Podcast
Exploring Humanity Through Sci-Fi
Hosted by Tony Tellado · EN
Where Imagination Meets What It Means To Be Human
154episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Scoring the Machine: A Conversation with Amanda Jones
2w ago00:23:08Tap to summarizeTony zoomed with Amanda Jones—Emmy winner, Emmy nominee, and one of the most inventive composers working in genre storytelling today—to dive into her electrifying score for Murderbot. Known for her ability to fuse synth, orchestra, and rock instrumentation into a seamless emotional engine, Jones breaks down how she built the sonic identity of one of sci‑fi’s most beloved antiheroes. This conversation is equal parts craft, curiosity, and pure creative joy. INSIDE THE SCORE WHAT WE EXPLORE Hybrid Sound Design — Jones explains how she blends analog synths, orchestral textures, and gritty rock elements to mirror Murderbot’s internal contradictions Driving Cues — You dig into her signature rhythmic propulsion, and she reveals how she intentionally slows things down mid‑cue to let tension breathe, giving listeners a moment inside Murderbot’s thought process. Sanctuary Moon — Jones walks you through composing the theme for Sanctuary Moon, the gloriously cheesy in‑universe TV show Murderbot is obsessed with. She shares how she leaned into melodrama, camp, and over-the-top musical tropes to make it feel perfectly, hilariously bad—in the best way. Synth as Storytelling — Jones describes how the synth became the backbone of the series’ musical language, allowing her to express Murderbot’s emotional distance, digital interiority, and evolving humanity. Her Creative Process — From early sketches to final mixes, she breaks down how she approaches character-driven scoring, why experimentation matters, and how she keeps the music grounded even when the world is futuristic.Jones continues to expand her footprint across film and television, bringing her genre‑blending style to new projects and collaborations. Her recent work highlights her versatility and her ability to move fluidly between drama, sci‑fi, comedy, and documentary storytelling. Amanda Jones continues to expand her footprint across film and television, bringing her genre‑blending style to new projects and collaborations. Her recent work highlights her versatility and her ability to move fluidly between drama, sci‑fi, comedy, and documentary storytelling. SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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BYTE — The Odyssey Red Carpet Premiere 2
2w ago00:05:41Tap to summarizeThe New York City premiere of The Odyssey continues with another dynamic round of red‑carpet conversations supplied by Universal Pictures. This edition deepens the tapestry of perspectives behind the film — from its mythic heroes to its grounded human characters, from its costume architecture to its emotional undercurrents. From The Red Carpet Logan Marshall‑Green Jon Bernthal Jesse Garcia John Leguizamo Himesh Patel Ellen Mirojnick — The film’s Costume Designer James Remar Corey Hawkins Benny Safdie SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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BYTE — The Odyssey Red Carpet Premiere
2w ago00:04:16Tap to summarizeNew York City Premiere At the New York City premiere of The Odyssey, the red carpet felt electric — a collision of ancient myth, contemporary filmmaking, and the creative forces who’ve reimagined Homer’s epic for a new generation. In this special episode of Byte, Tony brings listeners inside the event with interviews provided by Universal Pictures, featuring the film’s cast and creative team as they reflect on music, destiny, family, and the emotional architecture of this sweeping adaptation. From the Red Carpet Ludwig Göransson — The Oscar‑winning composer Zendaya Thomas Hayslip — Executive Producer Tom Holland Lupita Nyong’o Samantha Morton SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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Building Pluribus From The Ground Up
3w ago00:25:44Tap to summarizeTony Zooms with Denise Pizzini, Emmy‑nominated Production Designer for the genre‑bending series Pluribus. A former set decorator turned visionary production designer, Denise breaks down the extraordinary creative and logistical challenges behind crafting the show’s shifting realities — each one grounded in character, story, and emotional truth. Topics Include: Building Carol’s World From the Ground Up Recreating Power: Air Force One Transforming the Everyday: The Supermarket The Warehouse of Secrets A Banquet Across Borders Elvis’s Suite in Las Vegas A House in the Canary Islands… in New Mexico SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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Fear as a Villain With Christopher Piñero, Writer‑Director of The Prowler
3w ago00:15:58Tap to summarizeFear as a Villain, Humanity as the Battleground Tony zoomed with filmmaker Christopher Piñero to explore how psychological horror can illuminate the most vulnerable corners of human experience. Piñero’s award‑winning short film The Prowler — starring Aaron Dominguez of Only Murders in the Building — is a tense, unsettling descent into fear, paranoia, and the fragile line between perception and reality. As The Prowler prepares for its LA debut at the LA Shorts International Film Festival, Piñero joins Tony to unpack the film’s origins, emotional architecture, and the cultural influences that shaped its haunting atmosphere. Piñero reveals the spark behind the film: “What if fear itself became the villain?” This question became the creative engine driving The Prowler, a story designed to keep audiences questioning what’s real until the final moment. Tony and Piñero dig into how psychological horror can externalize internal battles — turning emotion into threat, and tension into narrative propulsion. Aaron Dominguez’s Unsettling Performance Dominguez delivers a grounded, disquieting performance that anchors the film’s psychological tension. Tony and Piñero discuss how Dominguez navigates the character’s unraveling — guiding audiences through a night where nothing is quite what it seems. SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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Foundation: Inside the Visual Effects
