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The Big Chill Staged Reading featuring Matthew Broderick, Marisa Tomei & more with Director David Saint & Center at West Park’s Debby Hirshman on Sounds of Film. Director David Saint and Debby Hirshman, Executive Director of The Center at West Park, join Tom Needham on Sounds of Film to discuss the one-night-only staged reading of The Big Chill, taking place on Monday, August 31, 2026, at 7:00 p.m. at Guild Hall of East Hampton. They discuss bringing the beloved 1983 classic to the stage with an all-star cast, the enduring appeal of its unforgettable characters and themes, and how this special evening supports The Center at West Park’s mission of making arts and culture affordable, accessible, and inclusive. Presented by The Center at West Park, this special staged reading of The Big Chill continues the organization’s annual summer tradition at Guild Hall following the acclaimed presentation of All the President’s

WESTHAMPTON Director Christian Nilsson Up Next on the SOUNDS OF FILM On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes Emmy Award-winning writer, director, and producer Christian Nilsson to discuss his acclaimed feature Westhampton. Nilsson reflects on the film’s remarkable fourteen-year journey from screenplay to screen, its recent theatrical release, and its celebrated encore screening presented by the Stony Brook Film Festival at Stony Brook University’s Southampton’s Avram Theater, where audiences gathered for a special reception and filmmaker Q&A following the screening. Westhampton follows filmmaker Tom Bell, who returns to his Long Island hometown years after a tragic accident that forever altered the lives of those closest to him. As he screens a semi-autobiographical film inspired by the tragedy, Tom is forced to confront painful memories, fractured relationships, and a community that has never forgiven him, resulting in a moving story about guilt, redemption, and the possibility of

Writer/Director Lynn Dow Talks Bob Dylan & BULL STREET on SOUNDS OF FILM On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes writer and director Lynn Dow to discuss her feature directorial debut, Bull Street. Dow shares the personal inspiration behind the film, her family’s roots in Summerton, South Carolina, her transition from a career on Wall Street to filmmaking, and how she crafted a powerful story about family, justice, legacy, and resilience. Bull Street follows LouEster Gibbs, a small-town South Carolina attorney who faces the legal battle of her life after the death of her estranged father leads to a dispute over her family’s longtime home. Featuring memorable performances from Loretta Devine, Amy Madigan, Malynda Hale, Arielle Prepetit, and Gary Ray Moore, the film explores family, inheritance, race, privilege, and the enduring bonds that connect generations. Sounds of Film is the award-winning radio show and podcast hosted

Body of Work’s Cassidy Rast & Odin Wadleigh Talk Eric Anfinson, Art, & Movies on THE SOUNDS OF FIlM This episode of The Sounds of Film features directors Cassidy Rast and Odin Wadleigh discussing their documentary Body of Work, which is an official selection of the Stony Brook International Film Festival at the Staller Center for the Arts at Stony Brook University. The filmmakers share the inspiration behind bringing artist Eric Anfinson’s remarkable life story to the screen, the creative choices that shaped the film, and the experience of premiering it before festival audiences. Body of Work is a cinematic portrait of Eric Anfinson, whose life changed forever after a devastating spinal cord injury during a high school football game at age 16. Through evocative 16mm recreations, intimate interviews, and archival footage, the film follows Eric’s extraordinary journey of recovery, self-discovery, and artistic expression, culminating in a celebrated career as

Really excited to attend the Stony Brook International Film Festival at the Staller Center for the Arts at Stony Brook University.

Can’t wait to see the movie Downbeat!

It’s about a troubled drummer who moves in with his sister in Boston and rediscovers his passion for music through street performing.

The film is directed by Danny Madden and is screening at 9:30.

Look for upcoming interviews with Stony Brook International Film Festival filmmakers on the Sounds of Film Podcast available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Amazon Music.

The Art of Quitting Gracefully’s Micah Stathis & Clare Louise Frost Talk Stony Brook International Film Festival On this episode of Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham welcomes writer, director, editor, and Iraq War veteran Micah Stathis along with actor, writer, producer, and editor Clare Louise Frost to discuss their new feature film The Art of Quitting Gracefully. The film, a featured selection at the Stony Brook International Film Festival at the Staller Center for the Arts on Sunday, July 19, 2026, at 9:30 PM, is an intimate drama about creativity, ambition, sacrifice, and the risks involved in pursuing a lifelong dream. The Art of Quitting Gracefully follows Joan Cantrell, a 41-year-old New York City acting teacher who leaves her job to finally write the novel she has been avoiding for years. As she struggles with financial uncertainty, a failing marriage, and the haunting memory of her mother—an aspiring writer

Skywalkers: A Love Story Filmmakers on a Classic SOUNDS OF FILM Skywalkers: A Love Story is a thrilling romantic film that follows a daring couple as they push their relationship to new extremes by attempting to climb the world’s second-highest skyscraper and perform a breathtaking stunt on its spire. Angela and Vanya, Russia’s top rooftoppers, risk everything to conquer the globe’s tallest buildings. As their acrobatic feats become internet sensations, amassing millions of views, they challenge their love and trust by pioneering a perilous new art form called “skywalking.” Directed and written by Emmy-winning filmmaker Jeff Zimbalist (Favela Rising, The Two Escobars, Momentum Generation), this documentary, filmed over six years across six countries, captures the intense world of extreme climbing in vivid detail. Jeff Zimbalist is a multi-Emmy and Peabody-winning filmmaker most known for IDA and Tribeca Film Festival winner Favela Rising (HBO), Emmy winner and Cannes Film Festival favorite

Oscar Nominee Josh Fox Talks HBO’s THE WELCOME TABLE on SOUNDS OF FILM Josh Fox joins Tom Needham on this episode of Sounds of Film to discuss his latest documentary and his career as one of the most distinctive independent filmmakers working today. An Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-winning director, Fox is best known for Gasland, Gasland Part II, How to Let Go of the World and Love All the Things Climate Can’t Change, and The Truth Has Changed. In this conversation, he reflects on the origins of his work, the challenges of confronting urgent social and environmental issues through film, and the role documentary filmmaking can play in shaping public debate. Fox’s films take a critical look at the intersection of politics, the environment, and public policy, often centering on questions of power, accountability, and the human cost of major crises. Through interviews, archival material, and a deeply personal approach, his

Academy Award Winner Alex Gibney Talks Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie on SOUNDS OF FILM Academy Award-winning filmmaker Alex Gibney joins Tom Needham on this episode of Sounds of Film to discuss his powerful new documentary, Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie. Widely regarded as one of the most important documentary filmmakers of his generation, Gibney has earned acclaim for such films as Taxi to the Dark Side, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Going Clear, and In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon. In this conversation, Gibney discusses the origins of Knife, his collaboration with Salman Rushdie and Rachel Eliza Griffiths, and the challenges of documenting one of the most shocking attacks on a writer in modern history. Inspired by Rushdie’s memoir Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, the documentary chronicles the celebrated author’s physical, emotional, and creative recovery following the 2022 attack that