Giles Alderson
500 episodes listed below
Film craft, minus the polish.
The Filmmakers Podcast mixes industry banter with hands-on stories about getting films and television made. Its interviews move from indie horror houses and microbudget determination to studio rom-coms, television, acting choices, producing realities, and the stubborn business of finishing the work.
PRESS PLAY
The Filmmakers Podcast sits in the lively middle ground between industry interview, craft workshop, and friends talking shop after a long shoot day. It is loose at the edges. That looseness is part of the point. Episodes often begin with jokes, riffs, ad breaks, tangled introductions, and affectionate teasing before narrowing into the practical matter of how a project came together. The show cares about credits, but it cares even more about process. Guests and presenters talk about money, scripts, research, casting, locations, crew size, festival momentum, producing judgment, and the psychological grind of making work under pressure. Ian Tuasson’s Undertone episode turns a horror success story into something more personal, tracing how caregiving, guilt, Catholic imagery, sound, and a single house fed the film’s conception. Kat Coiro and Will Packer’s conversation around You, Me & Tuscany shifts toward the relationship between director and producer, especially the balance between creative clarity and financial reality. Aaron Taylor-Johnson and David Mackenzie’s FUZE episode focuses on restraint, internal performance, research, rehearsal, and the use of military consultants. The Ready or Not 2 conversation keeps the genre energy high with Matt Bettinelli, Olpin and Tyler Gillett, while still circling practical questions of directing as a duo and returning to a horror universe. Vanessa Caswell’s episode points toward emotion, tension, romance, and adaptation. Re-released material with Liza Marshall broadens the frame into television drama and producing careers. The milestone special is more inward-looking, with Giles Alderson, Dom Lenoir, and Phil Hawkins talking about persistence, rejection, talent, and the need to keep learning. Across these episodes, the show repeatedly returns to one belief: making films is chaotic, collaborative, and teachable if people are honest about the work. It is energetic without becoming slick. It is useful without becoming dry. The best moments feel like a filmmaker asking the question another filmmaker would actually ask.
Made for: For aspiring and working filmmakers who want candid production stories, practical career lessons, and craft talk from people making features, television, and genre work. It also suits film fans who prefer behind-the-scenes process to red-carpet chatter.
What sets it apart: The show’s edge is its combination of high-profile guests and scrappy indie candor. It can discuss A24, Peaky Blinders, Scream, and rom-com studio producing while still caring about crew size, rejection, microbudgets, and getting through the next shoot.
A podcast about how to make film and TV by filmmakers who actually make them. Interviewing guests from the film-making world from Indie film to Hollywood and everything in between. Hosts Giles Alderson (The Dare), Dom Lenoir (Winter Ridge) Lucinda Rhodes Thakrar (Wolves of War), Tori & Matthew Butler-Hart (Two Down), Phil Hawkins (Prancer: A Christmas Tale), Stephen Follows (Film Data Analyst), Christian James (Fanged Up), Andy Rodger (Three Day Millionaire) and many others explore the world behind-the-scenes of making films and TV, talking to the actors, writers, directors and producers who make them!
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Filmmaker interviews turn budgets, setbacks and creative choices into practical accounts of how movies reach the screen.
The Filmmakers Podcast treats a finished movie as the start of a practical conversation. Giles Alderson and Dom Lenoir ask filmmakers how projects survived the distance between intention and release, keeping budgets, casting, production setbacks and distribution in view…
Production snags become practical lessons, so you leave with fewer excuses and a better plan plan.
Press play if you want
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
An indie-horror success story built from audio roots, caregiving, and a tiny house shoot.
Ian Tuason's Undertone lands as an indie-horror success story with a real process story behind it. The film starts as a scripted podcast, draws on caregiving for Tuason's mother, and gets made in a house with a 15-person crew.
A rom-com conversation that treats taste, collaboration, and budget as one practical question.
Giles Alderson, Kat Coiro, and Will Packer keep the conversation grounded in how You, Me and Tuscany actually comes together. They talk through how they met on the project, what each wants from a collaborator, and why a clear point of view needs to be in place before filming…
A grounded craft conversation about performance, preparation, and how editing can still rewrite the scene.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson and David Mackenzie keep coming back to the gap between what a character hides and what the film lets slip. The conversation moves through research, rehearsal, and the way editing can still change the shape of a story after everyone thinks the plan is set.
A milestone episode that turns celebration into blunt, useful filmmaking advice.
The Filmmakers Podcast uses its 500th episode to keep the focus on why indie filmmakers stay in the game. Instead of treating the number as a prize lap, it stays with determination, learning, and the stubborn habit of starting the next project anyway.
A limited-budget time-travel indie story that keeps circling back to the work of getting a film made.
Time Rewind is strongest when it stays close to the nuts and bolts of making an indie feature. Lincoln Fenner and Tim Cullingworth-Hudson talk through the limited budget, the festival run, and the Apple TV distribution, and the real value is in how plainly they describe the…
A grounded craft conversation about tone, simultaneity, and the logistical mess behind a high-pressure thriller.
