THE HOLLYWOOD PODCAST

Cinematographer Julia Swain's work has premiered at major festivals including SXSW, Fantastic Fest, Sitges, and Fantasia. Audiences may know her cinematography from films like Scrambled, The Wrath of Becky, and Lucky, and she's now bringing her visual style to Netflix's new romantic comedy Voicemails for Isabelle starring Zoey Deutch and Nick Robinson.

Sound editor John Loranger's past credits include the Netflix series BET, Fox shows GOING DUTCH & BEST MEDICINE, and the Peacock series STRUNG. In this episode, John discusses his work on the latest season of the Netflix series WEDNESDAY, evolving the show’s sonic landscape while anchoring it in the foundational DNA of the first season.

Filmmaker Jon Erwin is the creative force behind some of the most successful inspirational films of the last decade, including I Can Only Imagine, American Underdog, and Jesus Revolution. He's also the Chief Creative Officer of Wonder Project and the creator of House of David. We're discussing his latest film, Young Washington, which explores the little-known story of George Washington before he became the leader who helped shape a nation. The film is now playing in theaters in time for the 250th anniversary of the nation’s founding.

Siddhartha Khosla is an Emmy-winning composer whose work spans some of television and film's most acclaimed recent projects. Audiences know his music from series including the Emmy-winning Only Murders in the Building, Paradise, Elsbeth, Welcome to Chippendales, Rabbit Hole and This Is Us, as well as films such as The Idea of You, Your Place or Mine, A Family Affair, and Queenpins.His latest project is Netflix's animated adventure SWAPPED, starring Michael B. Jordan and Juno Temple. The film follows a tiny woodland creature and a majestic bird who suddenly swap bodies and must work together to survive an unforgettable adventure.

Composers Brian Tyler and Breton Vivian are the creative team behind the score for the CBS series Marshals. Brian Tyler is one of the most prolific composers working today, with credits that span blockbuster films and major television projects, including The Fast and the Furious franchise, Iron Man 3, and Yellowstone. Breton Vivian is an accomplished composer and producer whose past work includes Five Feet Apart, Yellowstone, and 1923.

Pepe Avila del Pino is an acclaimed cinematographer whose work spans some of the most visually ambitious projects in film and television. Audiences have seen his work on acclaimed productions including House of the Dragon, The Deuce, Ozark, Mrs. America and the film The Kindergarten Teacher. Now, Pepe brings his cinematic eye to FX’s Love Story, where his visual storytelling helps shape the emotional heart of the series.

Actor James Urbaniak has a career that has spanned theater, film, television, and voice acting for more than three decades. Audiences may know him from films like American Splendor and Oppenheimer, television series including Review and Difficult People, and countless stage productions throughout his career.He's currently appearing in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play Primary Trust written by Eboni Booth at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles, a moving and deeply human work that explores friendship, loneliness, and the courage it takes to embrace change.

7-time Emmy winning costume designer and producer Tom Broecker has been with Saturday Night Live for over 30 years. Over the course of his remarkable career, Tom has helped create the visual identity of countless iconic sketches, characters, celebrity impressions, and live television moments that have become part of comedy history and television history.Most recently, Tom and his team have been behind the costumes for Season 51 of SNL, helping bring to life everything from political satire and pop culture parodies to the wildly inventive original characters that make the show unique. His other credits outside of SNL include In Treatment, The Big C, 30 Rock, House of Cards, Mean Girls, and The Comeback.

Emmy-nominated production designer Susie Mancini discusses her work on her latest project, the Peacock seris THE 'BURBS, an adaptation of the 1989 film where old secrets resurface when a newly married couple relocate to the suburban neighborhood of the husband's youth. Her past credits include The Little Hours, Ingrid Goes West, Dollface, Space Force, The Sex Lives of College Girls, Dicks: The Musical, and The Paper.

Grammy-winning composer Nora Kroll-Rosenbaum is a Juilliard-trained composer whose work spans film, television, animation, and the concert hall. Nora has built an incredibly diverse career scoring projects including Marvel’s What If...?, Don’t Look Deeper, Prisoner’s Daughter, and Stockholm, Pennsylvania. She’s also collaborated extensively with composer Laura Karpman on acclaimed projects for HBO, Marvel, and Sundance-premiering documentaries. Beyond her composing work, she serves as an advisor at the Sundance Institute and mentors emerging artists through YoungArts. Today, we’re discussing her work on the new Netflix series Big Mistakes which is about two directionless siblings Nicky and Morgan who get blackmailed into the world of organized crime.

