ArtiFact: Books, Art, Culture

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The ArtiFact Podcast is a long-form show on books, culture, painting, and music hosted by Alex Sheremet, Joel Parrish, and a revolving door of co-hosts and guests. Each subject is covered in depth and at length, with past shows featuring the Epic of Gilgamesh, Charles Johnson's "Oxherding Tale", Leonard Shlain’s "Art & Physics", John Williams's "Stoner", and more. Opinionated, controversial, and prone to making enemies and friends of friends and enemies, ArtiFact delivers new perspectives on the arts by artists of talent.

  1. FEB 23

    Did "Children of Men" Predict The Future? | ArtiFact #66: Keith Jackewicz, Alex Sheremet

    Alfonso Cuaron's "Children of Men" (2006) is enjoying a renaissance not only for its aesthetic qualities, but also its prescience. In the 2000s, overpopulation was still being discussed, and immigration wasn't the major topic. A post-racial America was declared, but ultimately dismissed. Taking place in 2027, "Children of Men" depicts refugees, fascism and domestic repression, a fertility crisis, Islam-as-rebellion, and a post-racial world in 2027, where one's place of birth is the great hierarchy. In ArtiFact #66, filmmaker Alex Sheremet and critic Keith Jackewicz tackle Alfonso Cuaron and his artistic philosophy. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/bDptk-kq01g   Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Learn about our debut film, "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.automachination.com/cityboy-bruce-ario-great-american-novel/ Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet's (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 -- a looming post-racial hierarchy? 1:00 -- futurism in sci-fi; why a filmmaker must critique films; technical greatness vs. artistic greatness 2:51 -- Keith on social vs. artistic accomplishment; why Britain "survives"; aesthetic vs. artistic greatness; why Richard Matheson's "I Am Legend" is the supreme example of sci-fi greatness; the realism of civil war in "Children of Men" 11:55 -- world-building vs. art; assessing the characters; Michael Caine is uncharacteristic as the hippie Jasper 16:16 -- why prescient art tends to be greater; the realistic assessments of technology in "Children of Men"; 1970s vibe to technology and militancy; cybernetics; by contrast, David Foster Wallace's "Infinite Jest" fails; Barack Obama's "post-racial moment" was false, whereas here it seems to exist; class stratification; native-born vs. foreign-born; did Britain have anti-migrant talking points in the 2000s; missing Ethan Pinch 28:20 -- the use of keffiyehs, Islam, and Arab militancy in "Children of Men"; prefiguring Hamas; the film is more plot-driven than narrative-driven; the writing isn't very memorable, but there aren't many cliches either; one example of cliche-inversion; cliches vs. predictability 36:40 -- the use of religion & Christianity; although not subtle, the manger scene is better than expected; Theo & Jasper in conversation; "Children of Men" could have used more off-the-cuff conversation; Baby Diego as a "wanker"; creating a distinct world through difference 45:43 -- predicting infertility & the refugee crisis as the "serious" issues of today 50:04 -- great color grading in "Children of Men"; the use of handheld camera for subject/object transitions; purpose of blood drops on the lens; long shots in a way that isn't showy 56:14 -- assessing Alfonso Cuaron's aesthetic philosophy; film in search of narrative vs. narrative in search of film; doing one's own cinematography; what else "Children of Men" does well; Alex: everything is downstream of the written word, PERIOD; the Au Hasard Balthazar connection Tags: #film #review #filmmaking

