Richmond Film Network

What if Scarlett O’Hara wasn’t a narcissist at all, but a war-traumatized survivor? Or if Michael Corleone wasn’t a cold-blooded sociopath, but the product of intergenerational trauma?

In this Richmond Film Network podcast episode, therapist, author, and cinephile Laura Giles, LCSW brings her 20+ years of clinical experience into the world of film with her new show Mental Health in the Movies. From The Godfather to Gone with the Win...

B-ROLL, BUDGETS & BAEWhat happens when a Virginia filmmaker skips the short-film “training wheels” and goes straight into directing her own feature? RFN Podcast guest host Zakiya Roberts sits down with writer/director/producer Cephra Stuart whose debut film San Francisco Bae reimagines the coming-of-age rom-com through the lens of a Black woman and an Asian man—two groups often overlooked or misrepresented on screen. Stuart ope...

ACTION, ADRENALINE & AMBITION

How James Couche Turned Micro-Budget Filmmaking Into a Cross-Media Universe

On the latest RFN Podcast, guest host MK Martey sits down with filmmaker and game designer James Couche, whose career began with stop-motion Ninja Turtle movies and evolved into Lost Phoenix—a $10,000 action feature shot across Richmond during the pandemic. Couche shares how reverse-engineering Hong Kong thrillers and Sam Rai...

HAMBURGERS, HUSTLE & HOMAGE

He turned a cheeseburger with no cheese into a six-award sweep—and now “Hamburger” is headed to Portugal.
In this episode of the Richmond Film Network Podcast, host Lisa Giles sits down with Michael Thibodeau, creative director and co-founder of The Sunroom, to unpack how his team’s short film "Hamburger" dominated the 2025 Richmond 48 Hour Film Project. Thibodeau shares how a personal qu...

SCREAMS, SCORES & SCRIPTYS

In this episode of the Richmond Film Network podcast, host Lisa Giles talks with filmmaker and VCU professor Vivian Owen, whose rapid rise in Richmond’s indie film scene began during COVID and led to producing Saturnalia, a period horror feature scored by Suspiria composer Claudio Simonetti. Owen shares how networking at a 48-Hour Horror Film event opened doors, how face-to-face meetings at the Can...

HUMOR, HUSTLES & HOOKUPS

What happens when a womanizer swipes right on the wrong woman? In Clarence Williams IV’s “Bite Me,” the consequences are bloody — and deeply human.

In this lively RFN Podcast interview, filmmaker Clarence Williams IV talks about his short comedic horror film "Bite Me," screening at RFN Indie Fest on August 9. Though wrapped in vampire fangs and dating-app hijinks, Williams insists the story is ultimately ...

WIT, WHISPERS & WRITER'S BLOCK

When Your Characters Talk Back: Inside the Creative Spiral of “End of Story”

In "End of Story," filmmaker Adam Mackie turns a writer’s worst fear—writer’s block—into a darkly comedic mind game where characters refuse to stay on the page. In this episode of the Richmond Film Network podcast, Mackie opens up to host Lisa Giles about the very real creative paralysis that inspired the film...

GRIT, GROWTH & GUS

Motivated by the rising success of his theater peers—most notably longtime friend Robert Eggers—Raymond transitioned from the stage to the screen on sheer instinct and ambition. Encouraged to just “grab a camera and go to the woods,” he leaned on his deep experience with actors and storytelling, despite zero film training. His first shoot began at 5 a.m. in a borrowed restaurant, racing the clock before th...

KRIME, KONTROVERSY & KKKENNELS

A Gun, a Flag, and a Punchline: This Student Film Doesn’t Flinch

In "The KKKennel," director Julian Banks throws a grenade into the trope-laden world of crime shorts—subverting expectations, confronting white supremacy, and weaving dark comedy into a racially charged thriller, all for under $2,000.

In this episode of the Richmond Film Network podcast, host Lisa Giles interviews the VCU...

CULTURE, CRAFT & CINEMA VERITÉ

Art imitates life—but sometimes, it simply lives alongside it.

