IndieWire's Filmmaker Toolkit

Ti West, director of "X" and "Pearl," stops by Toolkit to discuss how he landed on the golden age of Hollywood aesthetic he captured for his horror prequel, how he achieved the film's singular look, and how he tapped into a more formal style of filmmaking where blocking and framing can tell the entire story of a family and lead us to understand Pearl herself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the Filmmaker Toolkit podcast, creator and star of 'Mo', Mo Amer discusses how he and his team built a series that juggles a tone that can fuse comedy and drama, how they built the show's hip and absurd sense of humor, and how they made filmmaking choices that spotlight the city (Houston) and the culture (the Palestinian diaspora) at the show's heart. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Director George Miller shares insights on '3,000 Years of Longing,' describing it as a refreshing shift from 'Mad Max: Fury Road.' He delves into the philosophical themes of desire and love in the film, stemming from a rich novella. Acclaimed actress Tilda Swinton and versatile actor Idris Elba discuss the creative dynamics that arise when filmmakers act and reveal the importance of their collaborative rehearsal process. Together, they explore how these elements create a more authentic cinematic experience.

Executive producer and director Jamie Babbit discusses how the new Amazon Prime Video series "A League of Their Own" uses its camera to turn the show's large cast into a team and breaks down the cinematic language she found to highlight both the joys of playing baseball and of falling in love. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jerrod Carmichael joins this week to talk about the creation of "Rothaniel," the ways in which it's changed his approach to telling stories for an audience, and some of the filmmaking choices that helped make the special as natural and also as elegant as possible. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Succession" executive producer and director Mark Mylod joins this episode of Toolkit to discuss putting together the show's third season and discusses the extra charge the series got from shooting in Italy, how "Succession" organizes scenes in order to capture the most impactful performances, the ways in which the show uses its opulent backup to keep the characters in perspective, and even more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a young screenwriter, Lawrence Kasdan saw the special effects magicians at Industrial Light & Magic bring his most spectacular acts of imagination to life. Over 40 years after his work on “The Empire Strikes Back” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” Kasdan returned to the world of ILM for “Light & Magic,” a six-part documentary series chronicling the biggest effects developments of the 20th century through the stories of the men and women responsible for them – most of all Kasdan’s first employer, George Lucas. In this episode Kasdan talks about why he left fiction filmmaking behind for documentaries, how Lucas changed the movies forever, the mistakes Kasdan made on his own special effects extravaganza “Dreamcatcher,” and why “Top Gun: Maverick” made him excited about the movies again. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peele knows you'll have questions after seeing 'Nope,' but to what degree did he figure out the the life and history of his new film's alien life form? Peele answers that question, as he breaks down the process of making his UFO cinematically real, and what he learned from filmmakers like Paul Thomas Anderson and Quentin Tarantino.'Nope' is a masterpiece of sound, and in second half of the podcast [19:40], we interview the films sound designer Johnnie Burn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Filmmaker Toolkit, showrunner Peter Gould and executive producer Vince Gilligan join to talk about the ending of "Better Call Saul." No Season 6 spoilers here, but they discuss the show's writing process, the personnel decisions that have helped elevate the series, how the camerawork has evolved over the course of the show, and some of the storytelling philosophy that has stood them in good stead since "Breaking Bad." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of Filmmaker Toolkit, creator Danny McBride discusses the latest season of "The Righteous Gemstones" and his philosophy for everything from where the humor needs to come from, shooting action comedy, and maximizing his resources on a television schedule and budget. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices