In this episode of the Seventh Row podcast, we discuss Chanya Button’s Vita & Virginia, a biopic about the romantic relationship between Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West.
[Read more…] about Ep. 15: Vita & Virginia and the author biopicThree Favourite Scenes from The Souvenir
This is an excerpt from the list “Joanna Hogg’s 10 best scenes” in Seventh Row’s new book Tour of Memories: The Creative Process Behind Joanna Hogg’s The Souvenir. We’ve analysed three of our favourite scenes from The Souvenir. Get the book here.
[Read more…] about Three Favourite Scenes from The SouvenirEp. 14: The Souvenir and the films of Joanna Hogg
Our latest episode of the Seventh Row podcast is the perfect companion piece to our new ebook, Tour of memories: The creative process behind Joanna Hogg’s The Souvenir. We discuss the film in depth and explore the insights gleaned from the in-depth interviews in the book.
[fusebox_track_player url=”https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/seventhrow/639733425-seventhrow-7r-ep14-the-souvenir.mp3″ image=”https://seventh-row.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Ep14-Featured-Image.jpg” artist=”Alex Heeney, Orla Smith, & Mary Angela Rowe” subscribe_googlepodcasts = “https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iyjypezrg5ewsbm2atvukjpnicm” subscribe_itunes=”https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/seventh-row-podcast/id1437069031?mt=2″ subscribe_soundcloud =”https://soundcloud.com/seventhrow” subscribe_spotify=”https://open.spotify.com/show/3yfsbjXBhHJFPdIDcCshoI” subscribe_stitcher =”https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/seventh-row-podcast?refid=stpr” subscribe_tunein=”https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts–Culture-Podcasts/Seventh-Row-podcast-p1159237/ ]
About the podcast episode on The Souvenir
“This film assumes the viewer has a huge amount of context that I don’t think most of us had.” – Mary Angela Rowe. Through repeated viewings and research, we are here to provide this context.
In this episode of the podcast, Editor-in-Chief Alex Heeney (@bwestcineaste), Executive Editor Orla Smith (@orlamango), and Editor at Large Mary Angela Rowe (@lapsedvictorian) discuss Joanna Hogg‘s The Souvenir, cringeworthy class relations, celebrate the film’s sound editing, parse the film’s toxic relationship, and much more.
Intrigued? Get the Book
If you enjoyed the podcast on The Souvenir, we go even deeper into how the film works and how it was made in the book, Tour of Memories: The Creative Process Behind Joanna Hogg’s The Souvenir
In this episode of the podcast, we discuss how, with The Souvenir, Joanna Hogg continues to explore her pet topics — the stifling nature of privilege, the awkwardness and foibles of the British upper class, women’s stories, and more. At the same time, the film marks a significant departure from Hogg’s previous films. Where her first three features were contemporary dramas focused on the dynamics of relationships, The Souvenir is Hogg’s first period piece, her first coming-of-age story, and her first film to centre a young female protagonist. In this episode of the podcast, we go deep into all of these topics and the film.
Set in 1980s London, The Souvenir is a film very much of its time and place. Understanding that milieu is essential to appreciating the nuances and complexities of the film, and we give this context in our discussion on the podcast. The Souvenir focuses on a central romantic relationship from the perspective of the woman. The central relationship in The Souvenir is unambiguously toxic: Julie’s (Honor Swinton-Byrne) paramour, Anthony (Tom Burke), is a decade her senior and a heroin addict sponging off her generosity and privilege. Hogg helps us understand why Julie is so enamoured with Anthony — he is the one person who takes her seriously and exposes her to art and culture and the world beyond her privileged circle.
Show notes and recommended reading
This podcast episode was designed to accompany the book on The Souvenir, which is available to purchase as an ePub and PDF.
In 2016, Alex wrote about how the promise Tom Hiddleston displayed in Joanna Hogg’s films was being thwarted by his star persona (a situation that hasn’t improved in the last three years).
