Journey of an Aesthete Podcast https://www.jouneyofanaesthetepodcast.com/

About Journey of an Aesthete Podcast https://www.jouneyofanaesthetepodcast.com/

In our eight season we continue our comprehensive examination of all matters aesthetic, across all art forms & how creativity connects us to what it means to be human. Through the intimate lens of the creative process of different artists, makers and creators, we deep dive into all things arts & humanities. Your host, Mitch Hampton, is a journalist, world renown pianist & composer for films who is neurodivergent. We explore the rich stories of these artists, what inspired them to become creators as we also witness Mitch's own creative journey as he connects to the world through his podcast.

Publisher

Mitch Hampton

Category

arts

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

26 Jun 2019

Latest episode

1 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

261 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   1 Oct 2026

   S8: Elaine May, New Hollywood of the 70s and Mikey And Nicky: A Conversation With Todd Berliner

   #podcast #ElaineMay #ToddBerliner #MitchHampton #cinema #MikeyandNicky #HollywoodRenegade Inside this Episode with your host, Mitch Hampton With this exciting new publication of a book, Hollywood Renegade, Todd Berliner has for the first time in his career put the focus on one particular artist and one of her movies - Elaine May and Mikey And Nicky. I have been a fan of the film for as long as I have known it; while not as fortunate to have seen the initial debut in 1975 I saw the more famous rerelease in the mid 1980s. Berliner has been one of our leading scholars of film and I can't think of anybody better to write on this particular subject. Like the spirit of our podcast overall he sees movies as an art form more than anything else and accordingly gives that kind of care and attention to May's unique film, unique even for a decade that was and is defined for uniqueness. I've seen thousands of movies, possibly hundreds of 70s movies and I have never seen a film like Mikey And Nicky and there are few movies in fact from any era as good as it is. It was a joy to discuss this with Berliner and his book and upcoming in person introductions for screenings in New York, North Carolina and elsewhere gives me hope for the future of film and art in general. About his new, wonderful book : Hollywood Renegade Elaine May, Mikey and Nicky, and the Making of a Masterpiece Examines the career and unorthodox filmmaking practices of director Elaine May, whose Mikey and Nicky, over a span of fifty years, transformed from a fiasco to a masterpiece of seventies cinema. Elaine May’s Mikey and Nicky stands out in the history of Hollywood. After a troubled production, massive cost overruns, and lawsuits between May and the studio, the film received scathing reviews and failed at the box office. But the very qualities that initially alienated viewers and reviewers led later generations to regard the film as an overlooked masterpiece. Written and directed by the period’s only female New Hollywood filmmaker, Mikey and Nicky has not received the attention given to other unconventional films of the 1970s. But May worked for years to give each moment of the movie multiple areas of interest. She made every character, even peripheral ones, nuanced and memorable. And she designed every scene, even minor ones, as a performance event. Her lead actors, Peter Falk and John Cassavetes, thrived under her unorthodox directing style, earning acclaim even from reviewers who hated the movie. Decades in the making—years of scriptwriting, a shoot that spanned ten months, and three years spent editing—Mikey and Nicky shows us what Hollywood cinema can accomplish when talented filmmakers challenge Hollywood’s limited notion of professionalism, rejecting the harsh time pressures of commercial filmmaking in order to get the most out of every scene. Links to his many amazing  books, socials *Books Linked Here (https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B003NORTYU/allbooks?_encoding=UTF8&ref_=aufs_ap_ahdr_dsk_ab&pd_rd_w=2CXDa&content-id=amzn1.sym.7e190e19-9f6f-4df8-807a-5a7608594741&pf_rd_p=7e190e19-9f6f-4df8-807a-5a7608594741&pf_rd_r=138-6713529-7834423&pd_rd_wg=uuStS&pd_rd_r=c13b6636-a0a3-4138-b792-f74799590022&ccs_id=5a4b98bf-330f-4901-ab02-57da6d35b700) More on Professor Berliner Todd Berliner is Professor of Film Studies at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where he teaches film aesthetics, narration, and style, and American film history. He is the author of HOLLYWOOD INCOHERENT: NARRATION IN SEVENTIES CINEMA (University of Texas Press, 2010), HOLLYWOOD AESTHETIC: PLEASURE IN AMERICAN CINEMA (Oxford University Press, 2017), and HOLLYWOOD RENEGADE: ELAINE MAY, MIKEY AND NICKY, AND THE MAKING OF A MASTERPIECE (University of Texas Press, 2026). Professor Berliner was the founding chair of UNCW’s Film Studies Department and the recipient of two Fulbright Scholar awards, including the prestigious Distinguished Chair Award, Fulbright's highest honor. He holds masters and doctorate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. Education * Ph.D. in English, University of California at Berkeley, 1996. Dissertation: When Movies Grew Up: Hollywood Films of the 1970s* B.A. in Psychology and English, University of California at Berkeley, 1986

