Making Media Now

Exploring "A Reckoning in Boston" with Director James Rutenbeck

In this episode of Making Media Now, host Michael Azevedo speaks with award-winning documentary filmmaker James Rutenbeck (https://www.areckoninginboston.com/index).

 

James is a two-time recipient of the Alfred I. duPont–Columbia University Award for his work as producer of the PBS series Unnatural Causes, about health disparities in the U.S., and Class of ’27, which he executive produced, directed and edited. 

 

He has been awarded grants from Sundance Documentary Fund, LEF Moving Image Fund, Southern Humanities Media Fund, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. 

 

His latest film is called "A Reckoning in Boston," and centers on the experiences of Kafi Dixon and Carl Chandler who, seeking to transform their lives, enrolled a highly regarded night course in the humanities taught at a community center in Dorchester, a neighborhood of Boston. 

 

When James, a white suburban filmmaker comes to make a film about the course and its students, he is forced to come to terms with his own complicity in racist structures in the community. Kafi and Carl came on board as producers of the film and the three bring to light a history of systemic racism that has spanned generations, along with its modern implications. "A Reckoning in Boston" (https://www.areckoninginboston.com) shows that transformation, healing and social change begins within each of us.

 

Making Media Now is sponsored by FC, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, FC supports creatives at every step in their journey. To learn more, visit filmmakerscollab.org

 

And if you’re enjoying this podcast, we encourage you to subscribe and leave a glowing review!

 

About the host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/

and www.mrazvo.com

 

 

Exploring "CodeSwitching" with Jonathan Schwartz & Mike Mascoll

On this episode, Making Media Now host Michael Azevedo speaks with Jonathan Schwartz and Mike Mascoll, the makers of an eye-opening documentary film called "CodeSwitching." (www.codeswitchingmovie.com)

 

"CodeSwitching" is a mashup of personal stories from three generations of students enrolled in the Boston-area METCO program: a groundbreaking voluntary desegregation initiative. 

The film explores shifting race relations in the suburban-urban axis, teen self-perception, and the role gender plays in fitting-in. Many participants in METCO achieve enviable academic success while some find navigating between the two highly-segregated worlds difficult.

 

Making Media Now is sponsored by FC, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, FC supports creatives at every step in their journey. To learn more, visit filmmakerscollab.org

About the host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/

www.mrazvo.com

 

Meet Multi-Faceted Media Maker Roberto Mighty

On this episode of Making Media Now, host Michael Azevedo chats with a true creative Renaissance Man: Roberto Mighty. 

 

Roberto is a filmmaker, TV host/producer, multimedia artist and educator. His critically acclaimed projects garner national funding and extensive press coverage. 

Roberto is currently producing and hosting 26 half-hour episodes of two new, original public TV series: "World's Greatest Cemeteries" and "getting dot OLDER". Each series will premiere in fall of 2021. And both series employ engaging storytelling to celebrate diversity and inclusiveness. To learn more, visit www.worldsgreatestcemeteries.com and www.gettingdotolder.com

Roberto's latest documentary, "Legacy of Love", about Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott's 1950's romance, premiered on Boston’s GBH public television in August.  It will be distributed nationally to other public television stations throughout 2021.


MMN is sponsored by FC, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, FC supports creatives at every step in their journey. To learn more, visit filmmakerscollab.org

 

And if you’re enjoying this podcast, we encourage you to subscribe and leave a glowing review!

 

About the host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/

https://www.mrazvo.com

 

Bringing the Past to Life: A Conversation with Novelist Jane Healey

On this installment of Making Media Now, we celebrate a first: an interview with a novelist, in this case it’s best-selling novelist Jane Healey.  We’re all about conversing with, as we say, ‘media makers of all sorts’….and seeing whereas books were certainly among the first forms of “media,” chatting with a novelist certainly makes sense…and makes for a lively and interesting conversation.  

 

When her daughters were born, Jane Healey left a career in high tech to become a freelance writer. Her passion for historical fiction became her new career when her first novel THE SATURDAY EVENING GIRLS CLUB was published in 2017. With the release of THE BEANTOWN GIRLS in 2019, Jane continued to fulfill her dream of writing lesser known stories of women in history. 

Jane's upcoming novel THE SECRET STEALERS is based on the true stories of the women of the Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA, during World War II. It will be released in April 2021. (www.janehealey.com)

MMN is sponsored by FC, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, FC supports creatives at every step in their journey. To learn more, visit filmmakerscollab.org

 

And if you’re enjoying this podcast, we encourage you to subscribe and leave a glowing review! We’re all about the shameless plug!

Is There a Doctor...On the Set? A Conversation Dr. Paul Heinzelmann of SetMD

On this episode, Making Media Now host Michael Azevedo speaks with Dr. Paul Heinzelmann of SetMD. 

