And so we begin! The very first episode. Before we start the journey of examining every single sci-fi film ever* we must understand what science fiction is. In this episode I speak to science fiction scholars Lisa Yaszek and Glynn Morgan about the definitions of this well-known genre. What is the difference between science fiction and fantasy? Are superhero movies sci-fi? Are the we the real monsters? Please be warned: as always there are spoilers ahead! Link for the next film is at the bottom.
*Almost
For full shownotes which explain more about the topics, names and books mentioned in this episode you can visit https://www.everyscififilm.com/what-is-science-fiction
The experts:
I am extreme lucky to have these guests with me.
Lisa Yaszek has known sci-fi very well for very many years. Regents Professor of Science Fiction Studies in the School of Literature, Media, and Communication at Georgia Tech, she researches and teaches science fiction and has authored, compiled, and edited numerous books on the topic. Her Future is Female books not only draw attention to the huge contribution of women writers in the genre but also have wonderful retro covers! (I am not judging a book by its cover but I am judging the cover!)
Lisa was President of the Science Fiction Research Association from 2009-2010 and serves as an advisory board member for About SF. She has won many awards for contributions to science fiction and serves as a juror for sci-fi writing awards.
Glyn Morgan is Curator of Exhibitions at The British Science Museum and put together the Science Fiction: Voyage to the Edge of Imagination exhibition which has moved on from London, UK and is currently showing in Hong Kong. He is a lecturer and former editor of Vector, the Critical Journal of the British Science Fiction Association. He has written extensively about sci-fi and speculative fiction and has served as an award judge.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction to show and guests
02:58 Lisa’s definition: Darko Suvin and his three criteria
10:24 Glynn’s definition: Damon Knight’s one criteria
16:50 Are superhero films science fiction?
18:38 Magic Vs science
20:28 The history of comic books, superheroes and science fiction
26:36 Mysticism in science fiction
34:12 What even is science?
37:44 Is everything in space sci-fi?
43:57 Aliens and monsters
49:40 AI, robots and fembots
55:34 Time travel and multiverses
59:57 Dystopia, utopia, and Star Trek
01:12:13 Conclusion
NEXT EPISODE!
George Melies' Le Voyage Dans La Lune from 1902 will the focus of episode 2. It is available to watch on YouTube. Or you can check here for UK or here for US options. DVDs of the film are also available.
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