2. 

   24 Sept 2026

   S8: Poetry and Education_ A Conversation with Patrick Hueller

   #PatrickHueller #author #poetry #education #podcast #FallingInLovewithTeaching #PoetoseInside this episode with your host, Mitch HamptonSometimes on the podcast we have a guest who literally speaks to where we happen to find ourselves today: they at times appear almost like an activist as much whatever else they might do or be. Patrick Hueller is one such guest and this episode is topical and relevant in the greatest senses of those well used words. Patrick's love for and respect for the book and the culture of the book and his commitment to transmitting that to his students made for the best discussion.  He speaks about his profession as educator with an urgency and love that match the importance in the world. An accomplished poet with a new book whose subject is teaching, Hueller gives me genuine hope and I relished the enthusiasm which he brought to the episode and I appreciated his generosity in reading his poems. More about Patrick and his inspiring work! Patrick Hueller lives, writes, and teaches in Minnesota. He is the author of several books, many of them aimed at getting kids pumped about reading. These books have been selected for the American Library Association Rainbow Award and School Library Journal’s “Accessible Reads for Struggling and Reluctant Readers.” He has a forthcoming collection of short stories, Fake Tattoos (Cornerstone Press). Publicist: Paul Flagg paul@poetose.com Email address for anyone interested in bringing Patrick in to talk at their school: pwhueller@gmail.com More on Patrick’s new book: Falling, in Love with Teaching Falling, in Love with Teaching, by veteran high school English teacher Patrick Hueller, is necessary reading for all those who care about the state of education. At a time when the profession is undergoing an existential crisis, this singular book of narrative poems reminds us of what makes teaching so vital. It’s an honest and heartfelt love letter to the calling, a book that belongs in every classroom and on every teacher’s reading list. “You, perhaps, didn’t know you needed this collection of poems about teaching. But you will fall in and wish to stay here. Patrick Hueller delights in words. His playfulness invites you to linger, to lean in and listen. His economy of language moves at the speed of the school day; and yet, his wisdom keeps you turning over images long after you’ve closed the book. Buy this for colleagues; hand it to your principal. Share these poems as gifts. Then write your own.” —Penny Kittle, author of Book Love and 180 Days “In Falling, in Love with Teaching, Patrick Hueller demonstrates his remarkable ability to help teachers see ourselves and our students. This collection allowed me to eavesdrop on his classroom for a school year. I laughed, cried, doubted my abilities, wondered what to do when a difficult student was acting up, and ultimately, felt pride. Reading these poems, I remembered why I love teaching.” —Carolyn Holbrook, author of Tell Me Your Names & I Will Testify #teach #education #charterschool #publicschool #charlesdickens #dickens #bleakhouse #test #minnesota #poetry #politics #tolstoy #warandpeace #classics #brecht #childhood #immigration #ice #family #parenting #concentrationcamp #sciencefiction #thegirlwithallthegifts #mikecary #glennclose #zombie #zombieapocalypse #paulofreire #brasil #socialism #capitalism #highschool #college #literature #roalddahl #thewitches #nicholasroeg #angelicahuston #1700s #1800s #1980s #1990s #1970s #sports #thebrotherskaramazov #dostoevsky #democracy #dictatorship

3. 

