I am beyond honored to share this interview with the one and only Paul Flaherty, director of a true comedy classic, CLIFFORD, starring Martin Short, Charles Grodin, and Mary Steenburgen.

If you're like me, the pitch - essentially THE OMEN but starring Martin Short as the devious 10-year old, with the legendary Charles Grodin as the (mostly) straight man trying to keep his life together - will have you watching this film later tonight.

Paul was kind enough to give me an hour or so of his time to discuss his career, reflect back on lessons learned after decades in the industry, and dive deeper into one of my personal favorite comedies, CLIFFORD.

Justin Sirkin joins the podcast to discuss his recently completed short film, RESEDA, as well as how he and his team plan to continue the story by developing it into an independent feature.

Brad Bischoff returns to discuss his debut feature, GRASSHOPPERS, filmed near where both of us grew up, in suburban Illinois.

GRASSHOPPERS tells the story of an immigrant couple who decide to visit each one of their neighbor's homes while they are away for the holidays, drinking and discussing their future together. Featuring cameos from true Chicago film legends like Jack C. Newell (actor in MERCURY IN RETROGRADE and filmmaker) and Patrick McDonald (HollywoodChicago.com), we discuss the inspiration of the incredible and underseen Burt Lancaster film THE SWIMMER on Brad's work, as well as how COVID and the general stress of being an independent filmmaker led to some true hail mary fundraising attempts.

I first encountered Brad's work on Kentucker Audley's fantastic NoBudge site, with his short film WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM. It caught my eye not only because of the emotional honesty and style of the film, but also noticing street signs of a nearby Illinois suburb, not far from where I grew up.

I reached out to Brad back then, and he remains as thoughtful and generous with his time back then as he is now. He has progressed through making many more outstanding shorts and commercial work, as well as his debut feature, GRASSHOPPERS, which was released in 2021.

In this episode, Brad and I discuss his beginnings as a filmmaker in the suburbs of Chicago, diving into each short which can be found on his Vimeo page. From mixing elements of his real life into his art, to developing his style, we break down the inspirations, intentions, and lessons learned at the start of a very promising filmmaking career.

For the conclusion of Michael Glover Smith's (current) feature filmography, we discuss his 2022 film RELATIVE, which features many returning crew members from RENDEZVOUS IN CHICAGO, as well as some acting legends such as Wendy Robie (TWIN PEAKS).

Michael Glover Smith returns to discuss his third feature, an anthology film set in the greatest city in the world, RENDEZVOUS IN CHICAGO.

The film can be streamed through Freevee on Amazon, Tubi, or Vudu Free! We discuss lessons learned from past productions, how to effectively crowdfund, and how the special cameo from the star of Eric Rohmer's La collectionneuse, Haydée Politoff, came to be!

Special appearance by the practice jets for the Chicago Air and Water Show

WAITING FOR THE LIGHT TO CHANGE premiered at the Heartland International Film Festival in October 2022, before winning Best Narrative Feature at the Slamdance Film Festival earlier this year. Now set to premiere in New York and Chicago in September before streaming in October, co-writer and director Linh Tran and director of photography David Foy join the podcast to discuss their collaboration, the films that inspired them, and defend CITIZEN KANE!