Face 2 Face With David Peck

Jenna Bass and Face2Face host David Peck talk about her new film High Fantasy, the body swap genre, political satire, apartheid, land rights in South Africa, responsibility and racism. Biography Jenna Bass is a South African writer, filmmaker and former magician. Her multi-award winning films - Zimbabwe-set short, The Tunnel, and entirely-improvised debut feature, Love The One You Love, have screened around the world, including Sundance, Berlinale, Göteborg , Busan and Durban International Film Festivals, where she has been heralded as ushering in a ‘New Wave’ of South African cinema. Her second feature film, body-swap satire, High Fantasy, shot entirely on the iPhone 7, will premiere at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival. Her third feature, Flatland, a feminist Western set in South Africa’s Karoo region, is scheduled for production in mid-2018. Jenna is the editor and co-creator Jungle Jim, the illustrated pulpliterary magazine for African fiction, established in 2011. In 2012, under her pseudonym,

Brian O’Malley and Face2Face host David Peck talk about ghosts, fear, love, freedom, choice and responsibility, Gothic overtones in life, art, sculpture and psychological horror. Biography Before moving into Directing, Brian studied Sculpture in the DIT School of Fine Art. Whilst there his fascination with the exploration of three-dimensional space inevitably led to him picking up a video camera and creating his first experimental short films. Through these experiments, he discovered visual directors like Sergio Leone and Martin Scorsese, and his desire to be a highly visual commercial film director was born. His video work in college got the attention of his fellow students and before long he was making no-budget music videos for college bands. He considered abandoning art school in favour of film school, however, he felt compelled to complete his studies. After leaving college Brian worked internationally as a snow, ice and sand sculptor, taking part in many international competitions and creating sculpture

Emmanuel and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new award winning film Makala, charcoal, life experience, cosmic materialism and liberalism, capitalism and the beauty of hard work. Biography Emmanuel Gras is a French director whose films deal with contemporary social issues and are marked by a commitment to form. He studied film photography at ENS Louis Lumière. His film Bovines was nominated for the César for Best Documentary in 2013. His most recent film Makala won the Grand Prix at the Cannes film festival in 2017. Synopsis The film begins at dawn in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as 28-year-old Kabwita Kasongo heads out with axes slung over his shoulder. He arrives at a majestic tree and begins the arduous process of chopping it down, one axe blow at a time. This is merely the first of several daunting tasks we witness Kasongo undertake in the process of making wood charcoal and delivering it to the marketplace. The film patiently observes Kasongo as he works mostly alone and interacts with h

Matt and Face2Face host David Peck talk Living Proof, about the medical community, MS, science and alternative approaches to health, activism and patient funded research. Biography Matt Embry is one of the most prolific producer/directors in Canada. Embry has produced and directed non-fiction programs for CBC, Global, CTV, TELUS, HBO Canada, PBS, OMNI, Animal Planet, OLN and Telefilm. His documentary directing credits include Jann Arden: Free, Ian Tyson: Songs From the Gravel Road, Curveball: WP Kinsella and Hell or High Water: The Rebuilding of the Calgary Stampede. Matt co-directed the Hot Docs selection Theo Fleury: Playing With Fire (HBO Canada) and coproduced the Gemini-nominated feature In a World Created By a Drunken God. As president and founder of Spotlight Productions, Matt proudly oversees the production of lifestyle and cultural content for TELUS and various other clients. Matt holds a BA in Communications from the University of Calgary and an MFA in Film Production from Concordia University in Mo

Sam and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film premiering at TIFF race relations in America, courage and why Sammy Davis Junior was the greatest entertainer of the 20th century. Biography Sam Pollard is an accomplished feature film and television video editor, and documentary producer/director whose work spans almost 30 years. His first assignment as a documentary producer came in 1989 for Henry Hampton's Blackside production Eyes On The Prize II: America at the Racial Crossroads. For one of his episodes in this series, he received an Emmy. Eight years later, he returned to Blackside as co-executive producer/producer of Hampton’s last documentary series, I'll Make Me A World: Stories of African-American Artists and Community. For the series, Pollard received a Peabody Award. Between 1990 and 2010, Pollard edited a number of Spike Lee’s films: Mo' Better Blues, Jungle Fever, Girl 6, Clockers and Bamboozled. Pollard and Lee also co-produced a number of documentary productions for the small and big sc

