This is a special podcast for me. Why? Jon James Smith wrote and directed “Last Orders,” a horror short that took home the Grand Jury Award for Best Short Film – Horror at Film Invasion Los Angeles in 2022.
As a London resident, Jon was not able to attend the festival but I made a point to tell him of how well-received the film had been. I invited Jon onto the podcast then and he held off for a great reason.              He did not want to Zoom in from London for the interview, he wanted to do it in person.

Thankfully Jon’s work returned to Film Invasion Los Angeles in 2025 with a new film, “Babushka,” and again he took home the Grand Jury Award for Best Featurette – Horror.                                                      But Jon was able to attend FI-LA’s 10th Anniversary Edition and, even though I prefer to do nothing the day after a festival wraps… how could I say no to having Jon over to the house to record a podcast?

I hope you all enjoy listening to our conversation as much as we enjoyed having it.                                                                                                                                                                                                        And a huge thank-you to Jon for being the kind of person who follows through on his intentions with actions!

Learn more about Jon and his work at:

JonJamesSmith.com
@jonjamessmith
@babushkamovie

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Discover Indie Film Podcast Links
DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky

Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Links
DIF Foundation – Sherman Oaks Film Festival – Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

Happy Monday, Listeners!

Selina Ringel and Dan Levy Dagerman brought their feature film “You, Me & Her” to Sherman Oaks Film Festival in 2023, taking home three awards!                                                                                        Those would be the Grand Jury Awards for Best Feature Film – Comedy, Best Performance by a Cast – Feature Film – Comedy, and Best Screenplay – Feature Film – Comedy for Selina.

Excitingly, “You, Me & Her” had an innovative theatrical release! It was released in 200 theaters nationwide on Valentine’s Day 2025.                                                                                                                              I should not have to tell anyone what an accomplishment it is for an indie feature to get that kind of theatrical release.                                                                                                                                              This indie romantic comedy was the first film to use Attend, a direct distribution platform recently launched by The Fithian Group.                                                                                                                       Additionally, after its VOD run the film will be released on the streaming service STARZ!

I had been talking to Selina and Dan about their being on the podcast for a long time.                                                                                                                                                                                                     As you can imagine, a team with the drive to get an indie feature into theaters does not have a lot of spare time.                                                                                                                                                     Selina and I chatted about getting them over to record, as we live in the same Los Angeles neighborhood.                                                                                                                                                    Unfortunately our time was cut short and we did not get to go into their release with Attend as thoroughly as we would have liked.                                                                                                                                    If things slow down for them maybe they will come back!

In the meantime, check out their website https://www.ymhmovie.com/ and enjoy this podcast.

@selinaringel

@dldagerman

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Discover Indie Film Podcast Links
DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky

Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Links
DIF Foundation – Sherman Oaks Film Festival – Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

What are the 4Qs? (1) Three favorite films. (2) An underrated film. (3) An overrated film. (4) A lesser-known film people should seek out.

Matt Mazany wrote and directed the short film “Big Brothers,” taking home the Filmmakers Award for Outstanding Writing – Comedy at the Sherman Oaks Film Festival in 2024.

After you listen to Matt’s 4 Questions I highly recommend watching “Big Brothers” yourself!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             It’s here on Matt’s website at https://www.mattmazany.com.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Follow Matt on Instagram at @mattmazany

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Discover Indie Film Links
DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky
Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website
Sherman Oaks Film Festival
Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

Happy Humpday, Friends!

Matt Mazany wrote and directed the short film “Big Brothers,” taking home the Filmmakers Award for Outstanding Writing – Comedy at the Sherman Oaks Film Festival in 2024.                                                           He was also one of the titular brothers, having fun with his performance by handling the main stunt in the film himself.                                                                                                                                                   It’s always the smartest move in indie film; if it’s dangerous, get one of the producers to do it.

I was looking forward to talking to Matt about “Big Brothers.” Besides being a fantastic film with a terrific ensemble cast, it truly is written and directed with an attention to depth and detail that one rarely sees. The good news is that you can watch “Big Brothers” right now!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         It is accessible on Matt’s website at https://www.mattmazany.com.

Follow Matt on Instagram at @mattmazany

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Discover Indie Film Podcast Links
DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky

Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Links
DIF Foundation – Sherman Oaks Film Festival – Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film

What are the 4Qs? (1) Three favorite films. (2) An underrated film. (3) An overrated film. (4) A lesser-known film people should seek out.

Ryan Barton Grimley returns to the podcast for the THIRD time! This time, to discuss “Listen Carefully,” the winner for Best Feature Film – Action/Thriller at Sherman Oaks FIlm Festival in 2024.

It’s fair to say Ryan has been a favorite guest over the years and I’m always eager to hear how the 4 Questions has changed and grown.

You can find everything you need at Ryan’s official website (https://www.ryanbartongrimley.com/) including where you can catch ALL of his films.

IG @ryanbartongrimley

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Discover Indie Film Links
DIF Podcast Website – DIF Instagram – DIF BlueSky
Discover Indie Film Foundation (nonprofit for the arts) Website
Sherman Oaks Film Festival
Film Invasion Los Angeles

Source: Discover Film