Adam Randall on directing Slow Horses, his mystery IMDB film, and Gary Oldman's text messages

Oscar-winning producer Roy Conli is a veteran of Disney animation, having produced or being involved with the likes of Big Hero 6, Strange World, Treasure Planet, Tangled and more. Sporting the finest facial hair in Hollywood, he headed to London to present footage from Disney's upcoming animated feature Hexed.

If you didn't live through the Batmania surrounding 1989's Batman, it's hard to overstate just what a seismic shift it felt like in mainstream cinema. But also, it's easy to overlook as well that the journey of the film to the screen took a good decade, with lots of problems in landing its tone, a big backlash against its casting, and various directors taking a look. The actual making of the film was then fraught, with a script that needed small tweaks then being overhauled. Then the mysterious $100,000 prop that needed to be written in, the late re-casting - and the marketing campaign that changed so much. If you like this podcast, please please please subscribe, leave a nice review, that sort of thing. It really helps independents. Thank you.

The sale of Shane Black's The Last Boy Scout screenplay for a then-eyewatering $1.75m (and that wasn't even the highest bid!) set Hollywood alight. It also virtually guaranteed at the time that the film would get made. When it did? The reunion of Bruce Willis and Joel Silver seemed like a good idea after their Die Hard successes. Tony Scott as director? That should work. They'll all get on like a house on fire, right? Er... In the second part of this episode, writer, actor, director, comedian and Midlander Steve Oram joins Simon to chat about his role in the indie film Crushed, which is available on digital now. A bit of Sightseers sneaks in too. As always, if you like this independent podcast, please do subscribe and leave a nice review. Thank you.

In a special episode of Film Stories, writer/director Brian Duffield chats to Simon about his brand new movie, Whalefall. Well, not just that. The pair also natter about The Muppets, about working in a clothing factory, just what happened with Jane Got A Gun, the story of Guillermo del Toro and Stephen King noticing No One Will Save You, and a whole lot more...!

Oscar-winner Aaron Sorkin joins Simon for an elongated chat about The Social Reckoning, Facebook, compromised reviewers, and how the pair would overhaul the James Bond saga. Plus! There's chatter about old film magazines, about making stories based on true people, plus Aaron Sorkin chats too about those times when Jerry Bruckheimer gives him a call...