WILDsound: The Film Podcast

Matthew Toffolo - Wildcard Pictures Corp.
  • 5.0 (28)
  • FILM INTERVIEWS
  • UPDATED DAILY

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

  1. 14H AGO

    EP. 1686 (Actors Podcast #22): Adrian Teampau (NOW IT'S BETTER)

    Now it's better, 12min., Romania Directed by Alice Ioana Nicolae In a world where it is easier to tear down than to build, to blame rather than to take responsibility, there are still resources for a better life. Although very painful and seemingly unique to each couple, the stories of our protagonists are almost universally valid, or perhaps very relevant in our current social and political context.Will the protagonist couples save their relationships? We will see in the short film 'Now It's Better.' www.instagram.com/alicenicolaehl ——- Hannah Ehman chats with actor Adrian Teampau on the making of the award-winning film. Follow Interviewer Hannah Ehman on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ehmanhannah/ Watch Hannah’s commercial spots: https://www.ispot.tv/topic/actor-actress/bP8/hannah-ehman ——- Subscribe to the podcast: https://twitter.com/wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  2. 14H AGO

    EP. 1685: Filmmaker Fuzhi Zhao (Feet Don't Fail Me Now)

    Feet Don't Fail Me Now, 7min., USA Directed by Fuzhi Zhao The sun will erase your memory. If you don't want to become nobody, you have to keep running. —— Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  3. 1D AGO

    EP. 1684: Filmmaker Jason G. Mercado (UNDER THE STARS)

    In the forgotten corners of the city, a young homeless addict named JD drifts through nights haunted by silence, addiction, and disconnection. Alongside Max, a hardened street survivor, and Luna, a mentally ill woman caught in a cycle of delusion and innocence, JD stumbles through a grim urban purgatory. When tragedy strikes under the glow of streetlights and stars, JD is forced to confront the cost of invisibility — and the fragile spark of hope that may still exist. "Under the Stars" is a haunting, poetic portrait of those society ignores, where even in the darkest moments, humanity flickers like a lighter in the night. Conversation with filmmaker Jason G. Mercado, with his assistant Nadine Emrich. — Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  4. 2D AGO

    EP. 1683: Filmmaker Zayde Naquib (Rhythms: An Indivisible Marathon Swim)

    On September 22, 2025, Chef Matthew Biancaniello embarked on one of the greatest challenges of his life: a 21 mile swim from Catalina Island to Palos Verdes, CA. While his journey is inspiring on its own, he didn’t do it just for himself. The swim was a vehicle to raise money and awareness for Indivisible Arts, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching consciousness and creativity to kids. https://instagram.com/frequency.creative   What motivated you to make this film? This is the 2nd film in a documentary series I’m directing called Rhythms, which is all about the unseen rituals of inspiring people. I learned about Matthew Biancaniello’s marathon swim to raise money for Indivisible Arts through Robert Wemischner, who’s both a friend and was the subject for the first Rhythms film.  I was immediately intrigued, but then I spoke to Matthew as well as Rafael McMaster, the founder of Indivisible Arts, and I was so inspired. I knew I had to tell this story in some way, and thankfully everyone was excited to have me involved in this capacity. Indivisible Arts is a remarkable organization, teaching creativity and consciousness to kids. The first time I went to their space in Hermosa Beach I was taken aback. These kids are able to explore their own sense of self in a way that’s rare, as well as build vital mindfulness and emotional intelligence skills. Coupling that story with Matthew’s intense swim, 2 years after major back surgery, was something I felt deeply moved by. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film? I learned about the September 2025 swim in July. By early September we were confirmed to shoot, with production beginning on September 22. We completed the film and released it online on November 2, so it was about 4 months in total. — Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  5. 4D AGO

    EP. 1682: Filmmaker Romi Banerjee (GHEE)

    GHEE, 21min., India Directed by Romi Banerjee A quiet lunch turns upside down when a secret recipe sets off a chain of surprises. https://www.instagram.com/ghee_theshortfilm Director Statement Ever since I could remember, I was obsessed with the idea of “control.” Do we really have control, or is it just a trick of the mind hacking away at us, desperate to be seen, heard, and felt? With Ghee, I wanted to make a film which touched upon the topics of control, power, and ambition. While writing this short film, I aspired to create a rather simple world. Don’t get me wrong - It’s a simple world, but it is a world where Gods feast on Gods.Structured chaos is the name of the game. I sought after creating a radically dark story without using violence, gore, and external mayhem. I tried to birth an antagonist that was arguably worse than the cruelest dictators of yesteryears - a smiling devil. The kind of devil that sweet-talks you into jumping straight inside boiling, hot lava - all that without lifting a finger. Would you want to live in a world where something like "Enthrallium" has federal approval? A world where conscious thoughts are obsolete? Where hope is a relic? My love for monochrome knows no bounds. I wanted this film to have zero distractions. Also the black and white format allowed me to capture the complex shades of grey that mirror the human psyche reflective of the characters inside the film. The world is grim, and impatient to innocence. This is more than just a story about control; it’s a narrative about the madness required to thrive in a chaotic world. Because in this world, only the truly insane survive.

