Talkhouse Podcast

On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Film podcast, filmmaker, actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead marks the release of her new movie, 10 Cloverfield Lane, by sitting down with Togetherness star Melanie Lynskey. Over the course of a frank and entertaining conversation, the two discuss everything from the inevitable insecurities that come from watching yourself on screen, to improvisation, their beginnings in the film business, the perils of making audition tapes, and their differing approaches to timekeeping. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse Film at talkhouse.com/film.

The latest episode is the first in a series of podcasts brought to you by Talkhouse Film and Soho House, with whom we are teaming up to curate a regular series of special advance screenings followed by a conversation between the director and another filmmaker. Here, Re-Animator director (and regular Talkhouse Film contributor) Stuart Gordon talks with Robert Eggers, director of the horror phenomenon The Witch, with the two touching on such topics as the influence of Kubrick and silent cinema, the experience of casting witches and the need for a "Ken Loach time machine to the 17th Century." For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse Film at talkhouse.com/film.

On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Film podcast, filmmaker, photographer and author Alix Lambert talks with her friend of almost 30 years, Fred Armisen. In a lively, wide-ranging conversation, the two touch upon such subjects as their mutual love of Bitmoji and airport texting, why Fred insisted The Wizard of Oz was a documentary to Alix's CalArts class, the incredible story surrounding Fred's half-brother's mother and the Stasi, and, of course, Portlandia, Documentary Now and his upcoming Spanish-language comedy show for Más Mejor. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse Film at talkhouse.com/film.

On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Film podcast, in a special conversation recorded after a screening of Laurie Anderson's documentary Heart of a Dog, the acclaimed musician, artist and filmmaker talks onstage with fellow New York director Darren Aronofsky, best known for his films Pi, Requiem for a Dream and Black Swan. The pair discuss Anderson's new film, which ponders questions of love, death and language, and touch on such other diverse subjects as Herman Melville's discussions with his editor about Moby Dick and the problems that can come from putting batteries in one's mouth. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse Film at talkhouse.com/film.

In 2000, Tunde Adebimpe and Dave Sitek formed TV on the Radio, one of the most creative, inspired and influential bands of their era. Fifteen years, five albums and a whole lot of ups and downs later, they've still managed to preserve that energy and vision. Which is pretty remarkable. Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Ruban Nielson has also sustained a very long creative streak. He'd played guitar in a hard-edged New Zealand post-hardcore band called the Mint Chicks, and when that ended, he found himself in Portland, Oregon, around 2010. He began messing around with music again — making highly wrought, idiosyncratic basement recordings with an odd psychedelic feel. This new project — Unknown Mortal Orchestra — got a record deal, and Nielson began touring and gathering crowds and critical praise. The UMO sound has broadened and morphed over the course of three albums, right through this year's release, the acclaimed and addictively strange Multi-Love. In retrospect, it's no surprise that Adebimpe and Nielson are huge fans of each other's music — they have a similar creative spirit — and they have lots of other things in common too, as you're about to hear. But, aside from the Mint Chicks opening for TV on the Radio many years ago, they'd never really met. What a great excuse to put them together and see what they talk about. And the answer is: a whole lot of very interesting things, like, when you write a song that comes from a deep emotional place, how do you find it in yourself to sing that song on stage, night after night — and sometimes for year after year? Where does inspiration come from? What does success do to creativity? And there's a lot more where that came from. Give a listen. 

If you come out of the indie community and you make synth-based music, you owe a huge debt to an iconic duo called Suicide. In fact, if you come out of the indie community at all, you owe a huge debt to Suicide. Starting in New York’s East Village in the early ’70s, Suicide were confrontational, tough, and absolutely visionary, and they were one of the first punk rock bands. But they had no guitars: it was just Martin Rev on cheap electric keyboards and drum machines, and notorious singer Alan Vega.This revolutionary, very DIY approach initially influenced English synth bands from Erasure to Throbbing Gristle, and went on to become a huge influence on industrial dance music, and everything from noise to ambient. Suicide has been covered by everyone from Bruce Springsteen to Savages, and their influence extends to bands like LCD Soundsystem, Liars and MIA, who sampled them on her 2010 track “Born Free.”Neon Indian’s Alan Palomo is a big Suicide fan, and he recently commissioned Martin Rev to remix “Annie,” a track from his new album VEGA INTL. Night School. So we invited these two representatives of different, but related, musical generations to sit down for a Talkhouse Music Podcast.They talked about all sorts of things: how you know when your music is done, the economic realities of being an artist, the evolution of New York City as an artistic capitol, creative cycles and the effect of the internet, and the birth of punk rock. Palomo knows his stuff, and Rev throws down a whole lot of hard-earned knowledge and wisdom, so listen closely.

