Do we have more in common than divides us? Thought-provoking conversations on the street & with special guests from the arts.
Episodes
Wednesday Apr 03, 2019
Wednesday Apr 03, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Broadcast on KSCO AM 1080, KSCO 104.1 FM, KOMY AM 1340, and KSCO.com Live Stream.
Arts Interview: Nandita Das, Award-Winning Actress, Writer, Director
Ruth Copland’s in-depth conversation with Nandita Das covers her fascinating career and life, and her new film 'Manto'. Acting in over 40 feature films in 10 Indian languages, Nandita Das has received widespread acclaim and numerous awards for her acting, and has been repeatedly recognized for both her art and her world community activism. Her directorial debut Firaaq premiered in 2008 at the prestigious Toronto Film Festival after being screened at Telluride. She has twice been on the jury of the Cannes Film Festival, among others, and was conferred the ‘Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters’ by the French Government. She is the first Indian to be inducted into the Hall of Fame of the International Women’s Forum and was the Chairperson of the Children’s Film Society India, and a World Fellow at Yale in 2014. She is a strong advocate of social issues, which is evident throughout her work.
Nandita Das's biopic 'Manto' was the opening night featured film at the 2019 Cinequest Film Festival in Silicon Valley. ‘Manto’, which Nandita Das wrote and directed, is about Saadat Hasan Manto who is celebrated as one of the greatest short story writers from South Asia. The film is set during the four most tumultuous years of Manto’s life during the Independence of India from Britain. It focuses on both his family life and writing, interweaving five of his short stories into the tale of his life. It is a film about two emerging nations and one man trying to make sense of it all. 'Manto' is now available to view on Netflix. It’s a moving, atmospheric film that illuminates a difficult historical period through the experience of a dedicated artist.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Thursday Mar 28, 2019
Thursday Mar 28, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Broadcast on KSCO AM 1080, KSCO 104.1 FM, KOMY AM 1340, and KSCO.com Live Stream.
Photo: Patch Adams clowning around with Ruth Copland at Cinequest Film Festival before the premiere of the documentary CLOWNVETS about humanitarian clowning.
‘What is at the root of well-being?’ Patch Adams has devoted his life to furthering peace, well being and connection. He believes that laughter, joy and creativity are an integral part of the healing process. With the help of friends, he founded the Gesundheit Institute in 1971 in order to address all the problems of health care in one model. The Gesundheit Institute, a non-profit healthcare organization, is a project in holistic medical care based on the belief that one cannot separate the health of the individual from the health of the family, the community, the society, and the world. In addition for decades, through his Clownvets project, Patch and his team of extraordinary volunteers have traveled the world as humanitarian clowns, helping heal veteran participants suffering from PTSD who are constantly working to relieve invisible wounds, and also bringing joy to marginalised people around the world.
Ruth Copland spoke to Patch at Cinequest Film Festival where the documentary CLOWNVETS directed by Estaban Rojas, had its world premiere, and was also honoured with the award for Most Life-Affirming Film. In her conversation with Patch they talk about connection, love, war, education, healthcare, active thinking, mental health, and what it means to really care about things, and thus explore through his life, work, beliefs and the film CLOWNVETS ‘what is at the root of well-being?’
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Wednesday Mar 20, 2019
Wednesday Mar 20, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Max Carlson - Director, Writer, Producer; Shawn Austin - Writer, Producer
Photo L to R: Director and Co-writer Max Carlson; Film poster featuring Edi Gathegi, Tayler Buck; Producer and Co-writer Shawn Austin.
Ruth Copland talks to Van Maximilian (Max) Carlson - the Los Angeles-born American-Mexican award-winning independent film director/writer/editor and owner of Oddbox Films - and A. Shawn Austin, writer/producer and President of Big Boss Creative, Inc. in Burbank, California. Together they wrote and produced the award-winning film 'Princess of the Row', with Max Carlson directing. The inspiring film tells the tale of a runaway foster child who will stop at nothing to live with the only family she knows: her father... a homeless mentally ill veteran who lives on the streets of LA's skid row. 'Princess of the Row' addresses difficult social issues sensitively and powerfully. It is a life-affirming story, beautifully shot, with a hauntingly atmospheric score. 'Princess of the Row' has a talented cast including iconic actor Martin Sheen; Edi Gathegi known for X-Men: First Class; Tayler Buck known for The People vs OJ; Ana Ortiz known for Ugly Betty; and Jacob Vargas known for Traffic.
