Author: Dreamate Demo

After the great success of The Offline (2021) and Before the Day After (2024), low-budget independent films awarded worldwide, director, writer, and actor Eduardo Cocciardo returns with a new feature film titled In the Bunker, scheduled to be filmed on the island of Ischia in the autumn of 2026.

The project appears highly captivating and, if possible, even more ambitious, both from a cinematic and a production standpoint. The director clearly intends to challenge the Italian production system, which he believes is dominated by a select few and negatively influenced by social-media and television language, leading to stories that often resemble one another and fail to delve deeply into the complex reality of our times.

In this scenario, the only hope seems to lie in independent cinema, which can truly offer a free perspective on the world, beyond any fiction or compromise orchestrated by those who pull the strings of communication. Art, performance, and cinema should, by their very nature, be the ultimate expressions of truth. Yet, this is not always the case. The language of cinema is often tamed, demagogic, and politically correct, but not genuinely authentic.

Thus, every story that tries to deviate from this state of things inevitably takes on a “political” value, re-examining not only cinematic practices but also the entire social system. However, In the Bunker mainly aims to mark a break from the narrative conventions of commercial cinema. It is not merely a matter of visual experimentation, but rather a set of narrative ideas which we won’t fully reveal here to avoid spoilers that completely overturn the clichés of conventional, especially Italian, filmmaking.

A symbolic film? In some ways, yes because beneath the surface story lie deeper intentions that challenge the usual ways audiences approach a film. Drama, thriller, comedy, science fiction “In the Bunker” is a cinematic work that will move you deeply, turning the familiar world upside down, because after watching it, nothing will ever be the same again.

A mysterious villa hidden in the heart of a botanical garden. A group of guests fleeing from a troubled past. Two quarrelsome brothers willing to host them as long as they pretend to be their relatives. Chiara arrives in the middle of the night and soon begins to wonder whether her life has just ended or is only about to begin.

The villa becomes a place outside of time, a refuge for characters escaping the evils of the modern world: a woman with a violent past, a child named Amir and the elderly nurse who saved his life in a field hospital, a young couple bullied by the inhabitants of a small provincial town, a young intellectual struggling to process his partner’s suicide, and a man who narrowly survived a car accident after watching his marriage collapse. Meanwhile, over the world looms the threat of an imminent nuclear war.

We won’t reveal more, because cinema should never be told, but rather seen, without preconceptions. Yet it’s clear that beneath the surface narrative the house, the fugitives, the two clumsy, bickering brothers lie far deeper intentions. Gradually, the story reveals itself as a grand metaphor for the contemporary world, increasingly devoid of values, condemned to injustices, misunderstandings, and conflicts that seem beyond repair clinging to ever narrower mindsets and perhaps teetering on the brink of nuclear war.

The Bunker is the ultimate refuge from pain the primordial place, the final harbor where everything converges, finds meaning, and seeks protection. In a world where racial, religious, and territorial conflicts are re-emerging with alarming force, In the Bunker seeks to reflect on the destiny of humanity and on the urgent need to reconsider one simple but essential truth: that we are all children of the same mother a vast golden spiral encompassing the present, the past, and the future.

To bring this film to life, given the production challenges mentioned above, Eduardo Cocciardo has launched a crowdfunding campaign on the Italian platform Produzioni dal Basso. The director invites the public to support the project by becoming official partners of the film. Anyone wishing to contribute, even with a symbolic donation, can do so by clicking the following link:

https://www.produzionidalbasso.com/project/nel-bunker-un-film-per-salvare-il-mondo

Who is Cresencio Medina?

I’m a full-time FedEx courier, working hard every day to provide for my family — but inside my heart, I’m a storyteller, a filmmaker, and a dreamer who never stopped believing in the power of cinema. My journey has been one of resilience and vision — balancing long workdays, fatherhood, and the challenges of life while holding onto a dream to create stories that matter. I was born in Yuma, Arizona, to a father from Jalisco and a Mexican-American mother, carrying Yaqui roots that have shaped who I am. I grew up in El Centro, California, and earned my Associate’s Degree from the Los Angeles Film School — a place where I was finally able to express who I really am. It wasn’t just about learning filmmaking; it was about finding my voice, my purpose, and the meaning behind the stories I wanted to tell. I’ve loved movies since I was seven years old. They gave me hope, direction, and the belief that imagination can change lives.

Today, my two sons — ages three and seven — are my greatest inspiration. They remind me daily why I keep pushing forward, why I write late into the night after work, and why I refuse to let go of my dream. They add fire to my passion and remind me that storytelling isn’t just about imagination — it’s about legacy, love, and leaving something behind that means something.

Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

Yes, absolutely. The first time I saw Christopher Reeve’s Superman, I truly believed a man could fly. When I was 7, my parents bought me a pair of Superman pajamas, and the moment I put them on, I believed, with all my heart, that I could fly. Not because someone told me, but because cinema showed me. That moment didn’t just spark my imagination; it defined it. It taught me that stories weren’t just for watching, they were for living, for telling, and for changing lives.

Tell us about your project PACO.

PACO is a deeply personal story for me. It’s a fantasy adventure series set in 19th-century Jalisco, Mexico, centered around a young boy named Paco who gains superhuman strength after making a heroic sacrifice for his family. The story blends Mexican history, indigenous spirituality, and universal themes of courage, destiny, and the unbreakable bond of family.

Right now, PACO exists as a seven-episode screenplay series that I wrote. It’s filled with humor, adventure, and heartfelt moments that capture the beauty and chaos of family life — even in the face of danger. Paco’s journey takes him from playing with his sisters in the countryside to battling ruthless bandits and confronting an ancient, evil being that threatens everything he loves.

At its core, PACO isn’t just an adventure tale, it’s about legacy and identity, about how courage can come from love, and how stories can outlive time itself. The series has already received recognition in several film festivals, and I truly believe it has the power to connect with audiences around the world, not just as fantasy, but as a story about heart, hope, and what it means to protect the ones you love.

