<![CDATA[The Maine Pod Week]]>
themaineplayweek.substack.com]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/podcastSubstackSat, 30 May 2026 23:35:43 GMThttps://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/3755435.rssThe Maine PlayweekThe way cinema should be. Weekly film recommendations, all showing in Maine movie theaters.episodicThe Maine Playweekhello@themaineplayweek.comNo<![CDATA[Recapping Bates Film Fest, drinks in hand]]>Join Charlie and Julia for a recap conversation about the Bates Film Festival in Lewiston and Portland this past week.

Stay tuned for the next festival at batesfilmfestival.com.

Follow all our Maine film festival coverage this summer at themaineplayweek.com. Find movie showtimes at themaineplayweek.com/showtimes.

If you like our work, consider making a one-time contribution or becoming a paid subscriber!

Questions? Comments? Upcoming screenings? Popcorn opinions? Email us at hello@themaineplayweek.com.

Instagram: @themaineplayweek

Facebook: facebook.com/themaineplayweek

Bluesky: @themaineplayweek.bsky.social

See you at the movies!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/recapping-bates-film-fest-drinkssubstack:post:198409289Tue, 19 May 2026 14:11:49 GMTThe Maine Playweek, Charlie Beck, and Julia DunlaveyNo1854<![CDATA[Bates Film Fest is Back! In Conversation with the Student Organizers & Prof. Jon Cavallero]]>Nate interviewed his fellow Batesies about their film fest! Tune in for a great conversation about:

- How film can inspire social change

- Special guests with Maine connections

- All-time favorites that kick-started the students’ passion for film

Every two years Jon Cavallero and a group of students organize this film festival not just for the Bates community, but for everyone. All the events are free and open to the public, so just show up and grab a seat!

The Maine Playweek is proud to be a media sponsor of the 2026 Bates Film Festival!

The festival returns for its fifth edition this May 12-17 on campus in Lewiston and at various venues around Portland. See the full schedule at batesfilmfestival.com.

Find The Maine Playweek:

Instagram: @themaineplayweekFacebook: The Maine PlayweekSubstack: themaineplayweek.substack.com

Try out our new showtimes website!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/bates-film-fest-is-back-in-conversationsubstack:post:196483147Tue, 05 May 2026 01:29:07 GMTThe Maine Playweek and Nate StephensonNo1642<![CDATA[Episode 13: We Dug It]]>We got to go to the movies together!!! Much to discuss about people making movies in Maine this time!!! not only that, but we also get to talk about:

* Julia Dunlavey, Journalist Extraordinaire (Julia’s interviews with Sam Dunning can be found here and here)

* the trouble with kayaks

* Julia Dunlavey, Cultural Weathervane

* our brand new showtimes page!!!!

* Julia Dunlavey, Time Optimizer

Enjoy! check out showtimes.themaineplayweek.com and let us know what you think! and as always, follow us @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-13-we-dig-itsubstack:post:194351605Sun, 19 Apr 2026 13:30:00 GMTNate Stephenson, Julia Dunlavey, and The Maine PlayweekNo1480<![CDATA[Episode 12: Scared Silly]]>hi again :) enjoying our new regular output? you BETTER be!!! it’s good to talk to your friends about the stuff you see in movies that activates your lizard brain. it’s not ACTUALLY a scary episode, we had a lot of fun talking about:

* new offerings!

* fun shirts

* Nate’s theater major (he only gets to use it so often, okay??)

* scary technology

* scary vacuums

* the canine-cinematic conundrum

enjoy! check out showtimes.themaineplayweek.com and let us know what you think! and as always, follow us @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-12-scared-sillysubstack:post:192908785Sun, 05 Apr 2026 13:31:00 GMTNate Stephenson, The Maine Playweek, and Julia DunlaveyNo2142<![CDATA[Canoe Dig It? Is Coming Home to Maine: In Conversation with Director Sam Dunning]]>Brunswick-born director Sam Dunning is back home to tour his canoeing mockumentary Canoe Dig It? all around Maine, and he stopped by the Pod Week to chat about:

* bullying your friends into seeing his movie

* DIY film distribution is just emails and spreadsheets

* what makes the film work with a theatrical audience

* favorite Letterboxd reviews

See CANOE DIG IT? at your local cinema this month:

April 2 at 7pm | Nickelodeon Cinemas, PortlandApril 10 at 7pm | Magic Lantern Theater, BridgtonApril 11 at 7pm | Eveningstar Cinema, BrunswickApril 17 at 7pm | The Waldo Theatre, WaldoboroApril 22 at 7pm | Black Bear Cinemas, OronoApril 28 at 7pm | Colonial Theatre, BelfastMay 1 at 7:45pm | Smitty’s Cinemas, Topsham

Catch The Maine Pod Week’s interview with Sam last summer when Canoe Dig It? premiered at the Maine Outdoor Film Festival.

