Category: Interviews

Festivals Interviews SIFF

SIFF interview: Documentary filmmaker Penny Lane is a Good Samaritan

by Chris Burlingame

I believe most writers, especially those of us who cover the arts, have a small “dream interview” list, people that we’d love to talk to, should the stars align. High on my shortlist for about a decade has been documentarian Penny Lane. She’s directed some of the most unique and memorable documentaries in recent years, full of vivid characters. Some of her most notable films include Our Nixon, Nuts!, Hail Satan?, and Listening to Kenny G. She’s like a Gen X Errol Morris and she’s amazing.

Festivals Interviews SIFF

SIFF Interview: Director Megan Griffiths reflects on Year of the Fox and the Seattle film scene

by Morgen Schuler

Yet again local (and beloved) director Megan Griffiths has a SIFF favorite on her hands. Year of the Fox is set in Aspen, CO where Ivy (Sarah Jeffrey) is on the cusp of womanhood but hesitant to grow up too fast. Unfortunately with her parents imminent divorce, a father far too distracted by the opulent world of Aspen “royalty” and her mother dealing with the fallout of not only losing marriage but the life she’d always known. Confronted with the harsh realities of the very real caste system that still exists in our country, toxic masculinity, and the realization that her dad may not be the man he’d convinced her he was… she’s forced to figure it out on her own. I don’t know about you, but at her age, I wouldn’t have been able to feed myself much less upend my whole reality and come out the other side in one piece.

Festivals Interviews

Seattle Queer Film Festival is upon us… and it’s bigger than ever!

by Chris Burlingame

October is proving to show an embarrassment of riches in terms of film festivals. SIFF’s DocFest is wrapping up tonight just as we usher in the Seattle Queer Film Festival. Always bringing the finest LGBTQ+ films to the Pacific Northwest, this year’s festival looks different than in years past. This year, it’s enormous with some 150 films playing, as well as live podcast tapings, parties, meetups, and even an art show. It runs from tonight, October 13 to October 23.

Festivals Interviews

Orcas Island Film Festival Co-directors on returning to semi-normalcy to share exceptional moviegoing experiences

by Josh

We were thrilled to see that the Orcas Island Film Festival was planning a big return for 2022 after a slightly-subdued 2021. Since then, they’ve released their full lineup — a jaw-dropping collection of some of the top prize-winners and most buzzworthy titles from many of the year’s most prestigious festivals. Along with potentially Oscar-bound international films and heart-stirring documentaries, the re-expanded program will pose scheduling conundrums for attendees trying to decide how to best plan a weekend of seeing some of the year’s best films well in advance of their neighbors. For lovers of first-look films, it’s among the best kinds of problem to have!

Festivals Interviews SIFF

Spin Me Round star Alison Brie talks to us about her hilarious new movie, opening this weekend at SIFF

by Chris Burlingame

Spin Me Round is the latest collaboration between Alison Brie and Jeff Baena, whose other films include The Little Hours and Horse Girl. Often, as with The Little Hours and Spin Me Round, Baena’s spouse Aubrey Plaza also stars. Alison Brie’s character is Amber, a young manager in the Exemplary Manager program at Tuscan Garden who finds there may be in Italy for reasons other than her potential in restaurant management.

Festivals Interviews

Orcas Island Film Festival’s dynamic leadership trio on bringing a treasured celebration of cinema back amid a pandemic

by Josh

In the midst of putting the finishing touches on their event, the festival’s leadership trio — Donna Laslo, Jared Lovejoy, and Carl Spence — were kind enough to make some time in their busy schedules to chat with me over e-mail to share some insights about the the practicalities of re-launching the in-person festival in the midst of a pandemic, highlights from a stacked schedule of film, and some recommendations for a visit to Orcas Island.