162. Interview | ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS Director John Makens episode artwork

EPISODE · Jan 3, 2026 · 16 MIN

162. Interview | ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS Director John Makens

from The Movies · host Daniel Berrios

I interview John Makens, the director of ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS. The 81-year-old graphic designer Jim Phillips may not be instantly recognizable, his art - the "Screaming Hand," the "red dot" Santa Cruz Skateboards logo, the myriad of custom skateboarding full-board decals, the cartoonish California outdoor mosaics, the rock posters for the likes of The Beatles & Neil Young - absolutely is. His art spans decades, hobbies and generations, cultivating the identities of skateboarding and surfing cultures in ways that inspire current public perception.Makens and I discuss what makes Phillips special, how he and his crew animated Phillips' art within the documentary, how his relationship to Phillips evolved over the course of the doc's 10+ year production and more.---Follow The Movies on ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠& ⁠⁠Letterboxd⁠⁠Financially support the podcast via the ⁠⁠tip jar!

I interview John Makens, the director of ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS. The 81-year-old graphic designer Jim Phillips may not be instantly recognizable, his art - the "Screaming Hand," the "red dot" Santa Cruz Skateboards logo, the myriad of custom skateboarding full-board decals, the cartoonish California outdoor mosaics, the rock posters for the likes of The Beatles & Neil Young - absolutely is. His art spans decades, hobbies and generations, cultivating the identities of skateboarding and surfing cultures in ways that inspire current public perception.Makens and I discuss what makes Phillips special, how he and his crew animated Phillips' art within the documentary, how his relationship to Phillips evolved over the course of the doc's 10+ year production and more.---Follow The Movies on ⁠⁠Instagram ⁠⁠& ⁠⁠Letterboxd⁠⁠Financially support the podcast via the ⁠⁠tip jar!

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162. Interview | ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS Director John Makens

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I interview John Makens, the director of ART AND LIFE: THE STORY OF JIM PHILLIPS. The 81-year-old graphic designer Jim Phillips may not be instantly recognizable, his art - the "Screaming Hand," the "red dot" Santa Cruz Skateboards logo, the myriad...

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