Best Tom Perna Podcasts (2025)

1
Andrew DeYoung (Friendship) 30:29

5M ago30:29

30:29

Andrew DeYoung is the director of the magnificent Friendship, starring Tim Robinson as a suburban dad who becomes platonically smitten with a cool new neighbor played by Paul Rudd. We talk about men's struggle to stay connected, a dark theory about one of the central relationships in the film, and something audiences have guessed at but that wasn't…

1
Freddy MacDonald (Sew Torn) 38:36

6M ago38:36

38:36

A lot of things have happened to Freddy MacDonald that aren't supposed to happen anymore. His short film "Sew Torn" got him into AFI and scored him a meeting with Joel Coen, who urged him to turn it into a full-length film. He did. Sew Torn, out now, is the story of a seamstress who comes across a drug deal gone awry on a beautiful, isolated Swiss …

1
Joe List (Tom Dustin: Portrait of a Comedian) 39:06

6M ago39:06

39:06

Joe List and Tom Dustin both started out as Boston-area comedians more than 20 years ago. They quickly became friends, drinking buddies and roommates, with a shared dream of moving to New York City to pursue comedy greatness. List followed through on the dream. He got sober, scored a slew of TV appearances and standup specials, and started a thrivi…

1
'Yacht Rock: A DOCKumentary' | Actual Facts 41:16

11M ago41:16

41:16

Sail away with us as we discuss 'Yacht Rock: A DOCKumentary,' the new film from director Garret Price. Part of Bill Simmons' Music Box series, the doc explores the rise—and modern-day reevaluation—of the breezy, easy-listening rock that emerged from Southern California in the late '70s and early '80s. Actual Facts is hosted by Eric Steuer Guest co-…

1
Joe Trippi, Senior Advisor to The Lincoln Project, host of That Trippi Show sits down with Mary Angela Perna to discuss disinformation and strategy! 27:19

11M ago27:19

27:19

I sat down with the incredible, Joe Trippi, seasoned campaign strategist, senior advisor to The Lincoln Project and host of That Joe Trippi Show to discuss the 2024 election, disinformation and strategies for winning in 2025 and beyond!By Mary Angela Perna

1
Houses That Are Also Pop Culture Landmarks with Tommy Avallone, Director of 'The House From …' | Actual Facts 58:24

12M ago58:24

58:24

We discuss ‘The House From …,’ a fun new documentary about iconic homes from movies and TV shows like ‘Home Alone,’ ‘Breaking Bad,’ ‘Friday,’ ‘The Outsiders,’ ‘Pee-wee’s Big Adventure’, ‘A Christmas Story,’ and many more. The film looks at the lives of the homeowners who navigate the unique challenges and joys of living in pop culture landmarks. We…

1
Noah Berlatsky, journalist. We discuss how blue states can resist Trump 40:20

12M ago40:20

40:20

The fantastic Noah Berlastky joins Mary Angela Perna to discuss his piece about how blue states can resist the Trump administration and more!By Mary Angela Perna

1
'The Remarkable Life of Ibelin' with Director Benjamin Ree | Actual Facts 26:04

12M ago26:04

26:04

We talk with Benjamin Ree about his documentary 'The Remarkable Life of Ibelin' (2024). The film tells the story of Mats Steen, a young man in Norway born with a severe form of muscular dystrophy that left him physically isolated for most of his life. Through the online multiplayer game 'World of Warcraft,' however, Mats found connection with a com…

1
'Leap of Faith' with Director Nicholas Ma | Actual Facts 27:40

1y ago27:40

27:40

Joining us is Nicholas Ma to discuss his documentary 'Leap of Faith' (2024), which follows twelve diverse Christian leaders from Grand Rapids, Michigan, as they gather for a series of retreats led by Michael Gulker, organizer of a project called the Colossian Forum. Over a year, these pastors—five women and seven men from various denominations and …

1
'Tell Them You Love Me' with Director Nick August-Perna | Actual Facts 31:12

1y ago31:12

31:12

We speak with Nick August-Perna about his documentary 'Tell Them You Love Me' (2023). The film explores the complex and controversial case of Anna Stubblefield, a former Rutgers ethics professor who was convicted in 2015 for the sexual assault of Derrick Johnson, a nonverbal Black man with cerebral palsy. Stubblefield, a white woman, met Johnson wh…

1
Damien Leone (TERRIFIER 3) 32:00

1y ago32:00

32:00

Damien Leone is the director of four films that star the mugging, murdering Art the Clown — All Hallows Eve and Terrifer, Terrifier 2 and the new Terrifier 3. Even if you've never seen his films, you've probably read about them, because of the hype that surrounds the walkouts and episodes that inevitably accompany screenings. We talk about making a…

1
Sam Pressman on the Legacy and Future of the Business Behind American Psycho, The Crow, and More 49:48

1y ago49:48

49:48

Ed Pressman was one of Hollywood's most impressive producers — a man who worked on films from American Psycho to The Crow to Wall Street to cult classics like The Phantom of the Paradise and Bad Lieutenant. His son Sam Pressman took over Pressman Films when his father died last year at 79. Sam Pressman has bold ideas about how to keep making daring…

1
The Real-Life Truman Show of 'The Contestant' with Director Clair Titley | Actual Facts 26:28

1y ago26:28

26:28

Clair Titley joins to discuss her documentary 'The Contestant' (2023). The film tells the surreal story of Nasubi, an aspiring Japanese comedian who, in 1998 at the age of 22, was selected for a reality TV show produced by the team behind the popular series 'Denpa Shonen.' Stripped of his clothes and placed in a tiny apartment, Nasubi was tasked wi…

1
Elisa Levine on 'Sweetheart Deal' and Life on Seattle's Aurora Avenue | Actual Facts 23:44

1y ago23:44

23:44

We talk to filmmaker Elisa Levine about her documentary 'Sweetheart Deal.' The film tells the story of four women—Kristine, Krista, Tammy, and Sara—who navigate life on Seattle's infamous Aurora Avenue, a street packed with traffic, motels, and liquor stores, and known for being one of the city's main hubs for street-based sex work. 'Sweetheart Dea…

1
Micah Khan (THE ZOMBIE WEDDING) 35:16

1y ago35:16

35:16

Micah Khan is one of our favorite people in moviemaking. After years of making shorts and writing his own scripts, he's making his directorial debut on The Weekly World News film THE ZOMBIE WEDDING, the story of the first ever human-zombie wedding, with an ensemble cast that includes Cheri Oteri, Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Seth Gilliam, Heather Mattaraz…

1
Jeremy Saulnier (Rebel Ridge) 33:21

1y ago33:21

33:21

Jeremy Saulnier has done it all with Rebel Ridge. It's an action thriller Netflix hit... but also a smart indictment of a law enforcement policy almost everyone hates. And a movie for grown-ups. And a win for the kind of mid-budget movies that aren't supposed to be hits any more. But as we talk about Saulnier's rise as a filmmaker, we see that he's…

1
Alice Gu on The Donut King's American Dream | Actual Facts 30:32

1y ago30:32

30:32

We speak with filmmaker Alice Gu about her 2020 documentary 'The Donut King.' The film tells the story of Ted Ngoy, a Cambodian refugee who escaped the Khmer Rouge and built a donut empire in California in the 1970s. Ted's success helped hundreds of fellow refugees start their own shops, transforming the West Coast's donut industry. But as Ted enjo…

1
Ondi Timoner on Documenting Her Father's Last Days | Actual Facts 23:40

1y ago23:40

23:40

We talk with acclaimed filmmaker Ondi Timoner about her deeply personal 2022 documentary, 'Last Flight Home.' The film chronicles the last days of Ondi’s father, Eli Timoner, a visionary entrepreneur and philanthropist who founded a successful airline in the 1970s. 'Last Flight Home' captures the final weeks of 92-year-old Eli’s life after he decid…

1
'Join or Die' with Directors Rebecca Davis and Pete Davis | Actual Facts 23:30

1+ y ago23:30

23:30

We’re joined by sister-and-brother filmmaking duo Rebecca and Pete Davis, whose new documentary, 'Join or Die,' examines the pivotal role that joining clubs and civic groups plays in shaping the future of our society. Drawing on the work of renowned social scientist Robert Putnam, whose groundbreaking book 'Bowling Alone' exposed the alarming decli…

