatter

In front of an audience at Chapman University, the trailblazing actress, producer, director and activist reflects on the unlikely path to her breakthrough role in the indie film 'Real Women Have Curves'; becoming the first Latina ever to win the best actress in a comedy series Emmy, for 'Ugly Betty'; anad landing a best supporting actress Oscar nomination for a performance highlighted by a showsto...

The Irish actor who is Oscar-nominated for playing the father of the atomic bomb reflects on his unexpected shift from making music to acting, what led him to the beloved drama series 'Peaky Blinders' and what is at the center of his special six-film, 20-year collaboration with Christopher Nolan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Grammy-winning songwriter and Oscar-winning composer reflects on his legendary New Orleans music family, waging war against genres and being featured in and writing an original song that is now nominated for an Oscar, "It Never Went Away," for Matthew Heineman's Netflix documentary feature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The admired veteran reflects on breaking into Hollywood with 'The Grifters' (en route to an Oscar nom) and 'Bugsy' (opposite husband-to-be Warren Beatty), standout turns in films ranging from 'The Kids Are All Right' to '20th Century Women' to 'Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool' and taking on one of her most challenging roles yet as swimmer Diana Nyad in 'Nyad.' Learn more about your ad choices. V...

The founding director of the Sundance Institute, who since 1981 has presided over the "labs" that help rising filmmakers to realize their visions, reflects on how she came to work for Robert Redford, what filmmakers like Paul Thomas Anderson, Ryan Coogler, Chloé Zhao and Darren Aronofsky got out of their time at the labs and becoming just the 43rd person — and only the 10th woman — ever honored wi...

The legendary filmmaker reflects on the tug of war that he has always felt between his faith and the reality of his life, and how that has shaped the films that he has made; the origins and evolution of his special relationships with Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio; how his latest film is sort of an amalgam of all of his prior films; and much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega...

The trailblazing filmmaker reflects on her circuitous path to the film industry, in which she originally worked as a publicist; the evolution of her social conscience; how her feelings about Hollywood have changed since 'Selma' and #OscarsSoWhite; and why she is so passionate about her latest film, which is about prejudice across history and geography and how the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isab...

In front of an audience at Chapman University, the sibling singer/songwriters return to the podcast to take questions from the host and students about their path to music, why they love writing songs for movies and how "What Was I Made For?," their Oscar-shortlisted tune for Greta Gerwig's acclaimed blockbuster, came to be. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Grammy winner and Tony and Emmy nominee reflects on her path from Greenville, South Carolina to Juilliard to Netflix's 'Orange Is the New Black' and Broadway, overcoming impostor syndrome and her fateful Zoom with Oprah. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of our greatest character actors reflects on how the sudden death of his father motivated him to pursue an acting career, the different challenges of roles small and large and what it was like to reunite with Alexander Payne, 19 years after 'Sideways,' for a new film about a cranky boarding school teacher who is made even crankier by having to spend the 1970 Christmas break on campus with an a...

One of the most admired actresses of our or any time reflects on how a nomadic childhood led her to acting; the most important roles of her career, ranging from 'The Big Lebowski' to 'Far from Heaven' to 'Still Alice'; and her special relationship with filmmaker Todd Haynes, which has yielded five films spanning 1995's 'Safe' through a 2023 Netflix title about a woman who is married to a younger m...

In front of an audience at Chapman Univeristy, the British actress/writer/director, who for 'Promising Young Woman' won the best original screenplay Oscar and became the first British female ever nominated for the best director Oscar, reflects on the roots of her interest in dark material, being handed the reins to 'Killing Eve' by Phoebe Waller-Bridge and what inspired her sophomore feature, whic...

Nearing his 60th birthday, the legendary singer/songwriter and rock star reflects on growing up biracial and half-Jewish, his greatest hits and his new Golden Globe-nominated tune "Road to Freedom." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 20-year-old Grammy-winning singer/songwriter, one of the world's biggest pop stars, reflects on her path to acting and singing, rocketing to mega-fame during COVID lockdown with "Driver's License" and writing songs for her two albums versus writing a song — "Can't Catch Me Now" — for a film. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Brit described by her three-time collaborator Meryl Streep as "the best young actress I’ve worked with in some time, perhaps ever" reflects on how a childhood stutter led her to acting, taking on frightening physical and vocal challenges in film roles and playing the wife of J. Robert Oppenheimer in Christopher Nolan's acclaimed summer blockbuster. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megap...

One of the all-time most distinguished producers of independent film — who has somehow never received a best picture Oscar nomination, despite credits including 'Boys Don't Cry,' 'Far from Heaven' and 'Carol' — reflects on meeting Todd Haynes and abandoning early ambitions to become a director, how 'New Queer Cinema' came to be and why she still bets on first-time filmmakers like Celine Song. Lear...

The Grammy-winning pop superstar opens up about her childhood split between London and Kosovo, breaking into the music biz with hits like 'New Rules' and 'Levitating,' the unique challenges of writing 'Dance the Night' for Greta Gerwig's summer blockbuster and releasing 'Houdini,' the first single from her forthcoming third album. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In front of an audience at the SCAD Savannah Film Festival, one of the premier writers and directors of stage and screen reflects on directing the original Broadway production of 'Angels in America' (for which he won one of his three Tonys), transitioning to film directing and, most recently, telling the story of the largely forgotten Black gay activist who organized the 1963 March on Washington....

In front of an audience at Hollywood's historic Grauman's Chinese Theater, for a panel convened as part of AFI FEST, Scott sits down with A. Scott Berg, Cameron Crowe, Nancy Griffin, Aljean Harmetz, Leonard Maltin, Kim Masters, Dennis McDougal, James Andrew Miller, Eddie Muller, John Pierson, George Stevens Jr., Michael Tolkin, Christine Vachon, Mark A. Vieira and Sam Wasson. Learn more about your...

The Omaha-born filmmaker known for dramedies including 'Election,' 'About Schmidt,' 'Sideways,' 'The Descendants' and 'Nebraska' reflects on his differing feelings about writing and directing, the ways in which he casts A-listers and extras and reuniting with Paul Giamatti 19 years after their prior collaboration on his latest film, about three people who begrudgingly spend the 1970 Christmas brea...

In front of an audience at the Newport Beach Film Festival, the star DJ-turned-producer/songwriter reflects on his path to music, notable collaborations (with the likes of Amy Winehouse, Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga) and expansive work on Greta Gerwig's 2023 blockbuster (he EP'd the soundtrack, co-wrote the score and co-wrote and/or co-produced singles performed by Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Sam...

In front of an audience at the Burbank International Film Festival, the brilliant and eccentric filmmaker reflects on his childhood in Burbank and how it led him to animation and to characters regarded by others as freaks, alternating between mainstream blockbusters and personal art films and collaborating over decades with the likes of Johnny Depp, Colleen Atwood and Danny Elfman. Learn more abou...

The legend of New German Cinema reflects on making movies in Germany and America, moving between narrative and doc features and the making of his greatest films including ‘Paris, Texas,’ ‘Wings of Desire’ and ‘Buena Vista Social Club.’ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The veteran fan favorite reflects on his path to standup and his unusual stage name, how the Spike Lee documentary 'The Original Kings of Comedy' changed his career trajectory and his forthcoming debut novel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The world’s most famous living film critic, who was the Internet Movie Database before the advent of the Internet, shares how his famous movie guide began when he was 17 and ended 45 years later, what his life is like a decade after his Parkinson's diagnosis and his outlook for the future of the movies and film criticism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices