BELOW THE LINE PODCAST

It’s non-stop conversations about the Oscar nominees in the technical categories from now until the Academy Awards, and I hope you'll follow us for the full season. Today, Kent Seki and Chris Batty return to discuss the nominees for Achievement in Visual Effects.  The 2024 Nominees for Visual Effects: • “Alien: Romulus” • “Better Man” • “Dune: Part Two”  • “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” • “Wicked”  

Below the Line continues our Sixth Annual Oscar Series with a discussion of the nominees for achievement in Directing, and I’m joined by a panel of fellow below-the-liners: Bill Hardy, Roger Mendoza and Shaun O’Banion. (This is the second year we’ve discussed the directors nominated for the Academy Award in lieu of the Directors Guild of America nominees.) The 2024 Nominees for Directing: • “Anora” • “The Brutalist” • “A Complete Unknown”  • “Emilia Pérez” • “The Substance”  

We’re continuing our deep dive discussions about the Oscar nominees in the technical categories, and today, Production Designer Bob Shaw and Set Decorator Regina Graves - Oscar nominees themselves - offer their insights about the five nominees for Production Design. The 2024 Nominees for Production Design: • “The Brutalist” • “Conclave” • “Dune: Part Two”  • “Nosferatu” • “Wicked”  

Our Academy Awards coverage continues, and now we’re into the categories proper. Today, Oscar nominees Steve Morrow (production sound mixer) and Erik Aadahl (sound editor) discuss this year's nominees for Achievement in Sound. The 2024 Nominees for Sound: • “A Complete Unknown” • “Dune: Part Two”  • “Emilia Pèrez”  • “Wicked”   • “The Wild Robot” 

Our Sixth Annual Academy Awards Series begins here! Each episode this season features a panel of Film Industry professionals discussing the nominees in their category of expertise. To kick us off: Achievement in Property Mastering. While the work of the property master is still not recognized with an Oscar, we’re carrying a torch. Gregg Bilson, Jr. (CEO of ISS) and Scott Buckwald (property master and friend of the podcast) propose a hypothetical slate of 2024 films that could have been nominated for their fantastic work with props. Our 2024 Nominees for Property Mastering: • “Alien: Romulus” • “Blitz” • “A Complete Unknown” • “Gladiator II” • ”Horizon: An American Saga”

“Henry Danger: The Movie”, now streaming on Paramount+, is the latest chapter in a storyline that started with the Nickelodeon television series in 2014. Director Joe Menendez joins me alongside an all-star panel of crew, including Costume Designer Farnaz Khaki-Sadigh, Director of Photography Chris Kempinski, Production Designer Bridget McGuire and Makeup Designer Jenn Kaminski. Not only did their collaborative efforts lift this multi-faceted film to another level, but they had a great time doing it. We've also shared an album of behind-the-scenes photos on Facebook: www.facebook.com/podcastbelowtheline/  

“St. Denis Medical”, the workplace comedy currently airing on NBC and streaming on Peacock, is the latest show to take a crack at the mockumentary genre. Camera Operators Jacob Pinger, Mande Whitaker and Danny Whiteneck discuss how their extensive experience with unscripted television helps elevate this mockumentary to the next level. Why is it that an actual reality tv production would have fired these operators for filming the way they did, but this show kept pushing them to make the camera movements more obvious? Answers in the podcast. 

“Cross”, the eight-episode crime thriller currently available on Amazon Prime, was filmed in Toronto but is set in Washington,  DC. The assignment for Production Designer Elisa Sauvé was to venture outside the stereotypical Capitol Hill locations and really give the city it’s due. From the Georgetown neighborhood to Ben’s Chili Bowl, Elisa and her team made sure that DC’s unique vibrancy was an integral part of the series.

“Dune: Prophecy”, which airs its sixth episode and season finale tonight (!), is the latest example of HBO Max’s commitment to prestige television. This short but ambitious series required an all-hands-on-deck approach, and Film Editors Sarah Reeves and Mark Martzell are here to share the collaborative details. We talk about doing a prequel to the movies, the challenge of the strikes on production, and - spoiler alert - we break down some specific scenes. Insights and laughs guaranteed, or your money back.

Can “Rumours”, the 2024 comedy horror film written and directed by Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson and Galen Johnson, be both an absurdist take on international politics AND the most accurate depiction of a G7 meeting ever? Cinematographer Stefan Ciupek collaborated with this team of three (!) directors to navigate a tightrope production between farce and truth. While every film project is a challenge, the need to accommodate an ensemble cast of nine (led by Cate Blanchett) while filming in Hungary on an independent film budget definitely spawned some transcendental experiences. This provocative and entertaining film teases both insights and laughs, and it was a lot of fun to talk about. In summary: yes, that’s a giant brain, and yes, it really is on fire.