Which director inspires you the most?

Christopher Nolan has always inspired me. I’ve always admired how fearless he is when it comes to storytelling — how he bends time, emotion, and structure without ever losing the human truth behind his films. His first breakout film, Memento, based on his brother Jonathan Nolan’s short story Memento Mori, is a movie I absolutely love. The way it was shot and edited, starting from the ending and unfolding backward until it circled back to the beginning — completely changed how I saw storytelling. It wasn’t just a movie; it was a puzzle, an experience that demanded attention and rewarded you for piecing it together. Nolan showed me that storytelling can be both intelligent and deeply personal. That film didn’t just inspire me; it made me fall even deeper in love with the art of filmmaking.

What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

What I dislike most is inequality — the way opportunity, safety, and even dreams are distributed unevenly depending on where you are born or who you are. If I could change one thing, it would be to create a world where children everywhere grow up with equal access to education, art, and opportunity. Stories can play a role in that by reminding us of our shared humanity and by sparking empathy where it’s needed most.

How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

When I was 12 years old, I asked a teacher at school what she thought was the greatest love story ever told in a film. She smiled and said, “Myra and Roy, a film called Waterloo Bridge.” That answer stayed with me, because it showed me how powerful cinema can be — how a story from decades ago can still touch someone’s heart so deeply.

Today, with artificial intelligence becoming a part of almost everything, I sometimes wonder what cinema will look like in another hundred years. I imagine it will be even more immersive, blending physical and digital realities in ways we can’t yet fully understand. And while that future is exciting, it also makes me a little afraid, because no matter how far technology goes, nothing can replace the emotion, vulnerability, and truth that come from human storytelling. A hundred years from now, no matter how advanced cinema becomes, audiences will still crave the same thing — stories that move them, that make them feel, and that remind them of what it means to be human.

What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

I think WILD FILMMAKER represents something powerful, not just as a magazine, but as a movement — giving filmmakers like myself a platform to share our vision and our stories. I admire how it celebrates independent voices and reminds us that storytelling doesn’t have to follow rules, it just has to come from the heart.

But beyond being a publication, I see “WILD FILMMAKER” as a state of mind — someone who dares to dream big, to take chances no matter the obstacles, and to tell beautiful stories even when the world says it’s impossible. That’s what true artistry is: creating not for approval, but because you must. I’m honored to be featured by a magazine that believes in that spirit — the wild, fearless pursuit of storytelling that moves people.

Who is S. J. Jananiy?

S. J. Jananiy is a Film Composer, Indian & Western Classical Vocalist, Singer-Songwriter and Music Producer from India, with a lifelong passion for spreading peace through music. She was fortunate to begin her musical journey at a very young age, performing publicly at just five, and over the years, she was trained in Carnatic, Hindustani, and Western classical music.

Music, for her, has always been a way to connect to emotions, to spirituality, and to people across cultures. She plays multiple instruments, including the Keyboard, Violin, Veena, Piano, and Harmonium, and she enjoys blending traditional Indian sounds with contemporary global styles.

She has the privilege of releasing over 100 albums spanning genres such as Indian Classical Vocal, Indian Classical Instrumental Keyboard/Synth, Pop, Electronic, Fusion, World, Trap, Blues, Folk, Soundtrack, New Age, and Spiritual/Devotional. Along the way, she collaborated with incredible artists, worked on film scores, and performed internationally.

Beyond creating music, Jananiy is passionate about supporting women in music through organizations like the Alliance for Women Film Composers, and she is honored to be a voting member of the Recording Academy for the GRAMMY® Awards.

At the heart of it all, Jananiy sees herself as a storyteller through sound — one who hopes to touch hearts, unite cultures, uplift humanity through the power of music, and celebrate the universality of sound.

With 25+ years of accomplished experience, her music is a synthesis of rigorous training and fearless experimentation.

Jananiy’s musical odyssey began at just 5 years old, blossoming into a national sensation when she received the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar (National Award) from the Government of India at the age of 7. Since then, she has amassed over 1100 live performances, including a historic Jugalbandhi with Pt. Hariprasad Chaurasia in Paris.

She composed for the Tamil feature film “Rail”, collaborating with the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra, and for the film “Prabha”, featuring the last recorded playback of her Guru Padma Vibhushan Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna. Her viral mantra “Om Namo Venkatesaya” has amassed 160+ million views on YouTube Shorts and social platforms.

Jananiy serves as a jury member for international awards including the ISSA Awards – International Singer-Songwriters Association (Atlanta, USA) and the ICMA Awards – InterContinental Music Awards (Los Angeles, USA).

She holds a Graduate degree in Economics from Stella Maris College, Chennai, an MA and MPhil in Indian Music from Queen Mary’s College, Chennai, and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Music at the same institution.

She has completed ATCL (Associate Trinity College London) in Western Classical Vocal, Grade 8 in Western Classical Vocal, Keyboard, and Theory, as well as a Senior Diploma in Hindustani Vocal (Prayag Sangeet Samiti, Allahabad).

A lifelong student of the Brahma Kumaris World Spiritual University, her compositions reflect a meditative depth — from Brahmakumaris chants to empowering anthems like Nari Shakti, and socially conscious works like Friendship Song and Keliri Keliri (Anti-Addiction Song).

She owns the 3 DOT Recording Studios (Suite A & B) and her independent label JSJ Audio, where every note is crafted with precision, purpose, and passion.

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Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

Way back during my childhood, I still remember watching my first Hollywood movie “Dinosaur” in my hometown in India. I was inspired by the way a single melody could adhere to a pounding heartbeat, laugh, scream, and even get scared. That’s when I knew music was my path to score for movies.

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Tell us about your project “Poo Pookudhu (From RAIL Movie) – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack”.

