Kingdom of Dreams Podcast

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How do you edit a six-year stop-motion epic?
Laika editor Christopher Murrie-Green on cutting Travis Knight's Wildwood.

On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with Christopher Murrie-Green, ACE, the editor of Laika's stop-motion epic Wildwood, directed by Travis Knight. We talk about starting the film in March 2020 right before lockdown and cutting storyboards from home, the scale of the project, finding the tone and placing humor that comes from character truth, Curtis's arc, grief and stakes, the big battle sequence, working with composer Dario Marianelli on the score and the scoring sessions at AIR Studios, how he got into editing and stop motion, and what he learned about trusting his instincts.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Starting the film just before lockdown and cutting storyboards from home
• Finding Wildwood's tone, character-rooted humor, and Curtis's arc
• Balancing grief, stakes, and the big battle sequence
• Working with composer Dario Marianelli on the score and AIR Studios sessions
• His path into editing and stop motion, and what he learned about trusting his instincts

CHAPTERS
0:00 Teaser
7:33 Intro
8:23 Jawad's take on Wildwood
9:00 Balancing humor and darkness
11:14 Curtis's journey
11:39 Starting Wildwood in lockdown
13:47 Finding the tone
13:55 Grief and vulnerability as an artist
16:57 The midpoint reveals
20:59 Alexandra, a villain with an arc
21:30 Cutting the battle sequences
25:06 Nobody's safe
28:08 Heroism and its cost
29:49 Curtis's mystery family
31:32 How stop motion hooked him
34:06 From punk rock to editing
35:57 Landing at Laika by chance
38:37 Cutting to Dario's score
41:59 The scoring session at Air Studios
43:47 What the film taught him
47:09 Losing his father during the film
48:58 Is there a sequel?

ABOUT THE GUEST
Christopher Murrie-Green, ACE, is a Portland-based film editor who has worked at LAIKA since 1999. He is the editor of Wildwood (2026), Laika's stop-motion adaptation of the novel by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis, directed by Travis Knight with music by Dario Marianelli.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rua_vvvCV8s
Tell us what you thought of the episode: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2014087/fan_mail/new
FOLLOW KOD
X / Twitter: http://twitter.com/dreamingkingdom
Instagram: http://instagram.com/kingdomofdreamspodcast
Facebook: http://facebook.com/kingdomofdreamspodcast
Watch the feature films I have directed
Citizen of Moria (Amazon & other platforms): https://linktr.ee/citizenofmoriafilm
In Search of My Sister (Amazon & other platforms): https://linktr.ee/insearchofmysisterfilm
Official website: https://jawadmir.com

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How do you cut a character-driven story so the editing stays invisible?
Oscar winning editor Mikkel E.G. Nielsen on reuniting with Martin McDonagh for Wild Horse Nine.

On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with Academy Award winning film editor Mikkel E.G. Nielsen to talk about editing Wild Horse Nine, written and directed by Martin McDonagh and starring John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, Tom Waits, and Parker Posey. We cover reuniting with Martin after The Banshees of Inisherin, montages, 8mm and found footage, the fear of messing it up, keeping the story character-driven, the art of invisible editing, the first read of the script and Chile, falling for Malkovich's unlikable character, crafting the last act, balancing drama, humor and tension, what the film taught him, color and the grade, working on location, and the archival footage trick.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Reuniting with Martin McDonagh after The Banshees of Inisherin
• Montages, 8mm and found footage in Wild Horse Nine
• Keeping a character-driven story and the art of invisible editing
• Falling for Malkovich's unlikable character and crafting the last act
• Balancing drama, humor and tension, color, location and archival footage

CHAPTERS
0:00 Teaser
0:50 Intro
1:32 Reuniting with Martin after Banshees
5:45 Montages, 8mm and found footage
6:55 The fear of messing it up
9:17 A character-driven story
13:12 The art of invisible editing
14:42 First read of the script and Chile
16:15 Falling for Malkovich's unlikable character
18:52 Crafting the last act
22:29 Balancing drama, humor and tension
26:37 What the film taught him
30:00 Color and the grade
32:15 On location
33:06 The archival footage trick
35:05 Final thoughts

ABOUT THE GUEST
Mikkel E.G. Nielsen is a Danish film editor and ACE member who won the Academy Award for Best Film Editing for Darius Marder's Sound of Metal. He later edited Martin McDonagh's The Banshees of Inisherin, earning Academy, BAFTA, and ACE nominations, and returned to collaborate with McDonagh on Wild Horse Nine (2026). His other credits include Ellen Kuras's Lee, Cary Joji Fukunaga's Beasts of No Nation, and Nikolaj Arcel's A Royal Affair.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3e1U3VNSbOA
Tell us what you thought of the episode: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2014087/fan_mail/new

FOLLOW KOD
X / Twitter: http://twitter.com/dreamingkingdom
Instagram: http://instagram.com/kingdomofdreamspodcast
Facebook: http://facebook.com/kingdomofdreamspodcast

Watch the feature films I have directed
Citizen of Moria: https://rb.gy/azpsu
In Search of My Sister: https://rb.gy/1ke21
Official website: https://jawadmir.com

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How do you edit a movie that takes place inside a whale?
Academy Award winning editor Pietro Scalia takes us inside Whalefall, from the squid fight to that final note.