Wayne and Face2Face host David Peck talk about “glib patriotism”, community as the way to healing, how talent and bravery are connected, love and the importance of “powerful fiction”. Biography Wayne Wapeemukwa is a filmmaker of Métis and settler heritage from Vancouver, BC (Unceded Coast-Salish Territories). Luk’Luk’I is his debut feature film. His previous short works include Foreclosure (TIFF’13), Luk’Luk’I : Mother (TIFF’14), Balmoral Hotel (TIFF Top 10’15) and Srorrim (VIFF’16, Best Film – Dawson City Film Festival). He reads philosophy and psychoanalysis. Synopsis Nationalism gets a searing reality check in Wayne Wapeemukwa’s uncompromising debut feature Luk’Luk’I. Following the lives of five Vancouverites living on society’s fringes during the 2010 Olympics, this film takes us into uncharted territory, falling somewhere between a fiction we need to see and a documentary we wish didn’t have to exist. Trailer More about the film here. ---------- For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing

Violeta and Face2Face host David Peck talk about Cocaine Prison, freedom, power and politics, the “War on Drugs” and indigenous history and truth. Biography Violeta Ayala is an award-winning indigenous filmmaker and writer born in Bolivia. Her credits include Cocaine Prison (2017) premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. The Fight (2017) distributed by The Guardian Shorts, winner of the Doc Dispatch Award at the Sheffield Doc Fest, The Bolivian Case (2015), premiered as a Special Presentation at Hot Docs, was nominated for Premios Platino and Fenix (the two most prestigious awards in Ibero-America) and was distributed by Ibermedia across Latin America to an audience of 625 million. Stolen (2009) which premiered at Toronto International Film Festival, screened in 80 festivals worldwide has won 15 awards and aired on PBS. Violeta is currently working the feature version of The Fight and WAR, a documentary about black rights in Australia. She is also writing the screenplay El Comunista about her gr

Erika and Face2Face host David Peck talk about Shari’a law, gender justice, and life for women in the Middle East, education, power, politics and storytelling. Biography Erika Cohn has received numerous accolades for her work, including a Director’s Guild of America award for her film, When the Voices Fade, a narrative profile of the Lebanese-Israeli war of 2006. Erika co-directed/produced, In Football We Trust, an Emmy nominated, feature documentary about the unique faith and culture that ultimately drives young Pacific Islander men into the NFL, which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and was broadcast on PBS’ 2016 Independent Lens series. Most recently, Erika completed The Judge, a film about the first woman judge to be appointed to the Middle East’s Shari’a courts, which will premiere at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival and broadcast on PBS’ 2018 Independent Lens series. Her work has been supported by IFP, the Sundance Institute, Tribeca Institute, Hot Docs, Sheffield, ITVS, Women i

Peter Gajdics talks about "The Inheritance of Shame", dealing with trauma, surviving conversion therapy and how remembering helps in his recovery. Photo by Erich Saide Photographer Biography Peter Gajdics (pronounced “Guy-ditch”) was born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, to immigrant parents from Europe. Gajdics knew from an early age that he was gay, but, for myriad reasons, that truth only seemed to cause him pain. In his early 20s, while struggling with an overwhelming sense of shame, Gajdics turned to a local psychiatrist for help. Within months he found himself embroiled in a bizarre sort of conversion therapy that attempted to “cure” him of his homosexuality. The Inheritance of Shame documents Gajdics’ six-year journey through, and eventually out of, this therapy; the legal battle with his former psychiatrist; his complicated family history; and his attempts to reclaim his life—and, most especially, his truth.  Peter is an award-winning writer whose essays, short memoir and poetry have appeared in, amon