This original soundtrack, a mesmerising melody “Poo Pookkudhu” from the Tamil feature film “Rail”, is based on a nativity-inspired story rooted in a South Indian village setting. It was composed, produced, arranged, and sung by myself — a multi-global award-winning composer & singer-songwriter. The lyrics were beautifully written by Rameshvaidya.

The song weaves themes of blooming (flowers opening — “poo pookudhu” means “the flower blossoms”), longing, bonds, love, fragrance, and nature’s tender beauty. There’s also a sense of devotion and emotional connection to place, people, and memories.

I collaborated with the Bulgarian National Radio Symphony Orchestra to record the strings ensemble. Set to a 6/8 rhythm structure, this song’s lyrics consist of local language slang, which was a challenge for vocal delivery — especially since it was composed for lyrics depicting the relationship between a father and a child, creating an empathic and heartfelt connection.

Though modern in its production quality, the piece retains folk sensibilities, evoking local identity and traditions. Listeners familiar with Tamil folklore or devotional music might feel both at home and pleasantly surprised.

Awards and Accolades for “Poo Pookudhu (From RAIL Movie)”

• “Best Original Song” – World Film Festival 2025, Cannes, France
• “Best Music Director” – Dadasaheb Phalke Janmabhoomi Puraskar, 2025 NIFF Nashik International Film Festival, India
• 2× Clef Music Awards – “Best Music Director” & “Best Film Song”, 2024, Mumbai, India
• “Best Composer” – Chicago Indie Film Awards 2025, U.S.A.
• “Best Composer” – Cannes Arts Film Festival 2025, France
• “Best Soundtrack” – Humro Cinema International Film Festival, Nepal, May 2025

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Which Director inspires you the most?

Christopher Nolan proves that bold ideas and human emotion can coexist on the silver screen. Nolan inspires by making films that challenge the mind, move the heart, and redefine storytelling.

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What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

Through my mission to “Spread Peace through Music”, I dream of a world filled with kindness, harmony, and joy — where every heart feels compassion and happiness.

Through music, I dream of a world free from conflict, where compassion and happiness thrive everywhere.
Let music be a bridge to peace, inspiring hearts to live with kindness and joy.

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How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

A hundred years from now, I imagine cinema not as a screen to watch, but a world to enter — a place where we breathe the story, touch its emotions, and wander through its universe. Yet, despite the marvels of technology, its true power will remain unchanged: to connect hearts, inspire minds, and celebrate the timeless essence of what it means to be human.

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What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

Wild Filmmaker is inspiring because it celebrates cinema’s evolution. In today’s era, anyone with a smartphone can tell a story and share it worldwide. At the same time, it honors the masters of the past — Kubrick, Fellini, Neorealism, New Hollywood — while imagining a freer, richer, and more alive cinema where audiences are active participants in storytelling.

Who is Kevin Wang?

I am a Director with over 28 years of experience in virtual production, spanning video games, film. Born and raised in Taipei, Taiwan,  my journey began when I was 14, moving to Costa Rica with my father without knowing English or Spanish. It took me years to learn and adapt before moving again to the United States to pursue my future. I started as a game tester and worked my way up to Senior IT, Motion Capture Director, and Director of Virtual Production at companies such as Sony, Tencent, and NetEase. Along the way, I had the privilege of working alongside Robert Zemeckis on Beowulf, James Cameron on Avatar, and Hideo Kojima on Death Stranding, experiences no school could ever teach me, and for which I am truly grateful. This journey has also given me a deep understanding of both Chinese and U.S. cultural differences and work ethics, a unique perspective that continues to be a strong leverage in my career. At my core, I’m a storyteller dedicated to merging technology and art to create experiences that resonate.  

Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I fell in love with cinema through the power of storytelling, the way music, lighting, acting, color grading, lens choices, and editing all come together to create pure emotion. It amazed me how a full team of professionals could collaborate to build something greater than any one individual. That realization, that cinema is both art and teamwork, made me want to dedicate my time to it.

Tell us about your project “Sands of Time”.

“Sands of Time” is a short film I created to test the boundaries of storytelling with AI. While many see AI as a threat, I see it as a tool, one that lacks a human heart, compassion, and empathy, but can become powerful when combined with authentic human emotion. With just $60 and four days, I produced this film to prove what’s possible: technology alone is cold, but when guided by our humanity, it can help us tell stories in ways we’ve never imagined before.

Which Director inspires you the most?

Robert Zemeckis has been a huge inspiration for me, especially because I had the privilege of working alongside him on Beowulf. Watching him work up close gave me a deeper understanding of a director’s mindset, how every shot is carefully set up with both technical precision and emotional intention. His ability to merge groundbreaking technology with timeless storytelling has left a lasting mark on how I approach my own craft.  

What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

What troubles me most is how disconnected people can be, even with all the tools meant to bring us closer. I would change that by fostering more empathy and storytelling, because stories are bridges, they allow us to see ourselves in others. If more people could truly listen through art, I believe the world would feel less divided, I believe everyone has a unique story to be told based on their life experience and I am sure there are parts of it that people can resonate to make the connection.

How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

I see cinema evolving into experiences that go beyond the screen, fully immersive, multi-sensory worlds where audiences don’t just watch a story, they step into it. But at its core, cinema will still be about the same thing it has always been: emotion, humanity, and the need to connect. Technology will change the tools, but it will never change the heart of storytelling.  

What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

WILD FILMMAKER feels like a platform that celebrates voices outside the mainstream, and that’s exactly what the industry needs. It’s rare to see a space where experimentation and authenticity are prioritized over formula. I admire that mission deeply because it aligns with my own belief that true creativity lives at the edges, where risks are taken. 

Who is Kel Owens?

Kel Owens is quiet in a crowd, loud in the mind. Can turn any situation into a fit-to-film story. Never takes himself too serious but serious when listening to others. He’s a husband, father to 2 grown daughters. Long-time carpenter/general contractor and a Sag-Aftra Union actor, filmmaker. Started his own company Towering Entertainment Productions.