Follow @canoedigitfilm on Instagram

Follow The Maine Playweek!SubstackInstagram: @themaineplayweek



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/canoe-dig-it-is-coming-home-to-mainesubstack:post:192798977Wed, 01 Apr 2026 01:38:25 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo1913<![CDATA[Episode 11: Back Into The Swing Of Things]]>the oscars are over and DONE with! how was that for you? was it everything you dreamed of? was train dreams snubbed? this week we’ll talk about:

* Conan

* delicious puns

* going to the movies

* not going to the movies

* trailers

* the trouble with spidered men

Get yourself a tee! and as always, follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram instead!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-11-back-into-the-swing-ofsubstack:post:191720146Sun, 22 Mar 2026 13:30:00 GMTNate Stephenson, The Maine Playweek, and Julia DunlaveyNo2443<![CDATA[Episode 10: Just Julia for OSCAR SZN]]>When Nate is away the mice will play! Or at least stumble through a solo recording and editing session. In this episode, Julia talks about a few films that got Academy Award nominations but that were short-lived or not-at-all-lived in theaters. And good news— some of these have special screenings coming up around town! Listen for more about:

* when distributors prioritize certain films over others

* you still have a chance to see the Andrea Gibson doc not on Apple TV+!

* motorcycle-riding feminists

* the most beautiful film of the year was cheated from its silver screen moment

* Oscar-themed Playweek merch!!!! Shop the Golden Statue Collection here.

Events mentioned:

Come See Me in the Good Light - February 28 & March 6 | PMA Films, Portland

Cutting Through Rocks - March 11 | SPACE Gallery, Portland

Follow The Maine Playweek!

Instagram

Facebook

Bluesky

Threads

Substack email newsletter



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-10-just-julia-for-oscar-sznsubstack:post:188512642Sun, 22 Feb 2026 22:11:39 GMTThe Maine Playweek and Julia DunlaveyNo991<![CDATA[Episode 9: Advanced Popcorn Studies]]>Happy 2026! how many movies did you see last year?that’s it?? cmon now. Maybe your resolution should be to go to the movies more. In this episode, we resolved to talk about:

* playing catch up with the theatrical releases

* Rockland based fashion trends

* James Cameron’s obsessions

* Tubi

* sodium intake for those with a strong sense of free will

* putting your phone away in the goddamn theater

* new programming!

don’t worry about how many times Nate says “we’re off to the races” in this episode! he’s working on it! Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram instead!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-9-advanced-popcorn-studiessubstack:post:184991612Mon, 19 Jan 2026 14:30:00 GMTNate Stephenson, Julia Dunlavey, and The Maine PlayweekNo2367<![CDATA[Episode 8: Getting Serious]]>Julia and Nate are back at it! and we’ve got some great new music to reel you in and some HARD FACTS AND DATA to make you think about:

* Josh O’Connor

* Austin Powers date nights

* where you can see Train Dreams in theaters (nowhere right now I’m sorry everyone)

* Josh O’Connor

* our movie survey results (take it here)

* IMAX expansionism

* Josh O’Connor

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-8-getting-serioussubstack:post:180966835Sun, 07 Dec 2025 17:00:39 GMTNate Stephenson, Julia Dunlavey, and The Maine PlayweekNo2126<![CDATA[Episode 7: Introduction to Popcorn Sciences]]>This week, Julia and Nate recorded remote for the first time! wow! hope it still sounds good please don’t be mad if it doesn’t xoxoxox :) instead of focusing on audio quality, focus instead on our chat about:

* making the leap from radio to television

* Richard Linklater’s busy schedule

* the good folks at the Eveningstar

* popcorn 101

* the joy of watching a movie at home

* how good we are at knowing the names of movies, actors, and how to pronounce them

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-7-introduction-to-popcornsubstack:post:179602936Sun, 23 Nov 2025 22:03:00 GMTNate Stephenson, Julia Dunlavey, and The Maine PlayweekNo1962<![CDATA[Episode 6: Two Dogs and a Beer]]>Hello everyone we’ve got another hot ep for you. Somehow Nate managed to post within the same week of recording—what a concept! get those ears primed for blisteringly good discussions of:

* battles, one after another

* crossing state lines

* how do you pronounce Haim?