John Paesano is a BAFTA-winning and Emmy- & Grammy-nominated composer whose work spans some of the biggest franchises in film, television, and gaming. His credits include Marvel's Daredevil and The Defenders, Amazon's Invincible, the Maze Runner films, the Planet of the Apes franchise, and PlayStation's acclaimed Spider-Man trilogy, for which he earned a BAFTA Award and a Grammy nomination.He also composed music for Disney's Avengers Campus and most recently created the score for Netflix's new mystery-adventure series The Boroughs from creators Jeffrey Addiss and Will Matthews and executive producers the Duffer Brothers. On this episode, we discuss crafting the musical world of The Boroughs, his love of classic orchestral storytelling, and why he approached this score as if it were being written in 1988.

BAFTA-winning costume designer Maja Meschede discusses her work on the new series adaptation of one of the most read books in modern literary history - Lord of the Flies, now streaming on Netflix. Some of her past credits include the film Fury, Netflix's Black Mirror, HBO’s Catherine the Great, Downton Abbey: A New Era, Paramount+ series The Burning Girls and Hulu series A Thousand Blows.

Actor and comedian Alex Bonifer currently stars in the Amazon Freevee series Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat. Alex plays Dougie Jr., the awkward but lovable heir apparent to the Rockin’ Grandma’s hot sauce empire — a character that’s already earned rave reviews from outlets like The AV Club, Collider, and The Daily Beast for balancing absurd comedy with genuine heart.Outside of Jury Duty, Alex is a member of the Main Company at The Groundlings and has appeared in shows including No Good Deed, Superstore, and Kevin Can F**k Himself opposite Annie Murphy.

Julie Tucker is an acclaimed casting director whose work spans film and television, helping shape performances and ensembles across a wide range of projects. Her previous credits include Law and Order: SVU, The Big C, Damages, Nurse Jackie, The Americans, White Collar, The Affair, Hunters, Dexter: Next Blood and The Equalizer. She discusses her work on her latest project - Netflix miniseries The Beast in Me starring Clare Danes, Matthew Rhys, Natalie Morales and Brittany Snow.

Harry Gregson-Williams and Rupert Gregson-Williams are two of the most accomplished and respected composers working in film and television today.As individual composers, they’ve created music for an incredible range of projects, from Gladiator II, The Martian, Shrek, and The Chronicles of Narnia to Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Hacksaw Ridge, and The Crown. Together, they’ve collaborated on acclaimed productions including Catch-22 and HBO’s hit period drama The Gilded Age.Now in its third season, The Gilded Age continues to chronicle the clash between old money and new money in 1880s New York, and Harry and Rupert’s score has become an essential part of the show’s elegance, emotion, and grandeur.

Barrie Gower is one of the industry’s most acclaimed prosthetics and makeup effects designers. You’ve seen his work in projects like Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, The Witcher, The Last of Us, and The Rings of Power.He’s now bringing the iconic world of Masters of the Universe to life for the big screen, creating the prosthetic and creature designs for characters including Skeletor, Trap Jaw, Mossman, Goatman, and many more inhabitants of Eternia.

Composer Haim Mazar's work spans across film and television with credits including films like The Iceman, The Taking of Deborah Logan, I Am Wrath, and Desperation Road, along with television series like Hulu’s Woke and Netflix’s Sneakerheads.Now, he’s bringing his blend of horror, comedy, and cinematic suspense to one of the most iconic parody franchises of all time as the composer of the brand-new Scary Movie.

Production designer Sue Chan has built an incredible career creating visually immersive worlds across film and television, with past credits including Where the Crawdads Sing, Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Shirley and Colossal.She’s now out with her latest project, the AppleTV+ series MURDERBOT starring Alexander Skarsgard where he stars as a media-obsessed private security construct (manufactured from cloned human tissue and mechanical parts) calling itself Murderbot who must hide its newly acquired autonomy while completing dangerous assignments and being simultaneously drawn to humans, and appalled by their weakness.

Acclaimed Oscar & BAFTA-nominated & Emmy-winning production designer Gemma Jackson has worked across film and television at the highest level. She’s known for creating incredibly immersive worlds that don’t just look beautiful—but actively shape how we experience a story. Her past credits include Bridget Jones's Diary, Iris, Finding Neverland, Aladdin, Lee, The Gentlemen and The Outfit as well as series such as John Adams, Game of Thrones and The Nevers.Her latest project is the Netflix miniseries Death By Lightning, which depicts the election and presidency of President James A. Garfield as well as how his path crossed with a deluded admirer, who ended up shooting him, leading to Garfield's death.

