Ken and Mike welcome Kirsten (KJ) Johnson, who recently won Best Director for her groundbreaking film, "Dick Johnson is Dead." This film is like no other film you’ll find in your Netflix queue. KJ’s boundary-pushing documentary uses the art of cinema to keep the ravages of time and the onset of dementia from taking her beloved father Dick away from her. The solution? Keep killing her father over-and-over again on camera, all with Dick’s active participation and encouragement.
Once you survive the film, you’ll definitely want to join Mike and Ken for this refreshingly candid conversation with KJ who constantly questions everything (including our questions!) and proves herself to be every bit as provocative, playful and engaging as the film itself. Covering everything from Seventh-day Adventism and the best way to stage your father’s funeral while he’s still alive to Vertov’s Man with a Movie Camera and, of course, chocolate cake, this week’s podcast is one you’ll be dying to listen to. And look out for that falling air conditioner!
You can follow us on twitter @topdocspod
Other films directed by Kirsten Johnson:
Cameraperson
Deadline
People who worked on the film:
Judy Karp
Michael Hilow
Nels Bangerter
Peter Horner
Nadia Hallgren
John Foster
Simon Mendes
Marilyn Ness
Hidden Gem: Marjoe
Also mentioned in the pod:
Ousmane Sembène
Djibril Diop Mambéty
Wellington Bowler
Young Frankenstein
Monty Python’s Flying Circus
Charles Addams
Lacan on social death
Derrida (the documentary)
Quantum Entanglement
The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill
"Power" with Yance Ford
"Albert Brooks: Defending My Life" with Rob Reiner
Classic: "Dick Johnson is Dead" with Kirsten ("KJ") Johnson (from October 2021)
Classic: "Summer of Soul" with Amir "Questlove" Thompson (from January 2022)
Classic: "Navalny" with Daniel Roher (from September 2022)
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