12. Mary Coleman: Throw It Away and Start Over

Mary Coleman is the Senior Development Executive at Disney’s Pixar Animation Studios. For the past 16 years, she has worked with directors and writers to dig into their personal memories and create stories that adults and kids can relate to. Mary got her start in theatre, performing on stage, working behind the scenes and a stint as a director. She talks about time spent with her grandmother who fostered her creative side, how ‘faking it ‘till you make it’ left her dissatisfied, how live performance influences her process at Pixar, and her efforts to make sure Pixar fosters a woman director in the coming years. Pixar's latest film, "Inside Out," will be released in theaters on June 19.

“What I took from live performance, that really shaped the way I approach creative work, is being able to make a decision in the moment and go for it. When it’s live you have to be really nimble and responsive. Pixar movies are very masterfully crafted, but the creation of them involves a ton of people being ready to say, ‘Wow, I never thought of it that way. I’m willing to pivot now and try something totally different’.”

— Mary Coleman

RELATED LINKS:

Go Into The Story: Interview with Mary Coleman (Part 1 & 2)

Pixar Animation Studio

Disney Pixar on Twitter

Name: Mary Coleman

Current City: Berkeley CA

DOB: 11/1964

What are you listening to right now? Florence and the Machine

What movie changed your perspective? "Amadues," directed by Milos Forman

Who is your career role model? Theatre director Anne Bogart

What is a tool you can't live without? Duct tape

How do you take your tea? Jasmine green iced tea

What is your spirit animal? Otter

Any news/updates? I am beyond excited about our next Pixar film, INSIDE OUT, opening June 19th.

CLIPS FEATURED IN SHOW:

"Inside Out" Trailer

South Pacific

"Finding Nemo" clip

Peter Gabriel “In Your Eyes” Live

Toy Story “I’m a Picasso”

Toy Story “You’ve Got a Friend in Me"

CREDITS

PRODUCED: Elaine Sheldon and Sarah Ginsburg

SOUND DESIGN: Billy Wirasnik

FIXER: Jason Headley

MUSIC FEATURED IN SHOW:

Learn more about Pearl and the Beard, our featured musicmaker of the week, here. 

• Killing the Darlings: Reverend, Sweetness, The Lament of Coronado Brown, Swimming, 40K

• Beast: Oculus, Yet

• God Bless Your Weary Soul, Amanda Richardson: Voice in my Throat, Lost in Singapore, Vessel

• Black Vessel EP: Manek and Ilona

• 365 Project: Awake Like Me (Improvisation No. 2), Black Hole of Calcutta

8. Hanna Polak: Either You Fall, Or You Ride

Hanna Polak, a Polish director and producer, has the stamina and guts that most filmmakers would envy. And now audiences at film festivals around the world are experiencing her dedication through “Something Better To Come,” a documentary that Hanna shot over the span of 14 years. The documentary follows the lives of Russians living in a massive garbage dump, located 12 miles from the center of Moscow. Hanna filmed many people living in the garbage dump, but one person in particular stood out: a young girl named Yula. We watch Yula grow up on-screen, experimenting with hair dye and makeup, foraging for food and shelter, as well as witnessing some firsts: trying her chances with alcohol, cigarettes and young love. Hanna previously directed the short film, “The Children of Leningradsky,” which explores the lives of homeless children living in Moscow train stations. The film received an Oscar nomination, an International Documentary Association Award for Best Documentary, two Emmy nominations, and the Gracie Allen Award, given by Women in Radio and Television. But there are many moments when Hanna puts down her camera and serves as an activist. In 1997, as part of her work in Russia, she founded and later collaborated with Active Child Aid to help support the children of Russia and in 2006 she was awarded the prestigious Golden Heart Award. Hanna shares the challenges of shooting and editing a film for 14 years, as well as a special memory with documentary pioneer, Ricky Leacock. Doc fans: this episode is not to be missed.

---

“It’s like having a huge puzzle. Because after 14 years you have hundreds of hours of material, some big some small, and you have no idea where they fit. You don’t have the final picture. You don’t know what you’re building. And out of all of these materials you can make many pictures, but you try to make THE one. ”

— Hanna Polak on editing "Something Better to Come"

RELATED LINKS

Hanna's Website

"Something Better to Come" Film Website

"Something Better to Come" on Facebook 

NY Times Article on "The Children of Leningradsky"

Unicef Award for "The Children of Leningradsky"

Name: Hanna Polak

City: Warsaw, Poland

DOB: 7/21/1967

What are you listening to now? "So Close" by Ólafur Arnalds.