Shooting kitchens and living rooms as different spaces was also a subject in Alex’s interview with Aquarius director Kleber Mendonça Filho.
This episode was edited by Edward von Aderkas.
Errata:
- Alex discovered Joanna Hogg in 2013, not 2016.
- The order of the sex scenes discussed is not the correct order from the film. The scene with the other man occurs after Julie’s sexual satisfaction with Anthony.
More on The Souvenir from Seventh Row to complement the podcast
Discover the top 5 reasons we love Joanna Hogg
Read about our three favourite scenes from The Souvenir
Never miss another episode. Subscribe to the podcast now!
You can also subscribe on Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.
Ep. 13: Patricia Rozema’s Mouthpiece
In this episode of the podcast, we discuss Patricia Rozema’s Mouthpiece, which Alex, Orla, & Brett all named their favourite Canadian film of the year on our rrecap of 2018 Canadian Cinema (episodes 8 & 9). It also featured on our feature on the best Canadian films of the decade, the best films of the decade, the best films of 2019, and the best Canadian cinema of 2019. To coincide with Mouthpiece‘s theatrical release, theatre artist and Seventh Row staff writer Laura Anne Harris joins editor-in-chief Alex Heeney and associate editor Brett Pardy on the podcast to discuss the film’s adaptation from stage to screen, Rozema’s visual genius, complex character relationships, and more.
[fusebox_track_player url=”https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/seventhrow/632492511-seventhrow-7r-e13-mouthpiece.mp3″ image=”https://seventh-row.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Ep-13-Featured-Image.jpg” artist=”Alex Heeney, Brett Pardy, and Laura Anne Harris” title=”Mouthpiece” subscribe_googlepodcasts = “https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iyjypezrg5ewsbm2atvukjpnicm” subscribe_itunes=”https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/seventh-row-podcast/id1437069031?mt=2″ subscribe_soundcloud =”https://soundcloud.com/seventhrow” subscribe_spotify=”https://open.spotify.com/show/3yfsbjXBhHJFPdIDcCshoI” subscribe_stitcher =”https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/seventh-row-podcast?refid=stpr” subscribe_tunein=”https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts–Culture-Podcasts/Seventh-Row-podcast-p1159237/” ]
Amy Nostbakken and Norah Sadava (also the film’s writers) simultaneously play two sides of the same woman, Cassandra, as she prepares for her mother’s (Maev Beaty) funeral. Her preparations lead to her grappling with the contradictions of her mother’s second-wave feminism and the female experience of living under the patriarchy. Director Patricia Rozema collaborated with Nostbakken and Sadava to adapt their play to the screen.
Mouthpiece is a favourite at Seventh Row: it’s not just our favourite Canadian film of 2019, but our favourite film of the year overall, and our third favourite film of the decade. Suffice to say, you must see this film.
Show notes and recommended reading on Mouthpiece
Alex Heeney highlighted Mouthpiece as one of the shining stars at TIFF 18.
We previously discussed Mouthpiece on part two of our best 2018 Canadian cinema podcast episode.
Read our interview with Nostbakken, Sadava, and Rozema.
This episode was edited by Edward von Aderkas.
Never miss another episode. Subscribe to the podcast now!
You can also subscribe on Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.
Ep. 12: Hail Satan? featuring director Penny Lane
Episode 12 welcomes our first director guest to the podcast. Penny Lane discusses her new documentary, Hail Satan?, about the political activism of the Satanic Temple, with Seventh Row editor-in-chief Alex Heeney and associate editor Brett Pardy.
This episode is a Seventh Row members exclusive, as are all episodes older than six months. Click here to become a member.
About Hail Satan?
Hail Satan? follows the rise of the Satanic Temple, a religious movement and social activist group with a wicked sense of humour. We discuss with director Penny Lane what attracted her to the story, her thoughts on how to responsibly portray the film’s subjects, and her filmmaking process from concept to editing. Hail Satan? was shot over two years and represents the first film for which Lane shot original on-the-ground footage rather than working with archival footage or developing animated sequences. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January.
