Discover Indie Film

Jeff Howard
  • 5.0 (23)
  • Film Interviews

Meet tomorrow’s filmmakers today.

  1. 703. Josiah Polhemus “The Falling”

    1d ago

    703. Josiah Polhemus “The Falling”

    We’ve made it to another Discover Indie Film Friday! Josiah Polhemus came on the pod to chat about his film The Falling, which was a SOFF 2025 Official Selection: Short Film – Horror and took home the Filmmakers Award – Outstanding Originality – Short Film – Horror I loved getting to know Josiah better and you can continue to dig deeper with these links! Instagram: @JosiahPolhemus Josiah’s YouTube Superpowerless on YouTube _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    1h 21m
  2. 702. Enrique Mendoza and Ren Olivieri “Rob Roy”

    3d ago

    702. Enrique Mendoza and Ren Olivieri “Rob Roy”

    Welcome Back! Enrique Mendoza and Ren Olivieri came to record this podcast together in person… we just had to wait for Ren to visit Los Angeles from Toronto.                                                                                                                                                                                                       But this All-American trio you’re about to hear – Ren from Canada, Enrique from Guatemala, and yours truly from the USA – represent pretty much every region North of South America! These two came by to discus their award winning film “Rob Roy,” an Official Selection at Sherman Oaks Film Festival 2025 that tookhome three awards; the Grand Jury Award for Best Short Film – Action-Thriller, the Filmmakers Award for Outstanding Director – Short Film – Action/Thriller to Enrique A. Mendoza, and the Filmmakers Award for Outstanding Screenplay – Short Film – Action/Thriller to Ren Olivieri.                                                                                                                                                                                                                    No wonder they like me! Each had been on the podcast before solo, Enrique on Episode 527. Enrique A. Mendoza “Fervor” and Ren on Episode 559. Ren Olivieri “The Trade” . Besides talking about how these two met at SOFF 2024, hit it off, watched each other’s screenings and collaborated in time to submit “Rob Roy” for the next year’s festival, they also wanted to talk about their new project, Fifty. Enjoy! Follow Ren on Instagram at @reno91 Follow Enrique on Instagram at @djurban01 Learn more about Enrique at themendozaproject.com _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    1h 26m

  3. 5d ago

    701. Dojin Kim “Where the Rain Stops”

    Happy Monday! Dojin Kim’s animated short film “Where the Rain Stops” was an Official Selection at the Sherman Oaks Film Festival on 2025 and took home the Filmmakers Award for Outstanding Originality – Short Film – Animation. This is unusual, but I think it is appropriate to share Dojin’s post-podcast recording with everyone. He wanted to express himself more clearly after our struggles with live translation. Here are Dojin’s own words: Thank you very much for your kindness and patience during the podcast recording. I know the language barrier must have made things less smooth at times, and I truly appreciate how thoughtful and generous you were throughout the conversation. In particular, when I did not fully understand the nuance of a short question and asked again, you kindly took the time to explain it in more detail, which made it much easier for me to understand. I am very grateful for that. It is always a wonderful thing to share something I have made with other people. Because of my full-time job and financial limitations, I was not able to visit Los Angeles in person, but having my film screened at SOFF was still a very meaningful experience for me. It was something truly special, and I would like to thank you again for making that opportunity possible.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                As with the themes in Where the Rain Stops, I feel that our world is living under dark clouds. From the climate crisis to the existential questions about humanity raised by AI, this is a dark and turbulent time.                  And yet, in the middle of that, the fact that human beings can communicate through creative work, and that people across the ocean, from different countries and different backgrounds, can share the emotions of the age with one another, reminds me of the value of art. More than that, it seems to offer us an answer, even if not a perfectly clear one, to the question of what it means to be human.                                                                      I want to express my respect for the work and dedication it takes to run a film festival and create a space where this kind of communication can happen.                                                                                                  Through today’s podcast conversation, I was reminded once again of the value of art and communication. Thank you again for making that possible. Link for Dojin’s favorite animated feature: The Boy and the World _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    33 min
  4. 700. 4Qs with Zeshaan Younus

