The Substance

The Substance Team
  • 4.8 (91)
  • SPIRITUALITY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

A podcast starting conversations that aim to help us all better appreciate Goodness, Truth, and Beauty. Engaging the culture without the Culture War™. Kansas City based! Socials: www.facebook.com/thesubstancepod www.twitter.com/thesubstancepod www.instagram.com/thesubstancepod Support: Click the button below, or you can hit us up on the Cash App at $thesubstancepod

  1. 2D AGO

    193: Substantive Cinema | Southland Tales feat. Laurie Strode Trap House

    ***I don't like doing disclaimers on episodes and this one isn't totally filthy or anything but there is some explicit dialogue in the film that we discuss, so if you listen in the car with other people or whatever, you've been warned*** "This is the way the world ends. Not with a whimper, but with a bang." There are a handful of movies that I've specifically wanted to cover on the show from the very beginning and today we're checking a big one off of the list. Richard Kelly blew up on the scene with his debut feature Donnie Darko. It was a massive cult hit that earned him the attention and favor of both audiences and filmmakers. So much so that he was allowed to make one of the wildest (complimentary) movies of the aughts, with an absolutely stacked cast of stars like Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Sean William Scott, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Mandy Moore, and Justin Timberlake as well as several SNL alumni (and Will Sasso). The plot of the film is hard to convey briefly (thought Kev does a wonderful job at the top of our discussion) but suffice it to say it's about post 9/11 America and the ways we may destroy ourselves. Joining us for this discussion are Kev and Anna Ghoul from the phenomenal new podcast Laurie Strode Trap House, a show about friendship and horror in the 21st century. Go check the out! Blah blah blah follow or subscribe to the show so new episodes pop on your feed and hit the 5 star button if you think we deserve it! Substantive Cinema Letterboxd List Follow Guests: Laurie Strode Trap House Instagram Austin Danger Podcast Follow Kev on Letterboxd Follow Anna on Letterboxd Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 41m

  2. JAN 7

    192: Liturgies For Resisting Empire feat. Kat Armas

    Hey there, we intended to get this episode published last month but life and *waves hands at everything going on in the US* got in the way. HOWEVER! This was an encouraging conversation and a great way to orient ourselves as we kick off a new year under an oppressive, malicious, and very dumb empire. Kat Armas is is a Cuban American writer, speaker, and theologian from Miami, FL. She holds a ThM from Vanderbilt Divinity School, and a dual MDiv and MAT from Fuller Theological Seminary where she was awarded the Frederick Buechner Award for Excellence in Writing. She is also a very thoughtful writer and a great hang. Topics included on this episode: The way Empire trades mystery and memory for conformityHer book dedication on LfREAdvent and how the Incarnation relates to what she's been thinking and writing about latelyHer love of reading and horror moviesand MORE! Check out her upcoming stops on her book tour and take some friends to see her when she's in your area! Buy Liturgies For Resisting Empire (30% off & Free Shipping rn!) Listen on Libby through your local library Shoutouts: The Correspondents Tell Me Everything Alien series Small Things Like These Children of Men Follow Kat: Instagram Website Substack Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 1m

  3. 12/24/2025

    191: Substantive Cinema | The Holdovers feat. Marta Djordjevic

    They said it couldn't be done but here we are, getting in our Christmas episode riiiiight before the big day! A few years ago Alexander Payne's The Holdovers made a big splash and became an instant Christmas classic to many. The film follows professor Paul Hunham (Paul Giamatti) as he is forced to look after the students without anywhere to go over Christmas break. Through a series of events he bonds with a talented but mischievous student played by Dominic Sessa, in an incredible debut performance, and the school's head cook (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) who just lost her son. Joining us for this conversation is friend of the show Marta Djordjevic. We cover many things including: Dream Criterion Collection titlesThe beauty of New England in the winterHow Payne and cinematographer Eigil Bryld masterfully evoke 1970s cinemaThe way the whole film is shaped by the underlying realities of class, race, and economic disparityLayers of meaning that are revealed in repeat viewingsHow funny the movie isand MORE! We hope you enjoy the film and our discussion! If you do, be sure to tell a friend 😃 List of Substantive Cinema Episodes Watch along with us on Letterboxd and tag your reviews "substantive cinema" so that we can se them and engage with them on future episodes! Shoutouts: Malpertuis La Vie De Boheme The Timekeepers of Eternity Highest 2 Lowest Open Throat by Henry Hoke Follow Marta: Rewind and Revive Recent Projection Booth Episode Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 21m

  4. 11/10/2025

    190: Feed Drop | O Pagador de Promessas (The Projection Booth feat. Philip Marinello)

    Enjoy this feed drop from earlier this year when host Philip Marinello joined Mike White and Robert Bellissimo on The Projection Booth to talk about the underseen Palme d'Or winning 1962 film O Pagador de Promessas. Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    51 min

  5. 11/04/2025

    189: Substantive Cinema | In the Mouth of Madness feat. simi.views

    "Do you read Sutter Cane?!" We're back in your feeds with another underrated banger from one of the all time Masters of Horror™. John Carpenter's In the Mouth of Madness is an absolute thrill ride and since Arrow Video has released what we hear is a gorgeous new 4K we figured it was time talk about one of his best (and most slept on) movies. We are excited to be joined by Derrick (simi.views on all the socials) for his first appearance on the show as he's beginning to really get into Carpenter's work. When we just saw him log this highly on Letterboxd we thought this was a perfect fit and we weren't wrong as this was a wonderful conversation! On this episode we discuss: Our journeys so far with Carpenter's workPhysical media we have been enjoying latelyThe state of film scholarship in the age of social mediaHow JC's less is more approach to showing the overt horrors here was so effectiveSam Neill's perfect castingThe power of the film despite its memeificationHow Carpenter's work feels more powerful year after yearand MORE! Substantive Cinema Episode List Shoutouts: Tsukamoto Box Set Kotoko Cloud The Cat Breathe In, Bleed Out Takeout (Tubi, sponsor the show!) Follow Derrick: TikTok Instagram Letterboxd Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 17m

