The latest episode of Sounds of Film features an in-depth conversation with acclaimed filmmaker Elizabeth Lo, discussing her powerful new documentary Mistress Dispeller. The film has been featured at the Venice International Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and the Port Jefferson Documentary Film Festival. Known for her intimate and visually arresting storytelling, Lo joins host Tom Needham to explore the making of the film and the emotional complexities behind its real-life love triangle in contemporary China.

Mistress Dispeller follows a woman who hires a professional “mistress dispeller” to go undercover and end her husband’s affair. With unprecedented access to all sides of the triangle, the documentary unfolds as a deeply human portrait of love, loyalty, and emotional contradiction, revealing how intimacy and betrayal can coexist in unexpected ways. The movie is available on the Criterion Channel.

Elizabeth Lo is an award-winning director, producer, and cinematographer whose work has premiered at major festivals including Sundance, Tribeca, Venice, TIFF, and IDFA. Her debut feature Stray earned international acclaim, winning Best International Feature at Hot Docs and receiving nominations from the Independent Spirit Awards and Cinema Eye Honors. Her films are known for their observational precision and emotional depth, placing her among the most distinctive voices in contemporary documentary cinema.

Sounds of Film, hosted by Tom Needham, is a long-running film, music, and ideas podcast featuring in-depth conversations with leading figures in cinema and culture. Past guests have included Alexander Payne, Alec Baldwin, Billy Joel, Laurie Anderson, Jordan Peele, Michael Moore, William H. Macy, Cicely Tyson, Chuck D, and Cornel West, among many others shaping the cultural landscape.

The Sounds of Film podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music.

On this episode of The Sounds of Film, host Tom Needham speaks with director Maria Diane Ventura and Eraserheads frontman Ely Buendia about Eraserheads: Combo on the Run, an intimate and revealing documentary that captures the story of one of the Philippines’ most influential bands. Together, they discuss the creative process behind the film, the emotional journey of revisiting the band’s history, and how music, storytelling, and vulnerability can open the door to healing and reconciliation.

Eraserheads: Combo on the Run traces the band’s evolution from their formation in 1989 to their rise as a defining voice in Filipino music and their powerful reunion decades later. Blending archival footage with candid, behind-the-scenes access, the film explores fame, fracture, and redemption, while placing the band’s journey within the broader cultural and political landscape of the Philippines. At its core, the documentary is not just about music, but about growth, accountability, and the enduring connections that can bring people back together.

The Sounds of Film with Tom Needham is one of the longest-running radio shows dedicated to film, music, and ideas, airing for over 30 years on WUSB and reaching audiences across Long Island, New York, and beyond. The program features in-depth conversations with a wide range of influential voices, including Alexander Payne, Laurie Anderson, Bob Geldof, Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Jordan Peele, Dionne Warwick, Chuck D, Michael Moore, Howard Shore, Rob Reiner, and Cicely Tyson, offering thoughtful insight into the creative process and the cultural impact of film and music.

Director Nicholas Ma joins The Sounds of Film to discuss his debut feature Mabel, a thoughtful and visually rich coming-of-age story opening in New York at the Cinema Village on April 17.

Ma, known for producing the acclaimed documentary Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, brings a deeply personal and intellectually curious perspective to his first narrative feature.

Mabel follows Callie, a biracial middle schooler who feels disconnected from the people around her but forms a profound bond with the plant life she studies and nurtures. As she navigates a new school, shifting family dynamics, and an inspiring but mysterious teacher, the film explores themes of identity, loneliness, and the emerging science of plant intelligence, ultimately asking what it means to truly coexist with the natural world and with each other.

The Sounds of Film with Tom Needham is one of the longest-running radio shows devoted to film, music, and ideas, featuring conversations with an eclectic range of influential voices including Billy Joel, Julie Andrews, Jordan Peele, Dionne Warwick, and William H. Macy, along with leading directors, composers, and cultural figures across film and music. The program continues to deliver in-depth, thoughtful conversations that explore both the creative process and the cultural impact of the arts.