SetMD has been providing medical services exclusively to the motion picture industry since 2007. They specialize in serving the health and wellness needs of the motion picture and television industry through a concierge-style healthcare service that combines the personalized care of old-fashioned doctor house calls with the convenience and affordability of mobile and online care options.  As of 2020, over 150 productions have been served.

In my conversation with Dr. Paul, who is an urgent care and primary care physician based out of Massachusetts General Hospital we chat about the origins of SetMD, some of the particular health and safety concerns of cast members and crews on film sets and, of course, the steps he and his company have taken to address the challenges posed by coronavirus.

 

To learn more about SetMD visit www.setmd.org

 

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization serving the needs of independent film and media makers of all types. Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more.

 

If you’re enjoying this podcast, please subscribe, review, recommend and share!

Toasting the Cocktail Conversations with Michelle Mitchell

In this episode, I chat with award-winning journalist and filmmaker Michele Mitchell about The Cocktail Conversations, her lively and thought-provoking podcast. Each episode is a racy, raucous and informed deep dive into the topics you wanna talk about, featuring questions you just might be afraid to ask. You can find The Cocktail Conversations wherever you get your podcasts! Find a comfy seat, pour yourself a refreshing beverage and take a listen!

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers of all stripes with its array of benefits and services. Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more. And if you’re enjoying these conversations please remember to subscribe, review and share! 

 

Catching Up with Podcast Host and Comedian Pete Dominick

Pete Dominick's experience as a media maker is extensive: from headlining stand-up comedy gigs across the country to a coveted job as the warm-up comic for The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, then on to regular hosting and guest commentator spots on CNN. 

 

For more than a decade, he hosted Stand Up with Pete on Sirium XM satellite radio and in 2020 re-branded his radio show as a daily podcast (www.standupwithpete.com) by the same name. Five days a week, Pete engages in deep-dive conversations with news makers, policy experts, journalists, filmmakers and thought leaders. 

 

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers of all stripes with its array of benefits and services. Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more. And if you’re enjoying these conversations please remember to subscribe, review and share! 

A Conversation with Filmmaker and Nutritionist Diana Rodgers

For more than 15 years, Diana Rodgers has lived on a working organic farm raising vegetables and pasture-based animals. In 2010, she realized the solution to her Celiac Disease and blood sugar roller coaster was to eat an ancestral-type diet. From there, she decided to change her career in order to help others through diet and lifestyle change. Today, Diana is a Registered Dietitian with a busy clinical practice and the author of two best selling books. 

 

And now, with the upcoming release of her documentary Sacred Cow—which will be available for streaming on Jan 5, 2021, Diana can add director to her long list of creative achievements.

 

Sacred Cow probes the fundamental moral, environmental and nutritional quandaries we face in raising and eating animals. In the film, Diana focuses her lens on the largest and perhaps most maligned of farmed animals, the cow.

 

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers of all stripes with its array of benefits and services. Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more. And if you’re enjoying these conversations please remember to subscribe, review and share! 

An Examination of Life "In A Different Key"

Winners of 10 Emmy Awards, and veterans of PBS, ABC and CNN, co-directors Caren Zucker and John Donvan have been telling stories centered on autism for more than two decades. In this episode of Making Media Now they speak with host Michael Azevedo about their just-completed new documentary "In A Different Key".

Their film is based on their book of the same title, a narrative account of autism’s history that became a New York Times bestseller and Pulitzer Prize Finalist.

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers of all stripes with its array of benefits and services.

Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more. And if you’re enjoying these conversations please remember to subscribe, review and share! 

 

A Conversation with Midge Costin, director of Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound

Heard any good movies lately? If you've never realized the indispensable role of sound design in your favorite movies, check out Making Media Now host Michael Azevedo's conversation with Midge Costin, the director of  "Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound".  

Midge Costin produced and directed the award-winning feature documentary "Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound" which had its world premiere at The Tribeca Film Festival and its international premiere at Cannes Film Festival in 2019.  

She was nominated for Best First Time Director by the Critics Choice Documentary Awards and the film received multiple other awards and nominations.

Midge has been a feature film sound editor in Hollywood for decades, having worked at every major studio. She has collaborated on the soundtracks for filmmakers such as John Waters, David Wolper, Kenneth Branagh, Tony Scott and Jerry Bruckheimer (The Rock). Two of the films, Crimson Tide and Armageddon, for which she edited effects and dialogue, received Academy Award nominations for Sound Editing.

Currently, Midge is a Professor of Cinematic Arts at USC where she holds the Kay Rose Endowed Chair in the Art of Sound and Dialogue Editing. 

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers of all stripes with its array of benefits and services. Visit FC at filmmakerscollab.org to learn more. And if you’re enjoying these conversations please remember to subscribe, review and share!