The Kodakery

This week we have a special holiday treat for you. Karolyn Grimes and Jimmy Hawkins, the actors who played Zuzu and Tommy Bailey from "It’s a Wonderful Life" stopped by The Kodakery studios to talk about the iconic film. Often referring to themselves as the messengers of the film’s director Frank Capra’s message, they reveal why the film has stood the test of time and warms hearts year after year.

While in town to receive the High Falls Film Festival's Susan B. Anthony “Failure is Impossible” award in November, we were lucky enough to have Nancy Schreiber, ASC join us in the Kodakery studio. We talked about being a woman in the industry, her career, what it means to her to receive this award and how the industry has changed over time. Listen in to hear this master of the camera!

This week’s guest is Sean Baker, director of the recently debuted “The Florida Project,” a beautiful film about a young mother in Kissimmee, FL, living out of a motel in the shadows of Disney World. Sean’s ability to highlight an issue faced daily by many in a narrative, moving way is extraordinary. He discusses his directing style, what using film brought to this project and his approach to all of his work in today’s episode. Check it out!

Noel Wells (SNL, Master of None) and Dagmar Weaver-Madsen joined us this week to talk about “Mr. Roosevelt,” a film written, directed and starred in by Noel herself. Shot on film, Dagmar, the cinematographer for the film (High Maintenance, 10,000 km), explained why she loves the medium and Noel tells us why it was a must for her first film. Listen in for this and more! www.mr-roosevelt.com

In January of 2017, we announced that Kodak Ektachrome film would be coming back to the market. The process is coming along well. We’ve been busy testing and making sure it meets all the expectations that exist in this passionate community and are looking forward to its market release in 2018. And in case you’re wondering about the who what when and where and why, we brought in some of our own Kodak employees who are involved with the re-manufacturing to chat. So, let’s jump into the Kodakery and talk with them!

This week we were joined by Director, Jason Wise. Jason talked with us about his recently debuted documentary, "Wait for Your Laugh," a film about show biz extraordinaire Rose Marie and her wildly successful and exceptional career. Shot on film and screened on film, we also talk to Jason about why he wholeheartedly supports film and how he got into documentaries. This episode is absolutely worth your time! www.waitforyourlaugh.com

Seasoned cinematographer Haris Zambarloukos joined us this week to discuss his latest film, Murder on the Orient Express. It was awesome learning about how they achieved the look of this book adaptation and some of the challenges of shooting 65 mm inside of a train. Like others Haris uses film to paint these stories into life and does so with great technical finesse, care and imagination.

Coming in around 120 pages each, Monster Children magazine is a substantial, beautifully curated quarterly lifestyle publication that digs deeper into the lives behind surfers, skateboarders, musicians, artists and more. To talk with us about how print is still thriving in 2017, co-founder and creative director, Campbell Milligan joined us this week. He gave us great insight into what goes on behind the scenes to bring it all together and how analogue culture is woven throughout. www.monsterchildren.com

Have you ever considered what kind of an effect negative news is having on your day to day well-being? This week’s guest, Branden Harvey has. Branden has been spending most of his life spreading positive stories to the world. His latest venture The Goodnewspaper, is a quarterly newspaper that focuses on the good things people are doing about the issues we face. He also encourages individuals to get involved in whatever way they can, offering concrete steps that we can take. Branden explains what inspires him to spread the “good news” and why he feels it’s so important in today’s society. Be sure to listen in for a coupon code special Branden offers our listeners!! www.goodgoodgood.co

The idea we often talk about of how analog technology cultivates a tactile focus which allows for a fulfilling, meaningful experience applies to more than photography, as is the case with our guest this week Albert Paley. Albert is a sculptor who forms captivating large scale metal pieces. His work can be found all over the world, some as permanent fixtures and others as moving masterpieces. Albert explains how this same tactile focus is critical in his process, which he describes with great delicacy.

Shooting film since he was 14 Michael Crouser, this weeks guest, has photography in his bones. His images are honest and beautiful and his latest work, Mountain Ranch, is no exception. Shot completely on Kodak Professional Tri-X film, Michael spent 10 years documenting the lives of cattle ranchers in Colorado. His patience and attention to detail, similar to that of the lives of the ranchers, produced stunning images of this disappearing lifestyle. Michael explains this project and shares his life’s story as a photographer. www.michaelcrouser.com

Crack open your film, wipe your lenses clean and let the creative juices flow as we go into the classroom with Anthony Janneli, NYU Tisch School of the Arts professor this week. Now that film school is in full swing we check in with the man teaching the future cinematographers of tomorrow. We break down the aspects of teaching the craft of the camera and the role film plays in it. Anthony wants his students to feel comfortable and able to ask questions, learning from his past work, which we discuss. Do your homework, and listen to this episode!

Cinematographer Sean Price Williams joined us this week to discuss his collaboration with the Safdie brothers on their latest film "Good Time" which debuted in May at the Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim. It's out now in a wider release so we wanted to talk with Sean about what is was like working with the Safdie brothers as well as some other film makers he's worked with in the past. He gives us some great insight into what is was like shooting with 2 perf 35mm as well as some of the perks to living in New York City as a film lover. Give it a listen!

We got a chance to discuss with some of the key players, the recent collaboration between Girl Skateboard and Kodak. Sam Smyth, talent manager for Girl Skate and former professional skateboarder explains why the collaboration made sense and what went into the design and just the whole project in general. We also talked with Nick Green, a filmmaker who joined Sam and the Girl Skate team on a trip from Oregon to San Francisco, documenting on Super 8 film the entire way. Check out the boards and films here: http://girlskateboards.com/kodak/ https://www.kodak.com/US/en/Consumer/Products/Girl-Skate-Kodak/default.htm

With more than 90 miles of film vaults, the Library of Congress is any cinema lovers paradise. This week, Lynanne Schweighofer and Mike Mashon from the Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio-Visual Conservation joined us to discuss what goes on behind the doors, how and why films are added to their collection and about their loan program as well. It was fascinating to learn about this historical wonderland!