Episode 79: Amalia Ulman on El Planeta, Venice films, Chinese independents, and more

The Last Thing I Saw

Welcome to The Last Thing I Saw, with your host, Nicolas Rapold. One of my favorite debuts in a while is El Planeta, directed by and starring Amalia Ulman. She plays a designer who lives with her mother (played by Ulman’s mother) but they’re both going broke. So they’re making ends meet any way they can, which for her mother might include a little light scamming. It’s a movie with many layers, both funny and poignant, about keeping up appearances and about the complicated bond between mother and daughter. In many ways it builds on Ulman’s extensive art practice, which plays with class, identity, fashion, and how we have to present and re-present ourselves to the world. Ulman was raised in Gijón, Spain, where the movie is set, and she's based in New York. I already had the pleasure of interviewing Ulman at length for Screen Slate, and so this time I was able to spend more time than usual talking about the wonderful movies she’s been watching. But first our Zoom conversation was interrupted by a surprise guest... You can support this podcast and read show notes with links at: rapold.substack.com Opening music: “Monserrate” by The Minarets Photo by Steve Snodgrass