MUBI's multi-award-winning MUBI Podcast returns for an eleventh season. Titled Needle on the Record - Side 2, the audio documentary series revisits the theme of one of its most-streamedseasons, with a fresh exploration of the power of music in film. A special preview episode will launch on
The film will return to cinemas with an exclusive IMAX re-release by GKIDS across the US and Canada from 21 April, newly remastered in 4K. Tickets are now on sale.
16 April, with the full series launching from 4 June.
The latest episodes dive into the enduring impact of cinematic “needle drops” - moments wherefilmmakers deployed pre-existing music instead of an original score, for maximum impact. Across theseason, host Rico Gagliano explores iconic musical moments that have shaped pop culture, from Britishpop and house, to bhangra and electronic dance in Gurinda Chada’s Bend it Like Beckham, to the skaand punk soundtrack of Shane Meadows’ This is England.
Guests this season include Jack O’Connell (This is England, Sinners), and Gurinder Chadha (Bend it likeBeckham), alongside some of cinema’s greatest music supervisors, with further names to be announced.
A special preview episode, releasing 16 April, spotlights Whisper of the Heart (1995) - the belovedcoming-of-age classic from celebrated Director Yoshifumi Kondo, based on the original manga by Aoi Hiiragi and screenplay and storyboards by Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki. Featuring its memorable use of the country classic ‘Take Me Home, Country Roads’ the episode unpacks the film’s surprising reimagining of the song to match its urban Tokyo setting and to deepen its emotional resonance.
The episode features interviews with the producer of the film and Studio Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki and his daughter Mamiko Suzuki, who adapted the lyrics of the song with Miyazaki for the film. Host Rico Gagliano shared his excitement to cover the film’s beautiful use of the song: “Growing up in ‘70s-era West Virginia, ‘Country Roads’ — basically a hymn to the state — was just always around, like oxygen. Learning Studio Ghibli made it kind of the same for ‘90s Japan has been a trip.”
To celebrate the launch of Season 11, MUBI Podcast will also re-release standout episodes from Season 3: Needle on the Record throughout the month of May, including those dedicated to Chungking Express, Donnie Darko, and 2001: A Space Odyssey
LISTEN TO SPECIAL PREVIEW EPISODE FROM 16 APRIL AND FOLLOW THE PODCAST ON YOUR PREFERRED APP HERE
About Rico Gagliano
Podcast host Rico Gagliano has been an audio creator for two decades. A graduate of the American Film Institute, he reported around the world for the popular public radio business program Marketplace, before co-creating, co-hosting, and co-producing American Public Media’s The Dinner Party Download—an arts-and-culture podcast and radio show that was broadcast on nearly 200 public radio stations and downloaded over 30 million times. His award-winning interviews for the show included conversations with legendary filmmakers from D.A. Pennebaker to Jordan Peele. He went on to host, produce, write and story edit hit podcasts for Wondery, Pushkin Industries, Crooked Media, and Focus Features. Rico has written about travel, music, movies and food for The Wall Street Journal, the Daily Beast, Los Angeles magazine and the New York Times’ T Magazine. He’s currently Head of Audio at MUBI.
Podcast host Rico Gagliano has been an audio creator for two decades. A graduate of the American Film Institute, he reported around the world for the popular public radio business program Marketplace, before co-creating, co-hosting, and co-producing American Public Media’s The Dinner Party Download—an arts-and-culture podcast and radio show that was broadcast on nearly 200 public radio stations and downloaded over 30 million times. His award-winning interviews for the show included conversations with legendary filmmakers from D.A. Pennebaker to Jordan Peele. He went on to host, produce, write and story edit hit podcasts for Wondery, Pushkin Industries, Crooked Media, and Focus Features. Rico has written about travel, music, movies and food for The Wall Street Journal, the Daily Beast, Los Angeles magazine and the New York Times’ T Magazine. He’s currently Head of Audio at MUBI.
About MUBI
MUBI is a global streaming service, production company and film distributor dedicated to elevating great cinema. MUBI creates, curates, acquires and champions visionary films, bringing them to audiences all over the world. MUBI is a place to discover ambitious films, from both iconic directors and emerging auteurs. All carefully chosen by MUBI’s curators. With MUBI GO, members in select countries can get a free ticket every week to see the best new films in cinemas. And Notebook explores all sides of cinema culture — both in print and online. Some previous and upcoming MUBI Releases include: Lynne Ramsay’s Die My Love, Paolo Sorrentino’s La Grazia, Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value, Akinola Davies Jr’s My Father’s Shadow, Mascha Schilinski’s Sound of Falling, Park Chan-wook’s No Other Choice, Oliver Laxe’s Sirat, Jafar Panahi’s It Was Just An Accident, Coralie Fargeat’s The Substance, Luca Guadagnino’s Queer, Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla, Ira Sachs’ Passages, Molly Manning Walker’s How to Have Sex, Aki Kaurismäki's Fallen Leaves, Charlotte Wells’ Aftersun, Park Chan-wook’s Decision to Leave, and Lukas Dhont’s Close. MUBI Productions include Kelly Reichardt’s The Mastermind starring Josh O’Connor, Paweł Pawlikowski’s Fatherland starring Sandra Hüller, Felix Van Groeningen’s Let Love In, and Jane Schoenbrun’s Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma. MUBI Co-productions include Andrew Haigh’s A Long Winter, and Jim Jarmusch’s Father Mother Sister Brother. Founded in 2007 by Efe Cakarel, MUBI is the biggest community of film lovers anywhere, with members across 190 different countries. MUBI is headquartered in London, with 15 offices across the world and over 400 employees. MUBI acquired renowned sales agent and production company The Match Factory and Match Factory Productions in January 2022, and a majority stake in leading Benelux film distributor Cinéart in February 2024