Yep, this week marks the eighth anniversary of Someone Else’s Movie, the podcast project I started a lifetime ago as a way of having more meaningful conversations with artists about the art that inspires them.
That sounds a lot loftier than it actually was — my interview style is nothing if not extremely casual — but looking back on the 400-odd episodes I’ve produced, it’s kind of a hell of a thing, isn’t it? An archive of actors, writers, directors, musicians and novelists, all talking at length about the movies they love — and a decent snapshot of the Toronto film scene over the last decade, too.
Weirdly enough, it’s probably the thing that best prepared me for my new position at TIFF this year as acting lead programmer for Canada; I kinda know everybody now? And while this is a slightly terrifying responsibility, I’m thrilled to be trusted with the gig — and can’t wait to see where it goes. I’ll keep you posted.
Today, though, I’m delighted to release this week’s Semcast, in which actor Romina D’Ugo — who stars opposite Isaiah Lehtinen in Chandler Levack’s terrific I Like Movies, now in theaters across Canada (and playing at the Lightbox here at home) — brings the love for Michael Radford and Massimo Troisi’s Il Postino, the 1994 drama about love and poetry that’s sort of fallen through the cracks in recent years but turns out to hold up pretty well. (Hopefully Paramount has the rights now, and can get started on a restoration.)
After eight years, you must know how this works: Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher and/or Spotify, or download the episode directly from the web like a cave person. And enjoy it. I made it for you.
And then catch up on your Shiny Things reading; last week I wrote about the response to the revelation that Sarah Polley’s Women Talking was made with American money — the horror! — and let myself be wowed by the unexpected maturity and even grace of, um, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Are you a subscriber? C’mon, be a subscriber.
Also! I’m not hosting tonight’s edition of the Secret Movie Club — it’s a good one, though! — but if you’re in town and really want to see me on a stage this week, come down tomorrow night, Wednesday March 15th, to see me introduce Renuka Jeyapalan’s Stay the Night as this month’s free screening in Cinematheque’s See the North series.
It’s a lovely little romance starring Andrea Bang and Joe Scarpellino, and Renuka will be joining me for a post-screening Q&A; she’s great, the movie’s great, everything’s great. Come celebrate Canada and stuff. It’s kinda my thing now.