Bart Layton keeps Crime 101 in a narrow lane between popcorn thriller and self-importance, and the balance mostly holds. The best part is the craft talk: he breaks down the film as three character threads meant to feel simultaneous, and the transitions have to be timed so the…
A candid look at the scrappy fixes behind a feature film.
Giles and Dom use their talk with Zach Fenning and Tony Cook to trace how A Gangster's Life came together, and the focus stays on the practical side of getting a feature made.
A patient, practical look at adapting a delicate book into a film.
Train Dreams is treated here as a piece of craft, not a prestige object. Giles Alderson brings in Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon, Clint Bentley, and Joel Edgerton, and keeps the conversation on structure, adaptation, and the awkward work of turning a quiet story into something…
Friendly interviews from inside pop culture.
Fan-first interviews with genre creators.
Culture, conversation, and weekend momentum.
Creative work, traced back to its sources.
Awards season, read from inside the room.
Giles Alderson talks with writer-director Ian Tuasson about *Undertone*, the low-budget horror feature that turned into a breakout.
Recon versus recce gets the room laughing, then Giles Alderson steers the joke toward Cat, the producer, and the real question: why trust a director on You, Me & Tuscany?
Giles is clearly buzzing.
This episode features an interview with directing duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, discussing their work on Ready or Not 2, the Scream franchise, and their collaborative filmmaking process.
This episode features an interview with director Vanessa Caswill about her adaptation of Colleen Hoover's bestselling novel 'Reminders of Him', focusing on crafting emotion, tension, and romance in filmmaking.
This episode features an interview with TV drama producer Liza Marshall, discussing her career journey, work at the BBC, and insights into producing shows like Taboo, Riviera, and Temple.
The Filmmakers Podcast marks episode 500 by revisiting why Giles Alderson started the show in 2017, when British indie filmmaking podcasts were still rare and American examples like Indie Film Hustle stood out.
This episode features an interview with writer/director Stephen Knight and actress/producer Hannah Walters discussing their work on projects like Peaky Blinders, Boiling Point, and the new series A Thousand Blows set in 1880s Victorian London.
Episode 498 starts loose.
Bart Layton says the hard part early.
This episode features an interview with horror director Corin Hardy discussing his career from indie films like 'The Hallow' to blockbusters like 'The Nun' and his new movie 'Whistle'.
Host Giles Alderson interviews filmmaker Sam Raimi and producer Zainab Azizi about their survival horror film 'Send Help', then discusses with co-lead actor about his career.
This episode features interviews with the producers and director of the BAFTA-nominated film 'I Swear', discussing their filmmaking process.
Interview with legendary producer Chuck Roven about his career and filmmaking insights.
Giles Alderson and Dom Lenoir talk with Tony Cook and Zach Fenning about making A Gangster's Life, a debut feature that is out on Apple TV and Prime Video.
Host Giles Alderson interviews director Nia DaCosta about her career from indie films to blockbusters.
An interview with legendary screenwriter and director Paul Schrader about his career and new film O Canada.
Hosts Giles and Dom introduce an interview with director Hikari, discussing her work on Netflix's Beef and her new film Rental Family.
The episode features an interview with three-time Academy Award winner James L.
A Christmas quiz episode of The Filmmakers Podcast where hosts and guests engage in a festive quiz about filmmaking.
Host Giles Alderson interviews the Duffer Brothers about their journey from low-budget horror to creating Stranger Things.
Interview with actor-director Mark Hampton about making his micro-budget indie feature film Unlicensed.
This episode features an interview with sales agent Itzchak Maghen about strategies for selling and distributing independent films through global markets.
A podcast interviewing filmmakers about how they make films and TV shows, covering indie to studio productions.
Noah Baumbach discusses his film 'Jay Kelly' and his directing process, including working with actors like George Clooney and Adam Sandler.
Train Dreams gets a relaxed craft-room pass.
Host Giles Alderson discusses his latest feature film shot in Bulgaria and interviews filmmaker Bijan Tong about his new film Tape.
Host Dom Lenoir interviews filmmakers Conor Burrow and Francis Anan about the new film 'Roses' starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Olivia Colman, with casual banter about moving houses and a safari trip.
The host interviews a peak performance psychologist about helping filmmakers overcome psychological challenges and limiting beliefs in the post-pandemic film industry.
The Filmmakers Podcast hosts interview filmmakers at the Funny Life Film Festival about making comedy feature films.
Hosts interview director Matt Shakman and actor Ralph Ineson about their work on Fantastic Four and filmmaking in general.
Host Giles Alderson interviews directors Bjorn Franklin and Johnny Marchetta and actor Toby Kebbell about their new film Salvable, an aging boxer drama.
Host Giles Alderson interviews influential independent film producer Ken Cowell about filmmaking craft and industry insights.
Hosts Giles Alderson and Dom Lenoir interview director James Hawes and actress Catriona Balfe about their new espionage action film Amateur.
Hosts Giles Alderson and Dom Lenoir introduce the podcast and preview interviews with directors Nicholas Stoller and Seth Gordon about their new films.