    1h 7m

  2. FEB 19

    Exposing The Epstein Class | ArtiFact 65: Alex Sheremet, Keith Jackewicz

    The release of the Jeffrey Epstein files have further eroded the status quo. People all over the world have recognized the Epstein class is bipartisan, and we dissect the implications. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9sOo4z7s3A Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Learn about our debut film, "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.automachination.com/cityboy-bruce-ario-great-american-novel/ Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet's (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps: 0:00 -- film updates; previewing Alfonso Cuoron's Children of Men; the coming treasonous war with Iran 2:11 -- the purpose of the Jeffrey Epstein abuse ring; "flooding the zone" with nonsense; cabals as the end of history; Epstein covered up bigger crimes in his emails; not funny, not smart, not even Daffy Duck; Seagate vs. Coney Island; Epstein as a trend-riding networker; Michael Tracey is a ******; how Epstein used intellectuals to whitewash himself; evidence of blackmail; Bill Gates spikes his wife's food with antibiotics; why Prince Andrew's downfall is revealing; Epstein and arms trafficking 18:48 -- Jeffrey Epstein and the Zionist superstructure; was Epstein a "liberal" Zionist?; how Ehud Barak paved the road for Israel's genocide; Woody Allen and Peter Beinart as liberal Zionists; Woody's anti-Semitic joke; Alex Sheremet is the foremost expert on Woody Allen's films; does Alex regret writing his book on Woody? 35:03 -- Michael Tracey & Epstein minimization; the Sultan's "torture video"; the DOJ's unnecessary redactions; did Trump cause Epstein's first arrest; the Alex Acosta / Alan Dershowitz angle; Alex Tooze's comments; why is the Epstein class so boring 46:06 -- the Jewish supremacist angle; a top Zionist seems to have pimped out her daughter; did Epstein have Jewish victims; Middle Eastern abuse rings; the targeting of Russian & Ukrainian women 57:28 -- Epstein & the dehumanization of sex workers; definitions of sex trafficking; fraud & coercion; Epstein victims (mostly) have the same stories; the Leon Black story; Virginia Giuffre; hundreds of court settlements are under de facto gag order; does Michael Tracey abuse women?; the consensus view; can you imagine Michael Tracey eating p**** Patron show preview: Does Michael Tracey have the spirituality to worship the cl*t; erosion of the status quo; the implosion of Barack Obama; Trump's presidency is being perceived as disastrous; why was Chomsky so fascinated by Epstein; old-school leftists had problems with age of consent; Gore Vidal and Roman Polanski; more on Woody Allen; the Soon Yi Previn angle -- why did she defend Anthony Weiner???; Woody Allen was a "legal" abuser; Epstein helped Woody Allen's children get into a top school; how Woody Allen's films shaped Alex Sheremet's psychology; previewing my Eyes Wide Shut conversation  #epstein #politics #princeandrew

    1h 9m

  3. 02/21/2025

    [TEASER] ArtiFact #65: New Georgia Film, Musk & Trump, Crypto Dystopia, & Looming Catastrophes

    Topics: discussing our upcoming film on Don Moss in Savannah, Georgia & Tybee Island; "Camera Work" photos curated by Alfred Stieglitz; adopting new cinematic techniques; Donald Trump, Elon Musk, & America's depression; Trump meme coins & the crypto grift; crypto removes the layers of fraudulent abstraction in Traditional Finance; how Trump could have avoided scamming his crypto followers; the DOGE dilemma; is Trump trying to provoke a constitutional crisis; will conservative culture be ascendant; how an economics cottage industry covered for Joe Biden's administration; is Left-Pessimism dead; on the oligarchy; the tech freaks; academia sucks, but the death of academic humanities will still have negative effects; coming troubles for the Trump admin; bird flu & coronavirus; RFK might not even pass a bird flu vaccine; Elon Musk's abandoned children; why voters gravitate towards authoritarians; what China & Russia is thinking observing America's oligarchic takeover; Chinese protest against local government; Alex's coming video essay on Liberia Get the full show here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/video-artifact-122779569 Watch our latest video essay, "The Murder & Resurrection of Paul Klebnikov": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Av6WBg0ii3U Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination

    1 min

  4. 11/22/2024

    Donald Trump & The Liberal Hydra | ArtiFact 64: Benjamin Studebaker

    Donald Trump's 2024 win surprised many pundits, but not Benjamin Studebaker, who had assumed the worldwide incumbency crisis in 2024 would ultimately come for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. His newest book, "Legitimacy in Liberal Democracies", builds on his previous work on the chronic crisis of liberal democracy. In ArtiFact 64, Benjamin Studebaker and author/filmmaker Alex Sheremet discuss their reasons for expecting a Trump victory, the question of political polarization, and where liberal democracy goes from here. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/j1nENjZNwu0 Read Alex Sheremet's essay on why Donald Trump was poised to win: https://www.automachination.com/joy-kamala-harris-lose-2024/ Buy Benjamin Studebaker's "Legitimacy in Liberal Democracies": https://www.amazon.com/Legitimacy-Liberal-Democracies-Benjamin-Studebaker/dp/1399534688/ Get the B Side to this conversation: https://www.patreon.com/automachination B Side Topics: Why Allan Lichtman's "Keys to the White House" failed; pollsters had no courage; modeling presidential elections on fundamentals; the psychology of modeling; how blame is shifted on to the electorate; assessing a very mixed economy; did white collar workers punish Kamala Harris for 2023-24 layoffs; the housing market as independent of inflation metrics; why voters assess incumbents on a purely relative basis; politics of memory; inflation-adjusted median family income has not returned to Trump-era benchmarks; are liberals dropping out of politics after Trump's win; why MSNBC and other outlets are losing subscribers; why the fear narratives failed; the story of 2024 is a racial shift towards the GOP; Benjamin Studebaker on what sort of disagreement nation-states tolerate; the nature of political polarization; how political leadership has ceased to lead; folk legitimation vs. official legitimation; expanding notions of inequality Learn about and contribute to our film, "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-film-the-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps 0:00 - Alex Sheremet's new film is out; introducing Benjamin Studebaker and his new book; why we expected Donald Trump to win 4:39 - Benjamin Studebaker on Democrats' headwinds; COVID & inflation; Democrats destroyed their chances years ago 8:13 - Alex: Democrats who sound/act like Kamala Harris NEVER get elected; there are no Liz Cheney/Alberto Gonzalez voters; polling was stable and consistent in favor of Trump 15:52 - sexism & the Kamala Harris campaign; many voters saw Kamala Harris as a weak woman, whereas few voters would dare think of Hillary Clinton as weak; why Kamala Harris was seen as a "DEI candidate" 20:45 - the global anti-incumbent bias in 2024; Mexico's AMLO and Claudia Steinbaum as exceptions to this backlash 25:20 - Trump's racism surrounding Haitian migrants vs. Kamala's racism in using, then ignoring migrants; Kamala's identitarian failures; Democrats are behaving like mob bosses, and voters don't want it 34:22 - Democrats assume voters accept their racial narratives about the GOP; why Democrats dehumanize non-party voters; previewing Allan Lichtman's Keys to the White House 36:36 - Benjamin Studebaker's thesis on the legitimation strategies of liberal democracies; the nature of escalating disagreements in embedded democracies; Trump and Obama as the aesthetic trappings of change; Studebaker's conception of a legitimation hydra in deep pluralism 48:25 - Kamala Harris taps the legitimation hydra with her contradictory promises; Trump has power as a non-incumbent, but loses as an incumbent; incumbency is increasingly a disadvantage for politicians 53:37 - defining deep pluralism; does it necessarily lead to polarization; deep pluralism creates issues for state capacities; embedded democracies imply no living memory of previous systems; the limits of an electorate's imagination 01:03:05 - legitimation in illiberal, authoritarian states 01:08:30 - amoral political theories leading to emergent morality; John J. Mearsheimer and state survival; survival is yet another key human value; how Israel partisans can come to exactly opposite conclusions with identical values; although everyone is watching Iran, Egypt and Jordan can just as easily collapse 01:18:20 - the role of art in politics, politics in art; art and infantilization; corporatist art; genuine art vs. fandom; fandom in politics; art as needling the status quo; Alex: art is a NECESSARY retreat; how great art is a service; Bruce Ario as a service-oriented artist Tags: #election2024 #politics #trump

    1h 41m

  5. 08/02/2024

    GAME OVER: Kamala Harris Pulls The Plug | ArtiFact 63: Alex Sheremet, Keith Jackewicz

