Making Media Now

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Andy DeMeo, the creator and host of the Granite Goodness podcast and Substack newsletter.  

Andy has a belief that most news thrives on outrage, fear, and conflict. And he created "Granite Goodness" in order to take a different approach.

The podcast and newsletter highlights what Andy calls real progress happening across New England in science, tech, sustainability, business, economics, infrastructure, and more.

It’s Andy’s contention that when people see a better world is possible, they are more likely to build it. At the core of "Grani...

Host Michael Azevedo is joined by veteran film and television director Rob Spera.   Rob’s been on the faculty at the American Film Institute for over 20 years. His feature films include The Sweet Life, Fathers and Sons, and the cult classic Leprechaun in the Hood.    His numerous television credits include Criminal Minds, Supernatural, Suspect Behavior, and Army Wives. During four seasons as Resident Director at the Tony award-winning Actors Theatre of Louisville, he directed over 75 productions. And he is currently the Head of Directing at Rideback Rise, a Fellowship Program for mid-career screenwriters who are making the move to directing.    Rob disc...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode are Jen Bradwell and Todd Boekelheide, the married co-directors of "Make A Circle," a new documentary that offers a rare, inside look at the lives of child care providers and early educators — the backbone of a child care system on the brink.   The film premieres Monday, September 1 streaming nationally on PBS.org, the PBS app and on PBS TV stations (check local listings) across the country.    As Jen Bradwell says: “Make A Circle is a love letter to early educators and a portrait of a child care system in crisis. The film delves into one...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Jonathan Berman, director of the newly restored documentary "Commune." Originally released in 2005, the film has been newly restored with vibrant sound and picture quality and is currently making the rounds at movie houses across the US.    Commune chronicles the story of Black Bear Ranch, launched in 1968 with help from luminaries like The Doors, Frank Zappa, and The Monkees. This abandoned goldmine transformed into a hub for radical living, fueled by the motto "Free Land for Free People."   The film is packed with rare interviews—including with well-know actor and frequent documentary narrator Peter Coyot...

Here's a brief update on the current status of public media.   In short: it ain’t good.   If you’re a regular listener to MMN, you probably know that over the more than 150 episodes that we’ve produced a sizable chunk of them involved conversations with documentary filmmakers whose work was broadcast on public media outlets like PBS and NPR.    Much of the reason that these documentaries have found a home at places like PBS is because they deal with important issues—issues that impact the health of our democracy, our natural environment, the rights of marginalized groups, and often compelling h...

Documentary filmmakers Ellen Martinez and Steph Ching join host Michael Azevedo to discuss Slumlord Millionaire, winner of the Audience Award at the 2024 DOC NYC Film Festival. The film explores the rapid gentrification of New York City neighborhoods and the housing crisis sweeping not only New York but the nation.

Told through the stories of a group of fearless residents, activists and nonprofit attorneys who fight corrupt landlords and developers for the basic human right to a home, the film premieres on the PBS series VOCES on Monday, July 28. It will also be available on all PBS digital...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Troy Farkas, the creator, producer, and host of "Seacoast Stories," a podcast featuring compelling stories about the unique people, businesses, and newsmakers of New Hampshire and southern Maine.   This weekly podcast takes on sometimes controversial issues, highlights local businesses, tells entertaining stories, and seeks to uncover what makes the northern NE Seacoast such a hidden gem.   Prior to creating the "Seacoast Stories" podcast, Troy spent 7 years producing top-performing podcasts at ESPN and The Ringer podcast network on Spotify which were hosted by some of the most high-profile sports media personalities in the wo...

Host Michael Azevedo is joined by members of the team behind a compelling and eye-opening short documentary called “Gone Guys.”  Chad Ervin  is the film’s director & producer. Also joining the conversation is the film's executive producer, Lauren Curry, of the Richard E and Deborah L Tarrant Foundation.   The documentary draws on the influential work of writer & social scientist Richard Reeves. Reeves is the author of the 2022 best seller “Of Boys and Men”, which illuminates these challenges through powerful data and compelling personal stories.    NOTE: In the interest of accuracy, we note that a slight misstatement was made at the 54min, 24sec mark...

“If everybody always lies to you, the consequence is not that you believe the lies, but rather that nobody believes anything any longer. And the people that no longer believe anything cannot make up its mind. It is deprived not only of its capacity to act, but also of its capacity to think and to judge. And with such a people, you can then do what you please.”

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Chad Freidrichs, the director and editor of a fascinating and intriguing film called "The Cinema Within."

"The Cinema Within," which is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video and on Vimeo, is a feature-length documentary that delves into the psychology of film editing – the mystery of how and why an edited movie feels so natural and so effortlessly makes sense.

Drawing on the insights of famed movie editor Walter Murch, scholar David Bordwell, and a varied group of perceptual scientists, "The Cinema Within" explores the idea that in fil...

Host Michael Azevedo welcomes back Mickela Mallozzi, the four-time Emmy Award-winning host and executive producer of “Bare Feet with Mickela Mallozzi,” a PBS series that highlights the diversity of dance with episodes filmed around the world. A dancer since early childhood, Mickela has parlayed her lifelong passion into a popular PBS series that travels the world to celebrate the joy of movement.  

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creative...

Host Michael Azevedo is joined by two guests to discuss recent funding cuts to the National Endowment for the Humanities, the NEH, and the National Endowment for the Arts, the NEA. To provide insight into the topic, Michael is  joined by documentary filmmaker and television producer Marisa Fox, who in a recent article in the Hollywood Reporter described what she and many of her peers have been going through as the Trump administration makes drastic cuts to the NEH and the NEA.

Also joining the conversation is Laura Azevedo, executive director of Filmmakers Collaborative, which sponsors this po...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is writer/director Gene Tempest. Gene’s latest documentary is “Mr. Polaroid” and it will debut on PBS as part of the American Experience series on May 19. Following its broadcast premiere, the film will be available via the PBS app and on the American Experience YouTube channel. The film profiles Edwin Land, a pioneering tech disruptor and Inventor of the mid-century icon that transformed photography.   Long before the iPhone, another inventive device allowed everyone to instantly chronicle their lives — the Polaroid camera. The product, and the company’s unique culture, would launch not only instan...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode are Will Parrinello and Rick Tejada-Flores, the director and co-producers of a documentary that premiered on PBS in April called "Water for Life."    The film, which is available to stream via the PBS app and on PBS.org, tells the story of three extraordinary individuals: in Honduras; Francisco Pineda, in El Salvador; and in Chile, who refused to let government supported industry and transnational corporations take their water and redirect it to mining, hydroelectric projects or large scale agriculture. Despite reassurances from companies and the authorities, they knew what lay ahead: contaminated water, envi...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is independent filmmaker Joseph Mathew, director of "The Long Walk of Carlos Guerrero," a feature film that was Inspired by real immigrant journeys and stories of survival set in the desert wilderness of the Arizona borderlands.   In the film, we meet Carlos Guerrero, a New York City chef, who decides to visit his sick mother in Mexico, knowing full well  he is taking the ultimate risk as an undocumented immigrant.The film follows his epic journey back to New York when he and a young girl from El Salvador, get stranded in the de...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Signe Taylor, the director of a documentary called It’s Criminal. "It's Criminal" highlights the economic and social inequities that divide the United States and offers a vision of how separated communities can learn to speak to each other.

Poignant and personal, the 80-minute feature documentary shares the life-changing journeys of incarcerated women and Dartmouth College students working together to write and perform an original play that explores the often painful and troubled paths that landed the women behind bars and also shares some of their fragile visions for th...