* messed up theater screens

* region-locked media

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-6-two-dogs-and-a-beersubstack:post:177055105Fri, 24 Oct 2025 22:36:47 GMTNate Stephenson, The Maine Playweek, and Julia DunlaveyNo2200<![CDATA[Interior, Video Store: In Conversation with Alex Ross Perry and Clyde Folley]]>In preparation for the screening of Videoheaven at SPACE Gallery, we had the pleasure to chat with the film’s director Alex Ross Perry and editor Clyde Folley. We talk video stores, curation, the importance of horror films for video rental stores, and much more.

Videoheaven is playing on October 27th at SPACE Gallery at 7pm.

Want to win a pair of tickets to see Videoheaven at SPACE? Comment below or share this interview and tag us on social media (btw, we’re @themaineplayweek on Instagram and @themaineplayweek.bsky.social on Bluesky) and you’ll be entered to win! We’ll contact the winner on October 25th. Good luck!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/interior-video-store-in-conversationsubstack:post:176327018Thu, 16 Oct 2025 15:59:08 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo2101<![CDATA[Exploring the past to design the present: an interview with Playweek designer Charlie Beck]]>Our very own Charlie Beck designed a T-shirt that is a love letter to Maine cinemas past and present, using newspaper ads and clippings from local Maine publications. It’s a wonderfully complex design, so we had to have him on the podcast to talk about it!

Take a closer look at the design and buy your TMPW T-shirt here-- they're comfy!

The Maine Playweek: the way cinema should be. Follow us:

Website: themaineplayweek.com

Weekly newsletter: themaineplayweek.substack.com

Instagram: @themaineplayweek

Facebook: The Maine Playweek

Bluesky: @themaineplayweek.bsky.social



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/exploring-the-past-to-design-thesubstack:post:175628767Thu, 09 Oct 2025 14:02:24 GMTThe Maine Playweek, Charlie Beck, and Julia DunlaveyNo1641<![CDATA[CIFF '25: Gaspard Hirschi]]>We sat down with Gaspard Hirschi, the director of I Am Night at Noonday, to discuss a wide variety of topics. In case you missed it, we wrote about the film prior to the festival and has stood out as one of our favorites.

To check out more coverage of CIFF ‘25, check out themaineplayweek.com as well as our Instagram @themaineplayweek



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/ciff-25-gaspard-hirschisubstack:post:174466725Wed, 24 Sep 2025 19:25:52 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo596<![CDATA[Hello, We're So Back Department? I'd Like to File a Claim]]>well everyone being the producer on these made my laptop explode. a month and a half and a bunch of data recovery later and I have our August 5th ep all edited. this one’s a fun one! hope you like:

* being so back

* film festival summaries and theatrical run predictions

* old films

* new films

* proposals?!?!?!!

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram! thanks for listening xo

Donate to Nate’s emotional recovery fund at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe.

Take the Maine Moviegoer Survey so we can learn more about who goes to the movies!

To listen more, visit themaineplayweek.com.



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/hello-were-so-back-department-idsubstack:post:173534033Sat, 20 Sep 2025 15:32:08 GMTNate Stephenson, Julia Dunlavey, and The Maine PlayweekNo1707<![CDATA[CIFF '25: Reid Davenport and Colleen Cassingham]]>We sat down with Reid Davenport, director, and Colleen Cassingham, producer, to discuss their new film Life After. We discussed the story of Elizabeth Bouvia, what it’s like to show a film in Camden, and some favorite film experiences.