What piece of media changed you? Crime and Punishment

Who is your career role model? Vadim Yusov, Director of Photography of Andrei Tarkovsky

What is a tool you can't live without? Avid editing system

How do you drink/take your coffee/tea? Ginger tea with lemon

What's your spirit animal? Haven't discovered yet

---

MUSICMAKER FEATURED IN SHOW:

Taryn Blake Miller (Your Friend) from Jekyll / Hyde EP.

Featured Songs:

• Bangs
• Pallet
• Peach
• Tame One
• Jekyll / Hyde
• Expectation / Reality

This interview was conducted at True/False Film Festival in Columbia, Missouri. Hanna's feature documentary "Something Better to Come" had it's US Premiere at True/False AND our featured MusicMaker, Taryn Blake Miller of Your Friend was a musical busker. Find more information on films, music, dates, and passes at the True/False website. 

CLIPS FEATURED IN SHOW:

Soundbites from “Something Better to Come”

Soundbites from  “The Children of Leningradsky”

Isaac Stern Plays Schon Rosmarin at the age of 79

CREDITS

PRODUCED by Elaine Sheldon and Sarah Ginsburg

SOUND DESIGN by Billy Wirasnik

4. Debra Granik: How to Skin a Squirrel

Debra Granik is the Academy-award nominated director and writer of Winter’s Bone, which features a young Jennifer Lawrence in a gripping story set in the Ozarks. Winter's Bone won several awards including the Grand Jury Prize for Dramatic Film at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. It also received four 2011 Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actor. Previously, she wrote and directed Down to the Bone, starring Vera Farmiga. Her narrative work is heavily influenced by real life and real people. So it makes sense that recently Debra has found herself exploring the non-fiction world. She recently released Stray Dog, a contemplative portrait of Ron 'Stray Dog' Hall: biker, Vietnam Vet, and lover of small dogs. It has screened over 60 times around the world and was nominated for a 2015 Film Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary. In this episode, Debra talks about learning her craft from politically-active women in the 1970s, being inspired by real life, where ideas come from, how stories take seed, and the ins and outs of her many productions. Debra reflects on her past, present, and the future of the industry.

---

Name: Debra Granik

Current City: New York City

What are you listening to? I listen to a lot of soothing nature sounds. I take refuge in a track called 8 hours of rivers and streams. I am enjoying the music of Kelsey Morris and their band Layperson Music.

What piece of media changed you? There have been so many it's hard to pick one. Most recently, the narrative feature, Girlhood, directed by Céline Sciamma. Fergus Bordewich's book, Bound for Canaan: The Underground Railroad and the War for the Soul of America. And We Come as Friends by Hubert Super. Many recent documentaries, especially about the experiences of soldiers and the sprawling topic of mass incarceration and the US prison system.

Who is your career role model? I have a special affection and admiration for essay filmmakers and documentarians, film creators who follow their interests and inspirations, those who try not to define their self worth as artists only through external achievement, but also try to make the making be a worthwhile part of their life.

What is a tool you can't live without? Spongy flip flops, viscous hand cream, luscious 0.7 vicuna ballpoint pens, notebooks.

How do you drink/take your coffee/tea? XXX with a little soy. Branching into hemp.

What's your spirit animal? Tortoise. Slow and steady. 

RELATED LINKS

Debra on Directing Jennifer Lawrence and Her New Documentary (VULTURE)

Debra Granik Archive (INDIE WIRE)

Debra’s Granik Featured In Opinion Sunday (NEW YORK TIMES)

Debra Granik on Finding J. Law and the Plight of the Female Director (DAILY BEAST)

“There’s no space for that old style of the big barking orders coming from the big man. The big man who gets special treatment and has an entourage and special gear, special food, special limos, special chairs, special megaphones. I think we’re done with that paradigm. It’s okay to thank people. It’s good and right and just to acknowledge the work of others. I think women do a good job saying ‘I am not the king. I am a head coordinator and I’m working really hard with other people who all are contributing something to this effort.’”