Emmy- and WGA-winning editor, producer and writer Adam Penn's work has helped shape the tone, tension, and emotional impact of some of television’s most compelling stories. His previous credits include NIP/TUCK, THE NORMAL HEART, MR. ROBOT, 9-1-1, AMERICAN CRIME STORY, HUNTERS, GENIUS, AMERICAN HORROR STORY and LOVE STORY. On this episode, Adam discusses his work on the latest installment of the Netflix anthology series Monster: The Ed Gein Story.

Lowell A. Meyer is an acclaimed cinematographer whose work you’ve seen in films like Knock at the Cabin, Caddo Lake, Thunder Road, The AI Doc, as well as the series Servant. He’s now out with his latest film, the crime thriller TUNER about a talented piano tuner who suffers from hyperacusis and discovers an unexpected aptitude for cracking safes, turning his life upside down. The film is directed by Daniel Roher and stars Leo Woodall, Havana Rose Liu and Dustin Hoffman.

Stephanie Spruill is a Grammy Award-winning vocal coach, singer, producer, songwriter, and one of the most recorded background vocalists in music history. Over a career spanning more than five decades, she’s worked with artists including Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, Quincy Jones, Elton John, Barbra Streisand, and so many more.Most recently, Stephanie served as the vocal coach behind the new Michael Jackson biopic Michael, helping the cast authentically capture the voice and artistry of one of the greatest performers of all time. She’s also the founder of Spruill House Music and has dedicated much of her career to developing the next generation of artists.

Multi-Emmy Award winning composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer is known for his bold, unconventional approach to film and television scoring, blending electronic textures, vocal experimentation, and percussive elements into something instantly recognizable. Some of his past credits include the Amazon series HUNTERS, the Paramount horror films SMILE and SMILE 2, and the A24 film BABYGIRL.More recently, he became widely recognized for his Emmy-winning work on THE WHITE LOTUS, where his distinctive themes became a cultural phenomenon. Now, he brings that singular sonic voice to a new adaptation of LORD OF THE FLIES as a series which is now streaming on Netflix.

Production designer Alex DiGerlando has worked on films & shows where his richly detailed, immersive environments feel as emotionally layered as the characters themselves. He’s collaborated with some of the most distinctive voices in film and television, with credits including TICK TICK BOOM, OCEAN'S 8, CHI-RAQ, 99 HOMES, BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD as well as series like MANIAC, THE OA, TRUE DETECTIVE and most recently LOVE STORY.His latest work is the Netflix series BLACK RABBIT starring Jude Law and Justin Bateman which is about A rising-star restaurateur who is forced into New York's criminal underworld when his chaotic brother returns to town with loan sharks on his trail.

Jude Feller is the costume designer for the latest season of the Netflix series Virgin River who is stepping into a beloved series with a fresh take. A few of her previous credits include the CW series Nancy Drew, CBC’s Allegiance and the legal dramedy Family Law.

Today I’m joined by editor Gary Levy, whose work has helped shape the sharp, fast-paced storytelling of The Diplomat, where he’s edited multiple episodes across several seasons. Gary has been working in film and television editing for decades, with credits spanning acclaimed series like Tokyo Vice, The Good Fight, The Sinner, and Nurse Jackie—the latter earning him an ACE Eddie Award. His career also includes work on shows like The Office and Royal Pains, as well as a range of independent films, giving him a broad storytelling background that blends character-driven drama with sharp comedic timing.

Production designer Grace Yun discusses her work on the latest season of Beef, where her sharp, character-driven environments played a huge role in shaping the show’s tension and dark humor. This second season stars Carey Mulligan, Oscar Isaac, Cailee Spaney, and Charles Melton.Beyond Beef, her credits include THUNDERBOLTS, PAST LIVES, HEREDITARY, FIRST REFORMED, BEACH RATS as well as the series RAMY.

Cinematographer James Laxton's work has spanned across a range of visually distinctive projects, noted for his recurring collaboration with director Barry Jenkins on projects such as MOONLIGHT for which he was Oscar-nominated, IF BEALE STREET COULD TALK, THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, and MUFASA: THE LION KING. His style blends precision with an instinct for emotional immediacy—something that’s especially evident in his latest work on season 2 of BEEF, starring Carey Mulligan, Oscar Isaac, Cailee Spaeney and Charles Melton.

Oscar-nominated and Golden Globe-winning actor Bruce Davison is best known for his work in past films such as Longtime Companion, The Crucible, Short Cuts and X-Men as well as series like Harry and the Hendersons and more recently Ozark, Bosch, and 1923. He’s now out with his latest film CASA GRANDE which is about a prodigal daughter who rejoins her family at their farm during a difficult time, as her ailing father faces both a terminal diagnosis and mounting pressure from competitors.

