Making Media Now

• Pixela Films' "The Last Yztari" Merges Innovation & Imagination to Cope with Trauma

  On this episode, host Michael Azevedo joined by long-time friend of the podcast Tim O’Donnell of Pixela Films and by first-time guest Mary Dague to discuss the just-completed film, "The Last Yztari."   This innovative and moving film tells the story of how after using her body as a shield to protect her unit from an IED in Iraq, Mary Dague is left medically retired, missing both arms from the elbow down.    Many years after returning home, she finds a new place in online gaming communities as she adapts her controllers to work with her feet.    When her active-military husband readies to deploy again Mary is faced with the trauma of the past and the worry for her partner's yet to be diagnosed PTSD.    The film explores the liminal space between trauma and healing, and this world and a fantasy space where old wounds might present themselves as future insights or abilities.    The film weaves observational documentary with an original generative AI system built from Mary's own fantasy novel. The novel itself a secret only revealed to the filmmakers and her husband after seven years of writing.   Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey. About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/   Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead

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• Daniel Masciari Makes Film Directing Debut with "Stationed At Home"

  Director Daniel Masciari who joins host Michael Azevedo to discuss "Stationed at Home," his debut feature film.    Set on a clear and frigid Christmas Eve in 1998, in a small, forgotten city, "Stationed at Home" tells the tale of a solitary taxi driver on the graveyard shift breathlessly awaiting the sight of the International Space Station. As the hours count down, a parade of offbeat misfits derail his plans, propelling the story to its exhilarating climax.   Daniel Masciari grew up outside of Boston in a neighborhood of new arrivals to America from all over the world—a community that nurtured his imagination and fueled his sense of humor.   Fascinated by film’s unique ability to tell stories earnestly and intimately, Daniel began shooting and directing his friends at age eleven using a camera his parents had given him.   By twenty-two, Variety selected him as one of 110 students who “represent the future of film, media and entertainment.” By twenty-four, he had already edited his first feature film, which was profiled in Filmmaker Magazine.   Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey. About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/   Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead

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• "In Waves and War" Explores Potential of Psychedelics in Treating PTSD

  Host Michael Azevedo is joined on this episode by Jon Shenk co-director of a powerful documentary now streaming on Netflix called In Waves and War.   Blending observational scenes and animation, "In Waves and War" traces the journey of three Navy SEALs, tormented by trauma, to Mexico where they embark on a mission to rescue one another with powerful psychedelics whose effects shake them to the core and open a path toward healing.   Alongside intimate interviews, captivating animation, and first-of-its-kind research at Stanford’s Brain Stimulation Lab, "In Waves and War," is the emotional, inspiring odyssey of three American heroes as they overcome the aftereffects of war and rediscover their humanity.   Jon Shenk is an Academy Award®-nominated filmmaker and the winner of both Emmy® and Independent Spirit awards. He recently co-directed the Oscar®-nominated short film Lead Me Home, which premiered at the 2021 Telluride Film Festival and is a Netflix Original. Previously, Jon and Bonni Cohen (who is also Jon’s wife) co-directed Athlete A, which won an Emmy for Outstanding Investigative Documentary and was nominated for five Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards, winning for Best Sports Documentary.   Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey. About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/   Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead

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• "The Green Box": A Tale of War, Heroism, and a Son's Quest to Know His Father

  Host Michael Azevedo is joined on this episode by Vicki Hughes and Holly Stadtler, two veterans of the documentary filmmaking world who’ve teamed up to produce The Green Box: At The Heart of War, a film based on a memoir by Jim Kurtz that tells the story of his decades long search to learn more about his father, 2nd Lt. Robert Kurtz, who died when Jim was just 2 years old.   All Jim knew of his father was that he was a bomber pilot in the European theater during WWII.  And because of his mother’s grief, most of the details of Jim's father’s life remained a mystery.   It would take Jim more than fifty years to learn essential details about this devoted father and husband… and unexpected hero. "The Green Box," narrated by Martin Sheen, weaves together Jim's efforts to piece together the emerging picture of his father’s life, vividly telling a story that is war chronicle, romance, mystery and personal reflection.    "The Green Box: At The Heart of War" will air on Boston’s PBS station, 'GBH on November 4 at 4:00pm and on 'GBH World on November 8.  The film’s release is timed to coincide with Veteran’s Day and will air across the country on PBS stations between throughout November in commemoration of the upcoming 80th anniversary of the end of WWII.   Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey.   About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/   Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead

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• Addicts Seeking Recovery Get Caught in the "Shuffle"

  Joining host Michael Azevedo on this episode is Ben Flaherty, the director of Shuffle, a film that won the documentary jury award at the 2025 SXSW festival.  This powerful documentary provides a look into the lives of three Florida residents who struggle to free themselves from a predatory system of for-profit recovery centers that benefit from their reliance on substances. The film depicts a depressingly familiar pattern of institutions failing the very individuals they exist to help. A former addict himself, Ben Flaherty uses his own sobriety journey as a starting point to discuss the ways that corrupt facilities can play with patients’ lives as a means of scamming insurance companies, ultimately making the argument that true recovery can only be accomplished through a communal effort of people who genuinely care about each other. Learn more at www.stoptheshuffle.com Making Media Now is sponsored by Filmmakers Collaborative, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting media makers from across the creative spectrum. From providing fiscal sponsorship to presenting an array of informative and educational programs, Filmmakers Collaborative supports creatives at every step in their journey. About the host: www.writevoicecreative.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-azevedo/   Sound Engineer: A.J. Kierstead  

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