The Film Comment Podcast

The Films of Peter Watkins

24 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

On October 30 of last year, we lost one of cinema’s most daring auteurs: the British director Peter Watkins. Starting out in television in the 1960s...

Oscars 2026 Preview, with the Los Angeles Review of Books

12 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It’s that time of year again: the Academy Awards are just around the corner. In anticipation of the winners being revealed this Sunday, Devika and C...

Akinola Davies Jr. on My Father’s Shadow

26 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Set in Nigeria in 1993, Akinola Davies Jr.’s elliptical, atmospheric My Father’s Shadow is a portrait of a country on the cusp of a political cris...

Ashley Clark on The World of Black Film

11 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Across his contributions to Film Comment and other publications, and his programming as the Curatorial Director of the Criterion Collection, Ashley Cl...

Sundance 2026 #5, with Bilge Ebiri, Tim Grierson, and Madeline Whittle

31 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's late January, and the intrepid Film Comment crew has been on the ground reporting from an extra special edition of the Sundance Film Festival—...

Sundance 2026 #4, with Robert Daniels, Will Tavlin, and Natalia Winkelman

27 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's late January, and the intrepid Film Comment crew is on the ground reporting from an extra special edition of the Sundance Film Festival—the la...

Sundance 2026 #3, with Tim Grierson, Robert Daniels, and Monica Castillo

26 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's late January, and the intrepid Film Comment crew is on the ground reporting from an extra special edition of the Sundance Film Festival—the la...

Sundance 2026 #2, with Madeline Whittle and Will Tavlin

26 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's late January, and the intrepid Film Comment crew is on the ground reporting from an extra special edition of the Sundance Film Festival—the la...

Sundance 2026 #1, with Madeline Whittle, Robert Daniels, and Will Tavlin

24 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's late January, and the intrepid Film Comment crew is on the ground reporting from an extra special edition of the Sundance Film Festival—the la...

New Year, New Releases, with Beatrice Loayza and Mark Asch

13 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Every January, as we ring in the new year, we take a moment to take a look at some of the major new releases of the holiday season. This year, Film Co...

The Best Films of 2025, with Amy Taubin and Bilge Ebiri

12 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On December 11, 2025, as part our annual winter list extravaganza, Film Comment Editors Devika Girish and Clinton Krute were joined by esteemed critic...

Kleber Mendonça Filho on The Secret Agent

25 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week’s Podcast features an in-depth interview with Brazilian filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho, whose latest feature, The Secret Agent, is in se...

Noah Baumbach on Jay Kelly

18 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment Editors Devika Girish and Clinton Krute sit down with writer-director Noah Baumbach, whose new feature, Jay Kelly, is in selec...

Tokyo International Film Festival #3, with Aiko Masubuchi

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, Devika returned from the Tokyo International Film Festival, which ran from October 27 to November 5 in the Japanese capital. As one of the ...

Tokyo International Film Festival #2, with Kambole Campbell and Sasha Han

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, Devika returned from the Tokyo International Film Festival, which ran from October 27 to November 5 in the Japanese capital. As one of the ...

Tokyo International Film Festival #1, with Vadim Rizov and Kong Rithdee

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, Devika returned from the Tokyo International Film Festival, which ran from October 27 to November 5 in the Japanese capital. As one of the ...

Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, with Miriam Bale and Adam Piron

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another has been the talk of the town since its wide release last month—from critics to filmmakers to audi...

NYFF63 Festival Report, with Molly Haskell, J. Hoberman, and Beatrice Loayza

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the 63rd New York Film Festival drew to a close last weekend, it was once again time for Film Comment’s Festival Report, our annual live overview...

Gianfranco Rosi on Below the Clouds

07 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

One of the highlights of this year’s New York Film Festival is the latest feature by the nonfiction master Gianfranco Rosi, known for documentaries ...

Stealing Time, with Kelly Reichardt, Kent Jones, and Lucio Castro

02 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Three films in this year’s NYFF lineup explore the intersections of quotidian life and the arts, following artists whose efforts to make time and sp...

Spinal Tap on Spinal Tap II: The End Continues

11 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“That’s the majesty of rock / The mystery of roll / The darning of the sock / The scoring of the goal / The farmer takes a wife / The barber takes...

Venice 2025 #6, with Guy Lodge and and Öykü Sofuoğlu

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year. This year's editio...

Venice 2025 #5, with Savina Petkova and Jordan Mintzer

04 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year. This year's editio...

Venice #4, with Bilge Ebiri and Jonathan Romney

03 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year. This year's edition...

