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Welcome to Kicking the Seat!

Ian Simmons launched Kicking the Seat in 2009, one week after seeing Nora Ephron’s Julie & Julia. His wife proposed blogging as a healthier outlet for his anger than red-faced, twenty-minute tirades (Ian is no longer allowed to drive home from the movies).

The Kicking the Seat Podcast followed three years later and, despite its “undiscovered gem” status, Ian thoroughly enjoys hosting film critic discussions, creating themed shows, and interviewing such luminaries as Gaspar NoéRachel BrosnahanAmy Seimetz, and Richard Dreyfuss.

Ian is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association. He also has a family, a day job, and conflicted feelings about referring to himself in the third person.

Ep05: Bailout / Battleship in Bloomington

This week, Kicking the Seat gets political with filmmakers Sean Fahey and John Titus of the new documentary, Bailout. From gambling away mortgage payments to the use of drones as enforcers of corrupt financial instruments, we cover a lot of ground in a half hour. Agree or disagree, I can promise you won't be bored.

Also on-deck are some thoughts on Peter Berg's Battleship and the end of Taylor Kitsch's career, as well as an unsponsored tourism ad for the town of Bloomington, IL! All this, and (some) more can be yours by clicking the link below (left for listening, right for downloading).

As always, thanks, and catch you next week!

P.S. A couple of notes about the audio: if the interview sounds like it took place at a crowded Starbucks, then I've done my job of providing a wholly immersive--some might say "unprofessional"--podcasting experience. In other words, there's a good amount of background noise, and even an interruption as Sean is asked to watch someone's bag ahead of a much-needed bathroom run.

Also, you may hear some pops during the intro. I don't know what that is, and am incapable of troubleshooting it. If you can't stand it, feel free to fast-forward to the interview for an entirely different brand of aural assault.

Ep06: Did I Say "Next Week"? / Endless Summer Knights

Ep04: Doug Jones / The Avengers' Dark Shadows