The Directors Take Podcast

E303 - How I directed She Rides Shotgun with Nick Rowland

This is episode 3 of the third season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s special episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by Director Nick Rowland, who is seen as one of the UK’s and Hollywood’s brightest young stars. He joins us to talk about his latest release She Rides Shotgun, an action thriller which stars Taron Egerton and Ana Sophia Heger, available now on Amazon Prime.
Nick breaks down his journey, process and the difficulties in dealing with expectation in this revealing conversation that very much centres on craft. 
 
This conversation covers the following:
-Nick’s journey into directing from Rally driving.
-How he navigated his early career/expectation.
-The difficulty of imposter syndrome.
-His philosophy on directing and how it relates to his sensibilities as a human.
-The difficulties of making a first feature film.
-His struggles and learnings around tone in film.
-How Nick prepares for interviews and pitches.
-A breakdown of the craft of She Rides Shotgun and his philosophy in working with actors.
 
NUGGET OF THE WEEK
Marcus: Dancing in the Ashes (short film) 
Oz: SLAP (short film)
Nick: Pablo Neruda’s poetry
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Nick: Instagram & Directors Now
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E302 - It's time to get honest...

This is episode 2 of the BRAND NEW third season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s special episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad get honest about what they’ve been up to in the show’s close season, explaining the introspective work that they’ve completed and the journey that has taken them on. Oz has explored the origins of his own artistry which has seen him sign on to an agency, and Marcus gets candid about his own artistic journey, neurodivergence and the preparation on his latest VFX film. 
This episode is formed of two separate conversations recorded several months apart from each other, beginning with one in August, before heading back in time for the other. We hope it makes you feel better about your own artistic endeavours. Enjoy!
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E301 - 30 Years of Acting to Directing Waterloo Road with Angela Griffin

This is episode 1 of the BRAND NEW third season of The Directors Take Podcast.
 
In this week’s special episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by UK TV legend Angela Griffin, who discusses her transition from distinguished actor with over 500 hours of broadcast TV under her belt into the Directors chair on Season 16 of Waterloo Road.
 
This conversation was recorded LIVE as a part of the Series 16 Waterloo Road launch, and was chaired solo by Oz Arshad at the Lowry Hotel in Media City, Manchester. 
 
This conversation covers the following:
 
-What is Directing? 
-The directing pathway and how Angela herself made that transition.
-What did she learn from working with so many different directors across her career so far.
-What was the most surprising part about stepping into the directors chair? 
-How does she create an ‘actor friendly’ environment and does she have a philosophy on blocking actors?
-What is Angela’s take on tone and how to sustain it as a director?
-How do you balance family life alongside being a working actor & director?
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E234 - The Season 2 Finale with Marcus & Oz

This is episode 34 and the FINAL EPISODE in our second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad do a round up of their 2024 highlights, lowlights and their favourite episodes from the second season of the podcast, before throwing out some optimistic feels for the year ahead. 
It’s been a tough year, but we are here to bring you some positivity for 2025 with a little help from our friends and guests of past episodes. 
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Nugget of the week
 
Marcus: The Telepathy Tapes by Ky Dickens
Oz: The Actors Guide to Success by Michaela Longden
 
Our Favourite Episodes of Season 2
Marcus: 
Episode 1 - How I Directed Baby Reindeer with Weronika Tofilska
Episode 17 - Demystifying VFX with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’s Angus Bickerton
 
Episode 8 - Showrunning BBC’s Domino Day with Lauren Sequeira 
 
Episode 19 - Demystifying the road to BAFTAs & Oscars with Flair PR’s Catherine Lyn Scott
 
Episode 31 - How we created EMILIA PÉREZ with Jacques Audiard & Thomas Bidegain
 
Oz:
Episode 1 - How I Directed Baby Reindeer with Weronika Tofilska
Episode 15 & 16 - The Journey to Directing PRESUMED INNOCENT with Greg Yaitanes
Episode 9 - How I Directed HOUSE OF THE DRAGON with Clare Kilner
Episode 13 & 14 - The Journey to Directing SUPACELL with Sebastian Thiel
Episode 6 - Is Perfectionism Killing Your Creativity? With Dr. Thomas Curran
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E233 - Directing Continuing Drama to Apple TV Series with Jim O'Hanlon

This is episode 33 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by Director Jim O’Hanlon, whose directorial work has been nominated for BAFTAs, Golden Globes and Emmy’s. Jim began his career working in continuing Drama on Coronation Street and has since gone on to direct Inside Number 9, 100 Streets with Idris Elba, Netflix’s The Punisher, Catastrophe with Sharon Horgan & Rob Delaney and also on Apple TV’s hit show Trying. 
 
Jim is a fountain of knowledge and in this episode we get right down into his process of what being a working director is to him. This chat includes:
-What is directing?
-How did you begin your career and enter the industry? 
-What is tone?
-How do you pick projects? 
-How does he work between mediums and genres?
-What is his directing playbook after getting hired? 
-What is your approach to blocking? 
-How do you communicate and work with actors of varying levels of experience? 
 
