The queer stories behind our queer stories!
Film Festival Friends is an interview podcast hosted by filmmaker Brandon Nick, featuring conversations with indie filmmakers celebrating queer cinema, craft, and community. Brandon has intimate, process-driven conversations with filmmakers he's met during his festival circuit run and explores the work behind the work: the triumphs, the tragedies, the tricks, and everything in between.
This isn’t press. It’s dialogue.
Video Podcast available on YouTube and Spotify.
Be Shameless: Build Something That Lasts | Queer Voices NYC (Ronald Hinton) | Film Festival Friends
In this episode of Film Festival Friends, Brandon Nick sits down with actor, filmmaker, and co-founder of Queer Voices NYC Film Festival, Ronald Hinton, for a conversation that is equal parts masterclass and therapy session. Ronald is the creator behind Natives, the digital series set in New York City public housing that audiences are convinced is already on season three. (It isn't. There are two episodes. The production value is just that good.) They get into all of it: the $38K budget break...
29 Apr 2026
I'm a Struggling Filmmaker. But Also Lit. Both Things Can Be True. | Nyala Moon | Film Festival Friends
In this episode of Film Festival Friends, Brandon Nick sits down with writer-director-actress and all-around creative force Nyala Moon for a wide-ranging conversation about her journey as an artist. Unlike most episodes, this one isn't about a single project — it's about the full picture: how Nyala developed her signature style at the intersection of comedy and education, why she refuses to separate her identity from her craft, and what it actually feels like to be a festival darling while st...
15 Apr 2026
How a Cunt Necklace Got Cersei Lannister in a $90K Thriller | Long Pork | Film Festival Friends
In this episode of Film Festival Friends, Brandon Nick sits down with writer-director Iris Dukatt to talk about her short film Long Pork — a $90K reproductive rights revenge thriller starring Lena Headey, aka Cersei Lannister. Iris breaks down every channel they used to raise that budget, the popular story about the necklace that led to Lena saying yes, creating an intentionally disruptive film where the audience roots for a murderous woman and the very real political urgency that shaped the ...
1 Apr 2026
How Community (and a Little Weed) Made This Dream Short Film Come True | City of Dreamz
Description In this episode of Film Festival Friends, Brandon Nick sits down with filmmaker Imani Celeste to talk about her short film City of Dreamz and how community, resourcefulness, and a little weed helped bring her debut short to life. Imani shares how she made the film for $8,750 — casting friends, family, and a stranger off the sidewalk — and shot it in her parents' apartment while figuring out filmmaking on the fly. The conversation also digs into the collaborative magic behind the f...
18 Mar 2026
From DIY Web Series to Studio-Supported Cinema | Them That's Not
Description In this episode of Film Festival Friends, Brandon Nick sits down with filmmaker Mekhai Lee to talk about his short film Them That’s Not and the leap from DIY web series to studio-supported filmmaking. Mekhai shares how grief and spiritual guidance shaped the film’s origin about a grieving queer woman, which he made for $20k film after winning NewFest x Concord Sound and Scene grant. The conversation also explores the differences between making "popular" work vs "reputable" work an...
4 Mar 2026
The Emergence of Ballroom’s New Generation of Filmmakers | Make Some Room
Brandon Nick sits down with first-time filmmaker Trey Sherman to chat about how his film Make Some Room, about the kiki house of Marciano, made some room for him both as a member of Ballroom and as a filmmaker. Trey relives the trauma of losing his hard drive (in the most chaotic way, mind you) as they discuss that moment’s beautiful aftermath, including winning an award! Trey opens up about the responsibilities of documenting a culture you love while still earning your place in it, and the r...
20 Feb 2026
A Drag Queen Survived a Hate Crime. Then Made a Film About It | After What Happened At the Library
Filmmaker and drag artist Kyle Casey Chu joins host Brandon Nick to pull back the curtain on After What Happened at the Library, his autofictional short about surviving a viral hate crime and the raw, disorienting aftermath of public trauma. Kyle shares how he grant-funded the film, why he reluctantly stepped in as the lead, and what it means to reclaim your own story when the internet tries to write it for you. Plus, Kyle pitches a horror film about a broken vibrator, starring Hiroyuki Sanad...
7 Feb 2026
This Indie Director Uses AI in her Filmmaking | DENIM
Brandon Nick sits down with Tedra Wilson aka TT the Artist to talk DENIM, her genre-bending, SXSW award-winning doc celebrating LGBTQIA+ creativity. TT lifts the curtain behind the films’ journey, which includes a thieving, sabotaging producer. Then it’s DIY grit vs. mainstream polish, a riveting kiki on the intersection AI and art, festival stories, and a lesbian love-story starring Queen Latifah and Vivica A. Fox. DENIM is available to watch on Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/1076532222 Festival ...
7 Feb 2026
From Poem to the BAFTAs Nomination: Two Black Boys In Paradise
In this episode of Film Festival Friends, host Brandon Nick connects with Dean Atta and Baz Sells to talk about their BAFTA-nominated animated short, Two Black Boys in Paradise. They reflect on the five-year journey to bring the evocative stop-motion film to life, and the trust and grace that made their collaboration possible. The conversation digs into Black queer representation, the impact of Moonlight, and the film’s glowing festival reception, before Dean and Baz “announce” their next col...
6 Feb 2026
Film Festival Friends - Trailer
FILM FESTIVAL FRIENDS 🎙️ A podcast rooted in queer cinema, community, and craft. Not press. Just real conversations with indie LGBTQ+ filmmakers I’ve met on the festival circuit. Launching soon. Follow for the first drop. 04yf4sTxH7mGobtvgKHN
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