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
LEE CHEN | Acting, Education, & The Benefits of Emigration
Lee Chen is a familiar face on US TV, but her own story is more impressive & incredible than the many shows she’s appeared in. For starters, she’s probably the only successful Hollywood actor who got their start in a "Chairman Mao Thought" propaganda performance troupe towards the end of the Cultural Revolution in China. She was born in Inner Mongolia, was a founding-class member of the Johns Hopkins Chinese Program at Nanjing University, then moved to the US for grad school - earning two Master’s degrees - and began a dual professional life as an academic and an actor. She landed in Chicago after grad school, and fell into studying acting at the famous Piven Theater Workshop. Lee worked and studied for years, moved to Hawaii for a second Masters, did every theater production she could, and finally moved to Hollywood. Today, Lee has built an eclectic film, TV, & theater career with roles ranging from the dramatic to the absurdly funny. She also worked diligently over a 20 year period to move her ENTIRE family - one by one - over to the US from China. I was lucky to meet Lee when she accepted a role in a small film I produced, and when I heard her incredible story I knew I had to get her on the mic to share it with you, too. I am cross-posting this show "If I Knew You Better" and my original China-focused podcast “Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom” too, but no matter where you hear it, I hope you enjoy it. DO NOT MISS this one!
LEE CHEN on IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2011738/
SEARCH “If I Knew You Better” in all podcatchers or LISTEN - 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
“How China Works”: LISTEN - APPLE: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-iTunes / ANDROID: http://howchinaworks.libsyn.com / SOUNDCLOUD: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-Soundcloud / STITCHER: https://tinyurl.com/hcw-stitcher / WEB PLAYER: https://www.howchinaworkspodcast.com
“Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom”: APPLE: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom/id1237037187?mt=2 / SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/brendan-davis-2 / STITCHER: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/brendan-davis/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom / WEB PLAYER: http://bigfishmiddlekingdom.libsyn.com
KEVIN GEIGER | Revenge of the Fretful Laowai Radio Hour!
Returning champion Kevin Geiger (Magic Dumpling, Peewee Frog; ex-Disney) is back for another freewheeling China chat! We start with an outline and let it rip from there. Big fun, and a big reason I rebooted the podcast. We talk about returning home & expat ennui (hence the “Fretful Laowai” show handle), our new projects, how to (and how NOT to) package and produce a feature film (note: it really helps if you hire a rockstar cinematographer, and then he brings on partners who’ve worked on Green Book, the latest Star Wars, Interstellar, etc) and lastly: how to tell if you’ve been in China for too damn long. Enjoy!
KEVIN GEIGER links:
Peewee Frog books http://peeweefrog.com/news.html
Magic Dumpling Entertainment www.magicdumpling.com
Huhu Studios http://huhustudios.com
《神隐桃花源》“Shen Yin Tao Hua Yuan” / “Hidden in the Peach Blossom Garden” https://www.awn.com/blog/breaking-boundaries-beijing
SEARCH “If I Knew You Better” in all podcatchers OR listen / learn more below:
LISTEN - 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
“How China Works”: LISTEN - APPLE: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-iTunes / ANDROID: http://howchinaworks.libsyn.com / SOUNDCLOUD: https://tinyurl.com/HowChinaWorks-Soundcloud / STITCHER: https://tinyurl.com/hcw-stitcher / WEB PLAYER: https://www.howchinaworkspodcast.com
“Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom”: APPLE: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom/id1237037187?mt=2 / SOUNDCLOUD: https://soundcloud.com/brendan-davis-2 / STITCHER: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/brendan-davis/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom / WEB PLAYER: http://bigfishmiddlekingdom.libsyn.com
GIANLUIGI PERRONE | International Filmmaking in China
This week’s guest has been on my wish list since I first had the idea for the show, and we finally made it happen. Italian writer-director-producer Gianluigi Perrone is something of a Renaissance man. He’s been an author, the screenwriter of cult film Morituris, a film critic and editor of Italian genre journal Nocturno, a director or producer of both occult projects like The 7th Night of Thelema as well as family films, and he’s now a pioneering director and creator of VR projects in China, who applies his passion for and training in neuroscience to his cinematic efforts. In his wide and varied career so far he’s worked with, been mentored by, or has significantly crossed paths with cinema legends like Argento, Bava, Jodorowsky, and Tarantino, among others, and he is a fascinating guy to chat with.
Gian is someone who I see too infrequently, and whenever we sit down, several hours pass and I don't even notice. When we met for this show, we talked for over an hour before we started, then we recorded for an hour and a half, and then we talked a good while afterwards. It’s always a blast to chat with him, and there are far more funny stories in this show than in a usual episode. Gian’s experiences and insights on the state of the film market in China - and on the real secrets of how to do business here in general, and on the shift to longer-term thinking that’s happening here and what that means for all of us in particular - are GOLD. Hint: read The Art Of War. Great show! Enjoy.
Please SUBSCRIBE to “Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom” and leave a REVIEW at Apple Podcasts / iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom/id1237037187?mt=2 or search and subscribe wherever YOU get your podcasts!
GUEST -
GIANLUIGI PERRONE / PolyhedronVR:
https://www.polyhedronvrstudio.com/
“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-links/
Special Live Event: “Podcasting in the ‘Jing: A Panel Discussion”
This is a recording of a special LIVE event I was part of on July 5, 2018: “Podcasting in the ‘Jing: A Panel Discussion” along with the hosts / creators of several other great shows:
• John from China Tech Talk (Technode)
• Kate and Noah from Environment China (Beijing Energy Network)
• and Yajun from the Wo Men podcast (Radii)
We talked about the unique challenges of producing a show here as well as the best practices we’ve discovered to create them, the reasons we make our shows, the opportunities the shows have created for us, and what we hope the audience takes away from them. Enjoy!
Please SUBSCRIBE to “Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom” and leave a REVIEW at Apple Podcasts / iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/big-fish-in-the-middle-kingdom/id1237037187?mt=2 or search and subscribe wherever YOU get your podcasts!
Get social with Migration Media at:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MigrationMedia.Global
Twitter: twitter.com/migrationmedia_
Instagram: www.instagram.com/migrationmedia_global/
Soundcloud feed: soundcloud.com/migration-media
Website: www.migrationmedia.net
Mike Shaw’s “Migratory Patterns”: http://anchor.fm/migratory-patterns
“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-links/
Bonus Episode: EO “Seize The Future!” event
On April 12, 2018, the Beijing Sanlitun Chapter of the Entrepreneur's Organization (EO) held an open event for both members and the interested public featuring 5 guest speakers who are all successful entrepreneurs in their field - and "Big Fish in the Middle Kingdom" was there to record it and bring it to you!
From the event invitation:
"Entrepreneurs Organization (EO) offer local entrepreneurs a fascinating look into future for its April’s learning event open to the Beijing entrepreneur community. “EO Seize the Future” brings together the Founders from 5 local start-ups to share insights about how they are targeting industries poised to grow into huge segments of China's economy."
Enjoy!
- Brendan Davis
SPEAKERS (in order of appearance):
James LaLonde
CEO of Yoli
James LaLonde is a serial entrepreneur with a deep understanding of marketing apps to Chinese end-users both in the iOS/Android space as well as the WeChat native space. Multilingual and involved in software his entire career starting from Microsoft in the 1990s where he led the Japanese subsidiary to become Microsoft's first billion-dollar subsidiary. After a 15-year corporate career that culminated as CEO of a NASDAQ listed company, James decided to become an entrepreneur and started RTM Asia (www.rtmasia.com). James has since co-founded two additional companies in China including Yodo1 (www.yodo1.com), the largest private publisher of mobile phone games in China, and now, Yoli, an innovative new way for learning new languages via WeChat.
Boonchai Limatibul
CEO of Namu Life
After graduating from Tsinghua University's MBA Program, Boonchai Limatibul worked on a number of entrepreneurial projects. Today, he focuses his talents on helping famous Thai brands build up their cross-border trade and expand into China. From a partnership with SNAILWHITE, a top Thai cosmetics brand, he built the leading cross-border trading business that enables Thai cosmetics brands to become successful in China. He is launching his own branded Thai products a based on market research to import into China later this year.
John Dietz
CEO of BangBang Pictures
John Dietz, Founder of BangBang Pictures, is onto his 20th Chinese film, and has collaborated with some of China's most successful directors including Xu Zheng, Jiang Wen, John Woo, Guan Hu, Da Peng, Sun Zhou, Deng Chao, Lu Chuan, and Han Yan. In the West, John worked on over another 20+ Hollywood films including the Harry Potter Franchise, Hunger Games, Terminator, and X-Men. John is respected and trusted by VFX and technology practitioners throughout Asia and around the world. His firm enables filmmakers to create VFX heavy Films, Television and Internet Web Series in China by supplying the planning, organization, and management needed to produce Hollywood quality entertainment within Chinese budgets.
Leandro Rolon
CEO of Defacto 3D Printing
Leandro Rolon graduated from the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc), one the most prestigious architecture schools in the world. His desire to work on creative architectural projects led him to China, but his entrepreneurial side influenced him to follow his passion for 3D printing. As an architect, designer, and entrepreneur, Leandro sees 3D printing as a game-changing technology that shift's our perception of reality. He and his team are working on the future of 3D printed food to create a world of customized food that will be a more nutritionally matched to each person's needs while promoting a more sustainable food supply. The impact of this technology could be huge.
Jackie Luan
CEO of Lavector
Jackie Luan started Lavector Technologies after returning from the US where she taught Marketing as an Assistant Professor at Dartmouth's Tuck School of Business. Using her extensive knowledge gained at Yale (Ph.D.) and teaching MBA courses, she started one of China's first AI-powered marketing platforms to help large domestic and international companies acquire and retain customers in China. The technology enables real-time image recognition that allows clients discover consumer insights and drive loyalty. Its automatic content syndication service assists companies to acquire customers through location-based precision advertising. Her firm is taking Big Data to the next level.
JOHN ARTMAN: Technology & Society in China
#037 - Technology & Society in China - John Artman
This week’s guest is John Artman. John is the Editor In Chief of TechNode and a host of two podcasts himself. TechNode is one of China’s leading technology media outlets as well as a sponsor of live events related to the tech space. John and I discuss his background in radio, the implications of the rise of AI in China, and what he sees for the future in general here.
John Artman on Twitter:
@knowsnothing
TechNode:
http://technode.com
AWA Health (mention the show and get a 20% discount):
4th Floor, THE PLACE mall
Guanhua Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, China
137-1618-2745 (Chinese)
186-0083-9624 (English)
Brendan Davis on WeChat:
BrendanDavis
Brendan Davis on Twitter:
@VeritasInLux
BFMK website:
https://www.crazyinagoodway.com
Other links to LISTEN:
https://www.crazyinagoodway.com/podcast-links/