The Bat Segundo Show was a long-running cultural radio program devoted to quirky and very thorough long-form interviews with contemporary authors, idiosyncratic thinkers, and other assorted artists. Guests included David Lynch, Octavia Butler, John Waters, John Updike, Stephen Fry, Marilynne Robinson, Karen Russell, Weird Al Yankovic, Robert A. Caro, and more than 500 others. There was also a program called Follow Your Ears, which was a thematic investigative counterpart, in which I pursued a specific subject through several angles. The entire archive of what I did from 2005 to 2014 is included here.
Mike Leigh is the filmmaker behind Naked, Life is Sweet, Vera Drake, and, most recently, Happy-Go-Lucky, which is currently playing the New York Film Festival (among many others) and opens in the United States on October 10. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Too unhappy and too unlucky. Guest: Mike Leigh Subjects Discussed: Vocational symmetries within Leigh’s […]
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MoreBrent Spiner is most recently a producer and performer on the album, Dreamland. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Ducking his head and dodging paranoid crooners. Guest: Brent Spiner Subjects Discussed: Natural reverb, conversational limitations, co-owning a recording studio with Dave Way, being a control freak, the shaky profitability of the music industry, self-distributing a CD through […]
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MoreRalph Bakshi is the director of such films as Heavy Traffic, Coonskin, and American Pop. There is also a recent book, Unfiltered: The Complete Ralph Bakshi, now out that collects his work. Condition of the Show: Caught in a musical daydream. Guest: Ralph Bakshi Subjects Discussed: The role of music in Bakshi’s films, making good […]
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MoreErrol Morris is most recently the director of Standard Operating Procedure, which opens on April 25, 2008. (There is also an accompanying book written by Philip Gourevitch.) Guest: Errol Morris Subjects Discussed: Susan Sontag’s “Regarding the Torture of Others,” the American cycle of photographing physical abuse, finding out what we’re looking at before drawing conclusions, […]
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MoreChen Shi-Zheng is the director of Dark Matter. Liu Ye is the star. The film is now out in theaters. Condition of the Show: Adopting a theoretical construct. Guests: Chen Shi-Zheng and Liu Ye Subjects Discussed: The visual emphasis on stairwells, metallic college environments, the relationship between character and environment, string theory, researching cosmology, comparisons […]
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MoreBrad and John Hennegan are the filmmakers behind First Saturday in May, which opens in theaters on April 17, 2008. Condition of the Show: Racing to the finish line. Guests: Brad Hennegan and John Hennegan Subjects Discussed: Why the Hennegans chose six horse trainers, cutting the film down from a three hour epic, Pop-Up Video-style […]
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MoreMimi Weddell is the subject of Hats Off. Jyll Johnstone is the director of the film. The film opens in New York on March 28, 2008. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Under scrutiny from his schizophrenic creator. Guests: Mimi Weddell and Jyll Johnstone (Hats Off) Subjects Discussed: Starting the film in Central Park and ending the […]
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MoreBill Plympton is an independent animator. He has just completed an 80-minute feature, Idiots and Angels. The website can be found here. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Concerned about whether he is becoming a cartoon. Guest: Bill Plympton Subjects Discussed: The origin of the square-shouldered suit guys, Plympton’s approach to humor, “Push Comes to Shove” and […]
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MoreTerry Sanders is most recently the director of Fighting for Life, which opens in New York and Los Angeles on March 7th. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Convinced that he is fighting for his life. Guest: Terry Sanders Subjects Discussed: Maintaining an apolitical tone, whether being a military doctor involves politics, apolitical semiotics, how much reality […]
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MoreStephen Chow is most recently the director of CJ7, which opens on March 7th. Jiao Xu is the very talented young star of the film. We are happy to report that this is our first bilingual podcast. Stephen Chow and Jiao Xu answered in Cantonese. Diane, an adept, amicable, and very helpful translator, assisted us […]
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MorePaulo Morelli is the director of City of Men. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Contemplating a movie scenario with Brazilian filmmakers. Guest: Paulo Morelli Subjects Discussed: Using close-ups, visual obstructions for sexual activity, violence and emotion, the relationship between City of God and City of Men, possible confusion between the television series and the movie, color […]
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MoreDavid Bruckner, Jacob Gentry, and Dan Bush are the writer-directors of The Signal. AJ Bowen played exterminator Lewis Denton, Scott Poythress played Clark, and Chad McKnight played Jim Parsons. The film opens on February 22, 2008. Condition of Mr. Segundo: Resisting the suggestions of broadcast signals. Guests: Cast and crew members from The Signal: Writer-directors […]
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 33:40 — 30.8MB)
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