On the latest episode of the Talkhouse Film podcast, Academy Award nominee J.C. Chandor, the director of Margin Call and All is Lost, is in conversation with Borderline Films' Josh Mond, a producer turned writer-director whose debut feature, James White, is out now. The two friends discuss Mond's personal and professional path to this semi-autobiographical film inspired by his own experiences with his late mother as she battled cancer, while their chat also touches on: Mond's aborted first feature, a sex comedy that was to star Jonah Hill; which of his collaborators had a full beard at 13; and how The Jinx, Andrew Jarecki's sensational doc miniseries about Robert Durst, threw a wrench into James White's editing process. For more filmmakers talking film and TV, visit Talkhouse Film at talkhouse.com/film.

Lil BUB is a tiny, very special cat from outer space who has been an internet star since 2011, when her "dude" — recording studio owner Mike Bridavsky — posted some photos of her on Tumblr. She's been the subject of an award-winning documentary, she's the author of Lil BUB’s Lil Book: The Extraordinary Life of the Most Amazing Cat on the Planet and she hosts Lil BUB's Big Show, a web-based talk show.And on December 4th, 2015, BUB will release her debut album Science and Magic. The music was composed by Bridavsky's close friend, bandmate and official bubbysitter, Matt Tobey, and produced by Bridavsky. But the whole thing was guided by Bub, whom big-time fan Andrew WK recently described as "the most musically and compassionately gifted" animal he has ever met.As a rescue cat with several genetic mutations, BUB works to spread awareness about adoption and proper animal care. 25% of the net proceeds from the sales of Science and Magic benefit Lil BUB’s Big Fund for the ASPCA, a national fund for special needs pets.BUB's conversation partner for this Talkhouse Music Podcast is her fellow musician Jon Wurster, who plays drums — brilliantly — for Superchunk, Mountain Goats, Bob Mould among notable others. With Tom Scharpling, Jon is also one half of the team that does The Best Show, which is one of the funniest things you can listen to. And he's also a big-time animal lover.BUB and Jon have a conversation about BUB's new album, her intergalactic origins and… pooping on very expensive comforters. BUB also has a few probing questions for Jon and, well, he answers them as honestly as he can. These two do have a few tense moments, but they're both nice folks, so they patch it up nicely. As an extra bonus, this podcast features what just might be Jon's debut recording as a solo singer.

Lil BUB is a tiny, very special cat from outer space who has been an internet star since 2011, when her "dude" — recording studio owner Mike Bridavsky — posted some photos of her on Tumblr. She's been the subject of an award-winning documentary, she's the author of Lil BUB’s Lil Book: The Extraordinary Life of the Most Amazing Cat on the Planet and she hosts Lil BUB's Big Show, a web-based talk show.And on December 4th, 2015, BUB will release her debut album Science and Magic. The music was composed by Bridavsky's close friend, bandmate and official bubbysitter, Matt Tobey, and produced by Bridavsky. But the whole thing was guided by Bub, whom big-time fan Andrew WK recently described as "the most musically and compassionately gifted" animal he has ever met.As a rescue cat with several genetic mutations, BUB works to spread awareness about adoption and proper animal care. 25% of the net proceeds from the sales of Science and Magic benefit Lil BUB’s Big Fund for the ASPCA, a national fund for special needs pets.BUB's conversation partner for this Talkhouse Music Podcast is her fellow musician Jon Wurster, who plays drums — brilliantly — for Superchunk, Mountain Goats, Bob Mould among notable others. With Tom Scharpling, Jon is also one half of the team that does The Best Show, which is one of the funniest things you can listen to. And he's also a big-time animal lover.BUB and Jon have a conversation about BUB's new album, her intergalactic origins and… pooping on very expensive comforters. BUB also has a few probing questions for Jon and, well, he answers them as honestly as he can. These two do have a few tense moments, but they're both nice folks, so they patch it up nicely. As an extra bonus, this podcast features what just might be Jon's debut recording as a solo singer.

Sleater-Kinney singer-guitarist and Portlandia co-star Carrie Brownstein has published a critically acclaimed memoir, the candid, moving and eloquent Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl. And to kick off her book tour, she sat down and had a great conversation with another acclaimed musician-author, the Roots' Questlove, on October 27th, 2015 at St. Vitus, the beloved metal bar in the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn.The event was produced by the very cool WORD bookstore mini-chain, with stores in Greenpoint and Jersey City. WORD gave the Talkhouse permission to record and air the conversation — thanks, WORD!Carrie and Questlove might come from different backgrounds and make different kinds of music, but from reading each other's books, they realized have a whole lot of things in common, as you're about to hear.