In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’d like to give thanks for how much fun I have making FilmCouch each week with Kevin and Karina. I’m pulling out an old television sitcom convention. When the cast is on vacation, get a few actors around a table to reminisce and create a show of flashbacks to previous shows. Kevin and I debated doing just that, but decided it’s less annoying for me to just highlight my favorite shows from the past year here.

This is not our definitive “best of” list, but shows I have a personal love for. (Hence, I talk a lot in them.)

FilmCouch #28 - Rolf de Heer I hung up the phone after interviewing Rolf de Heer (Ten Canoes) feeling like I’d had a conversation I’ll still be unpacking when I’m 80. He simply amazed me.

FilmCouch #21 - Appropriation In talking about filmmakers who take footage they did not shoot and make a new movie out of it, we got to–I think–the very essence of filmmaking.

FilmCouch #18 - Sympathy for the Devil A little girl’s question leads to dissecting what makes a villain a villain. The answer is not just interesting, but essential in making our most beloved bad guys.

FilmCouch #11 - Jennifer Venditti At SXSW 2007, a serendipitous encounter with first-time filmmaker Jennifer Venditti (Billy the Kid) leads not only to seeing our favorite doc of the fest, but opens Venditti’s struggle over how she “uses” the subject of her documentary.