Sam Smith's queer awakening

Sam Smith sat down with Marc Fennell to talk about their queer awakening at Mardi Gras, fame, and why being on the cusp of a breakdown feels ‘good.’

Louis Theroux doesn't trust Scientologists

He's usually the one asking the questions but this time Louis Theroux sat down in, well, my hotseat to discuss which group of people push his buttons, what he was like as a teenager and what it was like getting his start with Michael Moore.

Ryan Reynolds combats anxiety with improv

Detective Pikachu himself, Ryan Reynolds, sits down with Marc Fennell to find out how he embodied a foot tall electric mouse, combats anxiety with improv and got his start on a Canadian teen melodrama.

Marc's Favourite Interviews & Stories of 2018

Obviously 2018, on a global level, was a dumpster fire. But,  like, when isn’t it?

Can you remember the last time we said “Huh, yeah, what a grossly uneventful 12 months we had? Pass the chardy…”

For me 2018 was hectic but in the best possible way. I wanna express as much #gratitude as humanly possible to all of you for making it happen. I worked in 4 countries on various projects. It’s been a blast and I am now extremely tired and experimenting with Christmas themed gin cocktails.

Thanks for watching and please comment with suggestions of who you want in 2019.

STEVEN SPIELBERG (Honorable Mention) 

I shot this in Los Angeles back in March. If I’m being entirely honest I was a bit disappointed with it at the time because it was a limited window with Spielberg and I genuinely think that I could spend a million years interviewing Steven Spielberg and never get bored.

I sat down and rewatched it this week and it reminded me that it should never be about how long you have with your interviewee, its about where that conversation can lead you. On a rewatch, what struck me most about this interview was how Spielberg creates a family around him on-set. Watch his face when his young cast talk about him…. It’s a small but special moment. 

(Oh and well done to cinematographers Adam Rosenberg and John Nodorft for making a random corner of an LA  studio look so good that even Spielberg commented on it)

DIPLO (Honorable Mention)

I’ve found Diplo fascinating ever since he came into FBi Radio when I was a teenager a million years ago. He’s now a huge megastar but did you know he was a school counsellor in Philadelphia? Or did you know he helped indigenous Australian kids produce raps in the Northern Territory? He also has a great vantage point to witness at how pop culture and digital consumption is changing.

10. QUEER EYE’S KARAMO BROWN

Karamo will be President one day. Mark my words. And I suspect that he’ll be a bloody good one too. The Queer Eye star has an amazing story about becoming a father and really strong views on toxic masculinity. 

9. JAMIE LEE CURTIS

I love the journey of this interview. She’s incredibly sharp, raw and intense. You can see that she’s sizing me up in the first minute and by the end… well, I’ll let her have the last word…

8. AIMEN DEAN: FORMER TERRORIST & BRITISH SPY 

Shot this in London back in May. Aimen Dean went from being an al-Qaeda operative to a double agent for MI6…. and yet… he is weirdly bubbly, upbeat.. and, well, a bit nerdy. His observations of spy life and living inside an extremist group were chilling and illuminating. Great camerawork from Tyler Freeman-Smith

7. JACK WHITE

Shot this in Nashville in March. There’s so much mystique around Jack White but the truth is that both he and his team are stunningly chill. I love how disarming, fun and open this interview is. One of my all-time favourites… 

6. LIAM GALLAGHER

Over the years, I’ve had the great (and profane) pleasure of interviewing both Gallagher brothers. Noel is extraordinarily bright and erudite. Liam’s great gift, on the other hand, is one of pure, unfiltered honesty. Unlike most musicians he insists that no PR minders be in the room - just him, the camera team and me. I love his bluntness. 

5. YASSMIN ABDEL-MAGIED

Another one I shot in London. Regardless of how you feel about Yassmin’s infamous ANZAC day tweet, the response she received of threats, abuse and blanket News Ltd coverage was completely over the top. Yassmin is now in the process of redefining herself in the UK. I found her to be open, thoughtful and funny. Its very very rare to talk to someone when they’re midway through a transformation and I’m glad she let us in on that process. Great camerawork by Tyler Freeman-Smith and graphics by Dan Holohan.

4. KEITH URBAN

The best storyteller & truly the nicest guy…. but, man, he’s still pretty angry at Steven Colbert.

3. POSTNATAL PSYCHOSIS: THE STIGMA OF MUMS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS 

This interview breaks me every time. This whole family opened themselves up to allow us to see how a relatively rare mental illness can reverberate through a community. Beautiful camerawork by Pete Mullins and Tim Anistasi btw.

2. TORTURE THERAPY

I almost don’t know what to say about this other than just please watch this.

These two amazing women blew me away every day we shot this. They are helping some of Australia’s most fragile new arrivals and they do it with great humour. It was also lovely that it was nominated for a United Nationals Media Day award. Amazing camerawork by Joel Stillone.

1. Favourite Story of 2018

SEX IN JAPAN: DYING FOR COMPANY

This half-hour documentary was made in extraordinary circumstances. We shot the whole thing in basically 3 days. Genius producer Claire Aird willed this complex, nuanced story into life. It’s a film about sex, gender, work and death. We met fascinating people and the ending is one of the saddest moments I’ve ever had on camera.

(Huge shout-outs to our cinematographer & Japan guru Chris Shepard and Editor Simon Phegan)

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Don't forget the 2017 list (Al Gore, Tom Cruise and Jennifer Lawrence)  2016 (Alan Alda, Tarantino, Matt Damon and Jodie Foster) and 2015 (William Shatner, Troye Sivan and Amy Poehler)

Making the Monster: Frankenstein turns 200

Cinematography: Tyler Freeman Smith

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Animation: Andres Gomez Isaza @ lafinka.tv

Camp Cope on sexual assault and gender equality in music

Cinematography: Joel Stillone, Dean Brosche, Jack Tulleners

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Queer Eye's Karamo Brown: Surprise fatherhood; toxic masculinity

Cinematography: Tim Anistasi, Jack Tulleners

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Animation: Dan Holohan 

Ghostwriter Michael Visontay: Bringing stories to the surface

All of the work, none of the recognition. Marc Fennell learns about the life of a ghostwriter.

Cinematography: Tim Anistasi, Jack Tulleners, Pete Mullins

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Inside Aardman Animation: The people who brought you 'Wallace & Gromit'

Peter Lord has built an empire out of plasticine. And surprisingly it's still standing.

Steven Spielberg: Ready Player One, Jaws, E.T. and movies that changed his life

Cinematography: Adam Rosenberg, John Nodorft 

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Animation: Dan Holohan

Jack White: Getting in tune with the crowd

In his only Australian TV interview Jack White explain to Marc Fennell why he's actively trying to make life difficult for himself with his new album 'Boarding House Reach'. Website: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/thefeed Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thefeedsbsviceland Twitter: https://twitter.com/thefeedsbs Insta: https://instagram.com/thefeedsbs

Cinematography: Adam Rosenberg

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Lena Waithe: Changing the world instead of reflecting it

Cinematography: Adam Rosenberg

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Animation: Dan Holohan

John Boyega: How Star Wars emptied his Bank Account

Cinematography: Pete Mullins, Dean Brosche

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Animation: Dan Holohan

Ryan 'Chinglish': How video games can save lives

Cinematography: Elliot Constable, Jack Tulleners

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell

Billie Eilish: 16 and killing it

Cinematography: Chloe Angelo, Dean Brosche

Producer, Editor: Marc Fennell