Host Michael Azevedo welcomes back journalist and media analyst Brandon Katz. Brandon’s recent article in The Observer, titled "The Decline of Originality in Hollywood: A Look at the Numbers" explores how original content, in TV shows and movies, have, over the past 15 years, lost out in a landslide to existing IP, meaning Intellectual Property.   Existing IP is defined as anything based on pre-existing material such as comic books, novels, video games, podcasts and musicals and including remakes, reboots, revivals, prequels, sequels and spinoffs.    If you look at the numbers—viewership and ticket sales—it’s undeniable that IP-driven content is a powerh...

Curb cuts, ramps at building entrances, and braille on elevator buttons. All these seem commonplace today, but they were once the subject of a pitched battle that landed on the steps of Congress.   A new American Experience documentary, Change, Not Charity: The Americans with Disabilities Act, which will premiere on PBS on March 25, tells the emotional and dramatic story of the decades-long push for equality and accessibility that culminated in the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990.    Host Michael Azevedo's guests on this episode are the film’s director, James LeBrecht and its writer, Chana Gazit. Told through...

Host Michael Azevedo speaks with acclaimed filmmakers Tom Jennings and Annie Wong, the co-producers and co-directors of "The Rise and Fall of Terrorgram," a FRONTLINE/ProPublica collaboration that investigates how an online network known as Terrorgram spread extremism and violence.

The documentary traces the rise of a global community of white supremacists and the anonymous, loosely moderated platforms used to spread hate and promote terror attacks.premieres Tuesday, March 25, 2025, on PBS and online.

Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From pr...

Host Michael Azevedo welcomes back Tim Molloy, editor in chief of Moviemaker. MovieMaker is a magazine, website and podcast network focused on the art and business of filmmaking, with a special emphasis on independent film. The publication, in all its forms, offers profiles, advice, insider tips, and product reviews that readers can use to make informed decisions about what they watch..and create!  

The magazine has featured pretty much every prominent moviemaker you can think of on its cover. Its print edition is published quarterly, while its digital home, MovieMaker.com is continually updating its features and late-breaking content.

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Alexi Cohan, news producer from Boston’s PBS station, ‘GBH. Alexi joined me to talk about a new video series, "Politics IRL."    "Politics IRL" is a video series produced by GBH News that engages young voters from all over the region. Each video in the series features young people meeting to discuss their different perspectives on important political and cultural issues. The project is driven by video participants and seeks to promote voter confidence and engagement.  The lightly moderated videos are then posted to the GBH News YouTube channel.  

Making Media Now is sp...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is former television journalist and documentary producer turned digital media entrepreneur Bob Bowdon. Bob is the founder of VidaFair, a video streaming platform that is disrupting subscription models by giving creators a new way to monetize — think pay-per-view, but for videos.    Before VidaFair, Bob built an impressive career as a journalist, documentary producer, and television commentator for outlets like PBS and Bloomberg, where he became passionate about giving people a platform to share their voices. He also directed The Cartel, an award-winning documentary exposing what he saw as corruption in public education. Bob also...

Unidentified Flying Objects have long captivated the imagination of the public, but for decades most scientists treated the subject as taboo. Now, these mysterious phenomena are moving out of the shadows and into the light, as NASA pledges to study them scientifically. So, what exactly does science have to say on the matter?   Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Terri Randall, the writer and director of a new science documentary called “What Are UFOs” which will premiere on the award-winning PBS science series NOVA on January 22. This new NOVA investigation looks at the evidence from every angle, marshaling expert...

Host Michael Azevedo is joined on this episode by Nicholas Bruckman the writer, producer, and director of a new documentary called Minted, which provides an insider’s look at the rise and fall of the NFT (non-fungible token) phenomenon and how technology transformed the traditional art world, for better and worse.

Featuring verité footage and candid interviews with groundbreaking artists at the center of this phenomenon, Minted delves into the complex world of the $40 billion NFT digital art market.

Minted will have its broadcast premiere as part of the PBS Independent Lens series on January 6 and...

