When the power pop band "Material Issue" soared to stardom, Balin Schneider was just born. Yet it's as if he was right there in the crowd at their concerts, experiencing every beat and melody firsthand, after he spent several years making a documentary about the band’s ascent and downfall. What began as a short student project blossomed into a full-fledged feature film and a lifelong passion for filmmaking. 

In this episode, Lulu talks with Balin Schneider, a LA-based documentary filmmaker/reporter/Executive Director of arvonia films. His first feature film, Out of Time: The Material Issue Story premiered at Sound Unseen Film Festival and played in theaters nationwide. He has directed projects with artists such as Gym Class Heroes, Panic! At The Disco, The Academy Is…, BLACKPINK, Cobra Starship and Ed Sheeran. He currently attends the University of Southern California (USC) for his Master of Arts in Specialized Journalism with a focus on International reporting. He has written for LAist, The 74 and his work has been featured in Forbes, Axios, Brooklyn Vegan and Pitchfork.

You’ll hear about:

• What inspired him to tell the story of a band that seems 'out of time'?

• What does it like to start one’s own film production company?

• Why might a filmmaker be interested in pursuing a journalism degree?

• Where can we discover good documentaries? 

Films that we’ve talked about:

• Shoah by Claude Lanzmann

• Nina & Irena by Daniel Lombroso

• Oasis by Justine Martin https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/05/learning/film-club-oasis.html

• Puffling by Jessica Bishopp https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-documentary/preparing-to-fly-in-puffling

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Music Credits:

Material Issue - Everything