    As soon as Joe Biden dropped out, Kamala Harris cinched the Democratic Party nomination. We assess Kamala Harris's uphill battle, and the extent to which Joe Biden condemned her to it. For example, why did Democrats hide Joe Biden's condition, even from themselves? What role will Biden's support for Israel's war crimes in Gaza play in 2024? We also assess Donald Trump's unique disadvantages, such as his horrible pick of the doughy and goofy JD Vance as Vice President. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ-CVOXacus Get the B Side to this conversation: https://www.patreon.com/automachination B Side topics: the role of Polymarket & other prediction websites; Kamala Harris's VP picks; why Josh Shapiro is a bad choice; the role of the Trump assassination attempt; Trumpian 'genius' does not generalize in any way; erosion of democracy; Hillary Clinton's "basket of deplorables"; Russia vs. China in racial stereotyping; the oddly dispassionate reporting on China; ethnic cleansing in Gaza; don't assume Donald Trump's psychology is your psychology; how quietness and false peace breed violence; the Lancet editorial on Gaza deaths; 'genocide' as a political football; is there a Democrat you would currently vote for; energy prices and climate change; assessing the Kamala Harris poll numbers; why Joe Biden's polling numbers never improved; Kamala Harris's silence on Joe Biden's senility; the Mercer cash injection in 2016 was just as important as the Comey letter; politics are so silly; Trump's strange popularity on Tik Tok; Alex talks about wrapping up his upcoming film Learn about and contribute to our film, "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-film-the-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps: 0:00 - the "Joe Biden Dementia" conspiracies turned out to be correct; how Democrats lied to themselves and others over Joe Biden's electoral risks; Joe Biden's slow and sudden decline; Joe Biden and Israel's genocide in Gaza 6:20 - the "secret competence" of Joe Biden vs. entrenched trajectories; why the 2020 debate was even more depressing; how Ezra Klein & Pod Save America created this whole mess; the prospects of a 2nd Trump presidency; Donald Trump's "dark vision" of America vs. Joe Biden's "no vision" for America; Project 2025 16:45 - lobbyists & the Judicial Branch are in control of America; the trajectory of privatization; Kamala Harris's extremely high staff turnover; Kamala Harris as "goofy girl-boss"; Donald Trump now sounds like a LOSER; is Kamala Harris sufficiently self-confident;  24:35 - Donald Trump's hubris forced him to select JD Vance; Elon Musk backs out of his $50 million a month promise to Trump; how public cryptocurrency bribes reveal the true role of money in politics; there is no "crypto vote" 30:10 - the tech class is the new freak class; Curtis Yarvin / Mencius Moldbug is an idiot & poor writer; Silicon Valley, Elon Musk, & pro-natalism; why Trump was booed at the Libertarian convention; why IQ does not transfer into actual competence & ability; JD Vance can't even win the Rust Belt; the tension between short & long-term thinking destroyed Roe v. Wade 42:00 - everything is getting much more competitive; Vice President picks used to matter a lot less; why are elections getting crazier & crazier; social media makes background "noise" much more meaningful; America's transition from hegemon to regional power; healthcare costs under Joe Biden & the erosion of Medicaid 53:33 - dissecting assumptions behind "Kamala Harris, DEI candidate"; political correctness on the Right, political correctness on the Left; "DEI thinking" is inherent to ALL political thinking; steelmanning DEI as an insult; why Joe Biden treated Kamala Harris as a token; did Joe Biden try to sabotage Kamala Harris; the leaks from Harris over the last few years are revealing Tags: #politics #kamalaharris #2024elections

    1h 12m

  6. 06/05/2024

    Thaao Penghlis on Memory & Greek Mythology | ArtiFact 62: Alex Sheremet, Thaao Penghlis

    Thaao Penghlis is a legendary actor who appeared on "Days Of Our Lives", "General Hospital", "Mission Impossible", and more. Yet he is also an intellectually curious person, and put together a mini-series on the archaeology of Homer's Greece. In ArtiFact 62, writer and filmmaker Alex Sheremet speaks with Thaao about Homer's "Iliad", the nature of cultural memory, and controversies surrounding Greek archaeology. You can also watch this discussion on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnNGWHmNrBg Listen to Thaao Penghlis's "Lost Treasures" on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thaao-penghliss-the-lost-treasures/id1705933001 If you found this video useful, support us on Patreon and get patron-only content: https://www.patreon.com/automachination Learn about and contribute to our first film, "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-film-the-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Google Podcasts: https://bit.ly/3dSQXxJ Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps: 1:24 – introducing Thaao Penghlis’s “Lost Treasures” podcast; Thaao’s boyish desire to be an archaeologist; cultures which “don’t steal”; the spoken word & pre-literate cultures; human memory & the Trojan War; Heinrich Schliemann 8:28 – how time levels what is least important; the longevity of Homer, the Iliad, and the Odyssey; why Thaao Penghlis was drawn to Homer & Homeric archaeology; Thaao: a country without a culture dies; when Thaao found ancient treasure in a tomb; Homer as the beating heart of Greek culture; the Greek respect for what’s ancient 15:48 – Alex: Homer was probably a writer, not illiterate; Thaao: Homer delivered a point of view; the nature of theater & theatrics; Ithaca as metaphor; the relevance of Homer’s blindness; Thaao’s on Barack Obama’s oratory; superficial distractions; why Thaao Penghlis stopped doing Days of Our Lives 23:38 – Alex: Greek mythology has been simplified for a pop audience; why Aphrodite is not the goddess of love; the Iliad does not give one much backstory; Helen was stolen by Paris as well as by her former husband, Menelaus; the amorality of ancient Greece; Hector’s wife, Andromache, describes ancient ethics; the child-like depiction of Achilles; the startling lack of heroes & heroics in Homer’s Iliad 32:27 – Homer’s indirect storytelling; Thaao: the Greeks did not go to war over a woman, but the development of steel; America’s War in Iraq vs. the Trojan War; intellect in Odysseus; why women as property might still explain war in an anarchic system 38:27 – Achilles and the death of his male lover, Patroclus; Athens vs. Mycenaean Greece; Heinrich Schliemann & the Mycenaean tombs 42:30 – Thaao Penghlis: when I touched Schliemann’s documents and palace, it finally felt real; Homer’s Greece and the Italian Renaissance 47:55 – was Heinrich Schliemann merely an impressive conman; Schliemann’s romantic entanglements; Schliemann as Pygmalion; Thaao: every rich businessperson (and politician) deals with fraud; Schliemann’s Orientalism in neglecting Turkish history in favor of “Greek” relics; Germans stole Greek relics, then Russians stole them back 56:00 – how Russia and Iran take war booty; why transitioning away from Putin won’t help Russia; Alex’s thoughts on Thaao’s podcast; taking the difficult path in the arts and art education; Hollywood’s bastardization of Greek mythos; Thaao on superficiality in the showbiz world; “Lawrence of Arabia” is “too slow” for the young; how Woody Allen taught Alex about avoiding relationship mistakes Tags: #tv #literature #greece #poetry #ancient #epic

