Our weekly movie podcast recommendation? This time, we’ve chosen Choose Film, a positive look at a whole host of movies.
I believe it was the opening sequence of the movie Trainspotting (1996) which famously said “Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose Film.” Or if it didn’t quite say the last bit, it should have.
Choose Film, or Choose Film: A Reel Retrospective to give it its full name, started life not as a podcast, but as a lockdown film club. Host Gary J. Hewitt, a writer and director from Glasgow, started the club as a way to keep in touch with people over lockdown. Loneliness was a real issue for so many people isolated from friends and family in 2020, and Gary wanted to do something about it. Together, the club would choose a movie from Netflix, and chat about it every Tuesday evening. It became a safe haven of joy and togetherness for many people, and everyone seemed to enjoy the discussions, and the idea of recording these thoughts for the general public to also enjoy seemed too good to pass up.
Gary put a call-out for a co-host to join him on the podcast, and actor, director and fellow Scot Rebecca Riddell answered. Together, Gary and Rebecca share the research and hosting tasks equally, and Gary takes the lead on editing the podcast episodes.
Choose Film officially started in November 2020, and as of writing has produced 58 exemplary episodes, exploring different themes each season. Rather than focusing on certain genres, they’ll choose a theme that unites several episodes (the recommended episode on Notting Hill forms part of the theme of Date Night). Every episode’s film is chosen by the episode’s guest, many of whom are also actors, directors and writers, to give a unique perspective on the topic at hand. As experienced filmmakers, Choose Film doesn’t tend to be too negative either, due to the industry experience behind the mic. Gary and Rebecca always try to bring three positive points to each episode at the very least.
One of the strengths of Choose Film is the partnership between Gary and Rebecca, which makes each episode incredibly easy to listen to. It helps, of course, to have some lovely Scottish accents in your ears! Episodes are entertaining and engaging, with genuine industry insight on each one, as well as some random facts thrown in for good measure. Each episode feels fresh, well-researched and isn’t afraid to give a difference of opinion either.
Choose Film is ultimately a passion project, cultivated with and by passionate people. That passion ebbs and flows through each discussion, and you can’t help but finish an episode feeling uplifted and enlightened.
If you’re looking for a new podcast, all you need to do is Choose Film.
Recommended episode: Episode 56: Notting Hill (14 January 2022) – https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/056-notting-hill-dir-roger-michell-with-ben-murray/id1535822620?i=1000548868354
Choose Film can be found at: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/choose-film-a-reel-retrospective/id1535822620
And followed at:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/FilmChoose
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/choosefilmpodcast
All episodes of Choose Film are available and can be listened to or downloaded from Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts from.
Are you a British movie podcast who would like to be featured on Film Stories? We welcome all suggestions and requests, but we especially want to hear from you if you’re female, POC, non-binary, LGBTQIA+ or have a disability. Email Em – verbaldiorama at gmail co uk (Just remove the spaces and add the ‘@’ and the dots, but don’t send spam. She’s vegetarian.)
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