If only you could have followed it with MICROCOSMOS, which would have been pleasing both from "titles that start with M and a vowel and are an increasing odd number of letters" and "combining the space vibe of the first and the bug from the second"
I just wanna say I’ve never even met Matt but I do know firsthand how many young diverse critics and writers he’s been generous to, hired, amplified and been kind to.
Deeply funny for a Pixar director to say this
If shit gets back to normal in the States, some year I am 100% booking a March trip where I do True/False and Big Ears.
Who wants to see what I can write about moviegoing? You know you do.
First issue of The Kinogänger, a personal newsletter about moviegoing and movie watching, coming next weekend. You can subscribe now: buttondown.com/scarequotes
What is our podcast for, if not for terrible ideas brought to life?
Controversial opinion: polymarket isn't that much more evil than the stock market, betting "will there be a bombing of Iran on X day" vs deciding when to trade oil futures and weapons stocks is basically the same thing, one just requires more specialized skills
Terror-Fi is a funny one as I never formally applied - I've been cutting the trailer for them for years and know James so it was on their radar that way. But yes I am absolutely grateful that they were the only festival who was willing to take a punt on it - and that audiences really enjoyed it!
To be clear, I don't think the *film* was a waste of time, and thank you!
Applying to dozens of festivals, on the other hand: absolutely a waste of time and money, apart from that we need crushing disappointments to learn life lessons ...
Incidentally, there will be a screening of GUT INSTINCT in Auckland later in March, and it's available for worldwide rental on AroVision.
Maybe I'll do a small run of Blurays in cool packages one day if there's demand or it seems like fun.
ondemand.arovideo.co.nz/film/gut-ins...
Still really fucking proud of the film. So much of my favourite stuff is obscure shit no one else seems to have heard of. Dunno why I am surprised that GUT INSTINCT had the same fate but at least I know people genuinely liked it IRL and I did the best I could
Doing my taxes for 2024-2025 and freshly agog at how much money I spent getting GUT INSTINCT rejected from festivals.
I'd say it was an absolute waste of time, money, and hope, but it's good to know empirically that international film festivals have zero interest in what I have to offer.
Shapeshifters Cinema is an absolutely essential home for the Bay Area's film-going and film-making community and needs to fundraise $60k in the next two weeks. Help them out and spread the news!
Herrington & Lightbown 'On the Economic and Social Benefits of Post-Mortem Marine Luminscence'
Two hauntology-adjacent instrumentals. Fishy business.
Between MARTY SUPREME and COLD STORAGE, it has been quite the day for on the nose song choices in films.
PERSPEX ISLAND all the way
a collection of audio cassette tapes
What are you playing first on your boombox?
Good gag from the HACKS duo, but I thought the comic relief in HAMNET was the bit where Jessie Buckley shows up at her husband's play and starts loudly questioning everything as if she has never heard of theatre and I couldn't stop thinking of ZOOLANDER. "Is this a theatre for ANTS?!?"
Just moved into a smaller place and I'm finding myself shedding a lot of 90s/00s dystopian fiction at the moment.
Staring at the George Saunders shelf - he was my guy, amazing human, but Jesus when am I ever going to be able to face any of that again?
This War Will Destabilize The Entire Mideast Region And Set Off A Global Shockwave Of Anti-Americanism vs. No It Won’t
I can't fucking believe we're doing this again.
Post a picture you took to bring some zen to your feed.
In other news, I've been listening to a Latvian guy talk about synthesizers for two hours, it's been a quiet night, right?
Got to my bus stop five minutes early, Google told me the bus had arrived seven minutes early and left. Sent five minutes fuming and making alternate plans, then looked up and it arrived right on time.
Not sure what that's about, other than object lesson #66,345 in not trusting Google in 2026
So fantastic. Plenty of material for time travel to 2025 in 17 years - they shot a whole film, threw it out, and started from scratch with this one!
As someone who has seen Mallrats more times than I care to admit, this is a fascinating profile that has a couple twists along the way. Crazy how even mentioning the word "Scientology" to a former Scientologist provokes a Pavlovian response of hostility and near-immediate legal action.
Living in both Houston and Portland world class American bands would play at a bar near you several times a week for less than $10. You might have to stay up til 1 AM on a Monday night but it was worth it.
Any recommendations? Ashamed to admit I recognized precious few names.
v good list of independent media orgs to follow/support in this post's replies
A humorous warning label from Willie Wright's TELLING THE TRUTH
Listening to records as I unpack in our new rental in Green Bay (side length is good to make sure I'm not getting lost on a side quest), which is as good an excuse as any to repost the greatest warning label in the history of recorded music.