Donovan Gardener and Praheme share how cinema vérité—a raw, observational documentary style—shaped the vision for portraying the everyday beauty of Black life. Inspired by classics like Killer of Sheep, their latest project "Young Legend" offers an intimate window into a young Black couple's life with their new child. It’s ...

AMUSEMENT, ANXIETY & THE AFTERLIFE

Stuck in the Afterlife's Waiting Room, He Still Thinks He's Late for Work

In "Purgatory Processing," director Sophie DeWorken reimagines the afterlife as a soul-sorting DMV—where being dead doesn’t stop you from obsessing over productivity. In this RFN Indie Fest selection, DeWorken chats with guest host MK Martey about turning existential dread into absurdist comedy, building ...

TELEVISION, TERROR & THE TWILIGHT ZONE

What if the emergency broadcast wasn’t just a warning—but a message meant only for you?

In the RFN Podcast, guest host MK Martey sits down with filmmaker Holden Conner to discuss "Emergency Broadcast," a moody, Twilight Zone-inspired psychological thriller about a young man whose television begins delivering messages only he can see. Conner reveals the film’s origins—from childhood...

SPACESHIPS, STYROFOAM & SHENANIGANSWhat do you get when you build a spaceship out of trash, cast two lovable screw-ups, and launch them into space? A sci-fi comedy that’s part “New Girl,” part “Mystery Science Theater,” and 100% basement-built brilliance.In this episode of the RFN podcast, RFN Media Intern MK Martey chats with filmmaker Sam Housman about his ten-part sci-fi comedy series Escape Pod, Episode 1 screening at RFN I...

Fate, Phantoms & Fortune Cookies

“This is not a documentary. It’s a ghost story. But it’s true.”

That’s how filmmaker Rob Kendzie lures viewers into Depart Not—a deeply personal, hauntingly ambiguous six-minute film premiering at RFN Indie Fest this August. In this raw conversation with guest host MK Martey on the RFN podcast, Kendzie unpacks the emotional and creative journey behind the project: a story based on a real, unsettli...

PIZZA, PREDATORS & PUNCHLINES

What happens when you cross a pizza delivery guy with a bloodthirsty retired pizza delivery guy on a remote island? A deliciously absurd comedy is born.

In this RFN Podcast episode, host Lisa Giles chats with filmmaker Ethan Schmaltz about "The Most Delicious Game," a comedic reimagining of the classic short story, "The Most Dangerous Game." Ethan, a Southeast Michigan native and ...

What if grief didn’t scream—but whispered?
In "Breathe," co-directors Kenneth Nguyen and Jaden Kilkenny dismantle cinematic clichés of grief, choosing stillness over spectacle, silence over sobs. In this intimate RFN Podcast episode, the duo discusses the emotional weight behind their quietly devastating student film premiering at the RFN Indie Fest. From confined spaces and suffocating closeups to soundscapes built on...

In this episode of the RFN podcast, host M.K. Martey sits down with co-directors Robert Hochstetter and Alex Gerber to unravel the eerie, atmospheric world of "The Lake," their hypnotic short film that fuses grounded realism with a dreamlike edge. The filmmakers dive deep into their exploration of grief, memory, and the unspoken, revealing how silence and visual storytelling became their most powerful tools. They talk through the m...

When words weren’t enough, they turned to movement. In “Reverb,” two brother-directors use choreography as language, emotion as structure, and sound as heartbeat—crafting a film that speaks without with few words.

In this episode, guest host MK Martey talks with co-directors—and brothers—John and Matthew Westmoreland about "Reverb," their visually striking, choreography-driven short film screening at RFN Indie Fest on Augu...

Alienation in Analog: The Punk-Horror Pulse of COSMO

What happens when a punk band, a collapsing location plan, and a $3,000 budget collide inside a VCU film student's fever dream? COSMO, the black-and-white experimental horror-sci-fi hybrid from director V. Long and producer Thomas Jordan — answers with analog static, ambient noise, and a creeping dread that mirrors life’s transitional limbos. At its core: community, disassociation...