Terrance Dwyer is an Emmy-winning re-recording mixer who’s helped define how some of the most iconic reality shows actually feel to watch. He’s been with Survivor since day one, mixing over 750 consecutive episodes and shaping the sound of everything from intense challenges to remote, cinematic environments. We’re now currently in the midst of the latest season of Survivor, the milestone 50th, which is releasing episodes weekly on CBS/Paramount+.Beyond Survivor, his work spans major shows like Fear Factor and Wipeout—all places where sound plays a huge role in building tension, drama, and immersion.

John Magaro is an actor who’s built a really compelling career playing complex, deeply grounded characters across films and shows such as Past Lives, September 5, First Cow, The Umbrella Academy and The Agency.He stars in the new film Omaha, which is a quietly powerful, incredibly restrained piece that tells the story of a father who takes his two children on a road trip across the US after their home is foreclosed. It is set to open in theaters this Friday, April 24.

Ava Lalezarzadeh is an actor who is part of the Tony-nominated play English. The play, written by Sanaz Toossi, is about four adult students in 2008 Iran studying for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) exam. The students struggle with the loss of their native language and identity, navigating the tension between their authentic selves and the identities they adopt while speaking English. After a critically applauded run on Broadway, the show is now enjoying a limited run in Los Angeles at The Wallis, sharing this story with West Coast audiences for the first time.

For decades, Amy Goodman has been the one asking the questions—challenging presidents, reporting from conflict zones, and building Democracy Now! into one of the most prominent independent news platforms in the world.Now, in Steal This Story, Please!, she’s the subject.The film comes from Oscar-nominated directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin, who go behind the scenes of Goodman’s work and the broader fight over who controls the narrative in American media—at a moment when trust in journalism, and the idea of truth itself, feels increasingly unstable.

I’m joined by filmmaker Marcie Hume, director of the new documentary Corey Feldman vs The World — a film more than a decade in the making.With unusually intimate access to Corey Feldman, Marcie doesn’t set out to defend or prosecute him. Instead, she drops us inside his world — at home, on tour, in moments that are hilarious, surreal, uncomfortable, and sometimes unexpectedly serious.

Today, I’m joined by director Ricard Cusso and writer Elise Allen to talk about their upcoming animated feature The Pout-Pout Fish, based on the beloved children’s book series. The film follows an unlikely undersea duo — a prickly recluse named Mr. Fish and an exuberant sea dragon called Pip — who set off on an ocean-spanning quest to save their homes by finding a mythical wish-granting fish.Ricard is one of Australia’s leading animation directors, known for films like Scarygirl and the Tales From Sanctuary City franchise, while Elise is an Emmy-nominated writer and bestselling author whose work spans everything from Princess Power to more than fifteen Barbie films.

Today on the podcast, I’m joined by the electrifying Aura Mayari — drag artist, actor, and breakout star from RuPaul's Drag Race. She’s currently lighting up the stage in Here Lies Love, the high-energy, disco-driven musical about the rise and fall of Imelda Marcos, now playing at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles after its' celebrated Broadway run.

For our pre-Oscars episode, former Variety editor Jenelle Riley joins me to discuss our final predictions for Hollywood's biggest night.

Today’s guests took one of the most universal human gestures — a kiss — and made it feel entirely new.Their Oscar-nominated live action short Two People Exchanging Saliva takes place in a dystopian world where kissing is punishable by death.I’m joined by the filmmakers behind it, Alexandre Singh and Natalie Musteata.

Oscar-nominated film editor Olivier Bugge Coutté is a filmmaker whose work has quietly shaped some of the most emotionally resonant European films of the past decade. His previous films include Beginners, Oslo August 31st, The Worst Person in the World, and The Apprentice. His latest project, Sentimental Value, is what has earned him his first Oscar nomination in addition to 8 other nominations including Best Picture.

Today's episode features the Oscar-nominated visual effects team behind Jurassic World: Rebirth — four artists whose work has helped define modern blockbuster spectacle.Charmaine Chan is a veteran VFX supervisor whose past credits include A Quiet Place Day One, The Acolyte and The Creator. Jurassic World: Rebirth is her first Oscar nomination.David Vickery is a VFX supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic. He has overseen groundbreaking work on films such as Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 for which he was previously nominated as well as films such as Avatar: The Way of Water and Jurassic World: Dominion. Steve Aplin’s previous credits also include Gladiator 2 and Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker as well as Aladdin, Jupiter Ascending and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. This is also Steve’s first nomination2-time Oscar winner Neil Corbould, one of the industry’s leading special effects supervisors, has worked on films such as Gravity & Gladiator (both of which he won for), as well as Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawn Down and so many other Blockbuster spectacles. He’s been nominated 9 times.Together, this team brings a rare fusion of cutting-edge digital artistry and practical effects expertise to Jurassic World: Rebirth, continuing the legacy of cinematic innovation that audiences have come to expect from the franchise.

