WILDsound's The Film Podcast

Acting, Comedy, Directing, Film Festival, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJuly 28, 2024Jajube Mandiela, Jacqueline Godbout, FIRST GRADE HEADACHE, Matthew Toffolo, comedy, filmmaker, actor

EP. 1283 - Actor/Producer/Writer Oliver de la Harpe (PARROT)

PARROT, 24min,. Canada
Directed by Cameron Faulkner
After forcibly being sold a parrot, Ollie is thrust into a surprise birthday party hosted by his roommates. The night spirals into chaos as he tries to regain control and sort his life out. Based on an unbelievable true story.

https://www.instagram.com/parrotfilmofficial/

Get to know Oliver de la Harpe:

Covid is the short answer. Charles (co-writer) and I were isolated across continents and in many FaceTime conversations we finally started to commit to a film project we had been talking about for a few years. It lived mainly as a script we would work on until Charles showed it to our director Cameron for notes. To which he signed on immediately and said he wanted to shoot. From there the only question was when.

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Acting, Directing, film and television, Film Festival, Film of the Day, Independent Film, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJuly 27, 2024Oliver de la Harpe (PARROT), writer, producer, actor, Matthew Toffolo, wildsound, filmmaker

EP. 1275 - Writer/Producer/Actor Nathan Ondracek (JACK)

JACK, 5min., USA
Directed by Julian Curi
An art connoisseur finds himself on the run after he steals a priceless item from a ruthless man in this fun twist on a classic tale.

Get to know the filmmaker:
I’ve always loved adventure films, and this concept had been floating around it in my head for some time when 2020 hit. My co-producer Adam Lau said we should use our time as wisely as possible and start writing. Jack was one of the scripts that came out of that time. I’ve always loved movies that were untouchable by time. As this one is set in the early 1940s with our style, we thought it could be enjoyable for quite some time. And I also wanted to tell a story that was fast and engaging while also being easily digestible.

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https://www.facebook.com/midoristarsmidore
https://twitter.com/midoristars24
https://www.instagram.com/midoristars/

Action Film Festival, Acting, DirectingMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 2024Nathan Ondracek, jack short film, wildsound, Matthew Toffolo, action, adventure, short film

EP. 1274 - Filmmakers Izabella Sandra Alda, Ovidiu Claudiu Moldovan (HEART WORN OUT & AGAINST THE WALL)

HEART WORN OUT & AGAINST THE WALL, 6min., Romania
Directed by Izabella Sandra Alda, Ovidiu Claudiu Moldovan
This short “Heart Worn Out & Against The Wall” is a short movie about loneliness and fear. Fear of losing a loved one, of being superficial, of being unlovable. About the struggles of filling a void that can never be filled and mannerisms used to cope with these feelings. About wanting affection but not being able to deal with human interactions. About feeling disconnected, but never allowing this to be seen, and thus, constantly having to deal with the inauthenticity.

Get to know director/singer Izabella Sandra Alda:

Ren's music video for "Hi Ren" ahaha. When I saw his video, it really gave me the confidence to make a similar music video, as I already had a piano version of "Against The Wall" and the "Heart Worn Out" spoken word poetry. It was meant to be something really simple, a one-shot type of video filmed from different angles, but while working on the script, it naturally shifted into what it is now.

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Directing, film and television, Film Festival, Film of the Day, Independent Film, Matthew Toffolo, MusicalMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 2024HEART WORN OUT & AGAINST THE WALL, Izabella Sandra Alda, Ovidiu Claudiu Moldovan, wildsound, Matthew Toffolo, music festival

EP. 1273 - Producer Gabi Lowe (GET ME TO 21 – THE JENNA LOWE STORY)

GET ME TO 21 – THE JENNA LOWE STORY, 88min., South Africa
Directed by Diana Joy Lucas

The extraordinary story of a young South African girl, her battle to get to 21 and the lasting impact she has had on the world around her. A riveting and inspiring story of advocacy, rare disease, organ donation, courage and hope.

https://www.jennalowetrust.org/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/710845692340944
https://instagram.com/jenna_lowe_trust

Get to know Executive Producer Gabi Lowe:

PH is a rare, cruel and silent disease and way too many people die from it before even being diagnosed. I know that if I can get Jenna’s compelling story out as far and wide a possible, it will impact thousands of people through earlier diagnosis which equals HOPE for a longer life and better quality of life. But that is not all that this Doccie s about … …illness and suffering aside, there are so many inspirational learnings to be found in this story such as the extreme grace, courage and a fighting yet gentle spirit that Jenna demonstrated that I feel the world can benefit from right now. Finding ways to truly live, make a difference, give back and find meaning even in the face of extreme suffering… now THAT is something we all need to learn and aim for.

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Directing, Documentary Film, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Independent FilmMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 2024GET ME TO 21 – THE JENNA LOWE STORY, Gabi Lowe, Matthew Toffolo, documentary film festival, feature film, wildsound

EP. 1272 - Filmmaker Daron Hagen (9/10: Love Before the Fall)

9/10: Love Before the Fall, 58min., USA

Directed by Daron Hagen

The myths of Orpheus and Charon are interwoven with the entirely sung magical-realist story of four friends dining in an Italian bistro who are fated to perish the next morning in the attack on the Twin Towers. At meal’s end, through magical realism, the restaurant’s mysterious strolling violinist is revealed to be Charon, hand extended, awaiting payment. Complying, each reconciles with death, and departs to the sounds of the next morning’s busy signals and the calls of first responders.

https://www.9-10operafilm.art/

https://facebook.com/burningsled

https://instagram.com/910_operafilm

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Directing, film and television, Film Festival, Independent Film, Matthew Toffolo, MusicalMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 20249/10: Love Before the Fall, musical, Daron Hagen, filmmaker, Matthew Toffolo

EP. 1272 - Filmmaker Arie Forma (THE SHEPHERD)

THE SHEPHERD, 14min., USA
Directed by Arie Forma
Struggling with the news of his son’s interfaith engagement, a religious father seeks solace in his estranged brother.

https://www.arieforma.com/the-shepherd
https://www.instagram.com/rosecolored.pictures/

Get to know the filmmaker:

I was motivated to bring The Shepherd to life for a few reasons. The first is that the topic of interfaith marriages is very prevalent in my life. I was confused by the negative reactions to my sister dating a non-Jew. Upon further research, I saw that this issue extended beyond other religions and that there were stories where families could take these reactions a step too far (HINT HINT).”

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Directing, film and television, Film Festival, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Independent Film, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 2024Arie Forma, The Shepherd short film, Matthew Toffolo, wildsound, drama

EP. 1271 - Alexa Ruggiero & Ashley Carrizo (OUT OF THE DARK)

OUT OF THE DARK, 3min,. USA
Directed by Alexa Ruggiero, Ashley Carrizo
A screendance film that portrays how certain relationships in ones life can cause turmoil. The process of letting someone go can be freeing while also being an emotional rollercoaster full of sadness, anger, and relief.

Get to know the filmmakers:

Alexa: To tell a story people can relate and connect to. I’ve always been passionate about dance so l loved using movement verse a script to tell that story.

Ashley: I had always wanted to create my own work on film but didn’t know how or where to start. I was associate choreographer last year on another artist’s project. That experience gave me the inspiration to want to create my own work with cameras and sets verse just creating choreography for stage.

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diversity, Directing, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Independent Film, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJuly 21, 2024Alexa Ruggiero & Ashley Carrizo (OUT OF THE DARK), Matthew Toffolo, filmmaker

EP. 1270 - Filmmaker Chris Hinton & Brian Todd (SYNTHETIC HOPE)

SYNTHETIC HOPE, 16min., USA
Directed by Chris Hinton
Faced with certain death a young girl unleashes a mysterious AI to help her escape.

https://www.instagram.com/synthetic_hope

Get to know the filmmaker:

Listening to the first 30 seconds of Gravastar by Hybrid when I was sick. It sounds like what a robot would hear when it’s booting up. I thought to myself what scenario could I create to have this in live action. So I wrote a story that created this situation. Unfortunately I couldn’t get Hybrid to let me use the song. I was close though, they were talking to me about it. Also I want to say, recent advances in AI motivated this story as well, there are a lot of unknowns as to how this emerging technology will be used.

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Directing, Film Festival, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJune 22, 2024Chris Hinton & Brian Todd, Matthew Toffolo, SYNTHETIC HOPE, filmmaker

EP. 1269 - Filmmaker Sammy Verni (Low Down Larry Versus the Giant Reptile)

Low Down Larry Versus the Giant Reptile, 7min., USA
Directed by Sammy Verni
In their latest adventure together, Larry and Spike set out in a time machine to be the first to bring a living dinosaur back with them to present day. They’ve already been to the Moon and back, but this time have they gone too far?

Get to know the filmmaker:

Low Down Larry Versus the Giant Reptile is the second in a series of shorts that I have made based on a comic book character I used to draw when I was about ten years old. I see it as a love letter to that time in my life as well as an homage to sci fi b movies, classic stop motion and the Saturday morning cartoons that I grew up with.

