What Makes “Fear The Walking Dead,” as a Concept, Work?
Fear the Walking Dead utilizes its audience's knowledge of The Walking Dead's world to create drama and suspense, while focusing on its own direction of narrative storytelling that…
How Does “Fear the Walking Dead” Use Background Effects to Instill a Sense of Dread?
Though Fear the Walking Dead's pilot episode is slow-moving and family-focused, there's a constant sense of compiling dread facilitated by clever usage of sound, sirens, and context.
How Does “Ballers” Resolve Its Core Conflict in the Season One Finale?
The central conflict of "Ballers" first season was how Spencer could reinvent himself off the field in retirement. This resolves in the finale almost too easily with Spencer no longer in…
Why did Steve James, Director of “Life Itself,” Exclude Mention of Richard Roeper From the Film?
Life Itself director Steve James says "I ended up decided that that was more important to telling the story and that the show with Gene was the significance of Roger's television film…
For “Life Itself,” What Was the Filmmakers’ Approach to the Film? How did Roger Ebert Influence It?
"Life Itself" is a project that changed tone and purpose when Roger Ebert died during filming. Ebert's own influence and desires altered what the film became, and transformed it into…
How is “Life Itself” at Times a Portrait of Death, Keeping secrets and Our Reactions to It?
"Life Itself" is a film that goes beyond a portrait of a film critic, but about Roger Ebert as a man. It's a showcase of his life as well as a commentary on life as a whole, shaped…
How Does “Life Itself” Provide a Deeper Look at the Tumultuous Relationship Between Siskel and Ebert?
Siskel and Ebert began their television show together under a lot of contempt for one another. As the years carried on, their relationship turned into one of brotherhood. They fought like brothers,…
Who Provided the Narration in “Life Itself,” Which Sounds Exceptionally like Roger Ebert’s Own Voice?
The voice was courtesy of Stephen Stanton, a voiceover artist who specializes in celebrity impersonations and voicematches.
How Did the “Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1” Filmmakers Get Access to the Crisis Center?
The filmmakers of "Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1" had to promise that they wouldn't make an effort to record the phone call or to pursue any of the callers in any way for a…
How Do the Hotline Responders Seen in “Crisis Hotline” Manage their Own Emotional Challenges?
The job of a crisis center hotline responder is an incredibly necessary, but uncommonly demanding job that would require the utmost in patience, compassion, and emotional fortitude.
How Did “Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1” Approach its Material, and What is the Film’s Goal?
"Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1" lets the gravity of the work being performed by hotline staffers speak for itself, as it tries to raise awareness of suicide prevention and…
What is “Nightcrawler” Writer/Director Dan Gilroy’s Intended Message for the Film?
"Nightcrawler" is Director/Writer Dan Gilroy's take on the effects of capitalism, and the type of behaviors it facilitates.