    1h 5m

  7. 05/22/2024

    The Arts Naked & Up Close | ArtiFact 61: Erik Hill, Alex Sheremet

    Author and filmmaker Alex Sheremet sits down with Erik Hill of Erik Hill Reviews  @erikhillreviews  to discuss all things art: the relationship between filmmaking and poetry, how the Harlem Renaissance and rap music changed Alex's life, the perils of Steven Pinker, and fresh insights into Alex Sheremet's and Joel Parrish's new film, "From There to There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet". This discussion can also be watched on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1QPNsQlZRk This interview first appeared on Erik Hill's channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBE0DeormUQ Donate to "From There to There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-film-the-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Google Podcasts: https://bit.ly/3dSQXxJ Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps: 1:35 -- Alex Sheremet's background; from the USSR to Brooklyn, NY; Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice; the Harlem Renaissance & artistic hierarchies; how Alex's book of film criticism, "Woody Allen: Reel to Real", helped shape his own filmmaking 5:53 -- what makes a poem great; Countee Cullen's "Heritage"; Alex's atheism doesn't interfere with appreciating theological poetry; art should omit ideology in questions of craft; the artist's manipulation tactics 10:46 -- art's trajectory over time; one needs to do sufficient reading to recognize quality or flaws; why Alex abandoned Vladimir Nabokov 14:45 -- the role of politics in Alex Sheremet's artistic life; how rap music shaped Alex's artistic views; hip-hop & the stakes of masculinity; the destruction of attention span; being a 20th century man in the 21st century; many elements of human culture can disappear, but books totally shape human civilization 21:45 -- discussing Steven Pinker's "Better Angels of our Nature" & "Enlightenment Now"; human violence over time; bad neighborhoods vs. hunter-gatherer societies; those who believe in progress are incentivized to ignore stagnation 26:30 -- our film on Bruce Ario; Erik Hill reviews the film's first 8 minutes; Erik's experience with classical music set against visuals; how Alex Sheremet and Joel Parrish use visuals to "explain" Bruce Ario's poetry; why most poetry documentaries fail; using footage in arresting ways; choosing a film title 35:05 -- Bruce Ario's novel, "Cityboy"; Alex: it is a great, short novel but a difficult read; why Bruce Ario allowed his book to get destroyed; "Cityboy" captures mental illness very well; an example of great, unconventional writing in "Cityboy" 40:45 -- defining Bruce Ario's disabilities and mental ills; memoir vs. veiled autobiography vs. a "mere" novel; the "morality" of Bruce Ario's novel; art requires order, discipline, and consistency from the artist; Bruce Ario's interactions with homeless people; Robert Grudin: Time and the Art of Living  47:56 -- Bruce Ario's "innocence"; all cityboys must learn that all cities are the same 51:00 -- poetry recommendations for beginners; poetry is like learning a new language; how Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky changed Alex's life; Alex learned to read books by summarizing every paragraph on index cards Tags: #filmmaking #politics #books #poetry #cinema

