The Director’s Cut - A DGA Podcast

Director Pablo Larraín discusses his new film, Neruda, with Victoria Hochberg. The film tells the story of the 1948 manhunt for the poet and politician Pablo Neruda, who is forced underground and into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with an ambitious police inspector when Communism is outlawed in Chile. The film is Chile's official submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.

Director Kenneth Lonergan discusses his new film, Manchester by the Sea, with Bob Balaban. The film tells the story of a Boston janitor who becomes the sole guardian of his 16-year-old nephew after the sudden death of his brother. He reluctantly returns to his hometown and attempts to deal with the life and family he had left behind. Mr. Lonergan was nominated for the DGA Award for Outstanding Dir...

Director Barbara Kopple discusses her new film, Miss Sharon Jones!, with Shari Springer Berman. The film follows the R&B and soul singer Sharon Jones during the most challenging year of her life when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just before the release of her album, Give the People What They Want.

Director Mel Gibson discusses his new film, Hacksaw Ridge, with John Polson. The film follows the remarkable story of Desmond T. Doss, a World War II army medic, who saved 75 soldiers from the front lines of Battle of Okinawa without ever firing a single shot.

Director Ewan McGregor discusses his new film, American Pastoral, with Mike Mills. Based on the 1997 novel by Phillip Roth, the film centers on Seymour "Swede" Levov, a successful businessman who lives an idyllic life with his wife and daughter. When a stunning act of violence is blamed on Swede's missing daughter, he must confront the consequences of her political activism as he searches for her.

Director Nate Parker discusses his new film, The Birth of a Nation, with Jeffrey Byrd. The film tells the true story of Nat Turner: a literate slave living on a Virginia plantation in the early 1800s who is forced to preach obedience to other slaves. When Turner witnesses atrocities committed against other slaves, he orchestrates an uprising in the hopes of leading his people to freedom. Mr. Parke...

Director Robert Kenner discusses his new film, Command and Control, with Chuck Workman. The film chronicles the nine-hour ordeal that occurred at an Arkansas missile complex in September 1980. After a worker drops a socket and accidentally punctures the fuel tank of an intercontinental ballistic missile, drastic measures must be taken to avoid a deadly nuclear explosion.

Director Mick Jackson discusses his new film, Denial, with Jeremy Kagan. Based on the book History on Trial: My Day in Court with a Holocaust Denier, the film follows Deborah Lipstadt's court battle against David Irving, who sues her for libel when she declared him a Holocaust denier.

Director Kristi Jacobson discusses her new documentary, Solitary, with Nanette Burstein. With unprecedented access, the film takes a disturbing look at one of the most controversial aspects of America’s modern prison-industrial-complex: solitary confinement.

Director Rosemary Rodriguez discusses her new film, Silver Skies, with director Arthur Allan Seidelman. The film follows a group of eccentric retirees who find their lives turned upside down when they learn that their beloved apartment complex is being converted to condominiums.

Director Heidi Ewing discusses her new film with Rachel Grady, Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You, with Director Chuck Workman and its subject Norman Lear. The documentary paints a dynamic portrait of the influential creator, writer, and producer, exploring his work and achievements through shows such as All in the Family, Maude, Good Times, The Jeffersons.

Director Peter Berg discusses his new film, Deepwater Horizon, with Director Nick Cassevetes. The film follows the true events around the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig on April 20, 2010.

Director Mira Nair discusses her new film, Queen of Katwe, with Director Ava DuVernay. The film tells the true story of Phiona Mutesi, a young woman who overcomes her impoverished circumstance to become an international chess champion.

Director Justin Lin discusses his new film, Star Trek Beyond, with Director Joe Russo. The film finds the crew of the Starship Enterprise crash-landed on an unknown planet with a formidable foe seeking to destroy them and much more.

Director Roger Ross Williams discusses his new film, Life, Animated, with Director Robert Weide. The film follows the coming of age story of Owen Suskind, who was unable to speak for years as a child. Owen and his family eventually discovered a way to communicate using the classic Disney animated movies Owen loved to watch.

Director Colin Hanks discusses his new film, All Things Must Pass, with Director Jeremy Kagan. The film charts the rise and fall of Tower Records, founded by Russ Solomon. From humble beginnings, Tower Records grew to become one of the music industry's most iconic retail stores.

Director David O. Russell engages in an in-depth discussion with Jeremy Kagan about his filmography, including Three Kings, Silver Linings Playbook, and American Hustle. Topics include thinking of a film's structure in terms of "waves" (10:00), auditioning Christian Bale for the role played by Spike Jonze in Three Kings (18:00), beginning every day on a shoot with a team "huddle" (35:00), and rehe...

Director Rebecca Miller discusses her new film, Maggie's Plan, with Director Robert Benton. The film follows the story of a young woman, whose plan to raise her child as a single mother gets derailed when she falls for a married anthropologist. Though after she marries him, she eventually falls out of love and decides to reunite him with his former wife.

Director Rodrigo García discusses his new film, Last Days in the Desert, with Director Scott Derrickson. The film tells the story of Jesus' struggle against the Devil over the fate of a family in crisis.

Director Garry Marshall discusses his new film, Mother's Day, with Director Robert B. Weide. The film features a star-studded ensemble in a set of intertwining stories about motherhood.

Director Jodie Foster discusses her new film, Money Monster, with Director Michael Apted. The film follows the explosive situation that develops when an irate investor hijacks the live studio broadcast of a Wall Street Guru's television show after losing everything on a stock tip.

Director and Sitcom Legend James Burrows discusses his life and career in highlights pulled from his DGA Visual History interview. Topics include growing up as the son of Broadway writer/director Abe Burrows (Guys & Dolls), training on The Bob Newhart Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show (10:00), his role as the Director on pilot episodes including Will & Grace (19:00), the development and c...

Director Liza Johnson discusses her new film, Elvis & Nixon, with Director Bette Gordon. The film gives a fictionalized account of what might have happened in an unusual meeting between Elvis Presley and President Richard Nixon in the White House, forever immortalized in an iconic photograph in the National Archives.

Director Jon Favreau discusses his new film, The Jungle Book, with Director Donald Petrie. The film retells the classic Rudyard Kipling tale about a boy named Mowgli, who is raised by wolves in an Indian jungle.

Director Marc Abraham discusses his new film, I Saw the Light, with Director Peyton Reed. The film tells the story of legendary country-western singer and songwriter Hank Williams, played by Tom Hiddleston. Despite Williams' singular talent, fame and addiction have a tragic effect on his life and personal relationships.