On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with Academy Award winning film editor Pietro Scalia to talk about his work on Whalefall, the survival thriller directed by Brian Duffield and starring Austin Abrams, Josh Brolin and Elisabeth Shue. Pietro walks us through the transitions that bridge the real and the imagined, why some shots need to simply let the audience breathe, and how he told so much of the story with almost no dialogue. We also get into his own life underwater, what he learned working with Oliver Stone and Ridley Scott, why JFK and Black Hawk Down were the hardest films he has ever cut, and the Black Hawk Down scene Jerry Bruckheimer kept asking him to trim.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
• How matching shot angles and breathing sounds bridge the real world and the imagined one
• Why the long take after the squid fight lets the audience breathe with the character
• Telling a story visually when your lead can barely say a word
• What Pietro learned from Oliver Stone, Ridley Scott and the masters around them
• Why JFK and Black Hawk Down were his toughest edits, and why he loves holding on a face

CHAPTERS
0:00 Teaser
1:43 Welcome and Why the Editing Stood Out
4:43 Balancing Survival With Father and Son
8:30 Bridging the Real and the Imagined
15:19 Fathers and Sons
18:19 Isolation in The Martian vs Whalefall
23:56 The Most Emotional Scene to Edit
26:30 Pietro's Life Underwater
31:03 Lessons From Oliver Stone and Ridley Scott
38:43 JFK and Black Hawk Down, the Hardest Films
45:30 The Black Hawk Down Water Scene
49:32 Visual Effects, Music and That Final Note

ABOUT THE GUEST
Pietro Scalia is a Sicilian born film editor who has won two Academy Awards for Best Film Editing, for Oliver Stone's JFK and Ridley Scott's Black Hawk Down, with further nominations for Good Will Hunting and Gladiator. After earning his MFA at UCLA, he started out as an assistant editor on Oliver Stone's Wall Street and Talk Radio. His long collaboration with Ridley Scott includes G.I. Jane, Gladiator, Hannibal, American Gangster and The Martian, and his other credits include Stealing Beauty, Little Buddha, Memoirs of a Geisha, Ferrari and The Gray Man. Most recently, he edited Whalefall (2026) for director Brian Duffield.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G69IfZ7oQdU

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Extreme close ups, long lenses and old school tungsten light. This is how Verity was shot.
Cinematographer Jim Frohna takes us behind the camera on Michael Showalter's psychological thriller.
On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with cinematographer Jim Frohna to talk about his work on Verity, the psychological thriller directed by Michael Showalter and starring Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett. Jim walks us through the film's extreme close ups, the split diopter shot, long lenses and winter blue tones, plus the old school tungsten lighting and a house that plays like a character of its own. We also get into how he landed the job, shooting the climax in a single day, and why the script is never really finished.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
• Why Verity leans on crunchy close ups, and the Hitchcock connection
• How long lenses and winter blue tones shape the film's look
• The split diopter shot and the choice of old school tungsten lighting
• Treating the house as a character in the story
• Lessons from shooting the climax in one day, and why the script is never finished
CHAPTERS
0:00 Teaser: Validation and Family
1:25 Why the Cinematography Stood Out
2:31 Crunchy Close Ups and Hitchcock
4:06 Long Lenses and Winter Blue Tones
4:48 The Split Diopter Shot
9:49 Artists and Validation
16:19 How Jim Got the Verity Job
18:46 Old School Tungsten Lighting
21:25 The House as a Character
24:41 Working With Dakota Johnson and Josh Hartnett
29:11 Anne Hathaway's Many Versions of Verity
34:38 Lessons Learned Under Pressure
38:09 Shooting the Climax in One Day
40:12 The Script Is Never Finished
41:41 Attitude and Positivity on Set
48:01 Next Up: The Altruists and Serendipity
ABOUT THE GUEST
Jim Frohna is an Emmy-nominated American cinematographer and director known for his intimate, naturalistic visual storytelling. His credits include HBO's Big Little Lies, Transparent, Shrinking, The Idea of You, The Chair and I Love Dick. Most recently, he served as Director of Photography on Verity (2026). He has collaborated with directors including Andrea Arnold, Michael Showalter, Jay Duplass and Mike Mills.
Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G712eA8zjwY
Get the Verity novel: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1538780496?tag=skyblueprod0f-20
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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HBO's Youth costumes.
Costume designer Camille Benda on visual language, pilots that get canceled and what you won't notice.

On this episode of the Kingdom of Dreams Podcast, I sit down with costume designer Camille Benda to talk about HBO's Youth. Camille shares my reaction to the show, what excited her and what she related to. We also talk about the show's visual language, how often projects get canceled after the pilot, what she learned about herself, her favorite European city, what inspired her to become a costume designer, what the audience won't notice and why costumes matter.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
• The visual language of Youth
• Pilots that get canceled
• What audiences won't notice
• Why costumes matter

CHAPTERS
0:00 Preview
1:14 Reaction to HBO's Youth
3:32 What Excited Camille
5:03 What Was Relatable
7:35 The Show's Visual Language
11:06 How Often Pilots Get Canceled
14:10 What Camille Learned About Herself
18:32 Favorite City in Europe
20:33 Becoming a Costume Designer
24:05 What the Audience Won't Notice
27:12 Why Costumes Matter

ABOUT THE GUEST
Camille Benda is a costume designer working in film and television, including HBO's comedy series Youth.

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVuBzv7x3lI