    1h 3m

  8. 04/28/2024

    I Made The Film Nobody Else Would | ArtiFact 60: Destin Davis, Joel Parrish, Alex Sheremet

    Filmmaking can be highly technical, or not. As first-time director Alex Sheremet argues, finding the right topic and having an artistic blueprint in mind are far more important to master, as no amount of technical training will overcome bad ideas and artistic choices. Alex Sheremet and Joel Parrish sit down with Destin Davis of the Benton Courier to discuss their upcoming film, “From There to There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet”. You can also watch this conversation on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/o-eerpxlDlw Watch the film’s first 8 minutes on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/automachination Donate to "From There To There: Bruce Ario, the Minneapolis Poet": https://www.gofundme.com/f/new-film-the-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario Destin Davis’s article: “Upcoming documentary chronicles the life and legacy of Minneapolis poet Bruce Ario” – https://www.bentoncourier.com/news/upcoming-documentary-chronicles-the-life-and-legacy-of-minneapolis-poet-bruce-ario/article_d4da549e-fe6e-11ee-8200-37b686dd31bf.html Subscribe to the ArtiFact podcast on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3xw2M4D Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3wLpqEV Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/2SVJIxB Podbean: https://bit.ly/3yzLuUo iHeartRadio: https://ihr.fm/3AK942L Read more from the automachination universe: https://automachination.com Read Alex Sheremet’s (archived) essays: https://alexsheremet.com Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/automachination Timestamps: 1:18 – Joel Parrish discusses his art; transitioning into film work 3:01 – why Alex Sheremet wants to get back to writing; creating a film vs. executing on the page; writing must always stand on its own 4:32 – Destin Davis on newspaper writing; for film, the editing experience is quite different from shooting 5:50 – Alex on their DaVinci Resolve workflow; splitting up tasks; color grading vs. audio; Destin: the only way to shoot a film is to go out and do it; Joel: how photography is different from videography; Alex caught the photography bug 9:58 – Destin reviews the film’s first 8 minutes; Joel’s and Alex’s film equipment; Alex: you can make a great film under $10,000; pick a film-friend and split shooting duties 16:15 – how to take advantage of cheap equipment; technical deficiencies should be turned into strengths; the importance of having an overarching artistic blueprint; how the opening credits were designed; using composite and biographical material 19:05 – how Alex & Joel knew Bruce Ario; Bruce’s art and person; why we decided to do a film on Bruce Ario; even a non-reader of poetry can quickly ‘get’ Bruce’s poems 25:35 – how Alex used Bruce Ario’s poetry as the film’s framing device 28:00 – Minneapolis as the film’s center; Alex on how his book, “Woody Allen: Reel to Real”, prepared him to make a movie; Alex and Joel’s cinematic influences; Terrence Malick’s cinematography 35:20 –Terrence Malick’s “Badlands”; lo-fi aesthetics in film; preparing for a 30 minute rough cut; Destin Davis on the sameness of film festivals; people don’t talk about or read poetry anymore; poetry has the phantom of “uselessness”; Alex on an audience’s artistic discrimination; Joel: there is no Bruce Ario juvenilia, only the fully formed adult Bruce; how the brevity of Bruce’s poems helps the film 44:30 – understanding film vs. prose, poetry vs. prosaic scene-making; how to keep a film from being too prosaic 51:00 – timelines & practical considerations; film festivals; how filmmaking changes one’s film viewing habits; the faux documentaries of Werner Herzog; the lo-fi qualities of “Harlan County, USA”; influences from “Mr. Untouchable” and “Finding Vivian Maier”; Joel on “Searching for Sugarman”; the difficulty of reviewing John Cassavetes’s “The Killing of a Chinese Bookie”; Ingmar Bergman’s “Scenes from a Marriage”; how Woody Allen’s films changed Alex’s life; distinguishing a character’s likability vs. goodness; drawing the wrong lessons from the right film Tags: #filmmaking #cinematography #artist

    1h 6m
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Ratings & Reviews

2.8
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About

The ArtiFact Podcast is a long-form show on books, culture, painting, and music hosted by Alex Sheremet, Joel Parrish, and a revolving door of co-hosts and guests. Each subject is covered in depth and at length, with past shows featuring the Epic of Gilgamesh, Charles Johnson's "Oxherding Tale", Leonard Shlain’s "Art & Physics", John Williams's "Stoner", and more. Opinionated, controversial, and prone to making enemies and friends of friends and enemies, ArtiFact delivers new perspectives on the arts by artists of talent.

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