Telling stories through film and conversation.
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WILDsound's The Film Podcast

In each episode, the C.E.O. of WILDsound, Matthew Toffolo, chats about all things storytelling and film. Conversations with talented individual from all around the world.

EP. 1140 - Filmmaker Bernardita Llanos (SPARK IN THE MEADOW)

SPARK IN THE MEADOW, 17min.,

Directed by Bernardita Llanos

Spark in the Prairie (La Chispa en la Pradera) focuses on law student Sofía Brito and her experience of sexual harassment by her professor, a renown attorney and member of the Supreme Tribunal of Chile. Sofia was his research assistant and was working with him on the three exceptions to legalize abortion in the country. Sofa was at a crossroad between women's reproductive rights and her own experience of gender and sexual discrimination by the very man who could move forward the decriminalization of abortion.

https://www.facebook.com/bernardita.llanos.52

https://www.instagram.com/talita1958

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1139 - Screenwriter Gary Porpora & John Fichera (AMERICAN BREAKDOWN)

Watch the Screenplay Reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rbzGDWo548

Logline: At the mercy of an accelerating dementia, Jonas Flemming, aka, America’s Coroner–the state’s lead witness in yet another high profile murder trial–melts down on the witness stand, setting a psychopath free.

When the L.A. detective on the case reopens his investigation, Jonas becomes the prime suspect.

Get to know the writer:

A world famous coroner, scientist and murder trial expert, think Cyril Wecht–experiencing a rapid deterioration of his mind due to Alzheimers–breaks down on the witness stand, setting a murderer free. When the LAPD reopens the investigation, America’s coroner becomes the main suspect…

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1138 - Filmmakers Michael J. Gonzales & Allan Wasserman (LOSING FAITH)

OSING FAITH, 19min., USA
Directed by Allan Wasserman
Gil, the detective who helped capture Richard Ramirez, now in his 70s, reflects on the events from the 80’s to his priest as he now questions his faith. “How could God let this happen?”. Michael J. Gonzales plays both Richard the Killer and Gil the detective.

Get to knowMichael J. Gonzales

The director Allan Wasserman had reached out to me about writing and acting in a short about the Night Stalker case. The twist was that he wanted me to play both the Killer and also the detective that helped bring him to justice.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1137 - Filmmaker Alejandro Pedemonte (LOOP (It’s a matter of time))

LOOP (It’s a matter of time), 15min., USA
Directed by Alejandro Pedemonte
Fausto wakes up in the middle of the night, with the news about his father dying. However, he refuses to go to him. Overtaken by his own rage, his decision causes a time loop that will eventually give him the opportunity to face his own forgiveness, loss, and life itself.

https://www.instagram.com/loopshort.film/

Get to know the filmmaker:

My motivation for making this film was the need to acquire experience while writing my feature film. Understanding the language of cinema from the conception of the idea to every step of the process to reach the final product was crucial. Additionally, it was very important for me to understand the artistic direction of actors in a film production, after having worked for many years as a director and producer in theater.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1136 - Screenwriter Denis Crampton (NO 3 Hollythorne Cottage)

Watch the Horror Screenplay Best Scene Reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik3-Lji9zPY

When a remote cottage is invaded by three young women and their psychopathic hostage takers, it’s malevolent spirit is unwittingly awakened with tragic consequences.

https://www.threeinonepictures.com/


You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1135 - Filmmaker Allen Cheng (WHAT A DAY)

WHAT A DAY, 5min., Thailand
Directed by Allen Cheng
Our world is busy, lonely, and exhausting. It is so common for us to go through a rough day, come home and lay on our bed with tears and sweats, then simply complain to ourselves, “ugh, what a day”.

https://www.instagram.com/allenuknowwhatimsaying/

Get to know the filmmaker:

The topic is something I can resonate with, and I’m sure most people do too. Just the idea of finding purpose(s) in a mundane life, because if everyday ends up being a “what a day”, then it eventually stacks up to “what a life”. I don’t like the sound of that, so I figured I would make something that portrays that.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1134 - Filmmaker Alex Alexander (BAPTISM)

BAPTISM, 8min, USA
Directed by Alex Alexander
The relief, the rest that comes from truth.

https://www.instagram.com/alexx.alexxander/

Get to know the filmmaker:

The inspiration and the motivation were very separate things.