  6. 11/02/2025

    188: Substantive Cinema | The Amusement Park feat. Dale_A

    We are back! Had big plans for Spooky Season this year but health, vehicle nonsense, family, and general exhaustion at the state of things in the US had other plans. It was an absolute pleasure talking with Clark Collis about his new book Screaming and Conjuring on the last episode and to follow it up we've brought back an incredible guest and we're diving back into the work of one of the undisputed Masters of Horror™. A few years ago we covered Romero's debut film and foundational masterpiece The Night of the Living Dead with Filmspotting's Josh Larsen. Romero's Dead movies are something we'd like to revisit sometime here at The Substance but today we're looking at a long hidden gem from early in his career that only recently became widely available, The Amusement Park. Commissioned by The Lutheran Society of Western Pennsylvania as a PSA on the perils of aging in America (especially as a non wealthy White), Romero decided to boldly make the project his own and instead of an after school special with talking heads discussing the difficulties that our senior neighbors face, he turned in something surreal and terrifying. With minimal dialogue the film conjures up the horrors of aging in an individualistic capitalist society: steep economic cost, difficulties with transportation, not being taken seriously by the general public, red tape accessing medical care, predatory assisted living facilities, and more. It's not a fun time but it's a visceral experience and one that stirs up questions worth asking related to what we owe to our more elderly neighbors. And we are delighted to be joined by Dale_A from the Bat & Spider podcast. Next time we have him back for something more uplifting! Substantive Cinema List Shoutouts: John Carpenter soundtracks True Indie by Don Coscarelli Bat & Spider Episode #250 Phantasm Extravaganza One Cut of the Dead Follow Dale: Instagram Bat and Spider Podcast Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 21m

  7. 10/13/2025

    187: Screaming and Conjuring feat. Clark Collis

    Happy Spooky Season, all! We're kicking off our October programming this year with a bang and covering two of our favorite things: horror movies and beautiful hardcover books. Clark Collis is a British entertainment journalist and a long time senior writer for Entertainment Weekly along with being a regular contributor to other outlets covering film. He's also a life long horror fan. Modern horror cinema is in a fascinating place and in his new book, Screaming and Conjuring, Clark charts the period of horror cinema that immediately preceeds our current time (from Scream to The Conjuring) to chart the course of how we got here and what we may expect going forward. In our conversation we cover: The life of an entertainment journalist when that was a valued positionClark learning about Tommy Wiseau's The Room on a day trip with Tim & EricThe BFI library's impressive Fangoria collectionHow the DVD boom was big business (and a precurser to many film podcasts)"Is horror finished/back?"Familiar vs Fresh in relation to horror premisesDon Coscarelli and the lovely legacy of PhantasmLionsgate becoming the horror powerhouse of the aughtsMeeting the real Warrens & Annabelleand MORE! Substantive Cinema Episode List Buy Clark's books! You've Got Red on You Screaming and Conjuring Shoutouts: Shaun of the Dead The Descent Barbarian Weapons The Chucky series Follow Clark: Instagram Entertainment Weekly Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 31m

  8. 09/24/2025

    186: Substantive Cinema | New York, New York feat. Jim Hemphill

    Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver & Raging Bull are widely considered two of the best films of their era that were made in America. He and Robert DeNiro were a powerhouse creative team and they're still considered one of the all-time great collaborations in the history of the medium. This makes it curious that the film that they made together in between these monumental classics, 1977's New York, New York, has been largely forgotten and left out of the conversation. We're seeking to remedy that with our episode this week and we are happy to be joined by film enthusiast and historian Jim Hemphill. Jim has loved the film since he saw as a young film student and he brings some wonderful and personal insights to the discussion. In the episode we cover: Why directors and actors are often poor judges of their own workJim's early days in LA and getting to meet folks like Samuel Fuller, Billy Wilder, Budd Boetticher, and Blake EdwardsThe power of laserdiscs (and physical media in general) to develop and nurture generations of movie loversMarty's balance of strengths in having the talents of a classical studio director alongside the passions of an independent auteur The fact that NYNY may be Scorsese's only film (beyond his "faith trilogy") where the protagonist experiences genuine growthAnd more! Buy New York, New York Limited Edition Blu-Ray Substantive Cinema Episode List Jim's IndieWire article on NYNY Blu-ray Commentaries with Jim and his wife: The Golden Child and Navy Seals Shoutouts: The Smashing Machine One Battle After Another Dexter: Resurrection Follow Jim: Instagram IndieWire Follow Us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Threads⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip's Letterboxd⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠BlueSky⁠⁠⁠ Share Your Questions/Suggestions/Feedback With Us: Email: thesubstancepod@gmail.com DM on Instagram Support Us: Support the show with an individual donation on CashApp to $TheSubstancePod or become a monthly Patreon supporter at patreon.com/TheSubstancePod

    1h 10m
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4.8
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About

A podcast starting conversations that aim to help us all better appreciate Goodness, Truth, and Beauty. Engaging the culture without the Culture War™. Kansas City based! Socials: www.facebook.com/thesubstancepod www.twitter.com/thesubstancepod www.instagram.com/thesubstancepod Support: Click the button below, or you can hit us up on the Cash App at $thesubstancepod

Information

  • Creator
    The Substance Team
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    200
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © The Substance Team
  • Show Website
    The Substance