1
Elgin James (Mayans MC and Austin Film Festival's Ghost Ranch Writer's Retreat) 41:19

1+ y ago41:19

41:19

Elgin James, co-creator and showrunner of the FX hit Mayans MC, is a former member of an anti-racist gang whose Hollywood rise coincided with a prison sentence. He'll share his insights next week at the Austin Film Festival's Ghost Ranch Writer's Retreat, open to rising writers who want to seek inspiration in the same land that was the longtime hom…

1
Glen Powell and Richard Linklater (HIT MAN) 50:52

1+ y ago50:52

50:52

Hit Man star Glen Powell and director Richard Linklater talk about co-writing their story of a quiet college professor who goes undercover to impersonate a hitman and catch people looking for hired killers. He ends up falling in love. We talk about Steely Dan, submitting to passion to become the person you want to be, thinking, overthinking, and se…

1
Vera Drew (The People's Joker) 41:42

1+ y ago41:42

41:42

Vera Drew is the creator of The People's Joker, which evolved from an attempt to re-edit Todd Phillip's 2019 into its own completely original work of art — a very affectionate parody of Batman mythology and all the ideas it takes for granted. Combining comedy, animation, and Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher's flair for cartoonish drama, it's a punkis…

1
Using VR to Embrace Life, Not Escape It 58:54

2y ago58:54

58:54

Some people think of virtual reality as an escape from actual reality. But helping you escape reality is the opposite of what Felix Lajeunesse and Paul Raphaël hope to do through their immersive virtual reality company, Felix & Paul Studios. The Emmy-winning Montreal-based studio takes audiences to places they might otherwise never go — to the Inte…

1
Debra Granik and Coss Marte (Conbody vs Everybody) 38:51

2y ago38:51

38:51

Coss Marte created a prison-based workout program in solitary confinement, then turned it into a thriving business called Conbody that employs ex-inmates. Their recidivism rate is zero. Debra Granik, the brilliant Oscar-nominated director of films including Winter's Bone and Leave No Trace, tells the story in Conbody vs Everybody, premiering today …

1
'American Pain' with Director Darren Foster | Actual Facts 51:12

2y ago51:12

51:12

MovieMaker Magazine's documentary podcast Actual Facts is back to talk docs! Eric and Jason discuss 'American Pain,' a film that tells the story of twin brothers and bodybuilders Chris and Jeff George, who operated a notorious network of pain clinics in Florida, raking in millions by prescribing and dispensing large quantities of opioids with reckl…

1
Cory Choy (Esme, My Love) 41:35

2y ago41:35

41:35

Cory Choy's Esme, My Love is a mother-daughter thriller, set in the wilds of upstate New York and powered by visual and auditory experimentation. Choy relied not just on his extensive experience as a sound designer (he runs NYC's Silver Sound) but also on his own life experiences, from recording music with his friends in his early teens to being a …

1
Brian Helgeland (Finestkind) 45:43

2y ago45:43

45:43

Brian Helgeland has won an Oscar for the screenplay of L.A. Confidential and was nominated again for Mystic River. He wrote and directed films including Payback, A Knights Tale and 42. But the film he always wanted to make is Finestkind, inspired by his experience on a fishing boat off the coast of his Massachusetts hometown. It's now out on Paramo…

1
Sharon "Rocky" Roggio (1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture) 34:10

2y ago34:10

34:10

Filmmaker Sharon "Rocky" Roggio is a lesbian filmmaker who hopes to someday change her Christian pastor father's mind about homosexuality. Like many Christians, he believes that the Bible condemns it. But her new documentary, 1946: The Mistranslation That Shifted Culture, argues that mistranslations at a 1946 gathering led to widespread misundersta…

1
John Carney and Gary Clark (Flora and Son) 33:17

2y ago33:17

33:17

John Carney and Gary Clark tell stories of scrappy amateurs trying to break into the music industry — because they've both been there. Flora and Son is about a working-class young Irish woman (Eve Hewson, magnetic) who picks up a guitar for her son, and ends up learning to play it herself with help from an American teaching lessons online (Joseph G…

1
Steven Holleran (Sympathy for the Devil) 38:05

2+ y ago38:05

38:05

Cinematographer Steven Holleran doesn't do anything the easy way. For A Boy. A Girl. A Dream: Love on Election Night, he shot one continuous 90-minute film while racing down Sunset Boulevard. For Missing, he handed off cameras to the actors. And for his latest project, Sympathy for the Devil, he found ways to make a car ride with Nicholas Cage and …

1
Sam Hargrave (Extraction 2) 32:12

2+ y ago32:12

32:12

Extraction 2 director Sam Hargrave thought long and hard about how to top the 12-minute nonstop action sequence in the first Extraction, and thought of one way to do it when he saw a weather forecast calling for snow: "What if we light Chris Hemsworth on fire?" Here's our full talk with Hargrave about stunts, Oscars, the writer's strike, and yes, f…

1
Marc Levin (It's Basic) 41:31

2+ y ago41:31

41:31

The new doc IT'S BASIC examines how the idea of Universal Basic Income – giving people money to do with as they please —plays out in the real world. The doc by Marc Levin explores how innovators like former Stockton, California mayor Michael Tubbs have helped introduce programs that get money directly into the hands of those who need it. What do th…

1
Sav Rodgers & Alex Schmider (Chasing Chasing Amy) 36:36

2+ y ago36:36

36:36

Sav Rodgers was a 12-year-old queer kid in Kansas when he first found his mom's VHS copy of Chasing Amy, the Kevin Smith film he credits with saving his life. It also inspired Sav's triumphant TED Talk and now the documentary Chasing Chasing Amy, which premiered at Tribeca. In this episode we talk with Sav and Chasing Chasing Amy producer Alex Schm…

1
Nardeep Khurmi (Land of Gold) 40:38

2+ y ago40:38

40:38

Nardeep Khurmi wrote, directed and stars in Land of Gold, a cross-country, cross-cultural road trip exploring the dynamic between a Punjabi American truck driver (Khurmi) and a Mexican-American girl named Elena (Caroline Valenicia) whom he finds hiding in his trailer. "Can you get more American," he asks, "than two communities of color, who have be…

1
Ali Afshar (Casa Grande) 52:45

2+ y ago52:45

52:45

Ali Afshar has one of the most unique origin stories in Hollywood. His family moved to Petaluma, California after the Iranian Revolution of 1979, and he sought peace against a backdrop of tragedy by wrestling and street racing. A stuntman older brother helped him make his way into acting, and he soon became a producer as well. His latest project is…

1
Alex Convery (AIR) 33:30

2+ y ago33:30

33:30

Alex Convery grew up in the Chicago suburbs in the 1990s, when Michael Jordan was a superhero. He watched the Jordan doc THE LAST DANCE during pandemic lockdowns, like everyone else. But unlike everyone else, he saw an amazing movie idea about the creation of Nike's trademark sneaker, Air Jordans. Two years later, Convery's script has been made int…

1
Barbara Kopple (Gumbo Coalition) 28:00

2+ y ago28:00

28:00

Two-time Oscar winner Barbara Kopple helped invent the modern-day documentary with her groundbreaking Harlan County, USA, which recounted a brutal coalminers' strike in dirt-poor Harlan County, Kentucky and won the 1976 Oscar for best documentary. She won her second Oscar in 1991 for American Dream, about a heartland strike against the Hormel Foods…

1
William Sherak (Scream 5 & 6) 48:01

2+ y ago48:01

48:01

Born into the film industry, William Sherak has a long family history with innovators like James Cameron and George Lucas. He tells us about running Hollywood's go-to 3D company at exactly the right moment, watching Jurassic Park with Steven Spielberg, connecting with directing duo Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett), and helpin…

1
Kevin Abrams (I Got a Monster) 27:57

2+ y ago27:57

27:57

You know when you're watching a cop show, and a suspect says the cops planted a gun? Or drugs? It happened for years in Baltimore thanks to the crooked Gun Trace Task Force. The new documentary I Got a Monster, by Kevin Abrams, explains the disgraced officers' M.O. and how they finally went down. He also tells us how common he thinks the behavior i…

1
Kyle Marvin (80 for Brady) 27:11

3y ago27:11

27:11

In his directorial debut, Kyle Marvin guided not only four of the greatest actors of all time — Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Field — but also the GOAT football player in NFL history, who had never really acted before. He also juggled the interests of Endeavor Content, Brady's 199 Productions, many producers, and the NFL. And yet …

1
MISSING Creators Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian and Natalie Qasabian 25:33

3y ago25:33

25:33

MISSING producers Aneesh Chaganty, Sev Ohanian and Natalie Qasabian join us to talk about their addictive mystery thriller, which unfolds entirely on computer and phone screens. Yes, all the technology in their film actually works. No, it isn't easy. Also: Did you notice that alien invasion? MISSING is in theaters now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.co…

1
Adam Leipzig Made Some of Your Favorite Movies. His MediaU Wants to Teach You What He's Learned 51:50

3y ago51:50

51:50

Making one movie is a miracle, and Adam Leipzig has worked on 36. Some of them might be among your favorites, from Honey I Shrunk the Kids to Dead Poets Society to March of the Penguins. In this episode, the former Disney and Nat Geo executive tells us what he's learned about producing, marketing, and instinct – and what he's learned about happines…

1
Nick Richey (1-800-HOT-NITE) 43:32

3y ago43:32

43:32

Nick Richey, director of 1-800-HOT-NITE, is as cooly understated as he is full of surprises. The new film is about a teenager in trouble (Cobra Kai star Dallas Dupree Young) who gets surprisingly good advice from a phone sex operator (Aly Richey) on a wild night with his friends. The film is inspired by Richey's own tumultuous early years, growing …

1
Matt Stawski (Blue's Big City Adventure) 26:19

3y ago26:19

26:19

Matt Stawski grew up a Detroit punk fan, shooting his friends' bands with equipment from a local TV and radio station. So of course he was the ideal person to direct Blue's Big City Adventure, the new Blue's Clues movie. It's actually not as weird as it sounds. Blue's Big City Adventure is packed with light, color, and music. And Stawski found his …

1
Sylvia Caminer (Follow Her) 49:38

3y ago49:38

49:38

Follow Her director Sylvia Caminer knows all the potential pitfalls of making a psychosexual thriller: cheesy sex scenes, falling into tropes, and at worst, actors who feel exploited. She avoids them all in Follow Her, a film written by and starring Dani Barker, a former influencer herself whose script skillfully subverts cliche in favor of a meta …

1
Rasool Berry (Juneteenth: Faith & Freedom) 30:19

3y ago30:19

30:19

In Juneteenth: Faith & Freedom, host and executive producer Rasool Berry travels to Galveston, Texas to learn about the real origins of Juneteenth, our newest national holiday. He talks with the descendants of the people who were emancipated on the first Juneteenth, June 19, 1865, to learn the true story of the day — and how the truth has been twis…

1
Peter Phok (Pearl and X) 37:55

3y ago37:55

37:55

Peter Phok is having an amazing year — he executive produced both X, released in March, and its prequel Pearl, released in September. And he's planning ahead to MaXXXine, the third film in the horror trilogy directed by Ti West and starring Mia Goth, who co-wrote Pearl with West. Phok goes way back with West — they attended NYC's School of Visual A…

1
Kelci Parker, VP of Animation at Hulu Originals, on Feedback 21:06

3y ago21:06

21:06

Kelci Parker, vice president of Animation at Hulu Originals, shared some perspective with students at the SCAD Animation Fest on the art of storytelling: "We're not curing cancer. But we may be bringing someone a laugh as they go through treatment." Parker, recipient of the 2022 SCAD Animation Fest Award of Excellence, spoke about her journey from …

1
'The Price Is Right' Superfan Doc + Men of a Certain Age Discuss Comfort Viewing | Actual Facts 58:42

3y ago58:42

58:42

Come on down! Director C.J. Wallis joins us to talk about his documentary 'Perfect Bid: The Contestant Who Knew Too Much,' which tells the story of Ted Slauson, a math assessment test writer and “The Price Is Right” fanatic. From an early age, Slauson studied the prices of the show’s prizes, and even wrote software to help him memorize them. He eve…

1
Three Minutes of Film Shot in Poland in 1938 + Cool Things We’ve Found in Random Places | Actual Facts 53:18

3y ago53:18

53:18

We speak with Bianca Stigter, director of 'Three Minutes: A Lengthening.' The documentary is a beautiful and devastating tribute to a Jewish community in Poland that was captured on film in 1938 and wiped out by the Nazi regime a year later. We also talk about Nathan Fielder's unique (and hard to describe) docuseries 'The Rehearsal' and discuss fas…

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