
Science Fiction
Join writer and storyteller Damien Walter on an exploration of the world as seen through a science fiction lens.
Latest episodes

47 snips
Dec 19, 2021 • 48min
The Matrix and the archetypes of Carl Jung
There's a question about The Matrix I've been asking myself since the franchise established itself in the collective unconscious of humanity back in the early 00s.
What is Sigmund Freud doing in these movies?
00:00 What's Sigmund Freud doing here?
02:21 Welcome the the Science Fiction podcast
04:01 Freud vs Jung
09:05 Good vs Evil
13:00 Carl Jung's little Red Book
16:26 The Jungian tradition in 20th century storytelling
22:21 The Matrix and the archetypes of Carl Jung
35:17 The false god of the Gnostics
37:34 The journey to the Self
39:56 A Jungian myth for the 21st century
Watch the original Matrix full movie: https://amzn.to/3GUbPRh
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Dec 8, 2021 • 20min
Kim Stanley Robinson | Interstellar travel is a religious fantasy
Science fiction is fighting a doctrinal war. Between those who believe that humankind's future is still the stars, and those - like Kim Stanley Robinson - who believe interstellar travel is a fantasy of religious belief. The science is clear, travel to other stars may well be forever beyond us. So why do we keep telling this story?
A response to Kim Stanley Robinson's interview for the Science Fiction Talks club on Clubhouse. Find his full interview here: https://www.clubhouse.com/room/xe65rroG
Read The MInistry For The Future: https://amzn.to/3y5YmT3
Follow the Science Fiction podcast: https://damiengwalter.com/podcast
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Follow the full course in Writing the 21st Century Myth : https://damiengwalter.com
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Oct 10, 2021 • 14min
The most powerful scene in scifi cinema Blade Runner’s Tears in Rain
Rick Deckard is a Replicant. And Rick Deckard is also not the hero of Blade Runner...but is the villain. But the obvious questions about Blade Runner are also the least interesting. Empathy is the core of the Blade Runner story. Why we feel it, who we feel it for, and who we choose to exclude from our empathy. Blade Runner is an empathy test...for the audience...to see if you and I are human. All too often, we fail the test.
Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qWpLcC7QaSA
Follow the full course in Writing the 21st Century Myth : https://damiengwalter.com
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Sep 29, 2021 • 24min
The failure of Foundation is a lost opportunity for Apple
Stories that last through the ages aren't just great storytelling, they also serve the power structures of their time. Powerful people have always patronised great stories. The epic poem Beowulf, The Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri, the plays of William Shakespeare, were all supported by powerful patrons. Now the most powerful corporation in the world has decided to patronise a $500 billion production of Isaac Asimov's Foundation saga, a story that represents the values of our technocratic elite better than any other.
Follow the full course in Advanced Scifi and Fantasy : https://damiengwalter.com
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Sep 20, 2021 • 48min
Thoughts after watching Denis Villeneuve’s DUNE (2021)
If science fiction is a gateway to the psychedelic, then DUNE is a portal to...awakening. Frank Herbert's seminal novel and David Lynch's baroquely weird movie are both powerful works of art on the theme of human awakening. Denis Villeneuve's 2021 adaptation is a masterpiece of worldbuilding. But is it a kick in the third eye for would be seekers of truth? If the 13 year old me could see this Dune afresh, would the sleeper awaken?
Discuss this podcast on the Science Fiction community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/324897304599197/
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Aug 16, 2021 • 18min
The true meaning of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001 A Space Odyssey
Explore the true meaning and symbolism of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Discover how the film critiques science fiction storytelling and depictions of technology. Delve into the impact and symbolism of the apes, black rectangles, space stations, and the space baby. Uncover the exploration of human technology and consciousness in the film. Learn about the counterculture's embrace of the film as a psychedelic experience that challenged reality and expanded human consciousness.

Aug 6, 2021 • 1h 15min
There Is No Antimemetics Division – an interview with Qntm
It's logical that the best science fiction being written today has its origins online and in collaborative forums. There Is No Antimemetics Division began life as part of the SCP Foundation wiki, a collaborative writing project with thousands of participants.
There Is No Antimemetics Division - https://amzn.to/3AcTDPx
Discuss the book on the Science Fiction community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/324897304599197/posts/1218266291928956/
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Jul 20, 2021 • 30min
What is science fiction?
Look at a list of the 20th century's most important artistic and cultural movements and you won't find science fiction listed. Why not? We need a better definition of science fiction to help reclaim it...from itself.
Follow the full course in Advanced Scifi and Fantasy : https://damiengwalter.com
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