Every week, Kristopher Pollard from Milwaukee Film and Radio Milwaukee’s Dori Zori talk about movies — because that’s what you do when you’re Cinebuds.
We’re down a Cinebud this week, but worry not because we called in a couple of Jokers to compensate.
To be more accurate, our very special guests joining us on this episode are two of the people who worked on viral and cinematic sensation The People’s Joker: composers Justin Krol and Quinn Scharber. The Milwaukee-based duo are the driving force behind the film’s score and thus have enjoyed a front-row seat to its tumultuous and controversial existence.
We won’t get too into the legal weeds here, but to summarize: The People’s Joker debuted at the Toronto Film Festival back in 2022, was shelved under the threat of legal action from Warner Bros., snuck in a secret midnight screening at the Milwaukee Film Festival in 2023 and then finally began its proper theatrical run last month.
As we typically do when there are honest-to-goodness movie industry people on the podcast, the “reviewer” hats got stuck in the closet for this one. Instead, you get a first-person account of what it’s like to be closely involved with an ambitious and creative project like The People’s Joker, and see (or hear) your hard work play out on big screens across the country.
With Kpolly on the sidelines for this one, Dori uses her finely honed interviewing skills to get Krol and Scharber chatting about their early days as Milwaukee musicians, their connection to the movie’s star/creative force Vera Drew, and the chutzpah required to get into this very competitive field.
Enjoy the conversation using the player at the top of the page, and then if you want to check out newly christened cult classic The People’s Joker in its idealized group setting, make plans to be at Cactus Club this Thursday for either the 7 p.m. or 9:30 p.m. screening. As an added bonus, Krol and Scharber will do a talkback right after, along with writer and fellow Milwaukeean Bri LeRose.
