In conversation with Phil Johnston - The Twits, Wreck-It Ralph, Cedar Rapids and more

Film Stories with Simon Brew

Simon Brew

Tv & Film, Film History

4.9 • 767 Ratings

🗓️ 17 October 2025

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Quite the story, this. Phil Johnston, in a special episode of Film Stories, takes us through his own tale, and how it led to a nomination at the Academy Awards. He and Simon chat through the struggles to get The Twits - an adaptation of Roald Dahl's book - off the ground, and how for a few weeks it all looked like it'd fallen apart. Plus, how he landed at Disney with Wreck-It Ralph, how Ralph Breaks The Interest earned him an Oscar nomination, and a bit of Cedar Rapids too... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, this is Simon Brew.
0:02.8	I'm the editor of Film Stories magazine
0:04.7	and a very warm welcome to a very special episode
0:08.4	of the Film Stories podcast.
0:10.7	Come with me.
0:12.9	And I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.
0:16.2	And movies.
0:17.3	Movies that had stories.
0:19.0	That the story just sucks a man. This is just the beginning.
0:24.1	We would be honoured if you would join us.
0:30.9	Hello and a very warm welcome to film stories with Simon Brew. I am Simon Brew. As always,
0:36.5	it's absolutely everything you need to know about me.
0:38.9	The aim of the podcast, well, it's given away in the title. I'm here to talk of the stories of films
0:42.9	and I tend to talk about marketing stories, production stories, release stories, development stories,
0:47.3	all the ingredients really that go towards making the films that we know and sometimes love,
0:51.9	just that the films that we know and sometimes love.
0:55.5	The films I tend to cover on this podcast, they're more towards the mainstream than anything else.
0:59.9	They're films I'm interested in or invested in to some degree.
1:03.0	I try not to do snark. I try not to punch down.
1:05.6	This podcast is a celebration of cinema and a real appreciation that somehow, somehow films managed to get made.
1:13.7	Film Stories is also a very proud part of the Film Stories Podcast Network, a network of over
1:18.8	50 shows across films, TV and gaming. If you just do a search for Film Stories Podcast Network,
	...

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