Cinema Diverse 2026 is here, and two films on my must-see list turn deeply personal stories into conversations about identity, discrimination, betrayal, forgiveness, and the ties that bind us.

For my Cinema Diverse 2026 Picks, I sat down with filmmakers Mike Talplacido and Jason Stuart to talk about two very different films that share something important: both use intimate human stories to explore much bigger issues.

And now you can watch my full, raw interviews with both filmmakers below — the complete conversations, just as they happened.

IN THIS MOMENT — My Interview with Mike Talplacido

Filmmaker Mike Talplacido arrives at Cinema Diverse with IN THIS MOMENT, his first feature film — a heartfelt story exploring betrayal, caregiving, love, and the difficult road toward forgiveness.

At the center are Luis, played by Zeus Oira, and David, played by John Wilkins III, whose relationship becomes the emotional doorway into a larger examination of what happens when trust is tested and people are forced to decide whether forgiveness is possible.

During our conversation, Talplacido explains why the film is personal without being autobiographical and how his experience caring for his father-in-law helped shape the film’s caregiving storyline.

We also talk about what it means to bring his first feature to Cinema Diverse in Palm Springs, his characters and their complicated relationship, and what he hopes audiences take away from the film.

WATCH: My Full Raw Interview with Mike Talplacido

There’s something I enjoy about sharing these raw interviews. You get to see the conversation unfold naturally — the answers, reactions, laughter and those unexpected little moments that don’t always make it into an edited television segment.

And at the heart of our IN THIS MOMENT conversation is a deceptively difficult question: When someone you love hurts you, what does it really take to forgive?

REDLINING — My Interview with Jason Stuart

Then there’s REDLINING, an ambitious 18-minute short from Jason Stuart, who writes, directs, produces and stars in the film.

Set against 1970s Georgia, REDLINING centers on a Black family and a white family sharing property, using the seemingly simple question “Who gets the house, and why?” to open a much larger conversation about housing discrimination, generational wealth, race, sexuality and women’s rights.

Stuart and I discuss how he managed to fit those intersecting ideas into an 18-minute film without allowing one to overwhelm the others — and what it was like wearing the hats of writer, director, producer and actor on the same project.

He also talks about collaborating with Alexandra Paul, what she brought out in his performance, and the films and filmmakers that helped shape his approach to the craft.

And we get personal about what bringing REDLINING to Cinema Diverse in Palm Springs means to him.

WATCH: My Full Raw Interview with Jason Stuart

Watching the complete conversation also gives Stuart room to dig deeper into the history and ideas behind REDLINING — and why a story set decades ago can still generate a conversation with audiences today.

Two Films. Two Filmmakers. Two Conversations Worth Having.

IN THIS MOMENT and REDLINING may tell very different stories, but that’s exactly why I’ve paired them among my Cinema Diverse 2026 Picks.

One looks inward at love, betrayal, caregiving and forgiveness. The other widens its lens to race, identity, property, discrimination and generational wealth.

Yet both understand that some of the biggest issues we face become most powerful on screen when they’re told through individual human lives.

That’s one of the things I love about Cinema Diverse. You can walk into a theater expecting to watch somebody else’s story and walk out thinking about your own life — or seeing someone else’s experience a little differently.

So check out IN THIS MOMENT and REDLINING, and watch my full raw conversations with Mike Talplacido and Jason Stuart above.

These are two filmmakers with very different stories to tell — and I was thrilled to let them tell those stories in their own words.

Mabuhay, and I’ll see you at the movies!