For more info on Life After, check out their website: www.lifeafterfilm.com



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/ciff-25-reid-davenport-and-colleensubstack:post:173976015Thu, 18 Sep 2025 22:06:23 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo627<![CDATA[CIFF '25: Sh*t happens (with the filmmakers of doc "Unless Something Goes Terribly Wrong")]]>We sat down with director/writer Kaitlyn Schwalje and director/cinematographer Alex Wolf Lewis to discuss their new documentary premiering at the Camden International Film Festival, Unless Something Goes Terribly Wrong. We discuss what it’s like to be fascinated by wastewater treatment plants, learning the nitty-gritty of the state you love and call home, and, of course, popcorn.

Follow them on Instagram at @cardboard_seagull_films.

Unless Something Goes Terribly Wrong premieres at CIFF on Saturday, September 13th at 2pm at the Camden Opera House. Tickets here.

To hear more, visit themaineplayweek.com.



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/ciff-25-sht-happenssubstack:post:173274274Wed, 10 Sep 2025 21:48:08 GMTThe Maine PlayweekYes1738<![CDATA[In Conversation With Sam Dunning]]>We sat down with writer/director/actor Sam Dunning to discuss his film Canoe Dig It?, a mockumentary about the quirky world of freestyle canoeing. The Maine-born director shares how he gained the trust of the actual freestyle canoeing community to help authentically portray the sport, while creating a cozy, character-driven comedy that celebrates the unique oddities of Maine culture.

Canoe Dig It is playing as part of the Maine Outdoor Film Festival today (7/24) at 8pm at SPACE Gallery.



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/in-conversation-with-sam-dunningsubstack:post:169130780Thu, 24 Jul 2025 16:09:45 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo3196bonus<![CDATA[Episode 4: Summertime, And The Showings Are Breezy]]>Aaaand we’re back for another one! Nate is now fully in charge of production and he finally figured out how to set audio levels! We’re looking forward into the next few weeks and months of film releases and festival season in Maine. Buckle up for:

* MIFF (miff.org)

* MOFF (moff.film)

* slammin’ summer blockbusters

* Clive Owen

* OUR festival picks

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-4-summertime-and-the-showingssubstack:post:166775991Wed, 25 Jun 2025 14:39:00 GMTNate Stephenson and Julia DunlaveyNo2090<![CDATA[Episode 3: Minecraft and Fascism]]>Welcome to the third episode of The Maine Pod Week, a project of our mothership, The Maine Playweek. In this episode, Nate and Julia talk about:

* seeing a movie with 40 high schoolers

* the importance of booking ahead

* IMAX viewing angles

* how the heck can you tariff a movie?

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-3-minecraft-and-fascismsubstack:post:164951295Sun, 01 Jun 2025 18:34:36 GMTNate Stephenson and Julia DunlaveyNo2043<![CDATA[Episode 2: The Squeakquel]]>Welcome to the second episode of The Maine Pod Week, a project of our mothership, The Maine Playweek. In this episode, Nate and Julia talk about:

* Introductions

* TMPW mission statement (sort of?)

* What the hell is a playweek?

* The Portland film community loves David Lynch

* A NICE INDIAN BOY (is 2025 the year of the rom-com?)

* JAWS 50th anniversary!!

* Physical media (Nate loves the bargain DVD bins, and will Julia start collecting VHS?)

Follow @themaineplayweek on Instagram!



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/episode-2-the-squeakquelsubstack:post:164088361Wed, 21 May 2025 15:16:10 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo1758<![CDATA[Introducing The Maine Pod Week 📽️]]>Welcome to The Maine Pod Week, a podcast from The Maine Playweek. Co-hosts Nate Stephenson and Julia Dunlavey discuss Maine movie theaters, their in-theater viewing experiences, and what's worth the ticket price. What’s in this episode:

- Our seating faux-pas at Falmouth Flagship Cinemas for THE BRUTALIST

- An unexpected cinematic experience at a local Portland dive bar

- Thoughts on THE SUBSTANCE from two horror movie scaredy cats

- Extremely timely Oscar predictions and snack puns 🙃



Get full access to The Maine Playweek at themaineplayweek.substack.com/subscribe]]>https://themaineplayweek.substack.com/p/introducing-the-maine-pod-weeksubstack:post:158436127Wed, 05 Mar 2025 13:55:25 GMTThe Maine PlayweekNo2173