Episode 158: Ingrid Kleinig, Stunt Performer and Coordinator

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Ingrid is a stunt performer and stunt coordinator. She grew up in Australia and fell into the world of stunts while performing 140ft above the arena in the Opening Ceremony of the 2000 Olympic Games. Having toured the globe with renowned physical theatre company Legs on the Wall as well as the Sydney Theatre Company, she had formed a wealth of physical, technical & artistic vocabulary across multiple fields including directing & rigging that lent itself precisely to the stunt industry.

Ingrid hails from a long line of professional drivers so vehicles became an early niche. She was one of only two female stunt drivers on Mad Max: Fury Road, can drive a Big Rig truck & hold her breath underwater for five & a half minutes. She is also the first female to be officially graded as an Assistant Stunt Coordinator in Australia where, to date, no female has ever held the position of Stunt Coordinator. She is one of handful of female stunt coordinators here in the US.

Her story is remarkable and we talk about her journey, how it was to rise in this field as a woman, and how she is navigating motherhood as a stunt performer, proving once again that it is foolish to underestimated a working mother.

Her credits include: Captain Marvel, Ant-Man and Wasp, Justice League, Suicide Squad basically everything. She is formidable and she laughs at fear. Literally. Wait for it.

You can reach Ingrid here: info@ingridkleinig.com

Episode 157: T.L. Quach, Filmmaker

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T. L. is an independent filmmaker based in Los Angeles after studying Film Studies at UC Berkeley and working in production on major TV and Films in New York City.

Her short films have been all over the festival circuit and her short film, Rule of Threes, won an Award of Merit for Women Filmmakers at the Accolade Global Film Competition and an Award of Merit at One-Reeler Film competition.

She is currently developing a new screenplay and also producing her first screenplay, Crave, into a feature film. Which she will tell us all about. You can find more about TL here: http://www.tlquachfilms.com/

Episode 153: Mari Meyer, Writer, Journalist, Filmmaker and Actor

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Mari is a writer, journalist, filmmaker and actor. She holds a BA in Journalism and completed the 3 Year Conservatory program at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York.

As a journalist, she has over ten years of experience in news, art and entertainment journalism, both in the Netherlands and in the U.S. She is producer and director of VAGILANT, a short documentary film about the Women's March on Washington and was the lead producer on music video project A Whole New World. She co-wrote, produced and starred in The Soothing System, an award winning narrative short film. In 2018, Female Filmmakers Fuse Film Festival in Los Angeles named her Filmmaker of the Year.

We talked about her new projects in development, her work within the prison system in New York and how finding your voice and telling your story, as cliché as that is starting to sound, is still imperative.

You can find more about Mari here.

Episode 152: Michelle Salcedo, Director/Writer

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Michelle directed a gorgeous short film called Piel Canela, that she shot in Cuba and which is screening at several film festivals this week. It will be premiering at the San Diego Latino Film festival March 23, as well as the Chicago Latino Film Festival March 29, and 31st, with a Miami screening happening first weekend in April at the Indie Pasión Film festival! So, if you are anywhere near any of those places, make a point of going to see it. I have seen the trailer and it is gorgeous. You can see the trailer here.

Michelle came up through marketing and editing at Miramax during the heyday, editing with Bunim Murray, and is now writing and directing full time. She tells us the whole story of scouting and then shooting in Cuba, counting all her cash in a bathroom stall at LAX to make sure TSA hadn’t taken any, and her Grandmother’s spirit yelling at her about all of it.

You can find more about Michelle and Piel Canela here.

Episode 151: Judy Jean Kwon, Creative

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Judy calls herself a Creative. She’s an actress, a comic, a writer, producer, podcaster, creator…she does all the things. Her webseries, MILFriend will be screened on March 22nd at the TCL Chinese 6 Theatres at the Golden State Festival. She tells us all about it on the show, along with her very interesting personal story, and being perfectly poised to have great success during the United Colors of Benetton advertising era.

And this: it’s not enough to just have representation. She wants to hear narratives of the other point of view. She calls it “the other point of views.”

You can find more about Judy here.

Episode 148: Ayser Salman, Author

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Today I interviewed my friend, Ayser Salman, for the second time, because her book, The Wrong End of the Table: A Mostly Comic Memoir of a Muslim Arab American Woman Just Trying to Fit in is coming out on March 5th, so I wanted to have her on to talk about it. She was previously on episode 47, so that was awhile ago and if I am remembering correctly, it was hilarious, and maybe because we were having wine and cheese. So, if you want to hear her entire story, go listen to that episode, or more relevantly, buy her book. Which you can order here.

Get the book

Episode 127: Krista Hovsepian, Actor, Writer, Producer

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Krista is an actor, writer and producer and stars in the webseries she created, “Wholesome Foods I love you….is that OK?” Originally from Canada, she has done many things in her life from synchronized swimming to a masters in visual anthropology. She is a true Californian at heart though, as you will hear in our conversation.

Find her webseries here.

Episode 104: Prarthana Joshi - Filmmaker

Prarthana (PJ) is a Production Designer, Producer, Editor – Artist. She moved to California from India several years ago to attend film school and then work in the film industry. She has been working here ever since, until recently, when her green card was denied, and she has to leave the country this very week. This is a story of immigration, the pursuit of art, and the agency of people to live and work where they desire.

Also, PJ is a producer on this project. Please follow and join the cause: https://www.seedandspark.com/fund/the-apple-tree#story

Episode 74: I Clown You, Sasha Kapustina and Inbal-Rotem Sagiv

Sasha and Inbal are filmmakers who have made a documentary called I Clown You. It’s a film about clowns that work in hospitals in Israel. Clowning is a beautiful art that is taken quite seriously and is respected as a legitimate occupation in the medical system.

Sasha had a long and winding road from law school in Russia to filmmaking in the United States. Inbal also had a long journey from production in Israel to living in Hollywood. We talk about their lives and careers, immigration and diverse families, and the art of clowning.

This is more than a film, it’s a mission - to explore and to bring awareness to healing and liberating powers of professional medical clowning and to spread the clown spirit of kindness and mischief.

To that end, they are celebrating I CLOWN YOU WEEK in Los Angeles – November 6-14, 2017. Two Israeli professional medical clowns, David Barashi and Rotem Goldenberg, are coming to Los Angeles for a series of events, lectures, hospital visits, workshops, and seminars. The program aims to grow awareness around the profession of medical clowning and its value both in the hospital and in the day to day life.

You can find out more here:  http://www.iclownyoudoc.com/

You can see video of this interview here.

Episode 47: Ayser Salman, Writer/Editor/Producer

Ayser is an Editor/Producer/Writer. She is also a Muslim, Arab, immigrant woman living in America.  Apparently, all of those things together add up to an interesting set of experiences. So much so, she is writing her memoir.  After hearing her interview, you will want to read her book, The Wrong End of the Table: an Immigrant Love Story.

She told me lots of stories, such as when her sister was born in America and was nearly named Amanda, except Ayser was NOT HAVING THAT. In recent years, she has discovered that saying your real name to the barista is actually a radical political act that, though risky, is worth it. It is important to be seen and not hide in the shadows.

And no matter what, even at her own party, she always seems to find herself at the wrong end of the table.  Who doesn’t?

You can learn more about Ayser and read some of her work here:  www.aysersalman.com.

Episode 28: Nadja Rutkowski, Distribution Executive

Nadja is Senior VP, Sales, Marketing & Operations at Terry Steiner International. As such, she places films on airplanes and with the military. A worthy endeavor indeed, and yet perhaps the least interesting thing about her. She grew up in a divided Berlin and is still dealing with her immigration issues after being in the US for more than 20 years. She has a valuable perspective on immigration and on our current political climate.

This was recorded a couple of weeks after the election, but I don’t think much has happened since to assuage her concerns. Let me know what you think.