Filmmaker Nicol Paone ("Friendsgiving"): "The Turkey Leg Was Here and Not Here"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Release Date: 10/20/2020
2020 Movie Wrap Up w/ Glenn Gaylord & Michael Dougherty
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
For the fourth year in a row, Dennis is joined my film buffs Glenn Gaylord and Michael Doughtery to look back on the films of 2020 (and early '21) Glenn is the Senior Film Critic at the Queer Review and Michael is the Director of the Reel Abilities Film Festival. Movies discussed include: The Invisible Man, Shirley, Nomadland, The Painter and the Thief, Assassins, A Thousand Cuts, Collective, Never Rarely Sometimes Always, Promising Young Woman, Butt Boy, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Da 5 Bloods, The Father, I'm Thinking of Ending Things, The Climb, First Cow, Minari, The Vast of Night, Palm...
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Actor-Writer Ryan J. Haddad (Hi, Are You Single?): "The Milkshakes Are Here!"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Ryan J. Haddad the star and writer of the one-man show Hi Are You Single? which is streaming on line all through February (see link below). The show is a funny, smart and moving look his quest for love, connection, or just a decent hookup as a gay man with cerebral palsy. He talks about the origins of the show, why gay men looking for connection can be cruel to each other, and some of the reactions he's gotten to the show. He also talks about coming out to his family, some of the reactions he's gotten to the play, and the profound reaction he had to the Netflix TV...
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Breaking Fast Filmmaker Mike Mosallam & actor Amin El Gamal: "A Journey That Looked Like Mine"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis is joined via Zoom by filmmaker Mike Mossalam and actor Amin El Gaman two of the men behind the new queer rom-com Breaking Fast, about Mo, a devout Muslim doctor in Los Angeles (Haaz Sleiman) who begins a relationship with a All-American-type actor (Michael Cassidy) during the month of Ramadan. MIke is the writer-director of the film and he talks about what inspired him to write it, the challenges of shooting a movie with lots of delicious food scenes and how his love of musical theater found its way into the story. Amin plays Mo's best friend Sam and talks about what drew him to the...
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Actor-Writer-Director Tom DeTrinis: "You Need To Dance Like Him"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis connects via Zoom with actor-writer-director Tom DeTrinis to discuss his one-person show Making Friends, which is available to stream at the IAMA Theatre company website through January 11th. Tom talks about the central theme of the play, specifically his anger and where it comes from, how his road rage figures in, and why he chose to mount the show virtually instead of waiting until it's safe to do live theater again. He also talks about how AOL chat rooms fed his teenage horndog instincts, the inspiring older gay role models he found when he discovered theater as a tween, and the...
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Deven Green & Ned Douglas: "I'm Not a Farmer. Of course, I'm Going to Get Dressed Up"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis connects via Zoom with Deven Green and Ned Douglas, creators of the new Revry game show Versus, where contestants answer questions about their own social media feeds, play silly games like Roosters vs. Snails and try to make sense of what's coming out of emcee Deven's mouth. Deven and Ned talk about how they came up with the idea for the show, how Revry got involved and how they produced the entire thing themselves from writing to shooting to editing to composing the music. They also talk about why they make a good time, staying creative during these surreal times and the free online...
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Hugh Nini & Neal Treadwell ("Loving: A Photographic History of Men in Love 1850s to 1950s"): The Embrace Heard Around the World
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis is joined via Zoom by Hugh Nini & Neal Treadwell, the real-life couple behind the remarkable new book Loving: A Photographic History of Men in Love 1850s to 1950s, a gorgeous collection of vintage photos they've collected of male couples in love. Hugh and Neal talk about the day they discovered their first photo, the rush of discovery that comes with every new find, the way their collection quietly grew without anyone else really knowing about it, and what went into choosing the cover photo and the title Loving. The couple also talk about their "50/50" test, which determines whether...
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Writer-Producer Sean Dwyer ("Holiday Rush"): "We Had to CGI The Spring Flowers Out"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis connects via Zoom with Sean Dwyer, an L.A.-based writer-producer whose Christmas-themed movie Holiday Rush is currently streaming on Netflix. The film is about a successful New York radio personality and father of four who, just a few years after the death of his beloved wife, abruptly loses his job and has to reimagine his whole life. Sean talks about the origins of the story, shooting a holiday movie in the spring, casting Romany Malco from A Million Little Things as the lead...and scoring singer Darlene Love for the role of the grandmother--and getting her to record a new version of...
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Author Paria Hassouri ("Found in Transition"): "Now She's Super-Hugger"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis connects via Zoom with his yoga pal and author Paria Hassouri to talk about her new memoir Found In Transition: A Mother's Evolution through Her Child's Gender Change. which documents her journey and her family's journey through the process of her teenage daughter Ava's gender transition. She talks about her initial reaction to her daughter saying she was trans, which was skepticism, and recalls the family Thanksgiving dinner early on when Ava wanted to wear a dress. She talks her own resistance to Ava's first therapist, who was trans, how Ava's journey brought up her own body issues...
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Jon Lawrence Rivera & Jon Imparato (Director & Producer of "March"): "It's Only 16 Cars, People"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
Dennis connects via Zoom with director Jon Lawrence Rivera and producer Jon Imparato, two of the creative forces behind the new play "March." "March" is not a Zoom-happening. It's an actual live theatrical experience presented in the parking garage of the LA LGBT Center to an audience watching safely from their cars. The play is set in a post-Trump, dystopian, anti-queer future and focuses on three LGBT characters running and hiding and fighting for their lives. Jon and Jon talk about what made them crazy enough to mount a live show during a pandemic, how they crafted the script from the...
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Filmmaker Nicol Paone ("Friendsgiving"): "The Turkey Leg Was Here and Not Here"
DENNIS ANYONE? with Dennis Hensley
While driving cross country, actor and filmmaker Nicol Paone joins Dennis via Zoom to talk about her debut film as writer-director, the ensemble holiday comedy Friendsgiving. She talks about the getting the inspiration for the movie from a real-life experience, how she got the movie made and working with the cast, which includes Malin Akerman, Kat Dennings, AIsha Tyler, Jane Seymour, Christine Taylor and Chelsea Peretti. She also talks about how getting to step behind the camera changed her approach to her acting career, the challenges of working with a baby and the importance of food...
info_outlineWhile driving cross country, actor and filmmaker Nicol Paone joins Dennis via Zoom to talk about her debut film as writer-director, the ensemble holiday comedy Friendsgiving. She talks about the getting the inspiration for the movie from a real-life experience, how she got the movie made and working with the cast, which includes Malin Akerman, Kat Dennings, AIsha Tyler, Jane Seymour, Christine Taylor and Chelsea Peretti. She also talks about how getting to step behind the camera changed her approach to her acting career, the challenges of working with a baby and the importance of food continuity in a movie about a big-ass meal. Other topics include: what it's like to release a movie about a big group gather during a time when people can't have big group gatherings, Glenn Close's tendency to be 32% too dramatic and why she loves Thanksgiving. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=an7YTh5LBIs