We were lucky to catch up with Elizabeth Wildes recently and have shared our conversation below.
Elizabeth, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
I have had a passion for cinema since I was a child and I never questioned what I would do professionally because I’ve always known whatever I do in life had to revolve around film. Cinema has always been a big part of my life and that love has only grown through the years. The more films I watch, the more I learn about the world, people, and important topics. I guess the first time I really started thinking about what I would like to pursue in life professionally was when I was a senior in high school. In both middle and high school, I took film and production- related classes. After taking the “Television Production” class during my first year of high school, the remaining three years were focused on the production of the school news show. For all three years, like my classmates, I took on various roles both on and off camera from being a man- on- the- street reporter to the floor director. These classes were the highlight of high school because I just loved working on it all. I loved editing a news package together, interviewing fellow students, and being a part of the filming of the show. It was the closest I could get to working in film at the time but news production is very different. While looking around at the news room during my senior year, I remember thinking that working in news wasn’t the right fit for me. That moment reminded me that cinema remains my ultimate pursuit. I love working on a film set, analyzing films, researching films- again, really anything involving in cinema. Sadly, getting paid opportunities to working on a film set are far and few between so I have kept up working on my podcast, All the Film Things, which has led me to some pretty cool opportunities, like being interviewed for CanvasRebel! The podcast is a great fit for me because it combines film production, analysis, and research.
Elizabeth, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Aside from working on local film productions, I am the co- chair of the Jacksonville branch of Women in Film and Television (WIFT) and I host a film- focused podcast called All the Film Things, which is available to listen on all major podcasting platforms such as Apple Podcasts and, newly, YouTube!
All the Film Things was born in June 2022 through an internship with a social media app where the primary job was to host a live, weekly podcast about anything I wanted, so naturally I chose to talk about film. At this time, friends from college, as well as long- time friends, would be my guests and, because everyone enjoyed it, I just kept it going and continued to push myself to turn this into something bigger. I really enjoyed deciding on a topic, preparing by diving deep into research, and then having a fun, engaging conversation with a friend or two. Some of those same friends, namely Cole Echevarria, Taylor Donaldson, and Helena Amador, have continued to come on the podcast through the years, especially Cole who is the most frequent guest on the show. These three friends have also remained some of the biggest champions of All the Film Things which I am immensely grateful for.
What sets All the Film Things apart from other film podcasts is that it is all encompassing of film with various types of episode formats. This is something I am especially very proud of because no other podcast is very original in this way. All the Film Things is consisted of analytical discussions, in- depth interviews, and casual- format conversations because I didn’t want to limit myself. I love talking about a wide range of films across about 100 years of cinema from countries around the world and getting creative with different topics while also learning from those established working in the industry. What each episode shares, regardless of format, is connection with others through cinema and a shared passion for this singular art- form. To promote each episode, I make video edits that are posted on both Instagram and YouTube pairing an audio snippet of a guest talking during an episode with clips from the film they’re discussing. I’m very pleased that those videos have become quite popular with guests and I greatly appreciate when they spread the word by “collabing” on these video edits.
I’m most proud of the opportunities I’ve had to interview and talk with accomplished people in the film industry, creating a unique podcast, and regularly being told I ask good questions. Within the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing wonderful people like author/ professor James Miller (who wrote a brilliant book about filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar), the Film Production Coordinator for the City of Jacksonville Adam Madrid, and, most recently, Oscar- nominated writer Kim Krizan. Aside from interviews, I have had some incredible analytical discussions on classic films with established figures in film. Anne Hockens, the Director of Communications for the Film Noir Foundation, joined me in celebrating Noirvember with a discussion about Double Indemnity. Film historian/ author/ lecturer Max Alvarez returned to the podcast to talk about another Billy Wilder classic, The Apartment, which I think is absolutely one of the greatest episodes of All the Film Things.
In regard to what I want people to know about me and my podcast is that I am deeply passionate about cinema and that drives me to make this podcast a success. I’m a one- person crew which makes getting everything done a daily and growing challenge but I am happy to be working towards making my dreams of working and being established in the film industry a reality. I just hope I have enough time to do so, so whenever someone believes in me by listening to an episode, spreading to word about the podcast, and just supporting in any way, it means a great deal. As this podcast grows, I work to prove that I can conduct great interviews and am worthy of taking a chance on.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
My passion for film, and my ultimate goal to be an established figure in the film world, is what drives me to keep going and I think having this podcast is a great way to do that. One of my biggest goals in regard to All the Film Things is to interview someone well- known in cinema. I have been close a few times but sadly I either get no reply or plans just come to a halt. I keep trying and I am currently hopeful about two potential interview opportunities! Another goal I’ve had for All the Film Things is to monetize it by obtaining sponsorships since that would greatly help to keep this podcast alive. In each episode, there are musical breaks between segments and I’ve always intended that be filled with host- read ads.
In the grand scheme of things, I really hope this podcast continues to grow and lead me to work in film in various capacities. I’d love to work with companies supporting older and international films like TCM and Criterion while also return to making films, conducting interviews or moderating discussions at film festivals, providing commentary/ interviews in film- focused documentaries, and more that I have yet to figure out. I just know I have to work in film in some way and the idea of taking on different roles within film excites me. I am optimistic All the Film Things can lead me there!
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
The story behind how I built an audience on social media is a tricky one because it wasn’t purely joyous. All the Film Things hit its first growth spurt on Instagram this past August when I posted a rare interview clip of Robert Redford to celebrate his 89th birthday. Whenever a figure in cinema I admire celebrates a birthday, I most always post an interview clip of them since posting one photo or choosing a single film clip is challenging. I’ve missed out on commemorating several birthdays because of my indecisiveness! Anyway, I posted this clip of Redford on his birthday because, to put it simply, he has long been one of my favorite actors and movie stars. When I posted it, the video somehow did better than anything I had posted before. I was definitely surprised but I loved reading the comments of fellow Redford admirers sharing their favorite films of his and why they love him. The video continued to do well for the next few weeks and then, one morning, I noticed someone commented a heartbreak emoji on the post and that the video had been shared to 13 Instagram stories. I was confused until, a few minutes later, I saw the devastating breaking news headline that read Redford sadly passed away. It broke my heart. The video had a resurgence that ultimately brought it to over 1.8 million views today. The comment section that had been so lovely and wonderful became flooded with “RIP” messages and emojis expressing heartbreak and tears. I’m grateful for the growth as it helped expand my audience for the first time in years but it was bizarre to witness amidst mourning the actor I credit, along with Jack Nicholson, as being the reason I became interested in venturing into watching older films, specifically from the New Hollywood era. It is nice to know many people who follow the All the Film Things Instagram are fellow Redford fans and, in a bittersweet way, it was comforting to have a little online community who shared admiration for him at that time.
As for advice, it’s hard to say because I had posted plenty of similar videos prior to that yet they didn’t get the attention the Redford video. This was definitely a peculiar case. In my experience, “collabing” on Instagram videos and having guests spread the word about the episodes they took part in can go a long way!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/all.the.film.things
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AlltheFilmThings
- Other: Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/allthefilmthings
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-the-film-things/id1702873999
Image Credits
Photo #2: I am pictured with my friend Emmy- winning photojournalist Cole Echevarria
Photo #4: I am pictured with my friends filmmaker Franklin Ritch and filmmaker Emma Catharine