Jessica Earnshaw is a documentary filmmaker and photographer, based in Brooklyn, NY.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Moving to NYC for ICP

(02:08) Growing up with a photographer mom

(04:01) Why photojournalism felt empowering

(06:18) Grant: documenting aging in prison

(08:07) Meeting Rosemary and Jacenta

(10:11) Realizing it needed to be film

(12:03) How they landed in prison together

(13:53) Addiction, trauma, and “chasing mom”

(16:02) Getting permission and prison access

(18:14) Filming 2016–2019 with no funding

(20:54) Living broke: motels, burritos, gas

(22:47) Leaving a tour when filming demanded it

(24:46) Men’s prison: long days, earned trust

(27:12) Trauma shaping violence and crime

(30:05) Research: reoffense, parole, and “snapping”

(33:06) Hospice program and Albert’s story

(34:52) Baby Doe: toilet births and denial

(38:16) Gail’s case: DNA genealogy, trial, empathy

Eviatar Slivnik is a jazz drummer and composer, based in Brooklyn, NY.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Moving to New York to test yourself

(04:21) Early heroes and jazz influences

(08:37) Falling in love with jazz’s mind and soul

(12:54) Jazz as high-level conversation, not noise

(16:49) Why expertise matters before improvising

(20:58) Childhood development: bands, drive, priorities

(25:26) Arts high school in Tel Aviv and practicing

(29:44) Rejection from workshop sparks daily discipline

(34:10) Two-hour routine: humiliation, habits, results

(38:33) Dreaming bigger at Berklee and in NYC

(42:57) Jazz history: hardship, resilience, origins

(47:22) Paradoxes: street music, complex art form

(51:41) NYC grind: clubs, jams, community, reputation

(56:06) Stops and restarts: Berlin, COVID, returning

(60:34) Philosophy: practice, depth, ego, “good hang”

(64:41) Breakthrough call: touring with Avishai Cohen

(67:08) Touring reality: stress, logistics, reward

(71:19) Money, saving, and success as staying in game

(74:36) Compound interest mindset: practice, character, longevity

Lindsey Ferrentino is a playwright, based in Brooklyn, NY.

Instagram and all episodes

(00:00) Moving to NYU at 17

(02:18) Realizing acting isn’t the path

(04:35) Family of comedians, early writing habits

(07:20) Teaching herself screenwriting in Florida

(10:05) Copycatting influences before finding a voice

(13:12) Strasberg training reframed as writer training

(16:05) Grad school focus: Hunter MFA, then Yale

(18:55) Theater vs film/TV: money, control, reality

(22:10) Romantic New York “life in the arts” idea

(25:40) Teacher pushes Florida settings; authenticity clicks

(28:55) “Big break” mindset: relentless readings, submissions

(32:05) Off-Broadway launch: “Ugly Lies the Bone”

(35:10) Play premise: burn survivor, VR therapy, reintegration

(38:25) Lessons from productions: scale, staging, dialogue

(41:45) Post-break output: adaptations, multiple shows, pace

(44:12) Writing routine: sculpting in small blocks

(47:08) Current obsessions: Nick Yarris, justice system story

(50:36) Queen of Versailles musical: rights, satire, success definition

(52:18) Gratitude, “lucky life,” closing thanks