IndieWire's Filmmaker Toolkit

Director David Wain and Star Ken Marino bring their decades of iconic comedy experience ("Wet Hot American Summer," "Role Models") to co-writing their newest hilarious summer romp "Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass." The pair sat down with IndieWire's Chris O'Falt for a chat about their 7 day writing process, loving their troupe of regular performers, and plenty of funny digressions as you'...

Olivia Wilde, the director and star of "The Invite," joins IndieWire's Chris O'Falt for an in depth discussion of her thorny and hilarious relationship drama. Drawing on lessons from her cameo on "The Studio," Wilde and co-stars Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton embarked on a fascinating rehearsal process that informed everything from script rewrites to cinematography. She breaks down t...

Call it crass, but Jackass has proven to be one of the best made comedy series of its generation. Jeff Tremaine, the director of every single frame of Jackass, sat down with IndieWire's Chris O'Falt to reminisce on how the franchise started and how they stuck around to disgust and delight theaters twenty five years later (including the story of how Johnny Knoxville first gave him the idea for the...

The director of the beloved "Pig" is back for his third feature, the surprisignly brutal and deeply tactile drama "The Death of Robin Hood." Sarnoski talks with IndieWire's Chris O'Falt about defining this version of the folk hero with star Hugh Jackman, the intent behind the film's brutal violence, and the importance of doing so much of it practically. Sarnoski also teases his upcoming adaptation...

IndieWire's Sarah Shachat sat down with the creators of one of the oldest and longest running Dungeons and Dragons shows of the current boom. They discuss the wild ride taking 'Critical Role' from a Twitch stream to a podcast and now two animated series based on their campaigns. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew DeYoung returns to the Filmmaker Toolkit Podcast to discuss his new HBO series with Tim Robbins. DeYoung talks frankly about how budget limitations lead to the series' visual creativity, his process with Robbins, and how make an internet rabbit hole interesting on screen. Andrew DeYoung's Toolkit episode on "Friendship" - https://open.spotify.com/episode/3AR0dIo2bvRvk6mG4YgFD6?si=e80d0f2af0...

Get ready for a lesson on how to make good TV. Creator and showrunner R. Scott Gemmill sat down with IndieWire's Sarah Shachat to talk about the Season 2 finale, and how "The Pitt" takes full advantage of what TV can do. Read more coverage of the season finale - https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/shows/the-pitt-season-2-episode-15-review-finale-ending-theories-1235189311/ More on the birth episod...

"Euphoria" creator, writer, and director Sam Levinson joins IndieWire features writer Jim Hemphill to discuss the third and final season of his HBO hit. In a wide-ranging conversation, Levinson discusses how he integrates his collaborators' ideas, how his conception of the season changed during the pandemic, and how he's feeling now that he's done with the show that has consumed the last decade of...

Lucia Aniello sat down with IndieWire's Chris O'Falt to discuss the creative evolution of Hacks, balancing comedy with emotional storytelling, and wrapping up one of television’s most celebrated series. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Showrunner Spencer Hudnut joins IndieWire’s Jim Hemphill to talk about the CBS series “Marshals,” a “Yellowstone” spinoff that combines the epic Western sweep of that show with the pleasures of a broadcast procedural. Hudnut discuses walking the line between prestige TV and the procedural world, making the show his own while paying tribute to “Yellowstone,” and much more. Listen to the Screen Talk...

The writer and director of “I Love Boosters” sits down with IndieWire’s Craft Editor Sarah Shachat to discuss how music shapes his writing process, bringing ambitious cinematic ideas to life on an indie budget, the rough beauty and tactile emotion of stop-motion animation, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Jack Thorne and director Marc Munden tell IndieWire about the journey to shoot “Lord of the Flies” in Malaysia, what they learned from the young actors playing boys stranded on an island, and what inspiration the Netflix miniseries took from “Lone Survivor.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ten years ago, "The Comeback" was one of the first shows to satirize the rise of reality TV. Last Sunday the show aired its final episode, concluding a season that tackles the rise of the next trend promising to change entertainment forever: AI. Creator and star Lisa Kudrow and creator Michael Patrick King sat down with IndieWire's Chris O'Falt to share what they learned about AI making this third...

