American Masters: Creative Spark
American Masters | PBS
How do today’s masters create their art? American Masters: Creative Spark presents narrative interviews that go in-depth with an iconic artist about the creation of a single work. Each episode offers a unique window into the world of art and the creative process of artists and cultural icons across a wide range of disciplines, from music and comedy to poetry and film. Explore more at www.pbs.org/creativespark
Radio: PBS NewsHour
Categories: Arts
Listen to the last episode:
Novelist Ling Ma doesn’t shy away from taking risks with her writing. Her 2018 debut novel, “Severance,” is an apocalyptic satire that won the Kirkus Prize for Fiction and squarely put her on the map as an exciting, off-beat new writer. With her newest collection, “Bliss Montage,” Ma has turned her attention to the short story format. The collection is described as “eight wildly different tales of people making their way through the madness and reality of our collective delusions: love and loneliness, connection and possession, friendship, motherhood, the idea of home.” In this episode, Ling Ma breaks down her creative process and inspiration behind “Peking Duck,” a short story from the collection. She details how she attempted to complicate and “implode” the immigrant narrative through her unique approach to this mother-daughter story. After listening to the episode, you can read “Peking Duck” here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/07/11/peking-duck
Previous episodes
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75 - Ling Ma on Imploding the Immigrant Narrative Thu, 15 Jun 2023
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74 - Rena Priest Explores the Beauty of Childhood on "Young and Indigenous" Thu, 18 May 2023
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73 - Viet Thanh Nguyen on the Ghosts that Haunt our Cultural Past (Replay) Thu, 04 May 2023
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72 - Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Searches for Truth Through Acting Thu, 20 Apr 2023
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71 - Kelly Reichardt Breaks Down Her Filmmaking Process Behind "Showing Up" Thu, 06 Apr 2023
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70 - Jennifer Egan Writes to Experience a Life Outside Her Own Thu, 23 Mar 2023
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69 - Al Nelson’s Sound Design Journey From “Jurassic Park” To “Top Gun: Maverick” Thu, 09 Mar 2023
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68 - Jason Kim Goes Inside the World of K-pop Thu, 23 Feb 2023
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67 - Ruth E. Carter Designs Costumes to Stand the Test of Time Thu, 09 Feb 2023
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66 - John Waters on the Fine Art of Bad Taste Thu, 26 Jan 2023
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65 - John David Washington Explores his Past for his Broadway Debut Thu, 12 Jan 2023
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64 - One more short scene from the life of Buffy Sainte-Marie Mon, 19 Dec 2022
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63 - New season of American Masters: Creative Spark! Mon, 12 Dec 2022
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62 - How Buffy Sainte-Marie Made Her Most Triumphant Song Yet Tue, 22 Nov 2022
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61 - Jo Firestone Proves Comedy Has No Age Limit Thu, 02 Dec 2021
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60 - Don Hertzfeldt Animates Stick Figures Into Existential Masterpieces Thu, 18 Nov 2021
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59 - Atsuko Okatsuka Jokes Around Thu, 11 Nov 2021
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58 - How Kim Gordon Makes Music Thu, 04 Nov 2021
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57 - Making Movies with M. Night Shyamalan Thu, 28 Oct 2021
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56 - Jericho Brown Takes on Tradition Thu, 21 Oct 2021
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55 - Understanding the History and Mystery of Michael R. Jackson Thu, 14 Oct 2021
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54 - Errol Morris vs. Steve Bannon Thu, 07 Oct 2021
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53 - Introducing – American Masters: Creative Spark Thu, 23 Sep 2021
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52 - Actor and playwright Wallace Shawn Wed, 11 Mar 2020
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51 - Musician Miles Davis Wed, 26 Feb 2020
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50 - Theoretical physicist Dr. Michio Kaku Wed, 19 Feb 2020
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49 - Comedian Maria Bamford Wed, 05 Feb 2020
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48 - Writer and director Noah Baumbach Wed, 22 Jan 2020
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47 - Playwright Lynn Nottage Wed, 08 Jan 2020
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46 - Actor Ethan Hawke Mon, 16 Dec 2019
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45 - Actress and filmmaker Lee Grant Wed, 04 Dec 2019
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44 - Playwright and actor Tarell Alvin McCraney Wed, 20 Nov 2019
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43 - Poet Joy Harjo Wed, 13 Nov 2019
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42 - Author R.O. Kwon Wed, 06 Nov 2019
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41 - Artist Mark Rothko Wed, 30 Oct 2019
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40 - Comedian Chris Gethard Wed, 23 Oct 2019
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39 - Music duo Tegan and Sara Wed, 09 Oct 2019
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38 - Sneak Peek – New season begins October 9th! Wed, 02 Oct 2019
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37 - Standing on the Shoulders of Giants Wed, 26 Jun 2019
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36 - Author Viet Thanh Nguyen Wed, 12 Jun 2019
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35 - Actor Jeff Daniels Wed, 29 May 2019
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34 - Filmmaker Boots Riley Wed, 15 May 2019
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33 - Restaurateur and chef David Chang Wed, 01 May 2019
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32 - Actress Lois Smith with Josh Hamilton Wed, 17 Apr 2019
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31 - Author and activist DeRay Mckesson Tue, 02 Apr 2019
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30 - Filmmaker and artist Miranda July Tue, 19 Mar 2019
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29 - Entertainer Sammy Davis, Jr. Tue, 05 Mar 2019
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28 - Comedian-turned-filmmaker Bo Burnham with Josh Hamilton Tue, 19 Feb 2019
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27 - Sneak Peek – New season begins February 20th! Tue, 12 Feb 2019
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26 - Susan Sarandon, Emina Soljanin, and Alexandra Dean on actress and inventor Hedy Lamarr Thu, 24 May 2018