The Creative Connection Podcast

Step into the world of legendary makeup artist Margaret Beserra as she takes us through her incredible career in Hollywood special effects and makeup. From her early collaborations with Rob Bottin on The Howling and The Thing with John Carpenter, to groundbreaking work with icons like Tom Cruise, Eddie Murphy, Rick Baker, Stan Winston, and David Fincher, Margaret shares stories from behind the sce...

Today we sit down with Dan Pinchbeck, the founder of The Chinese Room, a UK games development studio. We talk about many aspects of games development, his games, Dear Esther & The Rapture, our mutual love of The Thing and what it takes to get a game made, published and released to the public. 'The superb game that the hosts played this year called 'Still Wakes the Deep' comes up and all this a...

Welcome to Episode 16! In this jam-packed episode, Alex and Ian recap their New Year's and holiday experiences while diving into some fascinating topics.   In Episode 16, Alex and Ian recap their New Year's and holiday experiences, including Ian’s visit to the Zero Latency VR experience and his Christmas-themed watchlist. They also share exciting updates about upcoming guests like Dan Pinchbeck (S...

We hope your having a wonderful holiday period and here is a message from me (It's Alex here) for Christmas period.   Whether you're a film lover, a creator, or just someone looking for inspiration, this episode is packed with exciting content. Please leave us a review wherever you can.   The Creative Connection Podcast    This episode is hosted by Alexander Blackburn   The Creative Connection on...

In this special episode of The Creative Connection Podcast, we dive into their top film picks of 2024! From blockbuster hits to indie gems, we discuss the movies that left the biggest impression on us this year. PLUS, we reveal our favorite overall film of 2024!   Do you agree with our choice? Let us know 🍿 🎥 But that’s not all—Alexander and Ian reflect on their collaboration for The Creative Co...

In this captivating episode of The Creative Connection, hosts Alexander Blackburn and Ian Rayburn sit down with the talented Pierre Olivier-Persin, the Special Effects Makeup Designer and Supervisor behind the groundbreaking visuals in the award-winning film The Substance, directed by Coralie Fargeat. Dive into the fascinating world of special effects makeup as Pierre shares his creative journey,...

This week Ian and I sit down with the talented creative mind, Jeremy Selenfield. Prosthetic Makeup Designer of Smile and Smile 2, Ryan Murphy's American Horror Story and much more. We chat about how he got started in the film industry, working with director Parker Finn on the first two Smile movies and our mutual love of all things horror. A full breakdown of what we talked about can be seen in th...

We are back with a brand new episode of the creative connection with Visual Effects Supervisor, Joshua Petrino to talk about his career in visual effects, how he got started and working on the incredible horror movie franchise, Damien Leone's Terrifier. We talk things all things horror, the differences in the levels of effects, what are practical effects and clear up some misunderstandings with th...

We sit down with the incredibly talented people behind the horror film 'The Roots of Evil'. Joining me on the episode is uber talented Director, Writer and Producer Cindy Stenberg, Lead Actor Ludvig Karmalm and Production Designer Ian Wilson. We talk all things Roots of Evil, from joining the production, how they got started in the film industry, building the world the film sits, how to de-goth an...

Nelly Naylor is a photographer based in the UK and has been a successful wedding photographer for a long time now. Nelly joins me for the first in-person filming of the Creative Connection Podcast, in my new cabin space at home. We talk about how Nelly got started, finding her voice as a female photographer, cornering the market for the LGBTQ+ community, her doorstep portraits creative project dur...

Film composer Paul Talos joins us on the Creative Connection podcast to talk all things music and composing music for film. Paul wrote and scored the music for 'Turbo Cola' and talks about how he got involved, the working collaboration with the director and hearing the mix at the premiere of the film. We also talk about how Paul got started making music, our mutual love for the x-files and its mus...

It's my pleasure to introduce this week's guest, Vincenzo Natali. He is a Director, Producer and Writer of several feature films including: Cube, Cypher, Nothing, Splice and In the Tall Grass. He has also directed episode of some the the biggest shows in television like: HBO's Westworld and The Strain and has also directed episodes of Hannibal and the Stand. He also co-created the television serie...

We have the creative duo Brigitte Kingsley and Andrew Cymek on the podcast this week, a married couple who produce and direct films together including the fantastic ‘Astonishing Tales of Terror: Rocktapussy!’ Featuring at the S.I.C.K. festival. I delve into how they work together, what they love to make and how they first met and flourished creatively together. They have worked together for decade...

This week we are joined by horror icon Lynne Griffin joins me to talk about the Sudbury Indie Creature Kon, going from the stage to the silver screen, starring in the iconic ‘Black Christmas’ horror movie and what fan interaction is like for her. Plus her husband getting residual cheques for being HAL 9000 in 2001: A Space Odyssey (which he didn’t even work on!), working on the new Priscilla movie...

Alex is joined (that's me typing) by the super talented stunt performer and filmmaker Alex Chung. He has had a wide ranging career in the film and television industry in some of the biggest shows like 'The Handmaids Tale', 'Fubar', 'The Boys', 'The Expanse', 'Psycho Goreman' and much more. Alex talks about when he started loving cinema and action, directing himself and others in his action film 'C...

"Join us for an exclusive interview with legendary production designer Joe Alves, the creative genius behind iconic films like Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Escape from New York. Discover behind-the-scenes stories, his artistic process, and insights from a Hollywood pioneer who shaped the look of some of cinema's most unforgettable moments. Don't miss this fascinating conversation!...

Welcome to the third episode of the Creative Connection podcast! We’re joined by the incredible horror and comic book artist, Dave Kendall. This conversation was originally part of the Hellbound Horror Festival, but we knew it had to be included here. Dave’s unique artistic voice and insights are so relevant to what Creative Connection is all about—celebrating creativity and its power to inspire....

Welcome to this special episode of the Creative Connection podcast! Today, we’re thrilled to feature filmmaker and director Alex Proyas, the visionary behind films like The Crow and Dark City. This conversation was originally part of the Hellbound Horror Festival, but we felt it was so important to bring it here. Alex’s perspective on storytelling and creativity is deeply relevant to what we’re ex...

Welcome to the very first episode of the Creative Connection podcast! We’re thrilled to kick things off with none other than legendary horror author, Ramsey Campbell. Originally recorded as part of the Hellbound Horror Festival, we knew we had to share this conversation here because it’s such a vital part of what Creative Connection is all about—amplifying voices that inspire and challenge us. Ram...