Writer and director Lee Knight, whose latest film A Friend of Dorothy has quietly become one of the most powerful and personal films of the year, culminated in an Academy Award nomination for Best Live Action Short. The film stars acclaimed BAFTA winning actress Miriam Margolyes as a lonely widow who befriends her teenage neighbour, depicting an unlikely, poignant bond over shared loneliness. The film also stars the legendary Stephen Fry.

Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski are an Oscar-nominated directing duo known for their hauntingly tactile approach to stop-motion animation. Their latest short, The Girl Who Cried Pearls—now nominated for Best Animated Short—continues their fascination with inner psychological worlds, blending surreal imagery with deeply human emotion. The film is about a poor boy living in Montreal at the dawn of the 20th century who falls in love with a girl whose sorrow turns into pearls. He sells them to a ruthless pawnbroker, who hungers for more. Tempted by greed, the boy must choose between love and fortune. The choice could damn his soul.

Director John Kelly and producer Andrew Freedman are the filmmakers behind the short film Retirement Plan has just earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Short Film. The film is about a middle-aged man fantasizing about his future retirement. The 7-minute film has won numerous awards at festivals like SXSW and Palm Springs in addition to its' Oscar nomination.

Tony-nominated actress Lauren Worsham has built a dynamic career across Broadway, regional theater, and television. She was Tony nominated & won the Drama Desk Award for her performance in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, and has previously appeared in shows such as Sunday in the Park, Call Me Madam, Big River, and Where’s Charley (NY City Center Encores); Turn of the Screw  (NYC Opera), Showboat (NY Philharmonic), and Candide  (NYC Opera). She now stars in Amadeus at the Pasadena Playhouse.For more information on Clementine Hotel & Suites in Anaheim, check out the links below:20% Studio Suites Spring Sale https://reservations.clementinehotel.com/107731?accesscode=Spring&RatePlanId=10943244#/accommodation/room

Byron Howard, one of the key creative forces behind modern Disney animation, is nominated for the Best Animated Feature Film Oscar for ZOOTOPIA 2, which he directed alongside Jared Bush. He’s been at Walt Disney Animation Studios for decades and has directed or co-directed films like BOLT, TANGLED, ZOOTOPIA, and ENCANTO.His work has earned multiple Academy Award nominations and wins, including Oscars for ZOOTOPIA and ENCANTO.

Oscar-winning producer Ron Dyens is nominated at this year's Academy Awards for Best Animated Short Film for BUTTERFLY - a beautiful film from director and acclaimed French animator Florence Miailhe which tells the story of Jewish French swimmer Alfred Nakache, who competed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics in Nazi Germany. Dyens won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature last year for FLOW.

Geeta Gandbhir and Christalyn Hampton are the directing duo behind the Oscar-nominated short documentary The Devil Is Busy, now streaming on HBO Max. The film chronicles a day on the frontlines in the battle for reproductive rights at a women's healthcare clinic in Atlanta.

Domee Shi and Madeline Sharafian are the directors of the Oscar-nominated animated film, Pixar's Elio.Shi is an Academy Award–winning filmmaker who directed Pixar’s Oscar-winning short Bao and the feature Turning Red.Sharafian is a director and longtime Pixar storyboard artist who worked on films such as Coco, Onward, and Turning Red. She directed the acclaimed Oscar-nominated SparkShort Burrow, and Elio marks her feature co-directing debut.

Today’s guest is cinematographer Ashley Barron who shot Episodes 1–3 of How to Get to Heaven from Belfast, now streaming on Netflix. The series is about three lifelong friends who  reunite after the death of an old classmate and turns a wake into a dark mystery. They embark on a thrilling adventure across Ireland, piecing together enigmatic truths amid complicated lives. Ashley helped establish the visual language of the series — balancing grief, mystery, and dark comedy while grounding the story in a richly atmospheric take on Ireland.

Co-writer John Kinnane and executive producer Jeffrey Azize discuss their work on their latest film SOLO MIO starring Kevin James and Alyson Hannigan.Left heartbroken in Rome after a wedding disaster, Kevin James plays a stranded groom who finds his ruined honeymoon transformed by a determined local and a few meddling travelers-proving that sometimes heartbreak is only the beginning.