  6. 4D AGO

    EP. 1681: Filmmaker Tracy Graziano (Our Threatened & Endangered Species: Allegheny Woodrats)

    Our Threatened & Endangered Species: Allegheny Woodrat follows the Pennsylvania Game Commission and partners as they fight to save one of the state’s most elusive mammals. Once common across the Appalachian Mountains, the Allegheny woodrat has declined for decades due to habitat loss, disease, and the disappearance of its ancient ally—the American chestnut tree. What motivated you to make this film? Allegheny Woodrats is Episode II in a series on Threatened & Endangered Species. These films aim to educate folks on the challenges surrounding species conservation, and what people can do to get involved and actions they can take at home to help all wildlife. Wildlife conservation and management is complex, involving hard work, creativity, tenacity and human politics. If we tell the story well, we can ensure all of our native species persist into the future—because people will not protect what they don’t understand and they certainly won’t protect what they don’t know. The efforts surrounding saving the Allegheny woodrat are complex and involve partnerships across state lines, with varying agencies, non-profits, institutions and universities. There are over 15 groups involved in seeing that this species persists into the future. But the challenges the species’ face is multi-faceted: from the effective extinction of the American chestnut, to habitat fragmentation that cascades into genetic isolation, inbreeding and population loss, and finally the increasing raccoon population as a result of habitat fragmentation. To save a species, we must address all of the challenges. The effort, creative thinking and dedication to our wildlife fills me with hope. Despite all the things going wrong with conservation on a bigger scale, these stories are so impactful and clearly state that we can and will affect change if we just act even in small ways. I am driven to make a difference with the films I produce. Documentary film is a powerful tool that helps change hearts and minds—even for species or issues for which are foreign to many people. This species is a particular challenge because of the stigma in its name: it isn’t ‘just a rat’ and I hope this piece sheds some light on the importance of all wildlife, despite the name we have assigned them. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film? I started documenting field work with woodrats—actually translocations—in August of 2020. So, shooting took place over five years with the bulk of it taking place in 2024. I began editing full time in late summer 2024, and tried to do re-shoots and all the interviews in early 2025. Altogether the editing process took 18 solid months. I am one person and do all of the things: from research to writing, shooting and editing, it’s a monumental task of dedication. ——— Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  7. 5D AGO

    EP. 1680: Filmmaker Max Neace (SHIFT)

    Night security guard Tom monitors storage units in Chicago with only his chair and radio for company, until he witnesses regular tenant Mrs. Jones lead a man into her unit who mysteriously vanishes. Conversation with writer/director of the award-winning feature film SHIFT, Max Neace ——- Starring: Angela Alise, Cathleen Kaelyn, Rosanne Limeres Written & Directed by Max Neace Cinematographer: Robert Reed Altman Composer: Crystal Grooms Mangano Production Designer: Jevon Dismuke ——— Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

  8. 5D AGO

    EP. 1679: Filmmaker Suzanne Marie Moreau (GINNY’S ENTERPRISE)

    GINNY’S ENTERPRISE, 18min., Canada Directed by Suzanne Marie Moreau She boldly goes where no girl has ever been allowed before! How a young Star Trek fan foils her family’s restrictive roles for girls by becoming the Captain of her own starship. Get to know the filmmaker: What motivated you to make this film? I was motivated by my own coming of age experiences as a girl growing up in the sixties Cold War at a time when gender roles were strictly enforced by a generation traumatised by war. This origin story is a version of my own loss of innocence and a stark recognition of truth as an enigma. It is a reckoning of how I coped with injustice and intergenerational, complex trauma over a lifetime – like Ginny does in the film, at times inappropriately. The film is very meta. It’s a path towards forgiveness of self and others, and of healing. It’s how I found a way, through storytelling,to those who may have experienced their own version of trauma, to offer a glimmer of hope. From the idea to the finished product, how long did it take for you to make this film? Ginny’s Enterprise was one of several short screenplays I began writing in 2019. The screenplay was selected by Toronto and Montreal film festivals, and became a festival finalist in Vancouver, New York, Vienna and Paris, France in 2021. After launching my first short film, Blood Buddies (2022), I began pre-production in summer 2022 and wrapped filming in October that year. Ginny’s Enterprise completed post-production and made its debut in film festivals in early 2023. ——- Subscribe to the podcast: Tweets by wildsoundpod https://www.instagram.com/wildsoundpod/ https://www.facebook.com/wildsoundpod

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About

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

Information

  • Creator
    Matthew Toffolo - Wildcard Pictures Corp.
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    300
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © This product belongs to WILDcard Pictures Corp.
  • Show Website
    WILDsound: The Film Podcast