Village Video Store: Staff Selects

Today’s episode features director and writer Brandon Bassham ( The Slashening, Bring On The Damned! ). Brandon and I talk about working with Lloyd Kaufman and the legendary Troma Films in New Jersey as well as our mutual love of the Exhumed Films Horrorthon. Brandon’s Staff Selects harken back to his own days of working in a video store and have a particularly spooky feel to them, making them perf...

Today’s guest is voice actor Billy Bob Thompson (Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh!). Billy Bob is a long-time friend of mine from Philadelphia who shares my love of movie marathons and was one of the creators of our extremely brief movie marathon show, Day Wasters. Billy Bob’s Staff Selects got us talking about screwball comedy and its intersection with horror, serious acting performances in insane movies, great...

This is big: The Village Video Store podcast now has a theme song! And that theme song was created by this week’s guest, Joe Moore. Joe and I became friends doing comedy in Philadelphia over a decade ago and have bonded over our love of movie marathons and special theatrical experiences. Joe’s Staff Selects are all in celebration of the Halloween season and got us talking about horror auteurs, blu...

This episode features my long-time Philadelphia friend, comedian and television producer Rob Baniewicz. We talk all about our love of the movie marathon and try to calculate how many hours we’ve actually spent sitting next to each other in a movie theater. Rob’s Staff Selects got us talking about existential dread, state violence against its own citizens, effective documentary techniques, shot-on-...

This episode brings back former guest and my spookiest of friends Kait Thompson. We officially kick off the spooky season (starts the day after Labor Day) and reminisce about Halloween childhood memories and our favorite things about fall. We then do a rundown of the Letterboxd horror movie challenge called Hooptober and offer up over SIXTY horror movie recommendations to help fill the challenge’s...

This episode features actress, comedian, and host of Dirty Laundry on Dropout, Lily Du. Lily and I spent many a month together in airports while traveling for UCB’s Touring Company. Her Staff Selects got us chatting about all the BIG topics: memory, forgiveness, aging, the inevitability of death, artistic collaboration, and power dynamics in relationships. Also, do we have the podcast’s first (goo...

This episode features writer and comedian Tao Yang of CollegeHumor and Dropout fame. We reminisce about performing improv together in New York City and then discuss his Staff Selects, which cover topics such as movie spectacles, cross-cultural comedy, disturbing anti-erotic horror, watching inappropriate movies on airplanes, and the most powerful martial art known to man: gun kata. Please consider...

Today’s episode features writer, actor, and wholesome pornographer Ryan Creamer, one of the architects of Dropout’s popular game show Game Changer. Ryan’s film selection for his Staff Selects shelf live up to his wholesome reputation and get us talking about epic sports movie moments, the line between film fiction and real life events, connecting with comedians as a teenager, the friendship of you...

Today’s episode of the podcast features improviser and dungeon master extraordinaire, Andrew Stanton. He increases the “meaty muscle quotient” of this podcast by 500% with his staff selects, leading to an in-depth conversation of the greatest action movie star to ever exist. Please like, rate, and review The Village Video Store Podcast on Apple Podcasts and consider subscribing to the Substack. An...

Today’s episode features television writer, improviser, and Shaun T enthusiast Corin Wells. Make sure to check out the most recent show she worked on, Kevin, on Amazon. Corin’s Staff Selects got us chatting about brutal martial arts violence, the cultural power of music in film, childhood fantasies and magical realism, beautiful billowing fabrics, religious horror, and how falling in love with a m...

Today’s episode is comedian, writer, and filmmaker Rekha Shankar. Oh, she’s also my dog’s auntie (and our former roommate)! Rekha wrote and starred in Vidhya’s Guide to the Afterlife, her first feature film which is currently in post production. Rekha’s selection of films got is talking about the power of sisterhood, childhood memories and how they change as we grow older, competition in creative...

Today’s guest is filmmaker Lindsay Calleran, a long-time friend of mine from the New York improv world whose debut feature film, Caity, recently premiered at the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival. We discuss the long journey of completing the film and the struggles of making independent film in today’s entertainment industry. Their staff selects brought up a number of topics: childhood isolation, the rec...

This episode features writer, actor, and social media queen Jordan Myrick. Jordan and I are big-time movie buds who connect a lot on over-the-top horror and action absurdities. Their shelf choices got us talking about nostalgia, fairy tales, big feelings, big twists, movie theme songs, and the all-important question, “Whatever happened to capital-F fun movies?!” You can follow Jordan on any of you...

This episode features just me, your host, recapping the 30+ movies I watched in celebration of Junesploitation. I also include a brief review of my experiences at Exhumed Film’s 12-hour movie marathon Ex-Fest, held on June 13th at the Colonial Theater in Phoenxville, PA. Celebrate filth. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes,...

This episode features improviser, filmmaker, and my road trip buddy Patrick Keene . You can regularly see him performing improv all around New York City with his team Duchovny. Watch his debut film Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill (on the biggest screen possible). Patrick’s selections for his shelf got us talking about meta-textual horror, self-annihilation, New York City weirdos, the social construct...

This episode features actor, writer, and fellow Philadelphian Betsy Kenney. Betsy is TikTok famous for her Philadelphia ASMR series , as well as her excellent podcast Done with Dara Katz . Her film selections got us chatting about depression, father-daughter dynamics, dangerous drag stars, local theater, childhood memories, and little freaks. In addition to subscribing to this substack, please con...

What’s this?! No guest?!?! Yes, it’s just me this episode because I wanted to talk about Junesploitation: a yearly Internet movie challenge where you watch one movie a day each from a specific exploitation sub-genre. I’m fascinated with exploitation film from throughout history so when given the opportunity to explore it, you better believe I’m explorin’. Here’s a link to this year’s Junesploitati...

This episode features actor, writer, and fellow physical media addict, Ben Stanton. Ben is the leader of the Commonwealth Film Club, a group of friends we brought together to watch movies from our extensive physical media collections. He selected five films for his Staff Selects shelf that got us chatting about the power of music, memories on film, toxic lovers, early aughts nostalgia, lady plumbe...

This episode features my improv soulmate, Jess Ross. We have been writing and performing together since 2010 and we both share a devout love of movies. Jess picked out five movies for her Staff Selects that got us talking about thrills, chills, sills, and good gay fun. You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or listen to it here through the Substack. Please consider financially subscrib...

This episode of the Village Video Podcast features artist, writer, and actor Kait Thompson, one of my oldest and dearest friends that I’ve made through the Philadelphia improv community. Kait selects five films for her Staff Selects that got us talking about lesbians, sex in film, the joys of music as a teenager, the cost of independent film, the destructive nature of capitalism, reality televisio...

On this episode of The Village Video podcast, I talk with actor and singer Melanie Field. You may have seen her on A League of Her Own, You, Killing It, The Alienist, Florida Girls, and Heathers, just to name a few. She’s one of the stars of the upcoming film Home Delivery which will be in theaters on March 27th. She is also my sister. Melanie and I talk about her Staff Selects, a collection of fi...

Oh look, another clown with a podcast. In an effort to celebrate the video store culture of yesteryear, the plan for this podcast is to bring on friends and have them construct their own “Staff Picks” shelf. A mainstay of the independent video store, Staff Picks were a way for customers to get a recommendation for a movie right when they walk through the door. Each employee’s Staff Picks was an op...