   15 Sept 2026

   S8: Mitch Hampton Trio Concert, Summer into Fall

   Inside this Episode with your host, Mitch Hampton With this exciting new publication of a book, Hollywood Renegade, Todd Berliner has for the first time in his career put the focus on one particular artist and one of her movies - Elaine May and Mikey And Nicky. I have been a fan of the film for as long as I have known it; while not as fortunate to have seen the initial debut in 1975 I saw the more famous rerelease in the mid 1980s. Berliner has been one of our leading scholars of film and I can't think of anybody better to write on this particular subject. Like the spirit of our podcast overall he sees movies as an art form more than anything else and accordingly gives that kind of care and attention to May's unique film, unique even for a decade that was and is defined for uniqueness. I've seen thousands of movies, possibly hundreds of 70s movies and I have never seen a film like Mikey And Nicky and there are few movies in fact from any era as good as it is. It was a joy to discuss this with Berliner and his book and upcoming in person introductions for screenings in New York, North Carolina and elsewhere gives me hope for the future of film and art in general. About his new, wonderful book : Hollywood Renegade Elaine May, Mikey and Nicky, and the Making of a Masterpiece Examines the career and unorthodox filmmaking practices of director Elaine May, whose Mikey and Nicky, over a span of fifty years, transformed from a fiasco to a masterpiece of seventies cinema. Elaine May’s Mikey and Nicky stands out in the history of Hollywood. After a troubled production, massive cost overruns, and lawsuits between May and the studio, the film received scathing reviews and failed at the box office. But the very qualities that initially alienated viewers and reviewers led later generations to regard the film as an overlooked masterpiece. Written and directed by the period’s only female New Hollywood filmmaker, Mikey and Nicky has not received the attention given to other unconventional films of the 1970s. But May worked for years to give each moment of the movie multiple areas of interest. She made every character, even peripheral ones, nuanced and memorable. And she designed every scene, even minor ones, as a performance event. Her lead actors, Peter Falk and John Cassavetes, thrived under her unorthodox directing style, earning acclaim even from reviewers who hated the movie. Decades in the making—years of scriptwriting, a shoot that spanned ten months, and three years spent editing—Mikey and Nicky shows us what Hollywood cinema can accomplish when talented filmmakers challenge Hollywood’s limited notion of professionalism, rejecting the harsh time pressures of commercial filmmaking in order to get the most out of every scene. Links to his many amazing  books, socials *Books Linked Here (https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B003NORTYU/allbooks?_encoding=UTF8&ref_=aufs_ap_ahdr_dsk_ab&pd_rd_w=2CXDa&content-id=amzn1.sym.7e190e19-9f6f-4df8-807a-5a7608594741&pf_rd_p=7e190e19-9f6f-4df8-807a-5a7608594741&pf_rd_r=138-6713529-7834423&pd_rd_wg=uuStS&pd_rd_r=c13b6636-a0a3-4138-b792-f74799590022&ccs_id=5a4b98bf-330f-4901-ab02-57da6d35b700) More on Professor Berliner Todd Berliner is Professor of Film Studies at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where he teaches film aesthetics, narration, and style, and American film history. He is the author of HOLLYWOOD INCOHERENT: NARRATION IN SEVENTIES CINEMA (University of Texas Press, 2010), HOLLYWOOD AESTHETIC: PLEASURE IN AMERICAN CINEMA (Oxford University Press, 2017), and HOLLYWOOD RENEGADE: ELAINE MAY, MIKEY AND NICKY, AND THE MAKING OF A MASTERPIECE (University of Texas Press, 2026). Professor Berliner was the founding chair of UNCW’s Film Studies Department and the recipient of two Fulbright Scholar awards, including the prestigious Distinguished Chair Award, Fulbright's highest honor. He holds masters and doctorate degrees from the University of California, Berkeley.

Who has been a guest on Journey of an Aesthete Podcast https://www.jouneyofanaesthetepodcast.com/

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Miguel Eichelberger
• Nancy Cawdrey
• Steve Cawdrey

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

30,903

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

5 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

1 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 72 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

86

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

68

Contact Journey of an Aesthete Podcast https://www.jouneyofanaesthetepodcast.com/

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Journey of an Aesthete Podcast https://www.jouneyofanaesthetepodcast.com/