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Animation, Directing, Film Festival, Film of the Day, Independent Film, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJune 22, 2024Low Down Larry Versus the Giant Reptile, Sammy Verni, animation, sci-fi, filmmaker, Matthew Toffolo

EP. 1262 - Filmmaker Andrew Laurie (DIPPERS IN THE ALTAI IV; EMERGENCE OF THE CHICKS)

DIPPERS IN THE ALTAI IV; EMERGENCE OF THE CHICKS, 54min., UK
Directed by Andrew Laurie
In the course of his work as a wildlife conservation advisor to the Mongolian government, Andrew Laurie followed up on a childhood fascination with White-throated Dippers on the Teme near Ludlow, by finding out more about their lives in the Altai Mountains. Now resident in Cambridge, Andrew has made four films on Dippers in Mongolia – covering nest-building, incubation, feeding of the chicks in the nest, and this, the most recent one (2023) on the emergence of the chicks and their early lives on the river.

https://www.youtube.com/@andrewlaurie64/featured

Get to know the filmmaker:

Early experience and fascination with the White-throated Dipper in UK as a schoolboy led me to search for its breeding sites in the Mongolian Altai when there on an assignment much later in life – because although sigthings were common, particularly in winter on unfrozen streams, the local ornithologists did not know where it bred.

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Directing, Documentary Film, Environmental, Film Festival, Film of the Day, filmmakingMatthew ToffoloJune 22, 2024DIPPERS IN THE ALTAI IV; EMERGENCE OF THE CHICKS, Andrew Laurie, Matthew Toffolo, wildsound, documentary short film, environmental

EP. 1259 - Filmmaker/Dancer Mariam-Saba Ahmad (BUTTERFLY'S BAQA)

BUTTERFLY'S BAQA, 6min., USA

Directed by Abby London, Mariam-Saba Ahmad

This heart-opening dance film Butterfly’s Baqa invites the viewer to drop into their heart and open to an experience of meaningful beauty. Dancers Mariam-Saba Ahmad and Antonio Samayoa move through a European traditional dance, the waltz, to modern American Pop music, expressing ancient Eastern spiritual concepts. The art and music are created and sung by Mariam-Saba Ahmad specifically for this film, to create a cohesive message, a reminder that there is a purpose to the difficulty we all experience, and that freedom and connection we all search for is within our grasp.

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Directing, Dance, diversity, Film Festival, Film of the Day, Independent FilmMatthew ToffoloJune 13, 2024Mariam-Saba Ahmad, BUTTERFLY'S BAQA, filmmaker, dancer, Matthew Toffolo

EP. 1258 - Filmmaker Felicia Konrad (EARTHLOVE)

EARTHLOVE, 6min., Sweden
Directed by Felicia Konrad, Johan Haugen
EarthLove is a poetic music/dance film with 6 dancers, filmed in the city of Malmö, south of Sweden. “There’s a revolution that needs to happen and it starts from inside each one of us. We need to wake up and fall in love with Earth. We’ve been homo sapiens for a long time. Now it’s time to become homo conscious.” Thich Nhat Hanh

http://www.istillliveinwater.com/
https://www.facebook.com/www.istillliveinwater.com
https://www.instagram.com/feliciavoiceperformer

Get to know filmmaker Felicia Konrad:

A strong sense of that we need to become aware of the fact that we are not separated from Earth, we are a part of Earth. And the inspiration to find the playfulness in shifting into a wider perspective sensing ourselves becoming with Earth.

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Directing, Dance, Film Festival, Film of the Day, filmmaking, Matthew ToffoloMatthew ToffoloJune 13, 2024Felicia Konrad (EARTHLOVE), Matthew Toffolo, dance

EP. 1255 - Filmmaker Anthony Orlando (HIGH LIGHT)

HIGH LIGHT, 4min., USA
Directed by Anthony Orlando
A young man musters the courage to face an alien lifeform rooting through his garage.

Get to know the filmmaker:

: As I saw my peers in the film industry sharing their new projects and getting laurels for their work, I knew I had to direct a new movie to promote myself so I could move forward in my career as a filmmaker. It had been a few years since I directed my last short, so I knew I had to create something new to showcase all the knowledge and experience in filmmaking I had gained since then. Also, since the short is based on a screenplay I have been working on, I hoped this film would act as a proof of concept that I could pitch to executives and hopefully get it made into a feature-length film.

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