Venice #3, with Joseph Fahim and Öykü Sofuoğlu

01 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week and next, Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year. This year...

Venice 2025 #2, with Tim Grierson and Katie McCabe

30 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week and next, Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year. This year...

Venice 2025 #1, with Jonathan Romney and Jordan Cronk

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week and next, Film Comment is reporting from the picturesque shores of the Lido, where the Venice Film Festival takes place each year, and this ...

Locarno 2025, with Inney Prakash and Cici Peng

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Locarno Film Festival takes place every August in the Swiss town of Locarno, at the base of the Alps, with a robust mix of new discoveries, repert...

Alexandre Koberidze and Miguel Gomes at Locarno 2025

19 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At this year’s Locarno Film Festival, Film Comment Editor Devika Girish moderated a conversation between the filmmakers Miguel Gomes and Alexandre K...

Summer Rep Report, with Gina Telaroli, Benjamin Crais, and Michael Blair

30 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s episode is an entry in our regular Rep Report series, where we survey the best and most interesting offerings at repertory theaters in New Y...

Cinema of the Rice Cooker, with Phoebe Chen, Bedatri Datta Choudhury, and Joseph Hernandez

15 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From July 4 to July 8, Film Comment Editor Devika Girish presented a series at the Brooklyn Academy of Music called Let Them Cook: Cinema of the Rice ...

Summer New Releases, with Alana Pockros and Adam Nayman

03 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s officially summertime, and with the AC blasting in multiplexes around the globe, Film Comment Editors Clinton Krute and Devika Girish invited t...

GriGris, with Malcolm Harris and Anselm Kizza-Besigye

25 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this month, Film Comment hosted the author Malcolm Harris for a special event celebrating the launch of his latest book, What’s Left: Three ...

Familiar Touch, with Kathleen Chalfant and Molly Haskell

18 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

One of our favorite movies of 2025 so far is Sarah Friedland's debut feature Familiar Touch, which opens in theaters in New York on Friday, June 20. T...

Cannes 2025 #10, with Eduardo Williams, Brett Story, and Zoya Laktionova

04 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For the last two weeks, our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been reporting from the 2025 Cannes Film Festival with a series o...

Cannes 2025 #9, with Justin Chang, Tim Grierson, and Alison Willmore

25 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 is wrapping up this weekend—and our intrepid on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been high-tailing it from screening...

Cannes 2025 #8, with Beatrice Loayza, Giovanni Marchini Camia, and Abby Sun

23 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispatc...

Cannes 2025 #7, with Kong Rithdee and Inney Prakash

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 is in full swing—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful d...

Cannes 2025 #6, with Miriam Bale, Robert Daniels, and Jessica Kiang

21 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispa...

Cannes 2025 #5, with Kong Rithdee and Neta Alexander

20 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispatc...

Cannes 2025 #4, with Mark Asch, Kong Rithdee, and Isabel Stevens

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispatc...

Cannes 2025 #3, with Mark Asch and Beatrice Loayza

17 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispatc...

Cannes 2025 #2, with Isabel Stevens and Thomas Flew

16 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has arrived—and you can count on our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors to cut through the noise with thoughtful dispatc...

Cannes 2025 #1, with Jonathan Romney and Guy Lodge

15 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2025 has at last arrived—and while news of standing ovations and walkouts, throwaway raves and pans, spit takes and hot takes flood your feed...

A Conversation with Tom Gunning

02 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Legendary American scholar and critic Tom Gunning has changed the way we think about film history and the future of the medium, profoundly influencing...

New Releases, with Robert Daniels and Michael Blair

29 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, a singularly ambitious horror film set in 1930s Mississippi, is currently setting theaters ablaze (in an array of formats an...

David Cronenberg on The Shrouds

15 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A new film by David Cronenberg is always a major event for all of us at Film Comment, especially after his 2022 opus Crimes of the Future was voted th...

New Directors/New Films 2025, with Mark Asch and Natalia Keogan

31 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Spring is finally in the air, and, for New York City cinephiles, that means it’s time for another edition of New Directors/New Films, the annual sho...

New Releases, with Tim Grierson

09 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s episode marks another entry in our New Releases series, where we dig into the latest titles opening in theaters and offer recommendations on...

Oscars 2025 Preview with The Los Angeles Review of Books

27 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Academy Awards take place on Sunday, March 2, bringing a strange and wonderful year in cinema—and an awards race filled with surprises and scand...

