The Optimist Behind Blade Runner's Dystopia
Imaginary Worlds23 Huhti 2025

The Optimist Behind Blade Runner's Dystopia

The late Syd Mead was a visual futurist who was hired to imagine the worlds of Blade Runner, Tron, Aliens, Elysium and other sci-fi films. His work in Hollywood has been lauded for decades, but there’s a new exhibit in New York that shows a different side of the artist. Syd Mead: Future Pastime is a collection of his personal and commercial paintings, which are all works of science fiction. Despite his connection to the dystopian world of Blade Runner, Mead’s personal vision of the future was unwaveringly optimistic. I talk with Mead’s husband and business partner Roger Servick, and the curators of the exhibit, Elon Solo and William Corman, about Mead’s predictions for the future of technology, sexuality and spirituality. (Image courtesy of Syd Mead Inc.) This week’s episode is sponsored by ShipStation and Hims Go to shipstation.com and use the code IMAGINARY to sign up for a free trial. Get your free online visit at hims.com/IMAGINARY. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jaksot(300)

The Greatest Cartoon Almost Made

The Greatest Cartoon Almost Made

At the height of his career, Richard Williams was hailed as the next Walt Disney -- and he won two visual effects Oscars for Roger Rabbit. But Williams wanted to prove that animation was high art, not...

3 Kesä 201528min

Why Ron Moore Killed Captain Kirk

Why Ron Moore Killed Captain Kirk

Ronald D. Moore is best known for rebooting Battlestar Galactica for the post-9/11 era, but he got his start writing on Star Trek: The Next Generation. In fact, he really got his start in science fict...

20 Touko 201516min

True Vampires of New Haven

True Vampires of New Haven

A few years ago, I reported a story about a safe house program for vampires in New Haven, CT. The city supplied the vampires with blood if they agreed to live under police supervision. But the funding...

6 Touko 201515min

Beware of CyberCity

Beware of CyberCity

Ed Skoudis built a different kind of imaginary world. It's a three-dimensional model of a town that the military uses for cyber war games. Ed's team plays the role of the terrorists who keep trying to...

22 Huhti 201517min

Politics of Thrones

Politics of Thrones

Game of Thrones is huge in every way. Why does this medieval fantasy with knights and castles speak to our time? Politics. There are a surprising number of international relations experts that see par...

8 Huhti 201519min

Zombie Therapy

Zombie Therapy

Zombies. I hate them the way Indiana Jones hates snakes. I know it's a ridiculous phobia -- they're not real, and zombies are a classic genre full of rich ideas. So I decide to undergo zombie immersio...

25 Maalis 201518min

The Mysterious James Tiptree

The Mysterious James Tiptree

Science fiction writer James Tiptree Jr. wouldn't talk on the phone or appear in person. He developed friendships with contemporaries like Ursula le Guin and Philip K. Dick purely through letters. And...

11 Maalis 201525min

A Perfect World

A Perfect World

A French philosopher is certain his ideas will help human beings evolve -- not just emotionally or psychologically. We will start to grow tails. And that inspires his disciples to start a socialist co...

25 Helmi 201519min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
i-dont-like-mondays
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
kolme-kaannekohtaa
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
sita
aikalisa
mamma-mia
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
kaksi-aitia
rss-murhan-anatomia
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
rss-ootsa-kuullut-tasta
meidan-pitais-puhua
rss-nikotellen
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2
terapeuttiville-qa
rss-haudattu