The desire to be seen and known is intrinsic to the human experience, to be held in your truest most authentic form and understood in that moment, and I too am human. This is a self exploration, aided by the love and attendance and patience of a partner. The patience and gentleness of my partner, the way they often bathed me, the way they support whoever I am and guided me without ever forcing.

This was my first attempt at making a film, I wanted to do something close to my heart that I understood innately to iliminate any complications with foreign subject matter. This is actually a nugget of an idea for a much more complicated story.

The actual motivation was that the locations and team were going to become unavailable at the end of summer and I knew it was time to start moving on this idea!.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1133 - Igor Hnes (A MOMENT OF MOMENTS)

A MOMENT OF MOMENTS, 3min., Ukraine
Directed by Igor Hnes
Every family has numerous special, personal, and interesting moments that happen every day in which we can see love, and this is one of those.

Get to know the filmmaker:

Budget: I shot my first short film with a decent budget, having everything I wanted. So, I wanted to challenge myself with a low-budget story to see if I could pull it off. The result: $4 for the entire film and already 14 awards at various festivals.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1132 - Screenwriters Laura Elliott & Joseph Samuels (Beyond The Rivers of Babylon)

Watch the best scene reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t96yy7b3gI

A journey through time when the Jews were threatened by the Muslims and how one young man’s life changed when he escaped and helped others smuggle into Israel from Baghdad- based on a true story.

https://www.laurasmagicday.com/

Get to know the writers:

Laura : It’s the true story of how Joseph came of age in Babylon during WWII, when a brutal pogrom of violence against the Jews (the Farhud), forces him to smuggle aboard a riverboat to freedom in Israel––leaving his friends, family, and country behind. It’s the story of how a mischievous, fun-loving boy became a man under extraordinary circumstances and not only survived, but thrived. But it’s also about how Muslims and Jews lived in peace in the region for over two thousand years until the Farhud.

Joseph: It is about sharing the lessons of life. Facing broken dreams to build new ones. How to take failure and use it as a stepping stone to success. How you can learn from disappointment and use it to learn how to improve your life. Facing fate, the uncontrollable circumstances we all find ourselves in, and using resilience to not only survive those circumstances, but to thrive. Last Sunday I spoke at the Holocaust Museum to a room full of people. I was saying that university teaches you about life. When you see this movie you will learn how to live. Not only how to survive, but to thrive. To see all the difficulties and turn to resiliency, tenacity, and courage to overcome the unpredictable difficulties that we face.


You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1131 - John-Carlos Estrada & Zak Zeh (BARBETTE + FONTAINE)

BARBETTE + FONTAINE, 14min., USA
Directed by John-Carlos Estrada, Zak Zeh
A century apart, two Texas icons unite through art, resilience, and a shared legacy of self-expression and freedom.

https://instagram.com/barbette.fontaine

Get to know filmmaker John-Carlos Estrada:
The idea for Barbette + Fontaine came from an award-winning TV news profile I reported on for CBS Austin. After the broadcast story aired in June 2022… I was Inspired by a dream where the legendary Texas drag icon Barbette urged me to tell their story. We’re honored to provide Barbette with their final performance and take pride in doing so. Here’s the link to the CBS Austin story: bit.ly/3CeAXTG

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1130 - Producer Irene Pang (RE:BIRTH)

RE:BIRTH, 8min., Taiwan
Directed by Laticia Fan
A lost soul traumatized by her past and trapped in the confines of her own imagination. Unable to move forward with life until she was led to begin her journey of recovery and discovery by a sound healer, ultimately conquering her darkest memories, fears, and desires, and transcending the perpetual tug-of-war between attachment and letting go.

https://www.laticiafan.com/
https://instagram.com/sheng.shortfilm

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1129 - Grace Samson (CATS AND HUSBANDS)

CATS AND HUSBANDS, 7min., USA
Directed by Grace Samson, Barry Samson
We enter the story where two close friends, Fern and Marcie get together at a local coffee shop to celebrate a birthday. Fern has been going through two years of cycles of In Vitro, desperately trying to get pregnant but with no success. Her husband, Nick’s coping mechanism has been dressing up with the family Cat and taking silly pictures. Marcie jokingly suggests that Fern just book a vacation for herself and leave hubby with the cat. All this to help soften the reality that the birthday Fern celebrates today is that of a child she miscarried two years before.

