Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.
Today we discuss John Frankenheimer, a true expert of the craft and a man who could make any kind of film. Our B-Sides today include Prophecy, 52 Pick-Up, Dead Bang, and the HBO Film Against the Wall (for which Frankenheimer won an Emmy!)
Our guest today is the great Blake Howard of One Heat Minute Productions. He’s just wrapping up his podcast series Romin, in which Blake discusses Frankenheimer’s late-period action masterpiece (and certified A-Side) Ronin with incredible film minds (and also two schlubs from The Film Stage). In this episode, Dan tells a fairly interesting first-hand story about original Ronin screenwriter J.D. Zeik!
The superb interview book John Frankenheimer: A Conversation With Charles Champlin is referenced quite a bit throughout, as is this interview with Ben Affleck (which includes a funny memory of the temperamental Frankenheimer on the set of Reindeer Games). Frankenheimer’s BMW Films short with Clive Owen comes up, as does underrated character actor Tim Reid.
We admire the nastiness of 52 Pick-Up, the way that Against the Wall looks, and the ambitions of Prophecy, failed though they may be. Then there’s Dead Bang, a deeply troubled production with a supremely strange William Forsythe performance.
Additionally, Frankenheimer made his bones in live television, specifically being the lead director of Playhouse 90. One episode we talk about a bit is “Forbidden Area.”
Listen and subscribe at thefilmstage.com/pod. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!
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Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.
Today we discuss John Frankenheimer, a true expert of the craft and a man who could make any kind of film. Our B-Sides today include Prophecy, 52 Pick-Up, Dead Bang, and the HBO Film Against the Wall (for which Frankenheimer won an Emmy!)
Our guest today is the great Blake Howard of One Heat Minute Productions. He’s just wrapping up his podcast series Romin, in which Blake discusses Frankenheimer’s late-period action masterpiece (and certified A-Side) Ronin with incredible film minds (and also two schlubs from The Film Stage). In this episode, Dan tells a fairly interesting first-hand story about original Ronin screenwriter J.D. Zeik!
The superb interview book John Frankenheimer: A Conversation With Charles Champlin is referenced quite a bit throughout, as is this interview with Ben Affleck (which includes a funny memory of the temperamental Frankenheimer on the set of Reindeer Games). Frankenheimer’s BMW Films short with Clive Owen comes up, as does underrated character actor Tim Reid.
We admire the nastiness of 52 Pick-Up, the way that Against the Wall looks, and the ambitions of Prophecy, failed though they may be. Then there’s Dead Bang, a deeply troubled production with a supremely strange William Forsythe performance.
Additionally, Frankenheimer made his bones in live television, specifically being the lead director of Playhouse 90. One episode we talk about a bit is “Forbidden Area.”
Listen and subscribe at thefilmstage.com/pod. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!
BONUS Ep. – In Conversation with: Christine Vachon & Pamela Koffler of Killer Films
The B-Side: A Film Stage Podcast
36 minutes 28 seconds
3 months ago
BONUS Ep. – In Conversation with: Christine Vachon & Pamela Koffler of Killer Films
Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie stars, movie directors, and sometimes - sometimes - the companies that made the movies those stars and directors made! We were lucky to speak with Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler of Killer Films in honor of Metrograph’s 30th Anniversary program, with screenings starting on August 2nd, 2025.
Vachon and Koffler speak on curating the celebratory program, which includes Office Killer. We also dish on Dan and Conor’s time as interns at Killer many years ago, some B-Sides (including A Home at the End of the World, The Safety of Objects, Dark Waters, and how Killer has survived this ever-changing industry of independent film.
There’s a wonderful discussion about wigs in film (prompted by Colin Farrell’s bad wig in the first act of A Home at the End of the World), an appreciation of Dark Waters getting made and getting discovered to this day, and line producers “carrying the burden of the budget.”
Vachon mourns The Safety of Objects being swallowed by the tragedy of 9/11 while Koffler suggests why the independent ensemble drama has gone by the wayside. There’s discussion on the dangers of saying “good enough” during pre-production as well as Vachon and Koffler shouting out Killer Films B-Sides they personally love (The World to Come, Vox Lux, Dirty Girl). Dan shouts out She Came to Me, an underrated, recent gem.
Be sure to give us a follow on social at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Also enter our giveaways, get access to our private Slack channel, and support new episodes by becoming a Patreon contributor.
The B-Side: A Film Stage Podcast
Welcome to The B-Side! Here we talk about movie directors! Not the movies that made them famous or kept them famous, but the ones that they made in between.
Today we discuss John Frankenheimer, a true expert of the craft and a man who could make any kind of film. Our B-Sides today include Prophecy, 52 Pick-Up, Dead Bang, and the HBO Film Against the Wall (for which Frankenheimer won an Emmy!)
Our guest today is the great Blake Howard of One Heat Minute Productions. He’s just wrapping up his podcast series Romin, in which Blake discusses Frankenheimer’s late-period action masterpiece (and certified A-Side) Ronin with incredible film minds (and also two schlubs from The Film Stage). In this episode, Dan tells a fairly interesting first-hand story about original Ronin screenwriter J.D. Zeik!
The superb interview book John Frankenheimer: A Conversation With Charles Champlin is referenced quite a bit throughout, as is this interview with Ben Affleck (which includes a funny memory of the temperamental Frankenheimer on the set of Reindeer Games). Frankenheimer’s BMW Films short with Clive Owen comes up, as does underrated character actor Tim Reid.
We admire the nastiness of 52 Pick-Up, the way that Against the Wall looks, and the ambitions of Prophecy, failed though they may be. Then there’s Dead Bang, a deeply troubled production with a supremely strange William Forsythe performance.
Additionally, Frankenheimer made his bones in live television, specifically being the lead director of Playhouse 90. One episode we talk about a bit is “Forbidden Area.”
Listen and subscribe at thefilmstage.com/pod. Be sure to give us a follow on Bluesky at @tfsbside.bsky.social. Enjoy!