Tanya and Face2Face host David Peck talk about mutual trust, Smart Risks, peace-building, mattresses, innovation and a grassroots manifesto for change. Biography Tanya Cothran is Executive Administrator at Spirit in Action International, a granting organization that supports community organizations and individuals in Kenya, Malawi, and Uganda. She started working for Spirit in Action in 2007. In 2009, she completed her Masters in Library and Information Science at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. She grew up in California and moved to Toronto, ON in 2012. More about the book here. ---------- For more information about David Peck's podcasting, writing and public speaking please visit his site here or check out the site of his podcast on film, social change and much more. With thanks to producer Josh Snethlage and Mixed Media Sound. Image Copyright: Tonya Cothran. Used with permission.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Chris and Face2Face host David Peck talk about engaged Buddhism, Cambodia, power and politics, photographs as symbols and hope. Trailer Synopsis Fading from black, the frame fills with the image of a rice field, leaves of grass billow in the wind. Cut to construction along the Mekong river in the capital Phnom Penh. On the soundtrack the metronome of steel girders being pushed deep into the ground keeps time. In the foreground a young man prepares to cast his fishing net into the river as an old sampan fishing boat chugs by. In the background a new bridge is under construction, the sound of which marks the unsteady pace of progress in Cambodia. The film is an intimate portrait of three Cambodian’s involved in forced evictions. We meet the characters at the very beginning of their journey, unsure of themselves and unaware of where they will end up after years of protests against their government. Biography Chris is an award-winning video journalist and documentary filmmaker and the founder of Little Ease Films

Kelita and Face2Face host David Peck talk about country music, trauma, suicide, resilience, and the importance of story telling, listening and how we can break the “cycle”. More about Kelita’s new album project here. Biography KELITA writes, sings and speaks from her own life experiences, sharing her powerful and inspiring healing journey. Coming from a life of countless tragedies and family dysfunction, she shares the lessons of overcoming and victory with an endearing transparency and honesty that engages, encourages and inspires. Her ability to touch and penetrate the hearts of audiences is what drives her success. KELITA’s is a message that rings true and pours out through the words she shares from her inner being. She has the innate ability to write, sing and speak what others are feeling. From her imaginary stage in the hayloft of the big barn of her parents’ Claresholm, Alberta ranch, she began to sing at the age of four under the yard light that was her first “spotlight”. Her love of music and perform

Heather and Face2Face host David Peck talk about greed, activism and sweatshops and her new film Complicit and why consumers have so much power when it comes to making a difference. Trailer IMDB TIFF Synopsis: The documentary follows the intimate journey of Chinese migrant worker Yi Yeting, a benzene-poisoned victim-turned-activist who takes on the global electronic industry. While struggling to survive his own work-induced leukemia, he brings his fight against benzene from his hospital room where he helps other workers, to Silicon Valley and the international stage. Yi's efforts along with the support of others, ultimately contributes to Apple banning two of the most toxic chemicals, benzene and n-hexane, in its final assembly. Against huge odds Yi directly confronts corporate and government interests, while empowering and inspiring the people around him. His wife Liu Huihui, a stay-at-home mom, goes undercover to investigate an Apple supplier. Xiao Ya, an teenager rural migrant, who arrives in the city with

Anna Jane Edmonds, Karl Janisse and Zach Ramelan and Face2Face host David Peck talk about immersive storytelling, collaboration and inclusion, globalization and how movies can in fact change the world. More about Blackout Media here on the website. Biographies Anna Jane (AJ) Edmonds is an emerging leader in the film industry, working in Toronto and Los Angeles as a producer and idea creator for movies with an edge. After working on set with a number of Toronto based film productions, in 2014 she secured the opportunity to work at Silver Pictures Entertainment and be a part of its management and development team during the production of the films THE NICE GUYS and COLLIDE.  Zach Ramelan is an award winning independent filmmaker from Ontario, Canada. From the age of 17, Zach has pursued his passion as a full time filmmaker. Since then he has created several award-winning short films, music videos and feature films. His music videos have enabled him to collaborate with international artists such as Sixx AM and F

Vaden Earle and Face2Face host David Peck talk about human rights, statelessness, change, immigration policy and the current state of affairs in Canada. Link to ONE Vaden’s must have book. Biography As a motivator, Vaden has the incredible talent of releasing vision and purpose in others, as his life message is all about making vision a reality, and not giving up until the end result is in your grasp.   As an innovative forward thinker, Vaden has a knack to stay ahead of the curve and continually come up with initiatives that are relevant and timely. As a speaker, his dynamic and avant-garde approach is sure to activate his audience, and yet his unaffected manner will keep them at ease, and assure them that change really is possible. As a writer, Vaden has an incredible ability to bring stories to life in such a way that the reader cannot help but be inspired. Having received and been nominated for numerous speaking and entrepreneurial awards, Vaden has accumulated vast amounts of experience in a relatively

