The Artsy Raven Podcast about Writing and Art with host JF Garrard

Jethro Waters discusses the inspiration behind his EmmyAward–winning documentary F11 AND BE THERE, explores the cultural contrasts between the American South and North as portrayed in GUNFIGHTER PARADISE, and reflects on the creative and logistical challenges of independent filmmaking.

Jethro Waters is a multi-award-winning writer, director,producer, and cinematographer whose work spans documentary, narrative film, music videos, and experimental cinema. His documentary feature debut, F11 AND BE THERE, was a New York Times Critic’s Pick, won an Emmy Award,screened internationally, and is available on platforms including Apple TV, Amazon Prime, PBS, and Kanopy. His music videos for artists such as John Cale and Angel Olsen have been featured in major publications including The NewYorker, Rolling Stone, and The New York Times. Waters makeshis narrative feature debut with GUNFIGHTER PARADISE, for which he wrote, produced, and directed, with a poster hand-painted by legendary artist Renato Casaro. He has collaborated on acclaimed projects including DesperateSouls, Dark City, and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy and created films on architecture and design featuring figures like Tadao Ando. His experimental and short films have screened in museums and international exhibitions.

Websites: www.jethrowaters.com, Gunfighter Paradise.
GUNFIGHTER PARADISE Premieres in New York and Los Angeles in 2026: New York: February 27, AMC Lincoln Square 13 and Los Angeles: March 6, Laemmle Glendale.

Artsy Raven links:
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Jane Ward traces her path from food and hospitality tofiction, unpacks the inspiration behind Should Have Told You Sooner, and shares lessons she’s learned for new authors.

Jane Ward is the author of Hunger (Forge 2001), The Mosaic Artist (2011), and In the Aftermath (She Writes Press 2021). After graduating from Simmons College, she worked in thefood and hospitality industry; later, she became a contributing writer to an online food magazine and a blogger and occasional host of cooking videos for an internet recipe resource affiliated with several regional newspapers. Mostrecently, she has contributed book reviews to Story Circle and Mom Egg Review. She loves to travel, and to document her trips through travel photography. Jane lives in Ipswich, Massachusetts.

In this episode, Jane reads from Should Have Told YouSooner.

Author website: https://www.janeaward.com/

Book link: https://www.amazon.com/Should-Have-Told-You-Sooner/dp/B0FD8TR1R1

Artsy Raven links:
For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://artsyraven.com/

If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrard

Patreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard

Jennifer van der Kleut  discusses her background as a features journalist, the inspiration behind the toxic female relationships at the heart of The Better Mother, and how seeking professional guidance helped fast-track her journey to becoming a published author.

Jennifer van der Kleut (née McBride) is an award-winning former journalist of both print and digital publications,including the DC affiliate of ABC7 News. A graduate of San Jose State University, she spent most of her life in the San Francisco Bay Area before moving to the Northern Virginia suburbs of DC, where she currently lives with her husband and two sons. For nearly a decade, she was the lead singer of theBay Area-based band Sweet Duration, and performed with artists like Jason Mraz, Big Country, Chantal Kreviazuk, and Stabbing Westward. When she’s not writing, she loves going to the beach with her family, going to concerts with hergirlfriends, and getting lost in the pages of a book. 

In this episode, Jennifer reads from The Better Mother.
Book link: https://www.amazon.com/Better-Mother-Jennifer-van-Kleut/dp/B0F88ZNHDR/

Artsy Raven links:
For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://artsyraven.com/

If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrard

Patreon subscribers remember to access your bonuscontent for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard

Nova Ami and Velcrow Ripper share the inspiration behindtheir latest documentary, EMERGENCE: WOMEN IN THE STORM, reflect on the challenges of filming in the midst of climate crisis, and explain why building deep trust with their subjects is essential to their storytelling.

The documentary feature EMERGENCE: WOMEN IN THE STORM from award-winning directors Nova Ami and Velcrow Ripper (Metamorphosis, Incandescence) is having a highly anticipated world premiere at the Victoria Film Festival on February 11th, 2026 at the Roxy Theatre and then havea Vancouver theatrical premiere at the VIFF Centre on February 25th.

This unforgettable film follows female frontline responders,community leaders and disaster survivors as they demonstrate new ways to live and support one another in a time of climate disaster, facing heat domes, wildfire, and flooding in British Columbia and the Northwest Territories. Their perspectives reflect a survival instinct triggered by harrowing encounters with nature’s power.

EMERGENCE: WOMEN IN THE STORM was filmed in Yarrow, Lytton, Boston Bar/Spuzzum, Chilliwack, Abbottsford, Princeton, Osoyoos, Vancouver, New Westminster in British Columbia, and in Yellowknife, North West Territories. 

In this episode, we will be speaking to directors Nova Ami and Velcrow Ripper.

Links:
https://www.victoriafilmfestival.com/product/emergence-women-in-the-storm/
https://viff.org/whats-on/emergence-women-in-the-storm/
 
Artsy Raven links:
For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://artsyraven.com/

If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrard

Patreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard

Roxy shares how performing in the Edinburgh Fringe Festivalsparked her journey into scriptwriting and novel writing, discusses the non-judgmental approach to relationships at the heart of Wants and Needs, and explains why perseverance is essential for every writer.

Roxy Dunn’s debut novel, As Young As This, was a Best Book of 2024 in the Independent, Harper’s Bazaar, Stylist, Cosmopolitan and Sunday Times Style. She is also a screenwriter and alumna of the BBC Comedy Room.Her scripts have been optioned by several production companies, and her pilot Useless Millennials was commissioned and broadcasted on BBC Radio 4. Wants and Needs is her second novel.

In this episode, Roxy reads from Wants and Needs.
 Author links:
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/799790/wants-and-needs-by-roxy-dunn/9781039014305
https://www.roxydunn.com/
https://www.instagram.com/roxy.dunn/
https://x.com/roxanadunn

Artsy Raven links:
For more about The Artsy Raven Podcast or to join ourexclusive Artsy Raven club to receive free books and other cool stuff, visit: https://artsyraven.com/

If you really like this show, please feel free to send us a digital tip https://ko-fi.com/jfgarrard

Patreon subscribers remember to access your bonus content for each episode: https://www.patreon.com/jfgarrard