The Frederick Wiseman Potluck, with Andrew Katzenstein, Genevieve Yue, and Michael Blair

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On January 31, Film at Lincoln Center opened a landmark new retrospective titled Frederick Wiseman: An American Institution. The series showcases new ...

You’re Projecting – Valentine’s Day Edition, with Matthew Rankin and Haley Mlotek

14 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to love and desire, the movies have always had a powerful sway: as a mirror, as a site of fantasy, and as a perfect backdrop for date ni...

Afro-Asian Film Festival at IFFR, with Bunga Siagian, Yuki Aditya, Cici Peng, and Inney Prakash

12 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The International Film Festival of Rotterdam, which ran from January 30 through February 9 this year, is a festival with a uniquely wide-ranging and e...

True Crime at Sundance 2025, with Charlie Shackleton, David Osit, and Geeta Gandhbir

04 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Real-life stories of grisly crimes have always had a primal pull on our collective imagination. It’s now axiomatic that if there’s anything that s...

Sundance 2025 #4: Isabelle Huppert on LUZ

28 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The great French actress Isabelle Huppert is a mainstay at many international festivals, but seeing her grace the screens at Sundance in Park City, Ut...

Sundance 2025 #3, with Lovia Gyarkye, Alana Pockros, and Lisa Wong Macabasco

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s late January, which means that the intrepid Film Comment crew is once again on the snowy slopes of Park City, Utah, bringing you dispatches, i...

Sundance 2025 #5, with Vadim Rizov and Ruun Nuur

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s late January, which means that the intrepid Film Comment crew is once again on the snowy slopes of Park City, Utah, bringing you dispatches, i...

Sundance 2025 #2, with Robert Daniels and Tim Grierson

26 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s late January, which means that the intrepid Film Comment crew is once again on the snowy slopes of Park City, Utah, bringing you dispatches, i...

Sundance 2025 #1, with Maddie Whittle, Ruun Nuur, and Vadim Rizov

25 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s late January, which means that the intrepid Film Comment crew is once again on the snowy slopes of Park City, Utah, bringing you dispatches, i...

Robert Eggers on Nosferatu

15 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Nosferatu, the new film by Robert Eggers, has been the talk of the movie-town since its release on Christmas Day. With his remake of F.W. Murnau’s 1...

Mike Leigh on Hard Truths

14 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A new film from Mike Leigh is always a cause for celebration. Starting with his first feature Bleak Moments in 1971, Leigh has carved out a singular p...

New Year, New Releases, with Lovia Gyarkye and Michael Blair

08 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Two enigmatic icons with enduring holds on the Western imagination are currently lighting up multiplex screens: fearsome Transylvanian vampire Dracula...

The Best Films of 2024, with Molly Haskell and Michael Koresky

13 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

On December 12, 2024, as part our annual winter list extravaganza, Film Comment Editors Clinton Krute and Devika Girish led a panel of special guests—...

Holiday New Releases, with Robert Daniels and Beatrice Loayza

03 Dec 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Sleepily emerging from the turkey-induced haze of Thanksgiving break and looking ahead to the barrage of Best of 2024 lists, Film Comment Editors Devi...

Julianne Moore on The Room Next Door

19 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

During the 2024 New York Film Festival, Film Comment’s Devika Girish had the chance to chat with Julianne Moore, one of the great American actresses...

Payal Kapadia and Miguel Gomes

12 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

When Payal Kapadia won a historic Grand Prix at this year’s Cannes Film Festival for her second feature, All We Imagine as Light (the first Indian...

The Films of Robert Kramer, with Erika Balsom and Benjamin Crais

05 Nov 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The films of Robert Kramer blend fiction and documentary modes to engage with, and expand on, traditions of militant political cinema and subjective e...

NYFF62 Festival Report, with Bilge Ebiri and Lovia Gyarkye

16 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As the 62nd New York Film Festival drew to a close last weekend, it was once again time for Film Comment’s Festival Report, our annual live overvie...

Collective Protagonists, with Brett Story, Stephen Maing, John Hanson, and Rob Nilsson

09 Oct 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Two films in this year’s New York Film Festival lineup grapple beautifully with the challenge of narrating stories of collective movements without g...

The Films of Christopher Harris

25 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The films of Christopher Harris are haunting and cerebral in equal measure—blending the sensorial power of analog avant-garde cinema with a thorough...

Toronto 2024 #4, with David Schwartz, Saffron Maeve, and Robert Daniels

12 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is on the ground at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, which began on September 5 and runs through September 15. Th...

Toronto 2024 #3, with Adam Nayman and Beatrice Loayza

11 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is on the ground at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, which began on September 5 and runs through September 15. Th...

Toronto 2024 #2, with Madeline Whittle and Mark Asch

10 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is on the ground at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, which began on September 5 and runs through September 15. Th...

Toronto 2024 #1, with Mark Asch and David Schwartz

09 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Film Comment is on the ground at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival, which began on September 5 and runs through September 15. Th...

The Rebel's Cinema—Frantz Fanon on Screen #4, with Madeleine Hunt-Ehrlich

07 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last April, Film Comment invited writer Adam Shatz on the Podcast to talk about The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon, his n...

The Rebel's Cinema—Frantz Fanon on Screen #3, with Cheryl Rivera and Clifford Thompson

06 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last April, Film Comment invited writer Adam Shatz on the Podcast to talk about The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon, his n...

The Rebel's Cinema—Frantz Fanon on Screen #2, with Kazembe Balagun and Brent Hayes Edwards

05 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last April, Film Comment invited writer Adam Shatz on the Podcast to talk about The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon, his n...

The Rebel's Cinema—Frantz Fanon on Screen #1, with Blair McClendon and Adam Shatz

04 Sep 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last April, Film Comment invited writer Adam Shatz on the Podcast to talk about The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon, his n...

Digital Migrations, with Suneil Sanzgiri and Greg de Cuir Jr.

27 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

As part of this year's Locarno Film Festival, scholars at the Università della Svizzera italiana organized a conference called Cinema Audiovisual Fut...

Locarno 2024, with Inney Prakash and Cici Peng

23 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Locarno Film Festival takes place every August in the Swiss town of Locarno, at the base of the Alps, with a robust mix of discovery titles, reper...

Summer Rep Report #3, with Rockaway Film Festival's Sam Fleischner and Courtney Muller

13 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For the third and final installment of our Summer Rep Report series, Sam Fleischner and Courtney Muller, the founding programmers of the Rockaway Film...

Summer Rep Report #2, with Jessica Green

09 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For Part 2 of our Summer Rep Report, film programmer Jessica Green joins to discuss Passing You By: Impostorism on Film, a new series she’s programm...

Summer Rep Report #1, with Jed Rapfogel of Anthology Film Archives

08 Aug 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Early August is usually something of a lull in the film calendar, but this year, at least in New York City, it’s proved to be a goldmine—particula...

Jonathan Rosenbaum on his new book, In Dreams Begin Responsibilities

30 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The guest on this week’s episode will need little introduction to anyone who reads film criticism or follows film culture. Jonathan Rosenbaum, one o...

Making Movies in Prison, with Rahsaan Thomas and Thanh Tran

16 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In April, Film Comment published an article by Phillip Vance Smith II, titled “Streaming Behind Bars.” Phillip is an incarcerated writer, and his ...

Children’s Cinema, with Isabel Stevens and Rai and Genevieve Yue and Harriet

10 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In a recent essay, critic Isabel Stevens writes: “There is much discussion of childishness—popular cinema is often described as ‘infantilized’...

Flaherty Film Seminar 2024

03 Jul 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The Flaherty Film Seminar is one of the nonfiction film world’s most interesting events. Founded by Frances Flaherty in 1955 in honor of her late hu...

Caden Mark Gardner and Willow Catelyn Maclay on the Trans Film Image

25 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In April 2021, Film Comment published a Trans Cinema Roundtable Podcast, in which two trans film critics and two trans filmmakers answered questions s...

Richard Linklater on Hit Man

18 Jun 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Critics have been buzzing about Richard Linklater’s Hit Man since it premiered at festivals last year. A charming mix of screwball and noir, the fil...

Cannes 2024 #10, with Kiyoko McCrae, Adam Piron, Alemberg Ang, and Viv Li

28 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For the last two weeks, our on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been reporting from the 2024 Cannes Film Festival with a series of ...

Cannes 2024 #9, with Justin Chang and Dennis Lim

24 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2024 is in wrapping up this weekend—and our intrepid on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been high-tailing it from screen...

Cannes 2024 #8, with Beatrice Loayza, Giovanni Marchini Camia, and Caitlin Quinlan

24 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2024 is in full swing—and our intrepid on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been high-tailing it from screening to screenin...

Cannes 2024 #7, with Guy Lodge and Adam Piron

22 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2024 is in full swing—and our intrepid on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been high-tailing it from screening to screenin...

Cannes 2024 #6, with Robert Daniels, Miriam Bale, and Mark Asch

22 May 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Cannes 2024 is in full swing—and our intrepid on-the-Croisette crew of Film Comment contributors has been high-tailing it from screening to screenin...