We are fortunate to be joined by one of our favorite working filmmakers this week, the masterful Lucrecia Martel. In her first documentary, Martel tells the story of an indigenous Argentinian community facing colonialist forces in one of the most disturbing true crime stories you'll see this year. She brings the full power of film form to this complex story, exploring the ways pain is passed down...

In a rare mid-season Toolkit check in, IndieWire's Chris O'Falt sits down with the creator of Euphoria and series cinematographer Marcell Rev to explore what makes Season 3 such a powerful departure for the show. From the custom film stock to the new approach to visual storytelling, don't miss this analysis of some of the most interesting filmmaking happening on TV right now. Read our breakdown of...

In her scripted debut, documentarian Sohpy Romvari explores with her memories of growing up with her brother's increasingly dangerous behavior. The way she wrestles with how her family responded, her own memories of that time, and how she processed it all through her masterful use of film form. Read our review of "Blue Heron" - https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/movies/blue-heron-movie-review-sop...

A favorite guest on the Filmmaker Toolkit, the director of "The Green Knight" and "A Ghost Story" is back with his newest original film. Lowery explains how "Mother Mary" began as a writing exercise and developed into a lurid pop fantasy, and discusses the thrills and challenges of working with huge names like Anne Hathaway, Jack Antonoff and FKA Twigs. Read our full review of "Mother Mary" - http...

American filmmaker Julia Loktev, born in the Soviet Union, returned to Moscow in 2021 to make a documentary on the persistence of independent journalism in Putin’s Russia, only to find herself documenting its death in real time as Russia invades Ukraine. Julia walked us through how she felt living inside this dark moment of Russian history, and how she can't help draw comparisons back home. Read o...

Directors Brian McElhaney and Nick Kocher, also known as the comedy duo BriTANicK, join IndieWire’s Jim Hemphill to talk about their new Hulu “Pizza Movie, which elevates lowbrow comedy to high art with its meticulous sense of visual design and structure. McElhaney and Kocher talk about influences, casting, and more in this wide-ranging interview. Read our full review of "Pizza Movie" - https://ww...

Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, better known as Radio Silence, join IndieWire’s Jim Hemphill to talk about their new film “Ready or Not 2: Here I Come.” A sequel to the 2019 thriller “Ready or Not,” “Ready or Not 2” takes the story in surprising new directions while delivering the pleasures of the original. Radio Silence talks about striking that balance, approaching difficult e...

Maggie Gyllenhaal is back on the Filmmaker Toolkit and bigger than ever for her second feature, a reimagining of The Bride of Frankenstein with a blend of genres, 1930s-style musical numbers, and a focused feminine rage. Maggie talked about the world building of her epic, from the harnessing of IMAX cameras to a graphic novel approach to designing the characters. Subscribe to Top Of The Line - Ind...

The hit HBO drama "Industry" just dropped its season 4 finale last night, and we have creators Mickey Down and Konrad Kay on the Filmmaker's Toolkit to break it all down. They discuss turning the series into a conspiracy thriller this season, incredible moments like Erics walk off and Yasmin's punishing arc, as well as the meaning of the final shot and mysterious flash frame. Can't get enough "Ind...

For her masterful work on "Sinners," Autumn became only the fourth woman in history to be nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar. She opened up with IndieWire VP Chris O'Falt about the prospect of becoming the first woman to win that award, and how being a woman in the field affected her early career and her current balance between work and family. And of course we dig into all the nerdy craft...

The world of 'Game of Thrones' has never felt quite like this before. Showrunner Ira Parker spoke with us about making a half hour comedy that eschews the dragons and royal politics for a smaller character piece with a kinder tone. Ira explained how he evolved the typical 'Game of Thrones' style in order to connect the filmmaking to his lead characters soul, and revealed some of the alternate path...

Baz Luhrmann sits down with IndieWire’s Jim Hemphill to discuss EPIC: Elvis Presley In Concert. While making his 2022 biopic, Luhrmann uncovered boxes of unseen Elvis footage that inspired a new kind of documentary he describes as a cinematic “dreamscape.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices