
The Video Essay Podcast
Interviews with leading critics, filmmakers, scholars and other creators about the craft of videographic criticism. Hosted by Will DiGravio. Learn more at www.thevideoessay.com
Latest episodes

Apr 8, 2024 • 37min
On Videographic Berlinale: Viewing Tips with Libertad Gills & Evelyn Kreutzer
Today's episode is the third in an ongoing collaboration between The Video Essay Podcast and "The Video Essay: Memories, Ecologies, Bodies," a three-year research project on video essays led by Kevin B. Lee, Locarno Film Festival Professor for the Future of Cinema at USI University of Lugano, with Johannes Binotto and Evelyn Kreutzer, and funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation
In this episode, Evelyn talks with Libertad Gills, a project affiliate and post-doctoral researcher for the Future of Cinema and the Audiovisual Arts at the Locarno Film Festival, about works they encountered at this year's Berlinale that might be considered "videographic."
Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter.Will DiGravio hosted and produced this episode. Editing by
Elsa Despoix, Evelyn Kreutzer, and Will DiGravio. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa.

Mar 31, 2024 • 56min
Episode 43. Doing Women’s (Global) (Horror) Film History w/ Alison Peirse
Today's episode features a conversation with Alison Peirse, a horror film scholar and professor at the University of Leeds. Alison led the project Doing Women’s (Global) (Horror) Film History (DWGHFH), a year-long video essay mentoring and training program that culminated in a videographic special issue of MAI: Feminism & Visual Culture. DWGHFH features the work of thirty contributors working on "women horror filmmakers in non-anglophone countries, with a particular focus on filmmakers from the Global Majority." Alison and Will discuss the origins of the project, the contributors and mentors who worked on DWGHFH, how the video essays exist into existing scholarship on women horror filmmakers, and much more.
Support the podcast on Patreon. Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter. Subscribe on YouTube.
Will DiGravio hosted, edited and produced this episode. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa: "Live It," "Anvil," and "Refraining."

Feb 20, 2024 • 38min
On Weirdness and Memory: Viewing Tips with Evelyn Kreutzer & Kevin B. Lee
Today's episode is the second in an ongoing collaboration between The Video Essay Podcast and "The Video Essay: Memories, Ecologies, Bodies," a three-year research project on video essays led by Kevin B. Lee, Locarno Film Festival Professor for the Future of Cinema at USI University of Lugano, with Johannes Binotto and Evelyn Kreutzer, and funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation
In this conversation, Kevin talks with Evelyn about her picks for the 2023 survey of the year's best video essays by Sight & Sound magazine. Evelyn's selections serve as an entry point for the two to discuss the broader themes of their research project.
Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter.
Will DiGravio hosted and produced this episode. Editing by Kevin B. Lee and Will DiGravio. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa.

Jan 24, 2024 • 31min
Episode 42. Kleber Mendonça Filho on 'Pictures of Ghosts'
On today's episode, Will talks with filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho about his new film, Pictures of Ghosts. Set in the director's home city of Recife, in the Pernambuco state of Brazil, the film is a self-described "multidimensional journey through time, sound, architecture and filmmaking." Kleber talks about the film's origins, the art of voiceover narration, treating his own films as archival images, and the unique ways that cinema is able to tell stories of ghosts. Learn more about the film and when it might be screening near you, here.
Support the podcast on Patreon. Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter. Subscribe on YouTube.
Will DiGravio hosted, edited and produced this episode. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa: "Live It," "Anvil," and "Refraining."

Dec 19, 2023 • 41min
Curating Sight & Sound's Best Video Essays of 2023
Today's episode centers on Sight & Sound magazine's new list, "The Best Video Essays of 2023." In a conversation moderated by Kevin B. Lee, the curators of this year's list, Irina Trocan, Queline Meadows, and Will Webb, discuss the results of the poll, their curatorial strategies, and offer general thoughts on the video essay landscape in 2023.
This episode is the first in an ongoing collaboration between The Video Essay Podcast and Kevin B. Lee, who, in his role as the Locarno Film Festival Professor for the Future of Cinema at USI University of Lugano, is leading a three-year research project on video essays with Johannes Binotto and Evelyn Kreutzer, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation. Read Kevin's columns for Sight & Sound here.
Support the podcast on Patreon. Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter.
Will DiGravio hosted and produced this episode. Editing by Kevin B. Lee and Will DiGravio. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa: "Live It," "Anvil," and "Refraining."

Nov 21, 2023 • 1h 25min
Episode 41. Feminist Videographic Diptychs with Catherine Fowler
On today's episode, Will is joined by Catherine Fowler, a film scholar based at the University of Otago in New Zealand. Catherine curated the most recent special issue of the journal, [in]Transition, which features feminist videographic diptychs by six scholars: Nicole Morse, Maryam Tafakory, Melissa Dollman, Paola Voci, Maud Ceuterick, and Catherine herself. Watch and read more about the special issue here.
Support the podcast on Patreon. Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter. Subscribe on YouTube.
Will DiGravio hosted and produced this episode. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa: "Live It," "Anvil," and "Refraining."

Sep 29, 2023 • 1h 38min
Episode 40. Evelyn Kreutzer on Videographic Vulnerability
Evelyn Kreutzer, a Berlin-based video essayist, talks about videographic vulnerability, videography collaboration projects, and incorporating personal experiences into academic work. They also discuss their fear of the film 'Psycho', the importance of feedback in video essay creation, and exploring Hitchcock through sound and memory. The chapter also covers the creative process of making a video essay and the significance of the waving water surface effect in one of their works.

Jul 18, 2023 • 1h 13min
Episode 39. Alan O'Leary on Parametric Criticism & the Videographic Society
Alan O'Leary, a scholar and artist based at Aarhus University, discusses videographic 'society,' academic labor, organizing videographic events, and more. They also explore Kathleen Luke's video essay on Blade Runner 2049 and the concept of reproductive futurism. The chapter delves into the validity and impact of video essays on traditional scholarship.

Jun 2, 2023 • 36min
Episode 38. Alexandre O. Philippe on 'Lynch/Oz'
On today's episode, writer-director Alexandre O. Philippe joins to discuss his new film, Lynch/Oz, which explores the relationship between the cinema of David Lynch and The Wizard of Oz (1939). Will and Alexandre discuss his influences, why he makes films about films, the importance of the theatrical experience, and collaborating with a group of writers and filmmakers to bring this work to the screen. Lynch/Oz debuts in New York City on June 2, 2023 at the IFC Center. Learn more here.
Support the podcast on Patreon. Follow the show on Twitter. Learn more at the pod's website. Get the free newsletter.
Will DiGravio hosted, produced and edited this episode. Emily Su Bin Ko is the show's associate producer. Music by Ketsa: "Live It," "Anvil," and "Refraining."

May 25, 2023 • 1h 9min
Episode 37. What is a Videographic PhD?
PhD students Jemma Saunders and Cormac Donnelly join Emily and Will to discuss videographic PhDs, including their motivations, evaluation by universities, and tips for interested individuals. They delve into the creative process, the influence of Rob Stone's video essays, placing students in industry and academia, the evolution of pitches and thesis titles, the resistance and acceptance of videographic PhDs, and an upcoming creative practice colloquium.
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