Ruth Copland caught up with Max Carlson and Shawn Austin at the Cinequest Film Festival in Silicon Valley where 'Princess of the Row' had its world premiere. Ruth Copland talks to the film-makers about what inspired them to tell this story, how you take a story from an idea to a fully realised film, and why they became film-makers in the first place. You can follow the film @PrincessOfTheRow on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Monday Mar 11, 2019
Monday Mar 11, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Michael Dominic, Award-winning Film-Maker - 'Clean Hands' Cinequest World Premiere
Four children living in a garbage dump get a chance in life. Young Manuel, Zulema, Chico and Edgar wait eagerly for the dump trucks, hoping to find left over food at La Chureca, a massive dump in Nicaragua. They work alongside their demanding mother, pulling out any usable discards in order to salvage an existence. Everything they know is this life of extreme poverty until an American philanthropist steps in and buys them a modest home with land to farm. With the kids in school for the first time, can they catch up to their peers, even with the new duties of farming? Can the family handle the demands of this new life, or will old habits pull them apart? Filmed over seven years, the movie CLEAN HANDS captures a family's struggles and growth, betrayals and complications, tears and celebrations.
Ruth Copland talks to award-winning film-maker Michael Dominic about his life and work as a photojournalist and film-maker, and why he devoted seven years of his life to making the feature documentary 'Clean Hands', which has its World Premiere at Cinequest Film and Creativity Festival in Silicon Valley.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Sunday Mar 03, 2019
Sunday Mar 03, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Emilio Estevez, Actor, Writer and Director
An accomplished actor starring in many films, Emilio Estevez is also a talented writer and director with a compelling new film 'The Public' out in theatres from April 5th, 2019. Ruth Copland talks to Emilio about his life, art, and his new film.
Emilio Estevez wrote and directed 'The Public' and also stars in it (pictured above) along with many great actors including Alec Baldwin and Christian Slater. 'The Public' is about downtown Cincinnati librarians Stuart Goodson (Emilio Estevez) and Myra (Jena Malone) who see their regular winter day shaken up when homeless patrons decide to take shelter in their library for the night. What starts as a peaceful sit-in quickly escalates into a face-off with the police and the media.
Prior to its release in theatres, 'The Public' is being screened at the Cinequest Film Festival in Silicon Valley on March 9th 2019. Emilio Estevez will attend and take part in a discussion after the film. You can get tickets here 'The Public' Cinequest Screening
Emilio has established himself not only as an accomplished actor, but also as a talented writer, director and producer. In 2006, he wrote, directed and co-starred in the Golden Globe nominated for Best Picture and SAG ensemble nominee “Bobby,” which revisits the night Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated at the Ambassador Hotel in 1968 and is set against the backdrop of the cultural issues gripping the country at the time, including racism, sexual inequality and class differences.
Emilio made his acting debut in Tim Hunter’s “Tex” and appeared in Francis Ford Coppola’s ensemble drama “The Outsiders,” both based on S.E. Hinton novels. Estevez’ performance as a quintessential high-school jock in John Hughes’ “The Breakfast Club” won him widespread attention and acclaim. Later that same year, he went on to appear in “St. Elmo’s Fire” before starring in “That Was Then, This Is Now,” for which he also wrote the screenplay. In 1996, Estevez directed his father Martin Sheen for the first time in the Vietnam drama “The War at Home” which Emilio also starred in and produced. Other film credits include, “Repo Man” “Mission: Impossible,” and the “Stakeout, “Young Guns” and “Mighty Ducks” franchise movies. Emilio’s new film “The Public” marks Emilio’s fourth invitation to the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival having previously been invited with his films THE WAR AT HOME, 1995, BOBBY 2006, THE WAY 2010).
