Red Carpet Rookies

Mike Battle

Every great film and TV maker began as a Red Carpet Rookie. In this podcast each episode you’ll learn from the life and career story of someone who’s grown to the top of the entertainment business, hearing how they mastered their craft with lessons you can apply to harness your own creative talent in your own career and everyday life.

From lessons given by Spielberg to Oscar-winners tips on imposter syndrome, and some pretty crazy on-set anecdotes thrown in for good measure…

My name is Mike Battle a film crew member turned screenwriter and I’ll be your host…and this is Red Carpet Rookies.

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53 episodes
Updated Apr 29, 2024

Episodes53

Newest first

Aug 3, 2021 · 45 min
#11 - Asha Michelle Wilson: Writing Archer, Brainstorming Murders for American Horror Story, Accidental Networking, How To Sell A TV Show, and The Magic of Hollywood
Our first writer! Today's episode we sit down with the wonderful Asha Michelle Wilson. As a young writer, Asha is the perfect person to learn from and we delve into all things writers want to know from how the writing department functions, to fitting in the room and even how to sell a show to Netflix! Along the way we hear stories of her crazy time at American Horror Story, what it's like to put voices to the characters of Archer and more. www.redcarpetrookies.com
Jul 27, 2021 · 40 min
#10 - Jim Plannette: Lighting the Set of E.T & Braveheart, Meeting Jimmy Stewart, Basketball With Clooney on Ocean’s 11, and Lessons from Steven Spielberg
This week brings another verified legend of the business to the Red Carpet Rookies studio. Having worked with pretty much every iconic director from Spielberg to Coppola 'Gentleman' Jim Plannette stands at the top of the movie industry. In the episode we discuss Jim growing up in a film business family as son to gaffer, Homer Plannette. He tells us the story of meeting Jimmy Stewart at the It's a Wonderful Life wrap party, why Steven Spielberg took his advice on E.T. and the real story behind that famous final shop of Ocean's 11. If you'd like to keep to date with the show and Mike's please head to www.redcarpetrookies.com and sign up for our mailing list!
Jul 20, 2021 · 45 min
#9 - Julie Lynn, Producer on Putting Ryan Reynolds into Zero Gravity, The Creative Wonderland of Pixar, Partnership, Curiosity, and Discovering Pre Movie Star Chris Pine
We're back! And what a way to return with one of the loveliest, most talented people in the business. Today's guest is Film and Television Producer Julie Lynn. With beginnings as a First Amendment Lawyer, Julie soon transferred her skills to the movies, first producing small independent works such as Mike Nichols' Wit and Rodrigo Garcia's Nine Lives. In the years since forming Mockingbird Pictures in 1999, Julie has covered all manner of genres from the Oscar nominated Albert Nobbs, to Netflix's hard hitting To The Bone and even sci fi-horror in the Jake Gyllenhal led blockbuster Life. Julie graciously answered my regular questions when we worked together in 2018 and she has kindly agreed to do it again! If you'd like to keep up to date with both Mike and the show - head over to www.redcarpetrookies.com and sign up for our newsletter! Thank you for listening! Mike
Jun 30, 2021 · 1 min
Series 2 Trailer - What's On The Way
Hello hello. Sorry it's been a while. It hasn't been easy to secure another series as good as the last but we've bloody done it. Coming soon Red Carpet Rookies Series 2 featuring the makers of film including Casino Royale, Ocean's 11, Drive, Aliens, Saving Private Ryan, Braveheart, Archer, A Star is Born, Birds of Prey, District 9, E.T, To The Bone, American Horror Story, The Artist, Life, Minority Report, Captain Marvel and even...Titanic
Oct 28, 2020 · 33 min
#8 - Graham Robinson on The Bizarre World of Props: Slicing Flies with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Spray Painting Cows for Ridley Scott, Building a Thick Skin, and Filming Fast & Furious
In the final episode of series one, Mike has a relaxed chat with his friend and standby prop man, Graham Robinson. Graham shares amazing tales of his journey from music to the film business with discussions of rockstar nights out, spray painting cows and a multi-million dollar film unit watching him drop a dead fly! Graham's 'book that everyone must read' - 'Mr Tickle' by Roger Hargreaves You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliates.
Oct 21, 2020 · 39 min
#7 - Grant Major: Set Designing The Lord of The Rings & King Kong, Working With Jane Campion, Advice From Peter Jackson, and New Zealand’s 1980s Wild West
This week Mike sits down with Oscar-winning Lord of The Rings set designer, Grant Major! Grant eloquently tells of his journey from young graphic designer to one of the world's leading Hollywood creatives, what he learned from Peter Jackson and how it feels to have influenced culture with his set designs. Grant's 'book that everyone must read' - 'Sapiens' by Yuval Noah Hurari You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliate
Oct 14, 2020 · 38 min
#6 - Simon Crook, Location Manger on Shooting Mad Max Fury Road With No Script, Closing Korean Bridges for The Avengers, Set Politics, and Racing to The Israeli Border During Spy Game
