The Prelim Podcast

Send us Fan Mail

What happens when Hollywood isn't just a dream, but your actual backyard? 🎬

In Part 1 of this wild, unfiltered ride, camera department veteran Lou Demarco AC joins The Prelim Podcast to trace his unreal journey from hanging out with Fonzie and Ron Howard on a 6th-grade field trip to pulling focus on massive Hollywood blockbusters.

Lou’s father was a true industry pioneer—the man who practically invented modern film craft service while feeding early-morning crews on the old westers filiming at Paramount and later shows like The Odd Couple, Happy D...

Send us Fan Mail

On-Set Dresser Bobby Garofalo stops by the studio to spill the inner-workings, fast-paced madness of a career in the Hollywood art department.  

From landing a college football scholarship to pulling grueling 48-hour shifts waiting on Mariah Carey, Bobby breaks down the hidden mechanics of film sets in the art department—and why saying "no" to a Director of Photography might cost you your job if not handled correctly or could save the shoot that day?

Bobby shares his journey in Hollywood, as a key art department contributor on hit sho...

Send us Fan Mail

He's been punched, thrown, and set on fire in some of the biggest movies of the last two decades — and lived to tell every story.💥

This week on The Prelim Podcast, Tony and Pablo sit down with veteran stunt performer and coordinator Colin Follenweider, whose résumé reads like a highlight reel of modern Hollywood action adventure movies: Avengers: Endgame, Deadpool & Wolverine, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Spider Man: No Way Home and The Odyssey, among many others...

Send us Fan Mail

You've seen his photos on billboard posters and across the internet - now hear how this Unit Stills Photographer gets the shot. 📸

Behind every blockbuster poster, every teaser image splashed across the internet — someone was standing feet away from the actors capturing it, invisible, while the cameras rolled for the movie itself. Meet our good friend and Unit Still Photographer Matt Kennedy—the man behind those iconic shots who almost never gets credit for taking them!

Matt spent decades climbing the camera department ranks—from self-teaching how to load film mags...

Send us Fan Mail

Behind every legendary movie frame lies a legacy —and sometimes, that legacy is family.🎬❤️

This week on The Prelim Podcast, we proudly present a milestone moment in our show's history: our very first generational episode!  Joining our host Pablo Jara (Tony is away on assignment this week) in the studio is a man whose hands helped shape 45 years of cinema history—and who also happens to be Pablo's Dad—master Panavision Camera Technician, Jorge Jara (or JJ as many refer to him).
   
In this deeply moving Father-Son conversation, Jorge opens up about a...

Send us Fan Mail

History in the Making: Episode 13:
For the first time ever, Panavision joins the podcast world and is our special guest this week.  In this milestone episode, we are thrilled to welcome Panavision Marketing Executive Amanda Sasaki to The Prelim Podcast for an unprecedented look behind the desk of Hollywood’s most iconic camera house!  We are lucky to have Amanda all to ourselves for this episode as she joins us in the studio for an exclusive, behind-the-scenes journey through the legendary hallways of Panavision.  We learn all about her personal traje...

Send us Fan Mail

Master of the Track —The incomparable Jamie Young, Dolly Grip, joins The Prelim Podcast on Episode 12.

This week, we are joined by our good friend and veteran Dolly Grip, Jamie Young, for an insider’s look into the art, grit and career mechanics of IATSE Local 80.  Jamie has held virtually every seat in the grip department—serving as Key Grip, Crane Operator, Technician, Best Boy, and most notably, an elite Dolly Grip responsible for executing some of the most critical camera moves in the business.   
In this episode, Jamie opens up about...

Send us Fan Mail

This week, on The Prelim Podcast we pivot out of the camera department straight into the AD department.  We are lucky to spend time in the new studio with our very good friend and colleague — the illustrious Lon Takiguchi, Assistant Director and sometimes Director extraordinaire!  
From growing up on a farm in Hawaii with a Beta-Max machine to getting his big break cold-calling B-movie titan Roger Corman, Lon’s path through Hollywood is anything but ordinary.  After graduating from Cal Arts, he traded his first 9-to-5 production job working for Bette Middler and Bon...

Send us Fan Mail

In Episode 4 of The Prelim Podcast, we sit down with Camera Assistant Danny Park, a man whose professional journey is an absolute masterclass in hustle and determination.  Danny shares the jaw-dropping story of how he broke into Hollywood using nothing but sheer willpower and relentless letter-writing.  From a game-changing partnership with one of his directorial heroes to winding up on tour with Justin Bieber, and eventually working the Superbowl Halftime show, Danny shares his incredible story.  Tune in to hear from what might just be the luckiest - and hardest working - AC in...

