WILDsound: The Film Podcast

Matthew Toffolo - Wildcard Pictures Corp.
WILDsound: The Film Podcast

In each episode, our host Matthew Toffolo talks storytelling and film. Conversations with film professionals and great storytelling moments.

  1. 12 DEC

    EP. 1383 - Filmmaker Jonathan Derksen (VOICES FOR MADIDI)

    VOICES FOR MADIDI, 24min., Canada Directed by Jonathan Derksen Bolivia’s Madidi National Park is considered to be the most biodiverse place on planet earth. The Uchupiamonas people, who call the park home, are in a constant battle against forces eager to exploit the protected area for its hydroelectric potential, hardwoods and gold. In this documentary, we hear from of the eco-warriors at the front lines. https://www.instagram.com/jonathanderksen/ Get to know the filmmaker: The Madidi area of the Bolivian Amazon is perhaps the most biodiverse place on earth. I first visited the area in 1982 as a teenager, when a group of friends and I ventured down the Beni River in a motorized dugout canoe during the rainy season, only to almost meet our fate in deadly rapids, whirl pools and a maze of giant tree snags. Fortunately, we were taken in by some Moseten hunters, who fed us and gave us shelter until the rains abated and we could carry on. I returned to the area in the nineties as a photojournalist on a national parks beat, then, in 2007 as an expedition leader. In 2008, I filmed with National Geographic on Bolivia’s infamous “Death Road” traversing the Andes to the Amazon. In 2016 and 2017, I worked on a coffee table book “Madidi: an uncertain future” with photographer Sergio Ballivian. On each expedition, I interacted with the extraordinary Uchupiamonas people, who taught me the ways of the jungle and the profound importance of protecting such unparalleled biodiversity. They also educated me about the various existential threats to the region and its indigenous people. This lit a fire under me. In 2023, I returned with a film crew in hopes of bringing their story to the rest of the world, culminating in “Voices for Madidi”, a bilingual expression of the eco-warriors serving the front lives of a little-publicized battle. Subscribe to the podcast: https://twitter.com/wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  2. 12 DEC

    EP. 1382 - Fifi Fleshwound/Erin Knitis & Little Mary Switchblade/M

    SKATE FAST TURN LEFT, 1min., USA Directed by Mary Hawkins Two friends, Fifi Fleshwound and Little Mary Switchblade, have a quick conversation about their roller derby years… http://tookaturn.com/ https://www.instagram.com/thngstookaturn/ Get to know the filmmaker: What motivated you to make this film? My friend Andrea came up with Things Took a Turn, and I’d wanted to submit ever since I’d heard about it. It’s an animation anthology for women and gender minorities, and it just sounded like good weird fun… I told Fifi about it, since I’m not a writer-of-things and she is, and we chatted a bunch about ways to react to the prompt for that season: the End of the World. We’d meet in a diner, talk for about fifteen minutes about how we were going to approach the project and then veer off into old derby gossip. Eventually, I told her that we needed to nail things down and while we were at it… why didn’t we make the film about us and our experiences. We’d been coming up with little fictional scenarios, but our actual experience was better and more interesting. We’d put years of work into roller derby. It’s an all-consuming hobby and a really interesting community. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video? I loved the reactions! People put so much love and thought into their feedback and I really enjoyed hearing what they had to say, especially since most of the people who’ve talked to me about my film have been people I already have a connection to, either because they’re friends or also played roller derby or live in NYC. To see that total strangers were also interested in my film and really got what it was about really made my morning. My movie is only 45 seconds long. so nearly any description of the film is longer than the film itself. Subscribe to the podcast: https://twitter.com/wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  3. 11 DEC

    EP. 1381 - Filmmakers Cherie Carson, David Creech (SEQUOIA SPIRITS)

    SEQUOIA SPIRITS, 12min., USA Directed by Cherie Carson, David Creech “Sequoia Spirits” is a playful vertical dance film which peers deep into the heart and soul of a Redwood Grove. Under the great canopy of California’s majestic coastal giants, we get a glimpse into the elements that bring life to the woods – fire, water and earth. http://www.upswingaerialdance.org/ https://www.facebook.com/UpSwingAerialDanceCompany/ https://twitter.com/cc_upswing https://www.instagram.com/upswingaerial Get to know the filmmakers: What motivated you to make this film? Cherie- The desire to bring awareness to the beautiful Redwoods and to create and share vertical dance merging art and nature. David – As an artist and filmmaker, it is great fun as well as a great challenge to combine film with other art forms. It is so satisfying when all the elements come together and magic happens. What were your initial reactions when watching the audience talking about your film in the feedback video? Cherie- Wonderfully surprised, happy that it resonated with the audience so well David- I was pleased to see and hear how much thought went into the viewers answers. I felt proud that they actually felt the way I had hoped they would after watching the film. My definition of successful Art. Subscribe to the podcast: https://twitter.com/wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

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In each episode, our host Matthew Toffolo talks storytelling and film. Conversations with film professionals and great storytelling moments.

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