https://instagram.com/catsandhusbands

Get to know filmmaker Grace Samson:
Being a thirty two year old woman, I started to see ads for freezing your eggs. I thought, wow I’m not ready for that yet, but interesting what a pressure it is to have babies as a woman at my age. I wanted to include a woman’s story that others who are in the same position could commiserate with and feel like they are not alone.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1128 - Director/Actor Emily Aleece Burton (ALL WE WERE)

ALL WE WERE, 20min., USA
Directed by Emily Aleece Burton
Olivia, a struggling artist and hopeless romantic, is blindsided when her successful boyfriend, Nico, suddenly dumps her. The two then reflect on all their relationship from two perspectives. For her, he’s a broken distraction she can fix; for him, she’s a beautiful mystery just out of reach. What happens when you fall in love with the idea of someone you’ve created in your head instead of who they actually are? Can you honestly say you knew all we were?

https://www.instagram.com/allwewerefilm/

Get to know the filmmaker:
I chose to write and direct this short film, ‘All We Were,’ after getting out of a toxic relationship of my own. I fell in love with a man who allowed me to feel safe and vulnerable for the first time only for him to then use that against me when I expressed how insignificant I felt to him. After months of therapy, I wanted to create something beautiful not only to take back my voice that I felt that he had dismissed but to explore both sides of the relationship to see where along the way we got lost in translation. People tend to fall in love with the idea of someone instead of who they are. The same goes for my lead characters, Olivia and Nico. In the end, Nico uses radical honesty to try and deflect any blame for the outcome of the relationship. At the same time, Olivia refuses to believe him as she has hung on to any breadcrumbs of love he’s ever given her as proof to herself that he does care. Neither one ever sees the other for who they actually were.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1127 - Filmmaker Elijah Chandler & Actor Teon Kelley (MORNING AFTER)

MORNING AFTER, 21min., USA
Directed by Elijah Chandler
“When a wild night ends rubbing shoulders with the LA mob, a directionless college grad has to get his friend out of danger, or it’ll be her blood on the streets next.”

https://facebook.com/enchandler
https://instagram.com/enchandler

Get to know the filmmaker:

Morning After is my second short film I’ve written and directed after graduating from film school. Graduating from film school initially left me with a sense of defeat, as I felt I hadn’t created enough of my own stories due to imposter syndrome. While in film school, I mainly worked as a cinematographer for my peers’ projects, but I later realized that many of them wouldn’t pursue directing, let alone filmmaking entirely. Only a handful continued to pursue filmmaking and had a unique voice. Imposter syndrome can make us doubt ourselves, but it affects us all differently. Some overcompensate by appearing knowledgeable in film history and having complex visions for their films. Others, like me in film school, may run in the opposite direction due to self-doubt. The film industry’s competitiveness and comparison game, exacerbated by social media, are inherent challenges. However, most artists share the same insecurities, and we’re all trying to overcome them in our own ways.

I gained valuable experience as a cinematographer, enhancing my visual storytelling skills. I enjoyed helping directors with camera movement and actor blocking, as it allowed me to create on-screen dynamics during dialogues. This experience strengthened my passion for filmmaking and my desire to tell my own stories. Despite having fewer resources and fewer connections than in film school, my motivation to pursue filmmaking has never been stronger. My current motivation is to build my storytelling skills through continuous practice, like a workout, so that I’m prepared when opportunities with greater responsibilities arise.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1126 - Clement Faure (CRAVATE)

CRAVATE, 11min., Canada
Directed by Clement Faure
When Mav wakes up from another mysterious nightmare, he decides not to take his medicine that day. Locked in a dark basement residence and haunted by his work, he wishes he would have a break. That morning, Mav doesn’t expect to face someone he might know.

http://fluxproduction.ca/
https://www.facebook.com/flux.production.ca
https://www.instagram.com/clement.faure.video/

Get to know the filmmaker:

I got the main idea for this film one morning 7 years ago. I woke up after a sleepless night and went to the bathroom to wash and dress. I started to look at myself in the mirror and as I was staring intensely at my reflection , I became aware of these two characters, these paradoxal life paths’s desires inside me. My conscious wanted something and my unconscious (reflection) was saying something else. That was also explaining why I was not sleeping, why I was so stressed and anxious in my life at that time: my two selves were not aligned.
Then I knew I wanted the story to take place in a dystopian universe, a near future but where the viewer would feel the underground confined environnement. This place is the metaphorical representation of the first character’s psyche obviously. Then the bathroom is the place where you wash yourself, you wash your sins maybe, you wash to make your mind cleaner, clearer. I knew I wanted these metaphorical aspects in the film that added another layer to the story.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1125 - Christine Sonvilla & Marc Graf (FLOWING – MY DREAM OF MORE FREEDOM)