3w ago00:22:29Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Tony sits down with Chris MacLean, the Overall Visual Effects Supervisor for Foundation, for a sweeping conversation about how the show’s visual language continues to evolve in scale, sophistication, and emotional depth. From hybrid location/virtual sequences to metaphysical constructs like the Tree of Time, Chris breaks down how the VFX team expands the universe each season while keeping the story’s humanity at the center. Chris MacLean — Overall Visual Effects Supervisor, Foundation A guiding force behind the series’ most ambitious visuals, Chris oversees the expanding workload across studios, continents, and timelines. His insights reveal how the show’s VFX pipeline blends cutting‑edge technology with grounded storytelling. Covered Are: The Photobike Sequence Holograms & The Tree of Time Clarion Station Cloning Facility Destruction The Sacrifice of Demerzel The Mule’s Eye Power SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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The Town That Takes: Croatoan, & Myth
3w ago00:14:21Tap to summarizeA conversation with writer/director/star Britt Bankhead & star Grace Patterson In this episode, Tony zooms with Britt Bankhead — the writer, director, and lead actor of The Town That Takes — along with co‑star Grace Patterson, to explore the chilling mystery at the heart of their new film. The story begins with a father whose son vanishes in a remote town. As he teams up with two detectives, the trio must confront the terrifying legend of CROATOAN before another child disappears. What unfolds is a collision of Native American mythology, supernatural dread, and action. 🪶 Croatoan & Native American Mythology Croatoan legend as the film’s spine — how Britt researched the myth and why it still resonates The team’s approach to weaving Native American folklore into a modern thriller How ancient stories of disappearance and spirits shaped the film’s tone and world‑building 🎬 Behind the Film: Crafting Fear & Momentum Britt’s triple role as writer, director, and star — and how that shaped the emotional core Grace Patterson on grounding the supernatural with human vulnerability Building tension through action sequences, practical effects, and atmospheric visuals The film’s special effects: blending realism with mythic horror A tight, demanding shooting schedule that pushed the cast and crew to innovate SAVE 17% ON PLUS TODAY
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Widow's Bay By Design
3w ago00:14:24Tap to summarizeWidow’s Bay: Crafting Worlds with Emmy Nominees Steve Arnold & Jennifer Engel In this behind‑the‑scenes deep dive, Tony sits down over Zoom with Steve Arnold, Emmy‑nominated Production Designer, and Jennifer Engel, Emmy‑nominated Set Decorator for Widow’s Bay. Together, they unpack the creative engineering behind one of television’s most atmospheric series — from designing entire environments across multiple soundstages to sourcing the unusual, character‑defining props that give the show its eerie, lived‑in texture. They also share candid reflections on receiving Emmy nominations, what recognition means at this stage in their careers, and how the collaborative spirit of Widow’s Bay shaped every frame. SAVE 17% ON PLUS
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Emily Hampshire: Becoming Jennifer Goines: Chaos, Comedy & Control
4w ago00:31:12Tap to summarizeEmily Hampshire interview is always electric — she’s one of those performers whose mind moves as fast as her characters. As Jennifer Goines on 12 Monkeys, she delivered one of the most unpredictable, heartbreaking, and darkly hilarious performances in modern sci‑fi. And now, with a slate of recent projects ranging from horror‑thrillers to sharp indie dramas, she’s in one of the most creatively exciting phases of her career. This conversation explores how she built Jennifer’s fractured psyche, why she loves characters who “don’t care about being liked,” and how her career has expanded into bold new territory. SAVE 17% ON PLUS TODAY
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"Being Human: The Monster Within Us”
4w ago00:20:09Tap to summarizeFrom the red‑carpet special, Tony spoke with the U.S. cast of Syfy’s Being Human at the Paley Center in New York. during the run of the series — starring Sam Witwer, Meaghan Rath, Sam Huntington, and Sarah Allen — reimagined the supernatural roommate concept with surprising emotional depth. Running from 2011 to 2014, the show became a breakout hit, marking Syfy’s strongest winter scripted launch in nearly a decade. Alongside the cast, Tony also interviews Mark Stern, then President of Original Programming at Syfy, who reflects on why Being Human resonated so powerfully with audiences. SAVE 17% ON PLUS TODAY
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