Kel has been in feature films, television shows, commercials, short films. He has played a variety of characters: cowboys, bikers, a coal miner, a serial killer, a judge and even the Devil.

He had a small role in Django Unchained. Quentin Tarantino and Kel hit it off because both have a sense of humor. Quentin would joke calling Kel “Kill,” saying: “Are you sure your name is Kel not Kill cause you look like one big, scary, mean-ass mother-for.” They would laugh.

Kel was in an episode of the ABC series Suburgatory, where he played a wacked-out hippie guitar player in a cult band with Mae Whitman as the lead singer. Lots of fun and laughter.

Kel had a lead role in Pineapple by Arkasha Stevenson, which played at Sundance and Tribeca film festivals. A great experience that got Kel thinking about making his own movies. So, he wrote a few scripts and started making his own films.

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Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

I remember as a boy enjoying television, and going to the movies was a treat. Disney movies and westerns and the wonderment of it all. And the unbelievably fascinating Planet of the Apes (1968).

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Tell us about your project “The Legend Of The Bum-Barian” and “Christmas Card”.

The Legend of the Bum-Barian is a short film written, produced, and directed by me. My youngest daughter, Cheyenne, worked with me on this project. She did the cinematography, narration, and editing. I played the Bum-Barian. It did very well in film festivals and won some awards.

Christmas Card is another short film written, produced, and directed by me. Cheyenne plays one of the leads, and she also edited the film. I play one of the leads as well. We just finished it and submitted it to a few festivals, and it won a silver award in one of them.

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Which director inspires you the most?

I like a lot of directors, like Ron Howard. But Clint Eastwood inspires me the most. His longevity and quality of work are amazing. He is very prepared, trusts his cast and crew. I love how he uses shadows on people’s faces. His focus on characters and storytelling is remarkable. Coming from an extensive acting background, I think, helps him create a low-stress, relaxing set.

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What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

Lack of compassion for others. Lack of compassion leads to conflict, and lack of understanding of different perspectives. I would eradicate poverty. Poverty limits opportunities and creates cycles of disadvantages. What stands in the way, becomes the way.

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How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

The last 15 to 20 years, technology has boomed. I’m inventing Smell-A-Vision for the future. So, when you are in the theater watching a scene of someone taking out fresh baked bread from the oven, the audience smells it too. Or in a scene where a character is outside and it starts to rain, the audience smells the Fall rain.

But you have to take the good with the not so good: maybe in a scene a character comes across a skunk, the audience will smell the skunk—or a scene even worse than that. LOL

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What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

When I first heard about Wild Filmmaker magazine, I thought: what a great idea. A magazine for Indie filmmakers out there. An advocate for us! I was hooked. It’s always interesting. A first-rate magazine.

-Who is Nicolò Donatello Milano?

I’m a high school teacher who, whenever I find some spare time, plays around with filmmaking. Not a professional—just someone who enjoys telling absurd stories.

-Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

Something changed in me when I discovered experimental films like The Idiots by Lars von Trier and Gummo by Harmony Korine. That’s when I realized cinematic rules could be overturned, and that there was something different beyond the mainstream that had never really interested me.

-Tell us about your project “Mimmo the Milker“.

Mimmo the Milker is a self-produced short film with no budget, no clue how a real set works, and only non-professional actors doing their first-ever performance. After watching Italian Spiderman and The VelociPastor, I wanted to tell my own crazy story. I called my friends (we call ourselves “Caseificio Goderecci”) and, in the most anarchic way, we shot everything in just a few days.

The plot is totally over the top: in a world where cheddar grows on trees, alien cows—mysteriously hungry for cheddar—invade Earth. These cows also have strange paranormal powers: they can turn ordinary objects into fruit, like bananas or other random things, and even disguise themselves as dominatrix-style mistresses. Standing against them is Mimmo, a rude cow milker ready to defend his home. Probably it doesn’t make much sense, but I feel someone out there might enjoy it.

Surprisingly, despite all the chaos and technical limitations, it even won the seasonal award for “Best Italian Film” at the 7th edition of the Absurd Film Festival. I never expected that.

-Which Director inspires you the most?

Most of all, Dario Russo (Italian Spiderman, Danger 5) has inspired me a lot with his trashy style: absurd masks, fake special effects, and nonsense comedy. I also follow Dupieux, John Waters, Benoit Forgeard, Maccio Capatonda, Adult Swim shows, and even Lory Del Santo. Basically, I’m fascinated by anything absurd and nonsensical.

-What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

I can’t stand how political correctness has turned into a kind of censorship. Art should be free, even if it’s annoying or a bit rude. Right now, I’m working on a new project, Il gusto del pompelmo (The Taste of Grapefruit), that makes fun of this world.

-How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

It will probably be made by artificial intelligence. But it doesn’t matter: cinema is entertainment, and the only thing that counts is telling stories—whether by a director, a robot, or an alien cow.

-What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

I like it because it gives space to those with no money, no big production, just pure creative madness. It’s great to know that cinema made out of nothing still has a place.

Yankee Zhou, also known as Zhou Yanz or Yankee Zhou Yanz, is a veteran in film and video production, criticism, and a published poet under the name Zhou Doubt.

He holds a Master’s Degree in Cinema Studies from New York University and has written and directed many internationally award-winning works before moving from Taiwan to the USA in 2010. His works—fiction or nonfiction—consistently revolve around the emotional state of being and warm mortality of his characters.

He is also the founder of the award-winning nonprofit organization Memory Community (a.k.a. Yankee Zhou’s Memory Community), which devotedly produces Movie Memoirs for older adults to preserve their unique and precious life stories.

His high-artistic English screenplay for a feature film he will direct himself, “Signed, Baba”, has received dozens of awards and recognitions in international film festivals.