    Jun 5

    700. 4Qs with Zeshaan Younus

    What are the 4Qs? (1) Three favorite films. (2) An underrated film. (3) An overrated film. (4) A lesser-known film people should seek out.’ Zeshaan Younus came on the podcast to speak about his film “I’ve Seen All I Need To See,” which was a SOFF 2025 Official Selection: Feature Film – Drama and took home an extremely long list of Grand Jury and Audience Awards. I so enjoyed chatting with Zeshaan and did not see all I needed to see but rather wanted to more- hence the 4 Questions follow up! Click here to see where to watch Zeshaan’s feature film I’VE SEEN ALL I NEED TO SEE Click here to watch Zeshaan’s previous feature film THE BUILDOUT on Tubi for free. Click here to watch Zeshaan’s short film PREFIGURED on Youtube/Dust. You can also find out more on IG @isaintsfilm _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    22 min
  5. 699. Zeshaan Younus “I’ve Seen All I Need To See”

    Jun 3

    699. Zeshaan Younus “I’ve Seen All I Need To See”

    Welcome back for another exciting Discovery of Indie Film! Zeshaan Younus came on the podcast to speak about his film “I’ve Seen All I Need To See,” which was a SOFF 2025 Official Selection: Feature Film – Drama. I’m clearly not the only one who saw what they needed to see to know this was a terrific film because it took home the Grand Jury Award – Best Feature Film –Drama,  Grand Jury Award – Best Director – Feature Film – Zeshaan Younus, Grand Jury Award – Best Score – Feature Film – Benjamin Doherty, Grand Jury Award – Best Sound Design – Feature Film – Aidan Neuner AND the Audience Award – Best Feature Film. You probably want to watch this film right now and you can! Click here to see where to watch Zeshaan’s feature film I’VE SEEN ALL I NEED TO SEE Click here to watch Zeshaan’s previous feature film THE BUILDOUT on Tubi for free. Click here to watch Zeshaan’s short film PREFIGURED on Youtube/Dust. You can also find out more on IG @isaintsfilm _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    1h 2m

  6. Jun 1

    698. Tatiana Blackington James “Lawyered Up”

    Welcome Back to the Discover Indie Film Podcast! And welcome back, Tatiana Blackington James. Tatiana returned to the podcast to talk about her film Lawyered Up, which was a SOFF 2025 Official Selection: Short Film –SciFi that impressively took home the Grand Jury Award – Best Short Film – SciFi, the Filmmakers Award – Outstanding Director – Short Film – SciFi – Tatiana Blackington James, AND the Filmmakers Award – Outstanding Cast Performance – Short Film – SciFi. Tatiana was first on in 2024 to chat about her amazing short “Homologies” and if you want to go back and listen that episode you can click HERE. You can find out more about what Tatiana’s up to on Instagram: @tbjscreenwriter @lawyeredupthefilm _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    1h 10m
  7. 697. 4Qs with Jesse Cook III

    May 29

    697. 4Qs with Jesse Cook III

    What are the 4Qs? (1) Three favorite films. (2) An underrated film. (3) An overrated film. (4) A lesser-known film people should seek out.’ Jesse Cook III came on the podcast to chat about his SOFF 2025 Official Selection LOOM that took home the Filmmakers Award – Outstanding Film – Short Film – SciFi. Jesse and I hit it off immediately when we met, but can I ever really feel close to someone unless I’ve asked them the 4 Questions? Follow Jesse on Instagram @jc3.mov _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    32 min
  8. 696. Jesse Cook III “LOOM”

    May 27

    696. Jesse Cook III “LOOM”

    Greetings Listeners! The only thing I love more than chatting with a really talented filmmaker is chatting with a REALLY NICE and lovely person that also happens to be a very talented filmmaker.                                                                  Jesse Cook III is absolutely both and I was thrilled to have him on to chat about his SOFF 2025 Official Selection LOOM that took home the Filmmakers Award – Outstanding Film – Short Film – SciFi Follow Jesse on Instagram @jc3.mov P.S.- I also couldn’t NOT take a photo of these adorable pups that may have been trying to steal the spotlight during the interview. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Discover Indie Film Links DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website Sherman Oaks Film Festival Film Invasion Los Angeles

    1h 19m
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About

Meet tomorrow’s filmmakers today.

Information

  • Creator
    Jeff Howard
  • Years Active
    2017 - 2026
  • Episodes
    700
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Discover Indie Film
  • Show Website
    Discover Indie Film