STEVEN D. KATZ | Writing A Classic, Teaching Michael Jackson, & More
Steve Katz has possibly the most eclectic background and resume of anyone I’ve ever spoken to. His early influences in the 1960s, like Ray Harryhausen and Famous Monsters magazine, mixed with watching rehearsals at the nearby Westport Country Playhouse with visiting directors like Woody Allen to the influence and support of his parents to propel him into an artistic life from the very beginning. That led him to, among other things: learning film cameras via a cousin in New York who worked on TV shows like “Car 54, Where Are You?”; putting together psychedelic light shows in NYC at places like the Fillmore East and working with bands like The Grateful Dead, The Doors, The Byrds, and Sly & The Family Stone starting at age 19; playing bluegrass banjo; working on John McTiernan’s first film; befriending “Saturday Night Live” writing legend Michael O’Donoghue and seeing a legendary short film he directed, “The Clams”, go on to open a season of “SNL” and catch a big break as a TV writer; he continued to work and grow and eventually established himself as a writer-director-producer in Hollywood; created the first digital previz on the feature Clear and Present Danger; and eventually, all his experience brought him to - yes - China, where he has been involved in many projects big and small. But of all the references I just name-checked, the one that originally cemented Steve’s name in my mind back in the day was that he wrote a truly legendary cinema book called Film Directing: Shot by Shot, published by the then-upstart Michael Weise Productions. It was released in 1992, which is when I was in film school, and it instantly became required reading in my Film Production courses! It’s familiar blue cover was updated a few years ago to announce the new, 25th anniversary edition, which was freshly and thoroughly revised for the digital age. It’s easily the film book I have gifted to more people than any other, and it was a real treat to get to hear some of Steve’s stories in-depth. Among the crazy but true tales already mentioned, we scratch the surface on Steve’s several engagements as Michael Jackson’s personal filmmaking tutor - a story he has NEVER told before! Steve was resident at the Neverland Ranch for months at a time, was flown into luxury hotels to work with the star, sometimes just watching movies late at night. He also saw things in his time around MJ that will likely merit another show entirely, but we will have much more on that topic another day. We even overlap on his interest in the intersection between art and neuroscience, among many other wonky and highly specific topics. To top it off, he’s also a good friend of one of my best friends, Kevin Geiger, so the “small world” meter is off the charts with this one for me. More on all that later. For now, though, you can visit the blog post at https://www.crazyinagoodway.com/knew-resources for links, contact information, and I hope you enjoy this epic conversation with Steven Katz!
STEVEN KATZ links:
BOOK - Film Directing: Shot by Shot - 25th Anniversary Edition: Visualizing from Concept to Screen by Steven D. Katz: https://mwp.com/product/film-directing-shot-shot-25th-anniversary-edition-visualizing-concept-screen/
WEB - https://www.shotbyshotbook.com
SEARCH “If I Knew You Better” in all podcatchers OR LISTEN here - APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/if-i-knew-you-better/id1457785319 / WEB PLAYER: http://ifiknewyoubetter.libsyn.com/website/ LINKS https://www.crazyinagoodway.com/knew-resources
JEFF MARDER | Broadway Music, Freemasonry, Martial Arts, & more
Simply put, JEFF MARDER is a world-class talent. He has established himself as an A-list Electronic Music Designer, keyboardist, and Conductor for numerous Broadway shows, tours, Cirque du Soleil, and the Radio City Christmas Show. He’s also the former pianist with the Harlem Spiritual Ensemble and toured the world with them for 6 years. In his spare time he’s a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practicioner, travel blogger and music tech guru.
Jeff is also a legacy Freemason, which is where our friendship began - and which I talk about in detail myself publicly for the first time ever, here or anywhere. This is one of the VERY BEST, most candid and interesting talks I have ever had on the mic, and easily one of the most personal and meaningful shows I’m likely to release, too, so I really hope you check it out.
I’ll do a FULL TRANSCRIPT for this one as soon as possible and publish that also. Please enjoy, share, rate, review, and subscribe wherever YOU get your podcasts, and enjoy!
JEFF MARDER links:
mardermusic, inc:
http://mardermusic.com
BudoBelly (Jeff’s Brazilian Jiu Jitsu blog):
https://budobelly.com
Ikimashou Travel (Jeff’s travel blog that he writes with Brian Li):
https://ikimashoutravel.com
441K (Brian Li’s music technology blog):
https://441k.com
“How China Works” - iTunes: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-iTunes / Soundcloud: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-Soundcloud / Android / Windows / all devices: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-LibSyn
Migration Media: https://www.migrationmedia.net
“BFMK" HOST / SHOW:
“Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom” on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BigFishMiddleKingdom/
Brendan Davis on WeChat: BrendanDavis
Brendan Davis on Twitter: @VeritasInLux
Other links to LISTEN: https://www.crazyinagoodway.com/podcast-link