As a poet, Yankee Zhou (Zhou Doubt) has a vast repertoire and has published two Chinese-English bilingual poetry books:

• Dying
• Poems & Ballads from the House of Drifting Clouds

His second English screenplay, “Garden Court Guardians”, gazes—through a documentary-like lens—at a group of seniors living in the same condominium complex. The theme aligns with Zhou’s long-standing creative focus on a generation often neglected or forgotten.

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Where does your desire to express yourself through art come from?

I began writing in senior high school, perhaps even earlier. Being published in newspapers motivated me to continue. The original force must be credited to my late father, a self-taught literarian who wrote and published novellas and traditional poetry in Mandarin Chinese.

He worked for a newspaper and spent his evenings writing in his study, seated at his desk facing a window with his back to the open door. That image of him—framed by the doorway—has stayed with me ever since I was a boy.

My father also loved movies, so we often went to the cinema with him. Though my passion for cinema only truly emerged in college, his influence is undeniable. He collected movie magazines, which I read with fascination—never imagining that one day I would become a filmmaker myself and work with notable figures in the Taiwanese film industry.

Today, I am both a filmmaker and a poet thanks to my late father, to whom my screenplay “Signed, Baba” is dedicated.

Another driving force behind my artistic expression comes from within—my introversion and quasi-autism. I enjoy solitude and have many inner conversations. I am not good at small talk, and I have no idols. In recent years, I dream more frequently—vivid, film-like dreams with characters, plots, dialogues, and open endings. Even as a long-term CPAP patient due to severe apnea, I still dream of films every night.

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What are your goals as an artist?

My goal is to be a “cinemartist” until I die.
At this stage of my life, I have devoted myself to creating art films—both screenplays and produced works—at the highest artistic level.

I have worked on mainstream and festival films, but I realize now that I should have dedicated myself sooner to genuine cinematic artistry.

As a poet, my goal is to write more poems in both English and Chinese, and someday, to write my final “death poem.” Being bilingual gives me the privilege and challenge of expressing my creative desire in both languages. I have written thousands of poems, with hundreds already published.

Beyond writing, I continue to run my nonprofit Memory Community in the USA, which I’ve led for fourteen years. As an artist, memory catcher, and senior-service volunteer, I will continue producing Movie Memoirs—biographical films for older adults, crafted with documentary care and available to view on YouTube.

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What is your opinion on the cultural industry?

The term “cultural industry” strikes me as contradictory. When culture becomes industrially driven, it risks turning into merchandise. Culture should not be for sale, yet humans often market it under various justifications.

Cinema, often seen as part of the cultural industry, straddles the line between cultural expression and industrial production. Personally, I see cinema as culture, even though modern filmmaking increasingly relies on technology, AI, and animation.

Creators today enjoy industrial tools that make production easier, but the heart of cinema—its human and cultural essence—must remain at the core. Perhaps my answer to this question will evolve with time.

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Do you think independent artists today have enough opportunities to share their creativity?

Not quite enough—especially regarding attention and exposure.
Most audiences remain captivated by large-scale Hollywood films. While many independent film festivals exist, and they do encourage indie filmmakers, festivals themselves are not production houses. Independent filmmakers must persevere to see their visions through.

In the U.S., we’re seeing more indie films appear on streaming platforms, often within the horror genre, due to its low-budget feasibility. While understandable, I hope that indie filmmakers will work harder on their screenplays, going beyond the familiar tropes.

This hope applies to all artists, across all art forms: to create not what is easy, but what is authentic and new.

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What new project are you currently working on?

Following “Signed, Baba”—completed in 2023 after beginning in 2015–16—I have been writing “Garden Court Guardians.” The screenplay was drafted earlier this year, though I anticipate revisiting it for revision after some distance and reflection.

The current version already calls for an art-cinema level of appreciation, inviting readers and viewers to visualize the yet-to-be-made film.

Both “Signed, Baba” and “Garden Court Guardians” are written in English. Having lived in the U.S. for nearly fifteen years, it feels natural—despite my introversion—to write in English. The international recognition “Signed, Baba” has received proves that I’ve crossed the language barrier.

Lastly, in collaboration with Debi Rivera, my new poetry collection—
“More Poems & Ballads from the House of Drifting Clouds”,
a sequel to “Poems & Ballads from the House of Drifting Clouds”—
is on the horizon.

Who is Fumitaka Otoguro?

I studied theatre at Osaka University of Arts and have been working as an actor for 27 years. I have appeared in more than 120 Japanese films, TV dramas, commercials, and stage productions. To lift my long under-the-radar career, four years ago I began producing, planning, and starring in my own films.

I have also worked over 30 different part-time jobs, always valuing the human connections I made along the way. I am a man who literally wears down his shoe soles going out to meet people, talking face-to-face, and exchanging passion. That is how I have continued to grow my circle of collaborators.

Using the foundation of my acting, my diverse life experience, and my human energy, I create and launch my own projects. My feature film TOKYO STRANGE TALE / Boku wo Yobu Koe has been selected at more than 40 international festivals, winning 18 awards across 9 countries. It received the Audience Award at the ÉCU Film Festival in Paris, was the Closing Night Screening at the Portland Horror Film Festival, and was most recently officially selected at the 16th Bridges International Film Festival in Greece.

This “ultimate self-made, self-performed” project (as I like to laugh and call it) is now making noise around the world. I am both an actor and a producer who creates, delivers, and celebrates human passion through cinema.

To everyone out there: if you want to work with this strange, fiery, passionate energy-drink-in-a-suit actor-producer from the Far East — the time is now! I’m waiting for your call.

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Do you remember the exact moment you fell in love with cinema?

My origin goes back to sixth grade, at a school performance. I wrote several short comedy sketches, directed them, and performed myself. The one that got the biggest laughs was a parody of Star Wars called Star-Horse — not a horse, but a garden hose used as a lightsaber. We made the bwooon bwooon sounds with our mouths and playfully tapped each other on stage.

It was silly, but the laughter it brought was unforgettable. Feeling that heat and joy from the audience became an experience I could never forget — and it shaped who I am today.

