Podcast appearances and mentions of Brian D Johnson

Christian Zyp interviews Brian D. Johnson (dir) about his documentary THE COLOUR OF INK. It screens as part of CUFF.Docs Thurs Nov 24th @ 6:30 pm at the Globe Cinema in Calgary.  THE COLOUR OF INK uncovers the mystery and power of our oldest medium through the eyes of Jason Logan, a Toronto inkmaker. Harvesting colours from the natural world—weeds, berries, bark, flowers, rocks, rust—he makes ink from just about anything. Ink is our primal medium. It has always been with us, inscribing the evolution of humanity. Working with ingredients foraged in the wild, Jason sends custom-made inks to an eclectic range of artists around the world, from a New Yorker cartoonist to a Japanese calligrapher. As the inks take on a life of their own, his playful alchemy paints a story of colour that reconnects us to the earth and returns us to a childlike sense of wonder.

It's time we had a talk; a talk about money. Yeah, I know, capitalism has made this awkward...but, trust me, this is good, pragmatic, and worth your time! Listen in as Brian and I have a convo about savings, budgets, and all things money matters.

We're kicking off 2019 with a very special episode that features two high-profile creators: musician Jason Collett and writer/filmmaker Brian D. Johnson. The two recently collaborated as the co-producers of The Al Purdy Songbook, a special collection of songs and spoken word from some of Canada's best-known artists and writers inspired by the iconic Canadian poet. Brian and Jason discuss the process of bringing together such a diverse list of artists for the effort, including Bruce Cockburn, Sarah Harmer, Greg Keelor, the late Gord Downie and Leonard Cohen, and others, and how they organized those individual contributions to create a unique listening experience. They also talk about the synergies between music, film making, and writing, and how those various media impacted one another for this particular project.

For almost 30 years Brian D. Johnson was the film critic and Arts writer for Macleans, Canada's top current affairs magazine. His work as a critic explored art with the insight of not only a passionate observer but also an accomplished artist with a fascination of the human condition. Brian's directorial debut, the documentary “Al Purdy Was Here,” is a beautiful piece of work on many levels, I think you'll really enjoy our chat. It spans everything from Brian's working relationship with Leonard Cohen to his working relationship with his son. Incidentally we recorded last year prior to Leonard Cohen's passing. Our conversation begins with the fact that more films than ever are being made in Canada but there are less “Canadian” films. Follow @briandjohnson on Twitter Al Purdy Was Here on iTunes Advertisers This Week: Stratford Tea Leaves SpringWorks Indie Arts Festival

What if some of the artists we feel as if we know – Meryl Streep, Neil Young, Bill Murray – turned up in the course of our daily lives? That's the basis of this collection of linked stories that follow Rose McEwan, an ordinary woman who keeps having extraordinary encounters with famous people. Nora Parker, Merchandising Coordinator at Kobo, interviews Marni Jackson, author of Don't I Know You? Published by Flatiron Books in New York. In the interview, Nora and Marni discuss: Marni's turn to fiction from her previous books such as Pain: The Science of Why We Hurt and Home Free: The Myth of the Empty Nest The accidental manner by which these stories ended up converging into the linked-stories novel that it became, starting with a short story Marni wrote called “Bob Dylan Goes Tubing” which was originally published in The Walrus in September 2012 How that same “Bob Dylan” short story was inspired by a painting that her son created one afternoon when they were at the cottage How Jackson choose who to include in the stories and how Rose McEwan's relationship to celebrity evolves throughout the tales How Bill Murray is a great character in the book because of the carefully curated and crafted persona of “Bill Murray” that he deftly manages and uses to connect with his fans (or, to use a very Canadian term, as Marni does: “Stick-handles” his fame in a really interesting way The interesting relationship between celebrity and audience and how the audience or fans actually “author” a celebrity's fame The manner by which celebrities don't necessarily exist “out there” in the distance, but that they are very much a part of our creative lives (ie, we may put on one of their songs while we are having sex – a perfect example of how they are incorporated into those intimate moments) The juxtaposition of the journalist in Jackson who enjoyed documenting real elements from the celebrities in this book with the fun and fictional encounters with Rose Jackson's interest in our relationships with celebrities and our relationship to fame rather than in the cult of celebrity The Al Purdy stage show project that Jackson is currently working on based on the film al purdy was here which she co-wrote that her husband, Brian D. Johnson, directed The concerns regarding the mention of famous people in the book and the fact that Jackson's lawyer went through it with her line-by-line to ensure there was nothing that could be construed as libelous or defamation of character After the interview, Mark Lefebvre, Director of Kobo Writing Life and Author Relations, shares some thoughts regarding Author Branding, outlining some ways in which an author can ensure that they are curating and presenting a consistent author persona or brand out into the world. He draws upon a couple of examples that, like in the Bill Murray reference Marni Jackson uses, are Canadian. He uses his own example of the use of the life-sized skeleton Barnaby Bones that he employs for his Mark Leslie horror/paranormal/ghost story author persona. He also explores Hugo and Nebula Award winning science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer who uses the “Dean of Canadian Science Fiction” element throughout his persona, including the name of his website: SFWRITER.COM. As a final example, Mark looks at the fonts uses in the title for the Netflix original STRANGER THINGS and how that makes a promise to potential viewers. Other links of interest: Marni Jackson's Website Marni Jackson's Books on Kobo Flatiron Books The Walrus Magazine Branding for Writers – from Joanna Penn's The Creative Penn