Josh Freed and Face2Face host David Peck talk about “line regret”, “queue science”, cars as “me” vehicles, occupied time and why Brits like to talk to strangers. Synopsis: All over the world people are lined up now - millions, maybe billions of us - losing trillions of hours of our time. We line up at hospitals, banks, border crossings, supermarkets, trains, planes and fast food chains. In fact, for over 50 years queue designers have been trying to conquer the queue, in vast, largely secret worldwide experiments - and the lab rats in the maze are us. THE TAMING OF THE QUEUE travels from Canada to England and India to look at how humans behave in queues. It looks at the boredom, frustration, stress, fatigue and fury we all feel in line-ups, as our fast-paced lives slow to a crawl. Biography Josh Freed, the Montreal-based writer/director of THE TAMING OF THE QUEUE, is an award-winning filmmaker, writer and journalist. His documentary films have been seen in over 50 countries, and include Deluged by Data (for wh

Zaradasht Ahmed and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his film “Nowhere to Hide”, the Iraq War and the Triangle of Death, compassion and humanizing the victims of the ongoing conflict. More here on the website about the film. Trailer IMDB Synopsis: Nowhere to Hide follows male nurse Nori Sharif through five years of dramatic change, providing unique access into one of the world’s most dangerous and inaccessible areas – the “triangle of death” in central Iraq. Initially filming stories of survivors and the hope of a better future as American and Coalition troops retreat from Iraq in 2011, conflicts continue with Iraqi militias, and the population flees accompanied by most of the hospital staff. Nori is one of the few who remain. When ISIS advances on Jalawla in 2014 and takes over the city, he too must flee with his family at a moment’s notice, and turns the camera on himself. Biography Director and Photographer Zaradasht Ahmed is a Kurdish/Norwegian filmmaker. He was born and raised in Northern Iraq. His l

  Nathan Fitch and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film Island Soldier, the US military and Micronesian soldiers, service, hope and economics. Trailer IMDB More about the film here on the website. Synopsis: ISLAND SOLDIER follows members of the Nena family from one of the most remote islands in the world to the training grounds of Texas and the battlefields in Afghanistan. The death of Sapuro “Sapp” Nena in Afghanistan makes waves through his tiny home island of Kosrae - where nearly everyone is connected to the U.S. Military directly or through family members. In an attempt to heal from his own deep wounds, Sapuro’s best friend in the Army, Mario Robles, heads to Kosrae with his family to meet Sapp’s parents for the first time and pay his respects on Veteran’s Day. It is an emotional gathering of two families, from opposite sides of the world, brought together by loss, love and honor. Biography Nathan is a filmmaker and visual journalist based in Brooklyn. He currently works in the video departm

George and Face2Face host David Peck talk about love, gratitude, celebrity and rebellion and influence, “earned fear”, how you can be angry for good reasons, U2 and why poverty is so not necessary. More about The Strombo Show here.   More about George here. Biography A six-time Gemini Award and Canadian Screen Award winner for best host in a talk series, George Stroumboulopoulos has interviewed a who’s who of entertainment icons, world leaders and respected thinkers. George has also taken an active role in global initiatives and is a strong advocate for social issues. George is the first Canadian National Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme. And he’s one of three Canadians recognized by the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader for 2012. He was also a driving force behind Canada for Haiti, a live benefit that raised more than 27 million dollars for Haitian earthquake victims, and One Million Acts of Green, which saw Canadians register 1.6 million acts of green on the

Steve and Face2Face host David Peck talk about his new film Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, injustice, the 2008 financial crisis, speaking truth to power and closing the equity gap. IMDB Trailer Find out more about the film here. Synopsis Abacus: Small Enough to Jail tells the incredible saga of the Chinese immigrant Sung family, owners of Abacus Federal Savings of Chinatown, New York. Accused of mortgage fraud by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., Abacus becomes the only U.S. bank to face criminal charges in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The indictment and subsequent trial forces the Sung family to defend themselves – and their bank’s legacy in the Chinatown community – over the course of a five-year legal battle. Biography Steve James produced and directed Hoop Dreams, winner of every major critics prize as well as a Peabody and Robert F. Kennedy Award. Other award-winning films include Stevie, winner of the Sundance Film Festival Cinematography Award, IDFA Grand Jury Prize and the Yama