In my elementary school graduation essay, I even wrote that my dream was to become a comedian. Making people laugh and moving their emotions was my very first dream — and it remains the root of my passion for cinema.

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Tell us about your project “TOKYO STRANGE TALE / Boku wo Yobu Koe.“

TOKYO STRANGE TALE / Boku wo Yobu Koe is a story that follows the despair of a woman and the abnormal behavior of a man whose purity drives him to extremes. Is it ultimate love, or an obsessive hunger for approval? It is a film that directly asks this question of the audience.

After the COVID era, extreme individualism spread — people began losing imagination and kindness toward others. By deliberately portraying emptiness, this film asks: “Do you really like this world?” That question is woven together with the impersonal, concrete cityscape of Tokyo.

The idea was born in October 2020, during my first-ever hospital stay. Having lost many jobs and chances, I lay in despair, yet strangely, I was overwhelmed with creative visions. With an IV drip still attached, I filmed scenes in the hospital and sent them to my longtime collaborator, director Koichi Ueno, asking, “Can we start something from here?” Within just eight days in that hospital bed, the backbone of the story had already taken shape.

With support from Japan’s Cultural Affairs Agency, we began shooting in February 2021. After many twists and struggles, the film was completed in summer 2024. Since then it has been selected at over 40 festivals worldwide, winning 18 awards across 9 countries — including the Audience Award at ÉCU and the Closing Night Screening at the Portland Horror Film Festival.

As both lead actor and producer, I see it as my mission to deliver this film to as many people as possible.

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Which director inspires you the most?

I respect and admire so many filmmakers that it’s almost impossible to narrow it down. If I speak of the lineage connected to TOKYO STRANGE TALE, I would name David Lynch, Akira Kurosawa, Stanley Kubrick, David Fincher, Quentin Tarantino, and Dario Argento. Their works — urban absurdity, human destiny, cold aesthetics, the collision of violence and humor, the blending of fantasy and horror — have all shaped the backbone of my cinema.

On a personal level, I truly love Christopher Nolan, I have been deeply inspired by Takeshi Kitano’s early works, I admire Hayao Miyazaki, and if I were stranded on a desert island I would bring the entire Toy Story trilogy. John Lasseter’s work is, to me, absolutely brilliant.

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What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

What I dislike is the coldness of society — where efficiency and profit outweigh human feelings, imagination, and kindness. I have suffered from that indifference many times.

Yet within that coldness, I also found collaborators whose passion and kindness supported me and allowed this film to be completed.

So while my story may seem dark and grim, in truth it was created solely through human kindness and passion. Through my work, I want to show that there truly is a world overflowing with warmth and passion. I believe in human conscience.

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How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

AI may evolve to the point where even actors are no longer needed, and images will be created more perfectly and freely.

But I believe the true value lies in human accumulation — the lived experience of scraping away life, enduring hardship, confronting cruelty, and also grasping human warmth and conscience. These lived experiences — pain and joy, subtle fluctuations, the delicate a-wai (the in-between) — are footprints only humans can leave.

No matter how advanced technology becomes, that fragile in-between cannot be replicated by AI. For that reason, I choose to believe in humanity. Whatever the future holds, cinema will continue to reflect human stories and the traces of life they carry.

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What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

WILD FILMMAKER feels to me like a vibrant, powerful, and truly unique web platform that equally celebrates filmmakers across the world. To be interviewed here is a true honor.

I am the kind of person who, every three days, thinks “I can’t go on, I want to quit” (laughs). But because I never quit and never gave up, I now have the chance to share my voice here.

It tells me that God really is watching — and perhaps it is the God of cinema.

by Michele Diomà

Claudia Cardinale’s visage is destined to stand as one of the enduring symbols of the 20th century, much as Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa smile has remained an emblem of the Renaissance. For many cinephiles, the immediate image that comes to mind is her ethereal, almost salvific presence in Federico Fellini’s 8½. Yet Cardinale was far more than a single iconic role. She demonstrated extraordinary versatility, embodying a wide range of characters, and with remarkable foresight and courage, supported independent producers at a time when mainstream success beckoned. At the peak of her stardom in the late 1960s, Cardinale made a bold choice for artistic freedom, parting ways with the powerful producer Franco Cristaldi. Many warned her that such a decision would end her career; instead, it opened new creative opportunities with independent filmmakers, among them Werner Herzog, for the “mad” and poetic masterpiece Fitzcarraldo. Throughout her career, and even in more recent years, Cardinale continued to embrace arthouse productions purely for her love of cinema. It is therefore with particular pleasure that we present, on WILD FILMMAKER, an exclusive interview with Karin Proia, a talented director and actress who had the honor of directing Claudia Cardinale in one of her final films.

-How did the idea of involving a legendary personality like Claudia Cardinale in your indie film “A Trip to Rome” come about?

I fell in love with cinema thanks to a close-up of Claudia Cardinale in Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in the West. Leone later became one of my favorite directors. While channel surfing, I was captivated by Cardinale’s gaze. Then Antonioni’s long take in The Passenger sealed the deal, and I decided that when I grew up, I would become a director.
So when it came time to shoot my first film, I thought I’d dream big and try to call her, since she had been a sort of revelation for me. And Claudia, after reading the script, was happy to play the role I had written for her: Marguerite.

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-How did you manage to approach Claudia Cardinale and convince her to take part in your film?

Through her agent, I sent the script and then stopped by Paris, where she was living, to talk about it. Luckily, it was quite easy, because she had fallen in love with the story. She has always had great sensitivity towards first-time directors.
She also loved the final result so much that she chose it as her only film of the past 40 years to be included in the retrospective that the Cinémathèque Tunisienne dedicated to her at its inauguration. I suddenly found myself, with my debut film A Trip to Rome, in the company of Visconti, Fellini, Leone, Comencini, Bolognini, and so on… A tremendous honor for me.