We’re using this episode of the podcast to promote a special event sponsored by the Boston International Kids Film Festival taking place on December 27, 2024 at 1pm at the Capitol Theatre in Arlington, MA with a FREE screening of a delightful and entertaining feature film called Magnetosphere, written and directed by our guest Nicola Rose.    In Magnetosphere, Maggie Campion, a shy and imaginative 12-year-old, discovers that her unique ability to see sounds and hear colors is called synesthesia. As she navigates her new life, Maggie finds friends, love, and self-acceptance — all while her quirky family gets involved in a local theatr...

On the eve of Black Friday and the holiday shopping season, host Michael Azevedo is joined by Nic Stacey and Flora Bagenal, the filmmakers behind a new Netflix documentary called Buy Now! The Shopping Conspiracy.   The film explores how targeted advertising, one-click purchase options, and mass production from some of the world’s largest companies are driving a new era of overconsumption, rapidly leading to a world choked in waste of all sorts.   The documentary, which was directed by Nic Stacey, unveils the behind-the-scenes world of influential big brands, with insider sources exposing the manipulative tactics that keep consumers constantly buyin...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Amy Schatz the Emmy and Peabody award-winning director of a soul-stirring musical documentary called "Stand Up & Shout: Songs from a Philly High School."

The film, which is now streaming on Max, tells the tale of an annual music program in the city’s Hill-Freedman World Academy. The 54-minute documentary, which was executive produced by the award-winning team at Get Lifted Film Co. and the music superstar John Legend features 10th-grade students learning to write, compose, produce, and perform original songs.

Together with local musicians, the students pitch co...

The underpinnings of maneuvers and machinations by aggrieved white citizens and business owners of the south reached a boiling point in North Carolina in 1898 and culminated in the events depicted in "American Coup: Wilmington 1898," an American Experience film that will be broadcast on November 12.

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode are the film’s co-directors Yoruba Richen and Brad Lichtenstein. Their film tells the story of how “self-described white supremacists used intimidation and violence to destroy Black political and economic power and overthrow Wilmington's democratically-elected, multi-racial, Reconstruction era government.

Does this sound familiar to you: you settle in for the night hoping to find something to watch on one of the half dozen streaming services you somehow subscribe to and can’t seem to find something that appeals to you?     Or you’re chatting with friends about what they’re watching but no one can seem to remember exactly what their new favorite program is on? Deciphering viewing options among various streaming services can certainly feel like a chore. And that’s a challenge for viewers and streaming companies alike.   

That’s why host Michael Azevedo invited Brandon Katz, senior e...

Host Michael Azevedo welcomes back Dr. Paul Heinzelmann to the podcast to talk about his debut documentary, "Safe Sets: Dying to Work in the Film Industry," which will premiere at the New Hampshire Festival on October 19.     Over the past few years, Paul, who is a physician and former clinical instructor at Harvard Medical School has taken his interest in on-set safety and turned it into a compelling and important documentary. The film is a feature length exploration of systemic issues impacting the health and wellbeing of film workers, was shot in Boston, Los Angeles, Oakland, and Vancouver.

The d...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Josh Levin the writer and host of "Slow Burn: The Rise of Fox News", a 6-episode series that takes listeners back to a crucial inflection point in American history: the moment between 2000 and 2004 when Fox News first surged to power.   When the Fox News Channel launched in 1996, critics called it disorganized, incompetent, and laughably inept. But it wouldn’t be a joke for long. During the 2000 election, Fox News would captivate the nation – and just maybe change the fate of American democracy.  

In the podcast series, which debuted in mid-September, Josh and hi...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Michelle Ferrari, an award winning documentary filmmaker whose latest film “The American Vice-President” will debut on PBS’ American Experience series on October 1.    The film explores the little-known story of the second-highest office in the land, tracing its evolution from a constitutional afterthought to its current position of enormous political consequence. Focusing on the fraught period between 1963 and 1974, when a grief-stricken and then scandal-plagued America was forced to clarify the role of the vice president, the film examines the passage and first uses of the 25th Amendment and offers a fresh and surprising perspect...

