The Director’s Cut - A DGA Podcast

Director Michael Sarnoski discuss his new film, The Death of Robin Hood, with fellow Director Drew Pearce in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses juxtaposing themes of violence and serenity for a fresh take on the Robin Hood myth, how he worked with Actor Hugh Jackman when filming gritty setpieces and action scenes, and discovering Composer Jim Ghedi who s...

Director Olivia Wilde discuss her new film, The Invite, with fellow Directors Matt and Ross Duffer in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angles. In the conversation, she discusses choosing the project from a want to tell a stripped down story with no gloss, her roles Directing and Acting in the film, and the origin of Actor Edward Norton’s memorable monologue. The film tells the stories of Joe an...

Director Julian Schnabel discuss his new film, In the Hand of Dante, with fellow Director Benny Safdie in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses his spontaneous approach to his directing style, casting Actors in double roles between the film’s two time periods, and his choice to shoot the two settings in a mixture of black and white and color film. Based on the...

Director Simon McQuoid discuss his new film, Mortal Kombat II, with fellow Director David Sandberg in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how he worked with the stunt team to make the action scenes advance the story, his preference for practical sets and effects where he could use them, and referencing the video game to fill in little details in the lore...

Director Kyle Balda discuss his new film, The Sheep Detectives, with fellow Director Jonathan Goldstein in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses making the jump from animation directing to live-action directing for the first time, carefully balancing the tone with humor while handling themes of grief, and studying the movement of real sheep to recreate body...

Directors Liz Garbus and Elizabeth Wolff discuss their new film, Give Me The Ball!, with fellow Director Ondi Timoner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, they discuss collaborating with Billie Jean King to open up about some of the more intimate and uncomfortable moments of her life, reflecting on Billie Jean’s impact through her 1970s archival materials compared t...

Director Mariska Hargitay and Producer Trish Adlesic discuss their new film, My Mom Jayne, with fellow Director Lisa Cortés in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, they discuss how Mariska knew she was ready to take on the film, working with 18,000 photos and 2,500 videos worth of archival materials, and how Mariska came to learn more of the mother who was gone too soon....

Directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller discuss their new film, Project Hail Mary, with fellow Director Guillermo del Toro in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, they discuss finding depth in their characters by trying to see the good intentions is everyone including antagonists, the casting and puppeteering processes that helped realize the alien character of Rock...

Director Visar Morina discusses his new film, Shame and Money, with fellow Director Valerie Weiss in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how he experiments with scenes and leaves time for discovering natural moments on set, some of his filmic influences that contributed to specific scenes, and his strategic use of staging and tension in the film. Screened...

Director David Lowery discusses his new film, Mother Mary, with fellow Director Antonio Campos in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses how the project was born from a desire to shoot a one-room film, the choreography behind the seance scene, and his influences in costume and production design that set the groundwork for the film. The film tells the story of i...

Directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett discuss their new film, Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, with fellow Director Jorma Taccone in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, they discuss casting Actor Kathryn Newton alongside Samara Weaving, how they film a lot of coverage in the kill sequences for story options in the edit, and their intentional methods of direc...

Director Maggie Gyllenhaal discusses her new film, The Bride!, with fellow Director Greta Gerwig in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, she discusses the influence of 1930s cinema on the film’s themes, using dance sequences as a medium for her characters to express complicated emotions, and working with her Costume Designer to create striking looks for the cast. Set in a...

Directors Carl Deal, Tia Lessin and the film’s subject, Amy Goodman discuss their new film, Steal This Story, Please!, with fellow Director Ondi Timoner in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, the filmmakers discuss the structure of the film as a way to get to know Amy before her work, how the filmmakers originally met Amy, and the relevance of Democracy Now! in a mode...

Director Kevin Williamson discusses his new film, Scream 7, with fellow Director Paul Feig in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how the original concept of Scream came to be, how he balanced horror and comedy to establish the tone, and the importance and careful use of score needed to maintain the film’s tension. In the newest installment of the Scream...

Director Tom Harper discusses his new film, Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man, with fellow Director Mary Harron in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses working with Actor Cillian Murphy, how making a Peaky Blinders film differed from an episode of the series, and working closely with his composer to find a soundtrack befitting the tone. A sequel to the award-w...

Director John Patton Ford discusses his new film, How to Make a Killing, with fellow Director Kobi Libii in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses inspirations and early iterations of the film, managing the tone as over-the-top events happening in a grounded and believable world, and the importance of sound design to the construction of the film. Loosely ins...

Director Gore Verbinski discusses his new film, Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die, with fellow Director Sacha Gervasi in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how he wanted to approach the story with a modern take on AI, how Actor Sam Rockwell’s costume was made from scrap technology found in surplus stores, and finding a delicate balance for the film's tone i...

Director Emerald Fennell discusses her new film, Wuthering Heights, with fellow Director J.J. Abrams in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, she discusses her approach to adapting the original text, working with her Production Design team to create surreal landscapes and environments reminiscent of human features, and collaborating with musical artist Charli XCX to cre...

Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Guillermo del Toro (Frankenstein), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) and Chloé Zhao (Hamnet) engage in a conversation with moderator Jeremy Kagan for the 35th Annual DGA Meet the Nominees: Theatrical Feature Film Symposium. Please note: spoilers are included. See photos and a summary of this event below: https://www.dga.org/Events/...

Paul Thomas Anderson (One Battle After Another), Ryan Coogler (Sinners), Guillermo del Toro (Frankenstein), Josh Safdie (Marty Supreme) and Chloé Zhao (Hamnet) engage in a conversation with moderator Jeremy Kagan for the 35th Annual DGA Meet the Nominees: Theatrical Feature Film Symposium. Please note: spoilers are included. See photos and a summary of this event below: https://www.dga.org/Events/...

Director Paul Feig discusses his new film, The Housemaid, with fellow Director Lesli Linka Glatter in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses the intentional casting of Actors Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney opposite one another, finding the house that served as the main location and how its architecture led to the discovery of scenes, and balancing the fi...

Director Bradley Cooper discusses his new film, Is This Thing On?, with fellow Director Bennett Miller in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, he discusses the true story circumstances that inspired the film, how he envisioned and cast Will Arnett and Laura Dern in the leading roles, and utilizing his cinematography to emphasize the vulnerability of performing stand up co...

Director Craig Brewer discusses his new film, Song Sung Blue, with fellow Director Taylor Hackford in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses how he cast Actors Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson for the lead roles, his care in handling a film that frequently changes tones, and getting the blessing from Neil Diamond to make the film. Based on a true story, the film...

Director Mona Fastvold discusses her new film, The Testament of Ann Lee, with fellow Director Darius Marder in a Q&A at the DGA theater in New York. In the conversation, she discusses how her background in movement and dance contributed to the choreography, the logistics of shooting the barn burning scene, and how she aimed to show authentic moments of womanhood to sympathize with the journey...

Director Rian Johnson discusses his new film, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, with fellow Director Jon Watts in a Q&A at the DGA theater in Los Angeles. In the conversation, he discusses finding and casting Actor Josh O’Connor, the effort behind crafting and lighting the sets, and how his relationship with faith influenced the film. The film finds Blanc teaming up with an earnest young...