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-Can you share any anecdotes about your relationship with Claudia on set?

Despite being a huge star, Claudia never made anyone feel it. On set she was punctual, patient, and affectionate with everyone. She always had a genuine smile to give. She put herself completely at the service of the film with great professionalism and empathy.

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–Do you think it’s still possible today to make art films like the masterpieces Claudia Cardinale took part in, or is the production system too reluctant to take risks?

I think it could still be done if the system hadn’t created such a stifling circuit, where the few truly original works either never get screened or play in theaters so briefly that no one notices them. I don’t want to generalize, of course, because there are always success stories, but unfortunately the audience has grown disenchanted with Italian productions.
There are talents in Italy: many brilliant but unknown authors, many established and emerging directors, and many talented actors and actresses who are underused or misused. More than production courage, since nothing guarantees box office success anymore, we need to win back audiences, who for the most part no longer go to the cinema, and if they do, they avoid Italian films. Again, without generalizing, with a few rare exceptions of success.

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-I am convinced that figures like Claudia Cardinale will represent the face of the 20th century for centuries to come, just as the Mona Lisa is an icon of the Renaissance. How do you imagine cinema will be 100 years from now?

I don’t know, but I would love to see it. I’m optimistic, and I believe and hope it won’t all be the product of AI. On the contrary, I hope there will be a rediscovery of human imperfection. At some point, we’ll need to find again the beauty of what is natural and original, both in terms of images and content.

-Who is Timothy A McGhee?

Who is Timothy A. McGhee, you ask? In two words, he is Complexly Simple. Case in point: I attend Roman Catholic Mass regularly. I might go five times weekly. I am not, however, devoutly Catholic. In my humble opinion, I do not agree with a) the subjugation of women by Church leadership, and b) the redundancy of telling a priest my sins when I’ve already confessed to God; those are two examples of my Complexity. I wholeheartedly believe the sole basis for the Church is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on ancient Rome’s instrument of torture, the rugged cross. That’s my Simple message. I am Catholic because it’s the only Christian church that serves communion every Mass; I accept our disagreements so I can celebrate the main idea. Complexly Simple. Three men formed Timothy A. McGhee. My father, my older brother, and my older sister’s husband are all deceased. Yet all three are still alive in me.
My father was a United States Marine Corps drill instructor during the Korean War. He fought bravely as a 22 year old platoon sergeant in 1942 during the Battle of Guadalcanal. Sarge effectively had a bachelor’s degree in leadership. He predicted the future like Nostradamus when I was 16 years old, “Son, you’re one of my favorite kinds of leaders. You lead without concern over who’s following you. You’re not discouraged if no one follows you, and you’re certainly not impressed if a hundred people follow you. You just do it.” More accurate words have never been spoken.

My older brother is the most brilliant man I have ever known. Patrick at age 14 taught me the 4 year old to read. I would spread the newspaper out on my mom’s living room floor and read the articles as I crawled across them. I read everything. So did Pat. He learned to speak French, Spanish, and Portuguese fluently, the latter of which led Pat to volunteer with the US State Department as a liaison for Brazilian academics relocating to Canada. Patrick was a published novelist; he was a gay man (which our father lovingly accepted immediately and unconditionally when Pat came out in 1973) who, in response to a painful end of a romance, wrote a novel. Patrick’s lover met his demise in Love Is A Handout and it sold 2,000 copies on Kindle in the United Kingdom alone.

My brother-in-law Larry came along right at the perfect time. I met him in 1969 as a 13 year old trying my damnedest to make it on the gridiron (it worked as I eventually turned down an offer by a lieutenant recruiting me to play football at the United States Naval Academy) Larry told me stories of 6-man high school football in rural Indiana. He told me the story of tiny Milan High School winning the Indiana state title long before Gene Hackman’s Hoosiers was filmed. Larry owned a tavern, got me a summer job in the steel mill at which he would retire as a foreman, and had two holes-in-one at the local country club by age 35. Larry helped many a man pay his bills with his bartender tips out of his pocket. He was loved by everyone, and he loved my sister and his two sons.

Therefore, because of Sarge, Patrick, and Larry…I am a Warrior, I am a Writer, and I am a Guy’s Guy. Complexly Simple.

-Tell us about your project “American Money”.

American Money is my first film script. I began writing screenplays in early 2018 after publishing two novels: Wise Fools 2001 Writer’s Club Press and Risk, Return, and the Indigo Autumn 2006 Apple iBooks. American Money is the screen adaptation of the second novel. After graduating with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1981, I was laid off from my sweet position with a multinational chemical corporation in January 1983. Unemployment in my state of West Virginia was an astounding TWENTY percent due to a terrible U.S. economy; there were few if any basic industry jobs available. I was married with a mortgage. To find work I went with the hot hand: Wall Street, which was hiring stockbrokers by the tens of thousands nationwide. It was difficult; I didn’t know anyone with money. I didn’t have any money. So, I just worked my ass off and eventually developed a profitable clientele. I was personally satisfied when at age 30 I made two to three times more money than the engineers who survived the basic industries’ layoffs.

That financial success came to a crashing halt on October 19, 1987, when in one day stock prices fell by a quarter to a third. It’s known as Black Monday, and one guy with whom I worked predicted it in print. In the October 4^th edition of Barron’s Financial Weekly, a widely read publication, financial analyst Jeffrey Saut with Richmond, Virginia, based Wheat First Securities was quoted something like, the party is over. That always intrigued me: what if I would have bet everything on Jeff Saut?

Risk, Return, and the Indigo Autumn was in print 19 years later. Interestingly, when I saw how well the Paramount Pictures’ 2015 film The Big Short was received, I immediately thought, “If they can tell the story of THAT cluster, I can tell my story.”