A few weeks the NewYork Times published an article, written by Emily Labor-Warren, that examined the practice of conducting something called a life review.    It was in the article that host Michael Azevedo learned about the life and work of Jodi Wellman, his guest on this episode of Making Media Now.   The Times’ article begins by laying out a bit of Jodi’s story: Jodi Wellman was devastated when her mother died of a heart attack at age 58. Cleaning out her apartment made her feel even worse. Drawers and closets overflowed with abandoned projects: unpublished manuscripts and business cards for ventures...

If you’re a college football fan here’s something you already know: the 2024 NCAA College Football season kicked off this past weekend! The college football season goes from now until the end of the regular season on Dec. 14, with the national championship game slated to be played in late January. And Michael Azevedo's  guest on this episode of Making Media Now is 6-time Emmy winning live sports producer and director Jerry Weinstein (aka Dubber or JDub), the president and CEO of JDUB Productions, will be deploying a small army of TV production crews throughout the land to cover every acrob...

On this episode, host Michael Azevedo is joined by filmmaker Stebs Schinnerer to discuss his career as a director, cinematographer, and editor as well as his work as one of the founding members of a group called Crews for a Cause.   Crews for a Cause is a 100% volunteer run nonprofit production group made up of production assistants, producers, makeup artists, directors, cinematographers and everyone in between.   The organization specializes in creating short form video content for great causes in need of telling their story. Their goal is to support and bring together passionate and empowered entertainment professionals to produce, film & edi...

On this episode, host Michael Azevedo is joined by the makers of a new three-part documentary series called “Sea Change: The Gulf of Maine” which premiered on US Public Television stations in late July. Joining Michael are co-director Chun-Wei Yi and series producer Brian Skerry.

“Sea Change” explores a body of water that is warming 97 percent faster than the global ocean, and what that means for the Gulf of Maine – for the animals, for the jobs dependent upon it and the millions of people along its shores – and may serve as a preview of what could happen worldwide due t...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode are documentary filmmakers Tom Casciato and Kathleen Hughes. Tom and Kathleen join Michael to discuss their latest film for PBS’s Frontline series called "Two American Families, 1991-2024." The film follows two Milwaukee families, one black, one white, over the last thirty-odd years. 

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode are Sarah T. Schwab and Brian Long, the co-founders of Cardinal Flix, an independent film production company, seeking to change the film industry for the better by creating authentic & personal narrative films, while also maintaining a determined commitment to social responsibility in the filmmaking industry.   Cardinal Flix produces films in a variety of genres, ranging from family dramas to psychological thrillers and tell stories about love, fear, sexuality and death. Their most recent film, “A Stage of Twilight” was written and directed by Sarah Schwab and stars Karen Allen ("Raiders of the Lost Ark,"...

Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is filmmaker Rob Apse. Rob was on the podcast way back in 2021 to talk about his beautifully made documentary The Last Lightkeepers, which chronicles the preservation of New England lighthouses and profiles some of those who have taken on the responsibility of caring for and occupying them. You can still check out that documentary on Amazon Prime.    Rob and Michael discuss a new venture that he launched earlier this year: a substack newsletter called "The Freelancers." Rob launched the substack with the goal of profiling and interviewing creatives of all sorts and helping fe...

On this episode, host Michael Azevedo is joined by Bill Lichtenstein and Brooke Lewitas, the team behind a documentary-in-process called "Broken," a film which intends to identify and expose the underlying systemic problems in the child welfare system, nationally, and more specifically in the state of MA. 

"Broken" follows Brooke as she investigates and exposes the fatally-flawed child protection, foster care and family court systems in Massachusetts – where despite a $1.3 billion annual budget, hundreds of children have died in the care of the state child welfare system in recent years.