The Director’s Cut - A DGA Podcast

Meet the Nominees Feature Film Symposium 2019 - Part 3 of 3 (Ep. 192)

Jeremy Kagan moderates the 28th Annual DGA Meet the Nominees: Feature Film Symposium featuring Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Peter Farrelly, Spike Lee, and Adam McKay on their nominated films. Part three shares the nominees' thoughts on directing actors and knowing when you’ve gotten the performance. Highlights include Peter Farrelly commending his directorial team for helping him keep things moving, Adam Mckay sharing his amorphous directorial process, and Alfonso Cuarón sharing why you can't trust dailies and can only judge a moment in context.

Meet the Nominees Feature Film Symposium 2019 - Part 2 of 3 (Ep. 191)

Jeremy Kagan moderates the 28th Annual DGA Meet the Nominees: Feature Film Symposium featuring Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Peter Farrelly, Spike Lee, and Adam McKay on their nominated films. Part two shares the nominees' thoughts on casting. Highlights include how Peter Farrelly convinced Viggo Mortensen to take on the role of Tony Lip, why Alfonso Cuarón doesn't believe in directing kids, and how Bradley Cooper fared years ago during an audition for Spike Lee.

Meet the Nominees Feature Film Symposium 2019 - Part 1 of 3 (Ep. 190)

Jeremy Kagan moderates the 28th Annual DGA Meet the Nominees: Feature Film Symposium featuring Bradley Cooper, Alfonso Cuarón, Peter Farrelly, Spike Lee, and Adam McKay on their nominated films. Topics for part one include the nominees' thoughts on the night before the shoot and how they handle the immense pressure that comes with directing a film.

London Fields, The Director’s Cut with Matthew Cullen and Florian Henckel Von Donnersmarck (Ep. 189)

Director Matthew Miguel Cullen discusses his film, London Fields, The Director's Cut, with fellow director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. The film weaves the tale of Nicola Six, a femme-fatale who ensnares three men into a love affair. The twist: she knows that one of these men will ultimately become her murderer.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/LondonFields_QnA_1218.aspx

Dumplin’ with Anne Fletcher and Adam Shankman (Ep. 188)

Director Anne Fletcher discusses her film, Dumplin', with fellow director Adam Shankman. The film tells the story of Willowdean "Dumplin'" Dickson, a plus-size teenager living in the shadow of her former beauty queen mother. To prove a point about measuring up and fitting in, Dumplin' signs up for her mom's Miss Teen Bluebonnet pageant.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/Dumplin_QnA_1218.aspx

Ben Is Back with Peter Hedges and Craig Johnson (Ep. 187)

Director Peter Hedges discusses his film, Ben is Back, with fellow director Craig Johnson. The film tells the story of Ben Burns, a young man who unexpectedly returns home on Christmas Eve after spending time in a treatment center following a heroin overdose. While his mother is happy to see her son returned, she is worried about his ability to remain clean and ready to do everything in her power to keep him and the rest of her family safe.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/BenisBack_QnA_1218.aspx

Vice with Adam McKay and Gus Van Sant (Ep. 186)

Director Adam McKay discusses his film, Vice, with fellow director Gus Van Sant. Inspired by true events, the film follows Dick Cheney as he moves from being a Washington insider and a bureaucrat to George W. Bush's Vice President and one of the most powerful men in the world, creating policies that changed the country and world in ways that are still felt today.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/VICE_QnA_1218.aspx

Vox Lux with Brady Corbet and John Krokidas (Ep. 185)

Director Brady Corbet discusses his film, Vox Lux, with fellow director John Krokidas. The film tells the story of Celeste, a young singer who had a meteoric rise to fame after she survived a violent tragedy as a teenager and captured the nation's attention when she sang at the memorial service. Years later, the now superstar celebrity must deal with the aftermath of a scandalous incident which could derail her career.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/VoxLux_QnA_1218.aspx

Bird Box with Susanne Bier and Alison Maclean (Ep. 184)

Director Susanne Bier discusses her film, Bird Box, with fellow director Alison Maclean. Based on the novel by Josh Malerman, the film takes place in a world where an unseen force has decimated Earth's human population, and the only thing the survivors know for sure is if you see it, you die. Against these odds a woman and her children attempt a perilous journey though the woods and down a river to find sanctuary, but in order to stay alive, they must complete the trip while blindfolded.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/BirdBox_QnA_1218.aspx

On the Basis of Sex with Mimi Leder and Sacha Gervasi (Ep. 183)

Director Mimi Leder discusses her film, On the Basis of Sex, with fellow director Sacha Gervasi. Inspired by the true story of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the film weaves together her career as an attorney fighting for equal rights with her storybook romance with her husband, Martin Ginsburg, and her life as a new mother.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Feb2019/OntheBasisofSex_QnA_1218.aspx