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Sunday Feb 17, 2019
Sunday Feb 17, 2019
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Marlon James, Man Booker Prize-Winning Author
From his first novel being rejected 70 times before it was published to becoming the first Jamaican author to win the prestigious Man Booker Prize, Marlon James has been on quite a journey. Ruth Copland talks to him about his life, art and new fantasy book 'Black Leopard, Red Wolf'.
Marlon James is a professor and award-winning author of the New York Times bestseller A Brief History of Seven Killings, The Book of Night Women, and John Crow's Devil. A Brief History of Seven Killings explores several decades of Jamaican history around the time of an assassination attempt on Bob Marley. It won the Man Booker Prize, the American Book Award, and the Anisfield-Wolf Award for Fiction, and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. The Book of Night Women is about a slave woman’s revolt on a Jamaican plantation in the nineteenth century. It won the Minnesota Book Award and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, as well as the NAACP Image Award. Originally from Jamaica, Marlon currently divides his time between New York and Minnesota where he is a professor at Macalester College in St Paul teaching English and creative writing. Marlon’s latest book is the first in the Dark Star Trilogy and is called Black Leopard, Red Wolf.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2019 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Monday Dec 03, 2018
Monday Dec 03, 2018
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Jake Shimabukuro, Award-Winning, Internationally Renowned Ukulele Virtuoso and Composer
This week Jake Shimabukuro is Ruth Copland's special guest from the arts. “The Jimi Hendrix of the ukulele”, Jake is known for having virtually reinvented the four-string instrument, and has over 20 solo albums to his name.
Award-winning and internationally renowned ukulele virtuoso and composer Jake Shimabukuro first came to the world’s attention with his deeply beautiful and original take on George Harrison’s “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” in a viral video that dominated YouTube in 2005 and has received over 15 million views. Fans around the world delight in his virtuoso approach to the ukulele. Albums such as 'Gently Weeps', 'Peace Love Ukulele' and 'Grand Ukulele' have topped the Billboard World Music Charts, and as a live performer Jake is one of the hottest tickets around, headlining the Hollywood Bowl, Lincoln Center and the Sydney Opera House even performing for the Queen in England. He has also made frequent appearances on on TV shows like The Today Show, Good Morning America, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and has written the soundtrack for two Japanese films. Despite his success, Jake remains committed to community frequently performing in schools in Hawaii and overseas, as well as lobbying for increased music education. Jake’s latest album is 'The Greatest Day' recorded at Music City’s famed Ronnie’s Place Studio.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2018 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Monday Nov 19, 2018
Monday Nov 19, 2018
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Hampton Sides, Award-Winning Writer, Journalist and Historian
What is worth committing people to die for? Does General MacArthur have blood on his hands? Why is The Korean War sidelined in US history? Why tell the story of the Chosin Reservoir epic battle now? Are there things we can learn from as well as be inspired by? Ruth Copland discusses these questions with special guest Hampton Sides, as well as how and why he writes narrative non-fiction, and more.
Hampton Sides is widely regarded as one of the best non-fiction writers of his generation as well as being an award-winning journalist and historian. He is the New York Times best-selling author of seven books of literary non-fiction and is best-known for his gripping non-fiction adventure stories. His latest book is ‘On Desperate Ground: The Marines at the Reservoir, the Korean War’s Greatest Battle’.
Hampton Sides book ‘Ghost Soldiers’, is a World War II narrative about the rescue of Bataan Death March survivors, which has sold over a million copies worldwide, has been translated into a dozen foreign languages, was the subject of documentaries on PBS and The History Channel, and was the basis for the 2005 Miramax film, The Great Raid. His book ‘Hellhound On His Trail’, about the murder of Martin Luther King Jr. and the international manhunt for assassin James Earl Ray, was the basis for the acclaimed documentary ‘Roads to Memphis’ for which Hampton served as historical consultant. Hampton’s book ‘Blood and Thunder’, about the life and times of controversial frontiersman Kit Carson, was named one of the 10 Best Books of 2006 by Time magazine and is currently under development for the screen.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2018 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Sunday Oct 21, 2018
Sunday Oct 21, 2018
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: Markus Zusak
Ruth Copland talks to wonderfully inventive Australian writer Markus Zusak the award-winning, #1 bestselling author of 'The Book Thief', 'I Am the Messenger', 'Fighting Ruben Wolf', and 'Getting the Girl'. Markus Zusak is best known for his novel 'The Book Thief', which has sold 16 million copies worldwide, is published in 42 foreign language territories, has spent over 500 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and is a major motion picture. Markus Zusak’s latest book is 'Bridge of Clay', a novel 13 years in the writing. Ruth and Markus talk about what drew him to writing, the over-arching theme of his work, how the story of 'Bridge of Clay' evolved over many years, how and why he writes, and much more.
