Would you like to hear the story of how Jar Jar Binks turned me into a writer? It’s true! It’s fair to say that the Thrawn Series by Timothy Zahn and the awful Star Wars movies that followed are the reason I decided I must / should write. Call it fate, call it artistic envy,…
You know Patton Oswalt, even if you don’t know you know him. From ‘King of Queens’ to the voice of Remy in ‘Ratatouille’ to the exec producer of ‘I’ll be Gone in the Dark,’ Oswalt has enjoyed a robust, fulfilling creative career spanning four decades. And yet, for all his success Oswalt is very open…
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Previous visitors may remember Sci-Friday #130 where we first talked about the Jetson One. Regardless of how EVTOL (electric vertical take-off and landing) vehicles factor into the future of transportation, these updates to the Jetson One capture our imagination! Check out this update video, where they use the Jetson One to commute to work: One…
Read More “Sci-Friday #153 – Jetson One EVTOL Flying Car Updates” »
I collect interesting artifacts of retrofuturism, as you may be aware. Here’s another example, an educational film produced and directed by Pavel Klushantsev. Mars (Russian: Марс) is an interesting blend of science fact and science fiction from over fifty years ago, discussing the technical possibilities and challenges of a manned Mars base. According to…
Read More “Retrofuturism: Russia’s View of Mars from 1968” »
It’s time for some hard facts about marketing your work that applies to authors, filmmakers, and creatives. Contrary to popular myth – and it is a myth – books don’t market themselves, films don’t sell themselves. We don’t live in a world where you just ‘write the best book you can and let readers find…
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Yay, 1970s disaster scifi! For this Sci-Friday, enjoy the trailer to ‘Meteor,’ a goofy yet star-studded throwback science fiction movie. I remember watching this years ago on ABC’s ‘Sunday Night at the Movie’ and so it was a joy to finally see the trailer in all its dowdy, cliched glory. Take a look: Meteor…
Read More “Sci-Friday #152 – Meteor Trailer – Throwback Science Fiction” »
Quick shout out to the filmmakers in the crowd. Are you a student or indie filmmaker? Looking for something to shoot? Look no further: let’s talk about the Sci-Fi Dollar Baby Program. What’s a Dollar Baby? Stephen King came up with the idea back in 1977: “’77 was the year young film makers – college…
Coffee’s brewing, and I’m cooking some eggs – Beautiful day in Eugene – I’m going to take a walk later, soak up some vitamin D. Let’s take a moment to talk about something I’ve wrestled with – creativity craft: no more hustle culture. Creativity is a beautiful, fragile human state. Forcing our creativity into hustle…
Bill Nighy is one of those low-key great actors that nobody notices, but everyone knows. You’ve seen him in all kinds of movies, from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy to Harry Potter. He gave some acting advice in the following video I’m including for Sci-Friday that’s motivation for everybody. There is no process, there’s…
Read More “Sci-Friday #151 – Bill Nighy’s Creative Advice – ‘There’s No Process’” »
Grab a hot drink and settle in – it’s time to talk about why I’m going back to the drawing board with my scifi novel. It’s taken me a few days to get enough emotional distance to talk about this objectively. I killed Cinderellavator as my next novel project so I could let it be…