Destroyer with Karyn Kusama and Christopher Nolan (Ep. 182)

Director Karyn Kusama discusses her film, Destroyer, with fellow director Christopher Nolan. The film stars Nicole Kidman as LAPD detective Erin Bell, whose undercover assignment when she was a young cop - the infiltration of a gang in the California desert - ended tragically. When the leader of that gang re-emerges years later, she seeks to finally lay to rest her personal demons from that case.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/Destroyer_QnA_1218.aspx

Mary Poppins Returns with Rob Marshall and Ron Howard (Ep. 181)

Director Rob Marshall discusses his film, Mary Poppins Returns, with fellow director Ron Howard. Drawn from the Mary Poppins stories by P.L. Travers, the film takes place in depression-era London during the 1930s, where the adult Jane and Michael Banks find themselves in need of Mary Poppins' magical abilities once again after the family suffers a devastating loss.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/MaryPoppinsReturns_QnA_1218.aspx

Unlovable with Suzi Yoonessi and Alethea Jones (Ep. 180)

Director Suzi Yoonessi discusses her film, Unlovable, with fellow director Alethea Jones. The film tells the story of Joy, a woman who joins a 12-step program to take control of her sex and love addiction after losing her boyfriend and her job and surviving a suicide attempt. After seeking help, she finds a sponsor and discovers the beauty of platonic friendship when she begins making music with a socially inept musician named Jim.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/Unlovable_QnA_1118.aspx

The Girl in The Spider’s Web with Fede Alvarez and Sam Raimi (Ep. 179)

Director Fede Alvarez discusses his film, The Girl in the Spider's Web, with fellow director Sam Raimi. Based on the best-selling novels by David Lagercrantz, the film follows Lisbeth Salander as she hacks a computer program that can access nuclear weapons across the globe. Soon she and journalist Mikael Blomkvist find themselves caught in a web of spies, cybercriminals and corrupt government officials.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/GirlInSpidersWeb_QnA_1118.aspx

Green Book with Peter Farrelly and Dan Gilroy (Ep. 178)

Director Peter Farrelly discusses his film, Green Book, with fellow director Dan Gilroy. The film tells the true story of Tony Lip, an Italian-America bouncer from the Bronx who is hired to drive Dr. Don Shirley, a world-class African-American pianist on a concert tour from Manhattan to the Deep South in 1962. During the trip, they must rely on "The Green Book" to guide them to the few establishments that were safe for African-Americans.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/GreenBook_QnA_1118.aspx

The Front Runner with Jason Reitman and Jon Avnet (Ep. 177)

Director Jason Reitman discusses his film, The Front Runner, with fellow director Jon Avnet. The film follows the true story of Senator Gary Hart who was considered the front runner for the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination until an extramarrital relationship sidelined his campaign. He was forced to drop out of the race as tabloid and political journalism began to merge -- a phenomenon that would leave a lasting impact on American politics.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/FrontRunner_QnA_1118.aspx

If Beale Street Could Talk with Barry Jenkins and Paul Thomas Anderson (Ep. 176)

Director Barry Jenkins discusses his film, If Beale Street Could Talk, with fellow director Paul Thomas Anderson. Based on the acclaimed novel by James Baldwin, the film tells the story of Tish, a Harlem woman who strives to prove the innocence of her fiance while pregnant with their first-born child.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/BealeStreet_QnA_1118.aspx

Outlaw King with David Mackenzie and Jeremy Saulnier (Ep. 175)

Director David Mackenzie discusses his film, Outlaw King, with fellow director Jeremy Saulnier. The film follows legendary warrior Robert the Bruce, who claims the throne in 14th-century Scotland and leads a band of outlaws in an uprising as they attempt to win back the crown from English rule.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2018/Dec2018/OutlawKing_QnA_1118.aspx

Widows with Steve McQueen and Dee Rees (Ep. 174)

Director Steve McQueen discusses his film, Widows, with fellow director Dee Rees. Set in Chicago, the film stars Viola Davis as Veronica, who is widowed after her husband is killed by police following an armed robbery attempt. Veronica soon joins forces with three other widows to enact a heist that her husband had been planning.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2019/Jan2019/Widows_QnA_1118.aspx

Roma with Alfonso Cuarón and Alejándro G. Iñárritu (Ep. 173)

Director Alfonso Cuarón discusses his film, Roma, with fellow director Alejándro G. Iñárritu. Set in the early 1970s, the film recalls Mr. Cuarón's own upbringing in the middle-class neighborhood of Roma in Mexico City, and serves as a love letter to the women who raised him during a time of domestic strife and social hierarchy.
See photos and a summary of this event below:
https://www.dga.org/Events/2018/Dec2018/Roma_QnA_1118.aspx