FLOWING – MY DREAM OF MORE FREEDOM, 4min., Austria
Directed by Christine Sonvilla, Marc Graf
In “Flowing – My dream of more freedom” the river itself speaks to us about its dream of flowing wilder and freer again, thereby providing a home (again) to a diversity of species.

https://www.facebook.com/christine.sonvilla/
https://www.instagram.com/grafmarcphotography/

Get to know filmmakers Christine Sonvilla & Marc Graf:
Christine + Marc: The Dam Removal Initiative is an incredibly powerful tool in river conservation and restoration. However, it still needs more attention in the public and with decision-makers. That’s why we wanted to highlight how very much our rivers are craving for more freedom.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1124 - Screenwriter Jacqueline Escolme (THE BIRTHDAY LIST)

Watch the Screenplay Reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp8Y7Y8Qxfo

Inspired by a young adventurer, a frustrated midlife wife escapes her marriage and flies to America with a birthday bucket list that helps her find truth, freedom and the future she’s waited twenty years for.


Get to know the writer:
Jenny Collins is a bored, midlife bookworm who unexpectedly gatecrashes a wake, gets inspired by a young adventurer and takes a surprise trip to New York with a birthday bucket list that turns into the adventure she’s always wanted. Discovering who she might be, if she gave herself a chance.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1123 - Screenwriter John C. Fitch III (VIEWING)

Watch the Screenplay Reading: https://www.wildsound.ca/videos/viewing

After a supernatural experience, a street artist at the end of his rope goes to work for a billionaire as a psychic viewer but must fight his way out when he discovers that his shadowy employer is embroiled in a deadly conspiracy. Inspired by true events.

Get to know the writer:

After a supernatural experience, a young street artist at the end of his rope goes to work for a fossil fuel billionaire as a psychic viewer but must fight his way out when he discovers that his employer is embroiled in a deadly conspiracy. Inspired by true events.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1122 - Screenwriter Anastasia Warmuth (FIREFLY TV Show)

Watch the Screenplay Reading: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bk9nn1nx1xA

Type of Script: TV spec script for the tv show Firefly

The pain caused by the bounty hunter, Jubal Early, in the finale of Season Two still echoes. When the crew of Firefly are infected with a mysterious and deadly airborne virus with dark links to River’s past, Simon must choose between saving the crew and saving his sister.

Get to know the writer:

A spec script of the tv show Firefly. The pain caused by the bounty hunter, Jubal Early, in the finale of Season Two still echoes. When the crew of the spaceship Serenity are infected with a mysterious and deadly airborne virus with dark links to River’s past, Simon must choose between saving the crew and saving his sister.

I was really interested in how the crew in a confined space would react to a deadly disease. Bullets and fist fights can be faced head on, but disease is more insidious and plays on different fears. Infection makes everyone suspect.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.

EP. 1121 - Robert Tiemstra (NO SLASHER HERE)

NO SLASHER HERE, 9min., USA
Directed by Robert Tiemstra
A woman comes home from work, only to receive an unsettling phone call. Does the danger only exist over the phone, or is there a masked killer inside her home?

https://instagram.com/the_timestar

Get to know the filmmaker:
The production for ‘No Slasher Here’ started with a New Years’ Day text message from me to Llenelle, my producing partner for this film – “do you want to make a spooky movie this year?” We’d worked together before, but never on a horror film. I was just finishing up the film festival run for my last film – a dystopian short called The October Martyr – and I was feeling the urge to do something scrappy & fun. Once I had Llenelle on board to act in something, I just asked myself ‘what sort of horror movie would I cast her in?’ and the answer came in the form of a When a Stranger Calls/Black Christmas/Scream style horror movie opening. The central conceit occurred to me while I was on a walk – instead of having a killer call someone, what if the ‘victim’ in this kind of setup picks up the phone to find another similar horror movie opening going on somewhere else? Then it became a puzzle for me to solve, a weird mobius strip of slasher movie suspense.

You can sign up for the 7 day free trial at www.wildsound.ca (available on your streaming services and APPS). There is a DAILY film festival to watch, plus a selection of award winning films on the platform. Then it’s only $3.99 per month.