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Nugget of the week
Jim: The Holdovers Directed by Alexander Payne - Directors UK Podcast
Marcus: Raging Bull Directed by Martin Scorsese
Oz: Oz was inspired by a recent conversation we had with students at Oxford University.
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
Jim O’Hanlon: Twitter (X) & Instagram
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E232 - A Conversation with NFTS Director of School Dr. Jon Wardle

This is episode 32 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by the Director of the National Film & Television School, Dr. Jon Wardle. In this episode we demystify exactly what the NFTS is to give you all of the information necessary to understand how it can fit into your pathway into the industry. 
 
This episode covers:
 
-What is the NFTS? 
-What is the NFTS’ mission statement? 
-Is the NFTS the only way for someone to get into the industry nowadays? 
-What are the challenges faced by those attending and graduates? 
-The responsibility they have in an ever shifting industry. 
-We discuss listener questions and recent controversies.
 
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Nugget of the week
Jon: The World of Tim Burton at The Design Museum
Marcus: Steve McQueen interviewed by Danny Leigh | BFI London Film Festival Screen Talk 2024
Oz: GNX by Kendrick Lamar
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
Jon Wardle: Twitter (X) 
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E231 - How we created EMILIA PÉREZ with Jacques Audiard & Thomas Bidegain

This is episode 31 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s special episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by legendary French Director Jacques Audiard (A Prophet, Rust and Bone) and his long-time Writer and Artistic collaborator Thomas Bidegain to discuss their latest project in partnership with Netflix, the musical crime comedy film EMILIA PÉREZ.
This live conversation which was conducted as part of a NFTS masterclass covers the following:
 
-What is Directing? 
-How did they have to adjust their process to create a musical? 
-How did the casting process shape the journey of creating the story? 
-What is your relationship with tone and genre during the writing process? 
-What was the learning curve like in creating the musical sequences? 
-How did you go about creating the world in a very intentional way to marry the use of a soundstage and real world locations? 
-Audience questions.
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL. The NFTS run a range of Masterclasses such as this one you can listen to today, with filmmakers from all across departments and the filmmaking spectrum.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E230 - The Journey to Directing ONE PIECE with Marc Jobst - Part 2

This is episode 30 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by High-End TV Director Marc Jobst for the second part of our conversation. Marc began his career working in continuing drama on Casualty and Eastenders before working his way up to creating exceptional work on Hannibal, Daredevil, The Witcher and most recently as the lead director on the hit Netflix show One Piece.
This conversation covers the following:
 
-What’s the first thing you do after being hired on a job?
-The importance of casting. 
-Remaining flexible with your plans to adapt to different actors methods.
-The use of camera plans.
-How schedule minded do you need to be as a director? 
-How do you honour beloved IP when working in HETV.
-What is Marc’s approach to action?
 
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Nugget of the Week
Marcus: Script Apart - Andrew Haigh All of us Strangers
Oz: Marc Jobst’s Blog
Marc: This Cultural Life - Interview with Alejandro Iñárritu
 
Socials
Marc Jobst: Twitter (X) & Instargam
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E229 - The Journey to Directing ONE PIECE with Marc Jobst - Part 1

This is episode 29 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by High-End TV Director Marc Jobst. Marc began his career working in continuing drama on Casualty and Eastenders before working his way up to creating exceptional work on Hannibal, Daredevil, The Witcher and most recently as the lead director on the hit Netflix show One Piece.
 
This conversation covers the following:
 
-How did you become a director?
-What does collaboration mean to you? 
-What were the big obstacles you faced in working in High-End TV?
 
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
Marc Jobst: Twitter (X) & Instargam
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz: Twitter (X) & Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com

E228 - TDT LIVE PODCAST: Filmmaker Pathways with Actor, Writer, and Director Charlotte Hamblin

This is episode 28 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast.
In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by Award winning  actor, writer and director Charlotte Hamblin.
This conversation was recorded at the Norwich Film Festival 2024.
 
In this chat we cover:-
The importance of preparation in development
Developing an idea
Preparation Meets Improvisation: Rehearsals and Blocking
Navigating vulnerability.
The creative grind of development.
Problem-Solving on Set: From Challenges to Creativity
Moments of Magic: When Everything Clicks
The Development Process: Polishing the Diamond
Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL.
We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… 
http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake 
 
Nugget of the Week
Charlotte - Song by Tom Rassmussen - There’s a lot to be happy about
https://open.spotify.com/track/3dG4ESSkfeytc0DH7cJOsg?si=e71d9e408e604136
Oz is a lyric from the song Eye of the Tiger : 
https://youtu.be/btPJPFnesV4?si=MokAVPDr1Q1b8Tk3
 
Credits
Music by Oliver Wegmüller
 
Socials
Charlotte Hamblin: Profile& Instagram
The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram
Oz:  Instagram
 
If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at TheDirectorsTake@Outlook.com