— Debra Granik

---

CREDITS

PRODUCED by Elaine Sheldon and Sarah Ginsburg

SOUND DESIGN by Billy Wirasnik

MUSIC FEATURED IN SHOW:

Peachpit and our featured MusicMaker, Hannah Waxman

Chris Zabriskie

Jahzzar

Gillicuddy

CLIPS FEATURED IN SHOW:

Women’s rights protests (1 & 2)

High school play (Phantom of the Opera)

Harlan County, USA (full film)

Winter’s Bone (Clips 1, 2, & 3)

Stray Dog (trailer)

2. Lyric Cabral: You Gotta Have a Beat

Lyric Cabral is a photojournalist and documentary filmmaker based in the Bronx. She, along with her co-director David Felix Sutcliffe, premiered her feature-length film (T)ERROR at Sundance this year in the US Documentary category. (T)ERROR is billed as “the first film to document on camera a covert counterterrorism sting,” but the documentary has been in the works for over a decade. Lyric came across the film’s subject, an FBI informant, when she was only 19, but knew she was too young to tackle the story then. Lyric talks about the uncomfortable situations she’s found herself in as a photojournalist, being inspired by Gordon Parks, spending over a decade covering national security issues, and returning to a story 12 years after discovering it.

---

Name: Lyric R. Cabral

Current City: New York City

DOB: 1982

What are you listening to? D'angelo and the Vanguard "Black Messiah"

What film/book/show/piece of media changed you? I really appreciate the silent film "Sidewalk Stories" by Charles Lane. I saw the film at a time when I was making the professional transition from still photography to moving images. The film is quite moving for me because each frame is beautifully photographed, and reflects an attention to detail that reveals the sensitivities and struggles of life in New York city.

Who is your career role model? Someone who I admire personally and professionally is filmmaker Shola Lynch. I value that her body of work critically examines the lives of Black women (Shirley Chisholm, Angela Davis) in America, as these stories are typically lesser seen on screen. Shola is a meticulous archivist and historian, who researched "Free Angela" for 8 years. I am inspired by the tremendous commitment that motivates each of her films, and by the engaging narratives that she presents on screen.

What is a tool you can't live without? I really appreciate Twitter. I am able to access the perspectives of citizen journalists around the world, and research stories in a unique way.

How do you take your coffee?  One sugar and a little whole milk

What’s your spirit animal? A calico cat

RELATED LINKS

• (T)ERROR on Facebook

• (T)ERROR at Sundance Labs

• Candescent Award at Sundance 2015

• Lyric: How I Shot That (Indie Wire)

• (T)ERROR at Sundance Film Festival

• Meet The Artists, Lyric and David: Video Interview for Sundance 

“I am the type of journalist that I’m never done. I don’t drop in and drop out. Whether they get a Christmas card from me, or I try to call, I just really try to stay in touch with people. I really don’t like the feeling of: I come in. I document you. I publish it. And then I just leave you alone with the consequences of whatever happens because you are now public. I’m never quite done.”

— Lyric R. Cabral

---

CREDITS

PRODUCED by Elaine Sheldon and Sarah Ginsburg

SOUND DESIGN by Billy Wirasnik

CLIPS FEATURED IN SHOW:

Blank Panther archival, (T)ERROR

MUSIC FEATURED IN SHOW:

First Rebirth

Gangi

The Passion Hifi

Marco Raaphorst

Anenon

Teaser

Photo by Kerrin Sheldon

Elaine Sheldon and Sarah Ginsburg introduce their new podcast, which launches on January 14th, 2015. Listen to soundbites from the first episodes of the series. Find us on on iTunes and Soundcloud. 

Thanks to our partner, Filmmaker Magazine, who will be running articles about each of our guests and co-hosting our bi-weekly Google Hangouts where YOU get to ask our guests your questions.

GUESTS FEATURED IN TEASER:
Bianca Giaever
Katie McKay
Anna Sale
Kara Oehler
Ingrid Kopp
Lyric Cabral
Lina Srivastava
Katja Blichfeld

MUSIC: 
"Kosmiche Slop" by Anenon 
"Proton Beat" by Gangi 
"Siesta" by Jahzzar
"Ascendant" by K. Laba Music