(“Early Birds”) rode the subway at 5 a.m. to watch the network morning news shows. “I was taken aback by how normal, alert and smiling everybody was on set.” Farmer writes for The New York Times and covers pop culture for Emmy, Dance Magazine and Time Out NY.

Steve Pond

(“Save the Day”) says “the more I looked into film preservation, the more I realized that it all boils down to making sure that a director’s work survives.” Pond has written about popular culture for the Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone and the Washington Post.

Rob Feld

(“Shot to Remember” and “Screening Room”) says “you couldn’t ask for two more opposite personalities to speak with than Stephen Frears and Bill Condon, but both have an insight into their craft that is fantastic.” He is a regular contributor to the Quarterly and Newmarket Press’ “Shooting Script” series.

Sylviane Gold

(“Independent Voice”) was struck by how Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer Berman were willing to completely shift gears from American Splendor to The Nanny Diaries. “It’s a lot riskier than other choices.” Gold is a regular contributor to The New York Times, Dance Magazine and USA Today.

Jeffrey Ressner

(“Shooting The Sopranos”) is a New Jersey native and a longtime crime genre fan. He found The Sopranos’ directors to be brash, bold and eager to talk about their work. He has written for Time, Rolling Stone and The New York Times.

Scott Foundas

(“Coppola Rising”) says “spending a day at Francis Coppola’s Napa Valley compound had a rejuvenating effect, in part because of Coppola’s contagious enthusiasm over his artistic rebirth.” Foundas is the film editor of the LA Weekly.

Henry Sheehan

(“What Makes Del Toro Tick?”) marveled at how “Guillermo del Toro pulled off the rare feat of plain speaking in describing production realities and the realization of dreams.” He is president of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and appears regularly on KPCC-FM’s “Film Week.”

David Mermelstein

(“Back to School”), like Kenny Ortega, admires the choreography of Gene Kelly, Michael Kidd and Onna White. He writes about theater and classical music for The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times and Bloomberg News. He is a regular contributor to Variety.