Fast forward to January 2022. I had just completed the second rewrite of American Money, and I was staying at The Greenbrier resort hotel in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, awaiting the closing of my ski resort condo deal in Snowshoe. While in the aptly named Victorian Writing Room, I decided to go to the bar. A lady was sitting near me. Like the Guy’s Guy I am, I ask her if I can bring her a drink. She requested a mimosa. She clinked her flute with my pinot noir goblet, and thus began a wonderful friendship with Dianne Berry, an actor and businesswoman vacationing with her husband. After Dianne shared with me a film trailer and a scene, both in which I could see she was outstandingly talented, I told her the story of American Money.  I almost thought while talking with Dianne I was looking at the script’s female lead Edie France!

Dianne was interested on two separate levels, as an actor and as a wealth advisor; as it turns out we both were “in the stock market” on Black Monday. I offered Dianne a pdf of my film script. We exchanged contact information, and we parted to our respective homes.

Two months later on a cold Saturday evening at Snowshoe ski resort, my cell phone dings. It’s a text from Dianne. She had shared American Money with her acting coach. The text read, “We think there’s some real potential there to tell a story that will pull people in – something different – something that will really captivate the audience in a way that has never been done before.” I was understandably thrilled. A few weeks later, Dianne called me to recommend to me a film script advisor. That’s Tammy Gross of ReelAuthor – TammyGross.com. Tammy and I had our first of many Zoom meetings in late spring 2022. We’ve been working together for over three years now; I’ve learned so much from Tammy I call her Movie Harvard.

Dianne is currently joining a film production company. Tammy and I have a brainstorming Zoom scheduled with her in late October. And, I see Dianne as the female lead even more clearly now.

The thing I wish to impress upon these two ladies is exactly this: without Dianne Berry and Tammy Gross I am a little more than permanent potential. Dianne and Tammy have shown me the way to realize my dream of being a storyteller. I thank them both for everything they have done for me, and the future is looking bright.

One more thing: two years into our work on American Money, Tammy essentially said during a March 2024 Zoom meeting that I have done as well writing a film script as one can expect from a Guy’s Guy. I could faintly hear a 1970 Todd Rundgren singing, “We gotta get you a woman.” Enter my dear friend Charlotte Pritt, fascinating and multi-talented, excelling in both education and politics. Charlotte is the benevolent force in West Virginia of my lifetime, and I was lucky to serve as her caregiver for a year. During that time, the coal miner’s daughter Charlotte thought of a way to implement Tammy’s suggestion that the renegade investors in the film script had to benefit mankind with their billions. We three worked it out, answering the question: What if you had bet against the stock market on Black Monday 1987 not for greed, but for justice?

The renegades give almost all the hundred billion to those most hurt financially by Reaganomics: steelworkers & coal miners.

Steel and coal…like chemical manufacturing from which I lost my job.

When God closes a door, He opens a window. I was much, much better at telling my story because of the wisdom Dianne, Tammy, and Charlotte shared with me.

-Which Director inspires you the most?

I give my Best Director award to Mike Nichols. Most everything I know about Mike Nichols I read as I was developing my interest in screenwriting. Despite being too young to truly appreciate his versatile genius real time, in my private 11 year old world I was a big fan of his 1967 film The Graduate. The soundtrack was exquisite. Nichols envisioned the music of Simon & Garfunkel would set the film apart. He was right. His cinema masterpiece was my eye candy when I finally saw The Graduate in the theater at age 14; Anne Bancroft was my sexiest woman in the 1960s and remains on my Olympic medal stand as one of my three sexiest women in cinematic history. In 1970 I would have stepped over Katharine Ross’ glistening bikini clad body for the opportunity to buy Anne Bancroft a cup of coffee.

The aural and visual appeal of The Graduate was not just happenstance, I discovered as I studied Mike Nichols’ director work. He rolled the dice with the relatively unknown Dustin Hoffman as the leading man, with Buck Henry as the screenwriter, and by using camera techniques that were cutting edge in the mid-1960s. Silkwood in 1983 is another of my Nichols favorites; as a mechanical engineer I believe Mike Nichols exposed Kerr-Magee in cinema appropriately.

-What do you dislike about the world and what would you change?

It’s true. This world is broken. But, it’s the only world I have for now, so here’s how I would fix it: a) spread forgiveness, and b) encourage accountability. Forgiveness begins in our hearts. We must each forgive ourselves so we can forgive others. As we forgive, we are more prone to have the courage to readily admit our mistakes, to be accountable.

Even as a mechanical engineer with an active imagination, I have no idea or even a silly wild-ass guess of what technological advances will be available to filmmakers in the year 2125. I do believe cinema will be as necessary as it is now. People work to make a living and experience art to make a life. Storytelling always will be an essential part of any culture. Native intelligence will in my humble opinion always override anything artificial intelligence can come up with. To borrow Al Franken’s idea he expressed in a piece he wrote a couple years ago for The New Yorker, Artificial Intelligence has never lost at love while puking in the toilet with food poisoning. Native Intelligence rocks.

-How do you imagine cinema in 100 years?

Even as a mechanical engineer with an active imagination, I have no idea or even a silly wild-ass guess of what technological advances will be available to filmmakers in the year 2125. I do believe cinema will be as necessary as it is now. People work to make a living and experience art to make a life. Storytelling always will be an essential part of any culture. Native intelligence will in my humble opinion always override anything artificial intelligence can come up with. To borrow Al Franken’s idea he expressed in a piece he wrote a couple years ago for The New Yorker, Artificial Intelligence has never lost at love while puking in the toilet with food poisoning. Native Intelligence rocks.

-What is your impression of WILD FILMMAKER?

I just recently became aware of Wild Filmmaker. Upon entering film festivals in February 2025 with my film script American Money, screenplay judges suggested my script would fare well if produced by indies for arthouses. I started looking into that thought, and I discovered Wild Filmmakers. Your reporting and commentary about the post-cinematic world is as courageous as independent filmmakers are. I’m honored & humbled you asked me to interview because I respect what you represent. May the Peace your higher power gives you be as sweet as Peace The Holy Trinity lends me.