Show notes and recommended reading related to Hail Satan?
Hail Satan? continues to expand across the United States and Canada
For more information about Penny Lane and her projects, visit her website: https://pennylaneismyrealname.com/ and follow her on Twitter.
Alex interviewed Penny in 2016 about her film Nuts, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. John Brinkley, who made his name by transplanting goat testicles into infertile men, making liberal use of animated re-enactment. An excerpt of the interview is available here.
Our interview with Penny Lane on NUTS! is available as part of the eBook In Their Own Words: Documentary Masters Vol. 1, which also includes interviews with Sophie Fiennes, Steve James, Joshua Oppenheimer, Alanis Obomsawin, D.A. Pennebaker, Frederick Wiseman, and more. The book is a carefully curated selection of our best interviews and features some of the most talented documentary directors from around the world, each with different (and sometimes conflicting) approaches and opinions. It will change how you think about documentaries and whether there’s any “right” way to make them. Find out more here.
This episode on Hail Satan? was edited by Edward von Aderkas.
Never miss another episode. Subscribe to the podcast now!
You can also subscribe on Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.
Ep. 11: Mike Leigh’s Peterloo
Episode 11 of the podcast celebrates our new ebook, Peterloo in Process: A Mike Leigh collaboration. Authors Alex Heeney and Orla Smith are joined by Brett Pardy to discuss how conducting and reading the interviews with Leigh, Rory Kinnear, Maxine Peake, and key department heads deepened their admiration and understanding of Peterloo.
[fusebox_track_player url=”https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/seventhrow/608127804-seventhrow-7r-e11-peterloo.mp3″ image=”https://seventh-row.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Copy-of-October-Sky-Featured-Image-min.jpg” artist=”Alex Heeney, Orla Smith, & Brett Pardy” subscribe_googlepodcasts = “https://play.google.com/music/listen?u=0#/ps/Iyjypezrg5ewsbm2atvukjpnicm” subscribe_itunes=”https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/seventh-row-podcast/id1437069031?mt=2″ subscribe_soundcloud =”https://soundcloud.com/seventhrow” subscribe_spotify=”https://open.spotify.com/show/3yfsbjXBhHJFPdIDcCshoI” subscribe_stitcher =”https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/seventh-row-podcast?refid=stpr” subscribe_tunein=”https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts–Culture-Podcasts/Seventh-Row-podcast-p1159237/ ]
In this episode of the podcast, we discuss Peterloo, the latest film from the legendary Mike Leigh, portrays the events leading up to the Peterloo Massacre, where British soldiers killed 15 and injured as many as 700 people protesting for parliamentary reform.
Our new ebook, Peterloo in Process: A Mike Leigh collaboration, pulls back the curtain on how Leigh builds films in which every frame feels real and full of life. We’ve interviewed all of Leigh’s central team, not just the actors, but also the heads of department he’s collaborated with for years. We uncover how Leigh’s process involves rehearsal and improvisation, historical research, and collective brainstorming across all departments.
Show Notes and Recommended Reading on Peterloo
Visit mikeleighbook.com to pre-order the book and receive a bonus edited audio file of the interviews with Mike Leigh and Dick Pope.
This episode was edited by Edward von Aderkas.
Episodes of the podcast related to Peterloo
Listen to episode 32 , in which we compared Ken Loach’s Sorry We Missed You to Mike Leigh’s Peterloo, and discussed the similarities and differences between Loach’s and Leigh’s filmmaking approaches.
Listen to episode 26 , in which we discuss Seventh Row’s 2019 and how our book on Peterloo shaped our next three ebooks, and what we learned from writing them all.
Never miss another episode. Subscribe to the podcast now!
You can also subscribe on Stitcher, TuneIn, Google Podcasts, or Spotify.
Calling all Mike Leigh fans
With Peterloo in Process, uncover the magic behind Mike Leigh’s working process
as told by the man himself and the people who work with him.