Originally published in the U.S. in March 2006, 'The Book Thief' received numerous awards, including a Michael L. Printz Honor from the American Library Association and the Sydney Taylor Book Award from the Association of Jewish Libraries. 'The Book Thief' has since gone on to become a book selection of community reads programs across the country and was released as a major motion picture in 2013. It was also featured on the list of America’s 100 most-loved books by PBS’s The Great American Read. The best-selling I Am The Messenger has also been honoured with numerous awards. Born in 1975 in Sydney, Australia, the youngest of four children of immigrant German and Austrian parents Markus worked briefly as a house painter, a janitor and a high school English teacher before becoming an author. He lives in Australia with his wife and children.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2018 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.
Monday Jul 23, 2018
Monday Jul 23, 2018
It's A Question Of Balance ® radio show balances the intellectual with the creative, exploring whether we have more in common than divides us through thought-provoking conversations - out and about with people on the street on different topics, and in the studio with inspiring guests from the arts. Balance is not a compromise. Balance is truth distilled from many places creating cohesive understanding. Hosted by Ruth Copland.
Check out podcasts of the different topics and arts guests at www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Arts Interview: 'Rad Girls Can' Author Kate Schatz and Artist Miriam Klein Stahl
'Rad Women' series author Kate Schatz and artist Miriam Klein Stahl showcase bold, brave and brilliant women who are living rad lives in ways small and great. The runaway success of the 'Rad Women' series has inspired girls, women, and the men in their lives. Their latest book 'Rad Girls Can' features the inspiring lives of young women under 20. Kate and Miriam say they "truly believe that 'Rad Girls Can' is the book we all need right now. It shows us the potential and the power of young, creative, hopeful, brilliant girls, and all that they can do in this world. While some of the stories in 'Rad Girls Can' are about girls from history, many are contemporary, and show how young people are engaging with and shaping the future of some of our most urgent issues, including voting rights, climate change, immigration, gender and sexual identity, disability rights, and racial justice". This New-York-Times best-selling artistic duo hailing from the Bay Area, California, join Ruth Copland to talk about their lives, art, and how the 'Rad Women' books first came about!
Miriam Klein Stahl is a Bay Area artist, educator and activist. In addition to her work in printmaking, drawing, sculpture, paper-cut and public art, she is also the co-founder of the Arts and Humanities Academy at Berkeley High School where she’s taught since 1995. Miriam’s socially relevant artwork, creates portraits of political activists, misfits, radicals and radical movements, and has been widely exhibited and reproduced internationally. As an educator, Miriam is dedicated to addressing equity through the lens of the arts. She is also the co-owner of Pave the Way Skateboards, a queer skateboarding company formed with Los Angeles-based comedian, actor, writer and skateboarder Tara Jepson.
Kate Schatz (pronounced Shots) is a Bay Area writer, organizer, public speaker, educator, and feminist activist. As well as authoring the four Rad Women series books, Kate writes fiction. Her work has been published in numerous publications with her short story “Folsom, Survivor” included as a “Notable Short Story” in Best American Short Stories 2011. Her book of fiction, Rid of Me: A Story, was published in 2006 as part of the acclaimed 33 1/3 series, and her essay “Dear White People” appears in the recent anthology Radical Hope: Letters of Love & Dissent in Dangerous Times. As an educator, Kate has worked with a wide range of age groups for over 15 years including teaching at UC Santa Cruz, San Jose State, Rhode Island College, and Brown University. She is a frequent public speaker at notable events and is the founder of Solidarity Sundays, a nationwide network of over 200 feminist activist groups who meet monthly to take coordinated non-violent political action.
For more info visit www.itsaquestionofbalance.com
Copyright 2018 Ruth Copland. All rights reserved.