Send us Fan Mail

From Panavision Shipping Room to Hollywood Steadicam Operator and Gear Inventor - this week we bring you the incomperable Danny Brown!  In this episode, Danny joins us in studio and shares his relentless journey climbing up the camera department crew ladder.  An inspiring story for anyone looking to rise through the ranks in the industry.  He breaks down what it really takes to transition into full-time Steadicam work, key set lessons from top DP mentors Patrick Cady and Bob Hall.  And what it was like working alongside Jamie Lee Curtis - a career high...

Send us Fan Mail

This week, The Prelim Podcast proudly welcomes seasoned industry veteran, friend, and colleague Art (Arthur) Martin!  Art stops by to take us inside his distinguished Hollywood career in the camera department and share the scoop on a some of his most iconic projects.  From his early days breaking into the industry to becoming a premier focus puller, he shares exclusive behind-the-scenes stories from some of cinema's most prolific sets. Tune in as he recalls collaborating with legendary director Woody Allen, working under master cinematographer Vittorio Storaro on multiple projects, navigating the massive transition fr...

Send us Fan Mail

The Prelim Podcast is super excited to welcome legendary AC Derek Edwards to the studio for Episode 7!  This week, we dive deep into the unbelievable stories that shape Derek’s massive career in the camera department. Talk about a Renaissance man—Derek has done it all, transitioning from actor, model, PA, and Panavision employee to a powerhouse force behind the lens. We take a nostalgic trip back to the '90s to look at his early days learning under legendary DPs and mentors like Malik Sayeed and Shane Hurlbut, ASC. Then, we dive into...

Send us Fan Mail

If you've watched a massive blockbuster over the last two decades, odds are Joey Cicio was the one framing the shot. 
From breaking into the industry and learning the craft under his mentor, the iconic master cinematographer Alan Daviau, ASC, to his groundbreaking work with Canon that triggered an industry-wide revolution in digital filmmaking with the 5D, Joey has seen it all.  He's operated on high profile major box-office hit films like Black Swan, Spider-Man 2 & 3, Iron Man 1 & 2, Die Hard,  Live Free or Die Hard and many more.  And his more recent camera oper...

Send us Fan Mail

This week on The Prelim Podcast, we bring the laughs with our good friend, 1st AC Andy Macat, who quite literally grew up inside a Hollywood camera department dynasty!   
With legendary Director of Photography Julio Macat, ASC as a dad, an operator for an older brother, and his twin brother pulling focus as a 2nd AC, the film industry doesn't just run in Andy's blood—it IS the family business.  Andy takes us on a hilarious, high-energy trip behind the scenes, sharing what it was like meeting Jennifer Aniston as a kid on th...

Send us Fan Mail

Ever wonder how the massive action pieces in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the high-stakes battles of Star Wars come together? It all hinges on the 2nd Unit—and we are sitting down with one of the absolute best in the business. 
In Episode 4, we are excited to welcome our friend and veteran cinematographer Paul Hughen, ASC, whose incredible career as a 2nd Unit Director of Photography has shaped some of the biggest blockbusters and premium television series of the last decade. From The Mandalorian, Ahsoka, and Obi-Wan Kenobi,  WandaVison, and Stranger Thin...

Send us Fan Mail

Fight Club. Mad Men.  The world of David Lynch.  Lisa Guerriero has seen it all and she's dropping some gems in Episode 3!
This week, Pablo and Tony talk with Lisa Guerriero, who as a female AC, is part of the first generation of women to break into the film industry in the late 1980s — long before that was a conversation anyone was having in Hollywood.  She shares her journey of breaking into the male-dominated movie and television industries, and she describes her successes in navigating Hollywood sets as a camera assistant for her m...

Send us Fan Mail

What happens when old friends reminisce about working on some of the biggest productions in entertainment history?  Things get incredibly animated! 
Hosts Tony and Pablo catch up with fellow AC Conrad Castor.   
From the high-profile sets of Iron Man and Iron Man 2 to pinnacle live events like Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and the 2025 Oscars, Conrad shares exclusive, hilarious stories from his set experiences in Hollywood and around the world!  You do not want to miss this one!

👉 Hit play to listen now!
 

🎬 Subscri...

Send us Fan Mail

Welcome to The Prelim — Coming to you each week from Los Angeles, California.
In this premiere episode, it’s just the hosts— no guests, no filters.  Just raw, honest conversations about what it takes to survive and thrive behind the lens.  Long time friends and camera assistants, Tony Muller and Pablo Jara reminisce about their early days on sets, moving up the ranks in the camera department, and how they eventually crossed paths on one of their favorite sets of all time: Black-ish.
Together they reveal the inspiration behind The Prelim, what the...