profile pic ian.jpg

Welcome to Kicking the Seat!

Ian Simmons launched Kicking the Seat in 2009, one week after seeing Nora Ephron’s Julie & Julia. His wife proposed blogging as a healthier outlet for his anger than red-faced, twenty-minute tirades (Ian is no longer allowed to drive home from the movies).

The Kicking the Seat Podcast followed three years later and, despite its “undiscovered gem” status, Ian thoroughly enjoys hosting film critic discussions, creating themed shows, and interviewing such luminaries as Gaspar NoéRachel BrosnahanAmy Seimetz, and Richard Dreyfuss.

Ian is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association. He also has a family, a day job, and conflicted feelings about referring to himself in the third person.

Ep201: SHARKNADO in The Asylum!

Today, The Kicking the Seat Podcast plunges chainsaw-first into the eye of a Sharknado with series writer Thunder Levin! Next Tuesday (March14th), the Music Box Theatre kicks off a new season of the Field Museum's "Field Trips: Cinema Science" series, with a screening of the original Sharknado, followed by an on-stage discussion between Thunder and Kevin Feldheim, the A. Watson III Manager of the Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution.

Ahead of that, Ian spoke with Thunder about the Sharknado phenomenon, his own weird journey as a filmmaker, and how the infamous "mockbuster" factory The Asylum creates movies like Sharknado!

Also, Ian offers a correction about Shout Factory's Blu-ray release of Colors; remembers to provide links from Episode 200's Get Out discussion;* and shares some thoughts on three spectacular short films debuting this weekend at the Music Box's Peace on Earth Film Festival.

Episode 201 is a podcast wrapped in a sharknado, wrapped in an oil-nado, wrapped in a boulder-nado!

Keep up with the latest seat-kicking goodness by following, liking, rating, and subscribing to us on TwitterFacebookiTunes, and Stitcher!

*Courtesy of Eman: Read about Get Out's alternate ending; see if you can spot all the "Easter eggs"; and listen to writer/director Jordan Peele discuss the film on The Nerdist.

Ep202: Blood in the Watercooler

Ep200: OUT and About