This week Mike chats to Simon Crook about his journey from on-set driver to one of the business' most in-demand international Location Managers! Simon shares how walking past a Clint Eastwood movie first gained his interest in the industry, as well as tales of Tom Cruise and what it's like to race 50 cars across the desert for Mad Max! Simon's 'book that everyone must read' - 'Close Encounters of The Third Kind' by Steven Spielberg You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliates.
Oct 7, 2020 · 40 min
#5 - Bill Corso, Makeup Designer on How He & Jim Carey Manifested Their Dreams, The Pressures of Working for Spielberg, Enthusiasm, and Goosebumps Inside The Millennium Falcon
This week Mike chats to one of the nicest and most talented guys in the business, Bill Corso! As personal makeup designer to Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, Harrison Ford and more Bill has certainly seen it all. He shares stories of Jim Carrey writing himself a cheque for $10 million, advice for junior make up artists and how he visualised winning his Oscar! Bill's 'book that everyone must read' - 'The Princess Bride' by William Goldman You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliates.
Sep 30, 2020 · 40 min
#4 - Dom Lavery, Concept Artist on Designing James Bond Gadgets, Pitching Godzilla with Gareth Edwards, Generating Ideas, Star Wars Rogue One, and Stresses of The Fifth Element
Today's guest is a concept artist who has worked on most blockbusters you've ever heard of! Mike sits down for an in-depth chat on creativity and originality and Dom shared his experiences of pitching Godzilla with Gareth Edwards, as well as being one of the first people on the ground for Star Wars Rogue One. On top of that, Dom recounts his amazing first film experience on The Fifth Element and explains why concept art might be going the wrong way...and how to fix it! Dom's 'book that everyone must read' - 'I Am Legend' by Richard Matheson You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliates.
Sep 23, 2020 · 36 min
#3 - Tim Miller: Directing Deadpool, Being Pranked by Arnold Schwarzenegger, Fearlessness, Love Dead & Robots, and Friendship with David Fincher
An exciting week on Red Carpet Rookies as Mike sits down with Deadpool Director Tim Miller! Tim discusses his beginnings in animation, how he only got to direct his first movie at 50 and why he's glad that for all the challenges that came along the way. If that wasn't enough, Tim shares thoughts on his Netflix collaboration with David Fincher and why film studios will be 'fossils' if they don't keep up with the streamers! Thank you to US producer Zack Hardy for this episode. Tim's 'book that everyone must read' - 'The Sea Wolf' by Jack London You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creative's dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top-rated course for professional scriptwriting software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliate
Sep 14, 2020 · 41 min
#2 - Ngila Dickson: Costume Designing The Lord of the Rings, The Untold Story of Ryan Reynolds’ Infamous Green Lantern Outfit, Imposter Syndrome, and Crafting Samurai Armour for Ken Watanabe
This week Mike chats with Oscar winning Lord of The Rings Costume Designer, Ngila Dickson. Ngila tells Mike of her fashion business beginnings in New Zealand before losing it all and ultimately pushing through to her Hollywood successes. Ngila shares why she chose to do Lord of The Rings, discusses 'low-grade' sexism against the costume department and why the Green Lantern suit famously turned out as it did! Ngila's 'book that everyone must read' - 'Apeirogon' by Colum McCann You can support the show by signing up for a 2 month free trial of online course database Skillshare with this link. Skillshare is a creatives dream with courses on all manner of pursuits from photography, video production, musical instrument lessons and hundreds more. If you want to start screenwriting Mike even has a top rated course for professional script writing software Final Draft! If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection!
Sep 7, 2020 · 42 min
#1 - Sonja Klaus: Set Decorating Gladiator & Collaboration with Ridley Scott, Borrowing A Helicopter on X-Men First Class, and The Importance of Building Confidence
In this first episode of Red Carpet Rookies, Mike sits down with Set Decorator turned Production Designer, Sonja Klaus. Sonja discusses her beginnings in the industry including early days with Andy Serkis, her rise to become Ridley Scott's go to Set Decorator and her thoughts on the future of the business. She even shares an anecdote about taking the X-Men First Class helicopter for a personal errand! Sonja's 'book that everyone must read' - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern If you like the podcast, it would be awesome if you could leave a short review on Apple podcasts! It only takes 30 seconds and really helps us win over interesting guests for you to hear. Follow Mike on Instagram or Linked In Follow Red Carpet Rookies on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter or Youtube. *** Note: Red Carpet Rookies guests are recorded over Zoom. All efforts are made to get the best quality possible but we are victim to the connection! Links above are affiliates.
Sep 3, 2020 · 1 min
Red Carpet Rookies Trailer
Welcome to Red Carpet Rookies, a new podcast that demystifies and democratises the film, TV and content creation industries.