BTL Radio Show - 11/17/2025 with STEPHEN SHIMEK talking MURDER AT THE EMBASSY and LOTFY NATHAN discussing THE CARPENTER'S SON

This week on  BEHIND THE LENS, we’ve got a theme of mystery going on, and I love the films that we’re examining and the directors we’re hearing from.  And who doesn’t love a good mystery? First up, you’ll hear from director STEPHEN SHIMEK talking about MURDER AT THE EMBASSY, the second film in the Miranda Green murder mystery franchise.  Set in 1930s Cairo, with its pyramids and antiquities at the height of Egyptology and archaeology, there’s more than a murder lurking around each mummy.  And the film is shot on location in Cairo!  And then at the midpoint of the show, you’ll hear from writer/director LOTFY NATHAN talking about THE CARPENTER’S SON, a film that has already drawn some ire in the Christian community as it is developed from the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas about the childhood of Jesus and fills in the New Testament canonical gospels, often clashing with some of those accepted writings.  A powerful and fascinating film that is exquisitely made.  And did I mention it stars Nic Cage as Jesus’ earthly father, the carpenter Joseph?

 

But first, we’ll take a little trip to Cairo with director STEPHEN SHIMEK and MURDER AT THE EMBASSY.

 

The story is fun.  The film is entertaining and beautiful as it drenches you in the beauty and wonder of Egypt.  When private detective Miranda Green is called to investigate a suspicious murder inside Cairo’s seemingly impenetrable British Embassy, she discovers a second crime has been committed that could spark war across the globe. Everyone within the walls of the embassy is a suspect, but the ultimate evil force is lurking right around the corner.  Think Agatha Christie meets Indiana Jones meets Jessica Fletcher.  The film is light and bright, visually and in its tone.  The mystery plot works, the characters are well done with believable ambiguity and guilt spread around, performances are solid. 

 

Directed by STEPHEN SHIMEK and written by Mark Brennan, MURDER AT THE EMBASSY stars Mischa Barton, Mido Hamada, Kojo Attah, Nell Barlow, Raha Rahbari, Antonia Bernath, and Richard Dillane.

 

As you’ll hear Stephen discuss, being a lover of mysteries himself, shooting this film and being in Cairo was a dream come true.  Of course, quite often making dreams come true is not as easy as it sounds, and that was certainly the case here.  Working with cinematographer Brian Vilim, who is also a producer on the film and whom Stephen has worked on prior films, the two developed a delightful visual grammar that showcased the region, while constantly adapting their filming techniques to the changing conditions brought by light, the sand, desert winds, and the heat.  Not often that a filmmaker talks about hydration being a production element to concern himself with, but Stephen gets into that, too. Tricky was the editing process to balance suspense, humor, and “information,” and for that Stephen turned to editor Matthew Jensen, whose openness to experimentation allowed them to try various pacing and structural approaches until they found what best served the film.  And how about not only working with a dog, but worrying about a handful of camels, some donkeys, and yes, live scorpions?

 

Then we switch gears and talk about another type of mystery with writer/director LOTFY NATHAN and THE CARPENTER’S SON.  Not your cut-and-dry faith-based or historical religious film, Lotfy pushes the envelope here as he draws from the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Thomas for this story. What Lofty delivers is a fascinating story.  I was riveted and enthralled from beginning to end.  And yes, the fact that Nic Cage stars as Joseph, aka The Carpenter, adds another whole layer to the film.

 

Written and directed by LOTFY NATHAN, THE CARPENTER’S SON stars Nic Cage as “The Carpenter” aka Joseph, Noah Jupe as “The Boy” aka Jesus, and FKA Twigs as “The Mother” aka Mary.

 

Combining inspiration from apocryphal gospels with a focus on emotional realism and narrative depth, in this exclusive interview, Lotfy discusses drawing from non-canonical sources to fill in gaps about Jesus’ youth and to imagine the dynamic between Joseph and Jesus, despite the original text’s lack of direct narrative.  What can be described as an origin story, the film explores the father-son complexity, showing Joseph as a strict, deeply religious man who feels overwhelmed and sometimes confounded by the extraordinary child in his care, and Lotfy sought to ground this with believable motivations and moments of conflict and connection.  The result is an immersive narrative, particularly the father-son dynamic, which is the heart and soul of THE CARPENTER’S SON.

 

Shot on location in Greece and Crete on 35mm, the film is visually stunning. Simon Beaufils' cinematography is glorious.  ECUs and macros abound, and work so well as connective tissue, metaphorically speaking to the wonder/importance of a thing or a moment, especially when we are talking biblically. As we dig into the “making of” THE CARPENTER’S SON, Lotfy explains the meticulous world-building process, including historical research and collaboration with his production designer Jean-Vincent Puzos and DP Simon Beaufils.

 

An extremely interesting aspect of our conversation focuses on the sound design, which is impeccable and critical for the storytelling and world-building, thanks to limited dialogue. The ambient soundscape speaks loudly, playing a stronger narrative role and creating a vivid and visceral atmosphere.  Adding to the sound design is Lorenz Dangel's unique score, which incorporates chorale music and ambiguous instrumentation, carefully blending with the ambient elements to maintain tonal ambiguity, sometimes making the audience question whether they are hearing something good or evil.

 

And of course, there’s Nic Cage, and Lotfy has a lot to say about Nic and his performance and his process as he em