When animals are on screen, how do you get them to perform and act according to the script? Former animal handler Ashley Foster joins Gil to discuss how he did it for over ten years on the sets of fantasy, history, and drama films and shows.

Read more about Ashley and Vislor on their website - vislor.com

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The most recent show adaptation by Game of Thrones creators Dan Weiss and David Benioff showcases the same entertaining highs and facepalm lows in their new Netflix show. Cinematographer Asi Oren joins Gil to break it down.

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Succession is one of the most beloved shows in recent memory even though it has a recurring plot and unlikeable characters. So what makes Succession work? Gil is joined by podcaster Lireza Elazaj from the French speaking podcast Les Poissons Sans Cicyclettes.

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We re-tell the story of 20th century Paris through four movies from different time periods that represent the evolution of the French capital in the 20th century. Moulin Rouge (1998) takes us back to the bohemian wave of 1900 (La Belle Epoque); Midnight in Paris (2012) hearkens back to the Roaring Twenties (Les Annes Folles) when post-WWI Paris was a Mecca for artists from around the world; we then leap over WWII and the fall from grace as the US ascended to dominance, to get to Amelie (1997), a French fascist movie masquerading as a rom-com, and we end with the hit drama La Haine (1995) and its intense portrayal of the downtrodden minorities that live around The City of Light but were never part of its story. Does Paris live up to its hype? Gil Kidron and Dr Rutger Vos disagree.

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Police brutality has been on display in the United States since George Floyd's murder became an international story, but the problem with policing is, unfortunately, a global phenomenon. In this episode, Gil Kidron and Dr Rutger Vos explore five movies (three Americans, one French and one Israeli) to better understand what kind of system has been put in place that produces the same result, over and over again in so many places. The movies are: Do The Right Thing (1989), La Haine (1995), Crash (2004), Ajami (2009) and Fruitvale Station (2013).

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Westworld has a lot of philosophical and psychological themes and elements, and in this episode therapist Noga Ariel Galor joins Gil Kidron to breakdown how Westworld season 3 addressed the relationship between our bodies and our minds, how separate or integral they are to each other, as well as the differences between free will and having a choice between options.

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The Last Dance, the Michael Jordan and Chicago Bulls Netflix documentary says a lot about the 1990s, as well as about today. Theo Gangi, Knicks fan extraordinaire joins Gil Kidron to talk about the political and social angle of the hit documentary series that chronicles the greatest basketball team of all time and the greatest basketball player of all time.

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Daenerys Targaryen used the only planes on her planet to conquer Westeros, much like her ancestors did some 300 years before her. Gil Kidron welcomes Dan Mosqueda, a retired Lt. Col. from the US Airforce to talk about how realistic was her use of airpower (i.e. dragons) compared to real-world use of it, by American forces in conflicts around the world.

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When you interact with someone else and you have to decide whether to cooperate with them or cheat them, the difference between the choices can sometimes be expressed in simple cost/benefit analyses. If we are generous with each other we might both reap the rewards. But maybe cheating is cheaper - unless you punish me for it. The mathematical analysis of these choices is called game theory. Extrapolate that to the Cold War. In this episode, Gil Kidron and Dr Rutger Vos explore four movies on this topic: A Beautiful Mind (2001) about the life and times of John Nash, one of the pioneers of game theory, and three Cold War nuclear stare-down movies, Dr Strangelove (1964) and Fail Safe (2000), and War Games (1983).

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We made a glaring omission in our Native Americans in Movies podcast and we'd like to set the record straight and mention the movie 1492, and this guy Christopher Columbus. We also need your help for a new name for the podcast!

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Over the course of 400 years, from 1500 to 1900, the interaction between Europeans and Native Americans changed enormously. Initially, the new arrivals stepped off of their boats into a maelstrom of local events. By the end, events would be entirely dominated by European settlement, with native cultures fighting for their survival on the margins. In this review, Rutger and Gil look at three snapshots along the way of this process. We begin with Apocalypto (2006), where the Europeans almost don't matter at all. Then, in Pocahontas (1995), the native people and the settlers are roughly even-keeled and the latter are even temporarily rebuffed. By the end, in Dances with Wolves (1990), autonomous native life only exists in the remote prairies, which are set to change forever as well.

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The HBO series, The Plot Against America, whose last episode aired on Monday, April 20th, depicts the political rise of a Trump-like figure in the US during the early stages of WWII. In this episode, Gil and Rutger discuss why this series hit us so hard. Family stories, our worries about the present, and the fragility of democratic systems come together in this review. 

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Hollywood's disaster movie industry has created the sub-genre of biological apocalypse movies, which are now more relevant than ever. In this episode, Gil Kidron and Dr Rutger Vos talk about movies that depict scenarios that were once farfetched but are now mostly just exaggerated. In 12 Monkeys (1997) a deadly virus wipes out 5 billion people, 28 Days Later (2002) follows a "rage virus" that we gave to animals and then they infected us with is which led to a total breakdown of society, and Contagion (2011) famously depicts how the Chinese animal industry got us all into lockdown and social distancing.

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How has the depiction of work changed through the last 15 years? Let's focus on one place of work to explore it to the fullest. Our films are: Ratatouille (2007), The Menu (2022), The Bear (2022). To support the podcast click here!

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Both nature and computing are at certain levels digital. Code organized in discrete symbols (DNA bases, bits) can be understood, decoded, and manipulated. But do we understand these systems well enough to meddle with them? In this episode, Dr Rutger Vos explores this question in a review of three movies: The Imitation Game (2014), Jurassic Park (1993), and Independence Day (1996). And, how will our ability to manipulate these codes affect our fight against the coronavirus?

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As 3 billion people find themselves in isolation, quarantine or lockdown, our lives might seem unrecognizable. So we go to classic movies who feature isolation, alone or with families, to see what we can learn or derive from them: Cast Away (2000), The Martian (2015) and The Shining (1980).

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Scientists from all over the world are working tirelessly on three fronts: 1. testing 2. treatment 3. vaccine. In this podcast, Dr Rutger Vos joins Gil Kidron and details where we're at now, how does it work and what is being done in order to get to the Holy Grail that will save humanity from the virus that has upended civilization and will win the Nobel prize.

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In this podcast, we welcome patron Omri Goldshtrom to discuss political change according to the epic story George R R Martin is still writing. What can we glean from the political processes that are occurring and from Martin's views on government, reform and history? This was recorded pre-Corona, but is made all the more relevant and pertinent now that the entire world has changed and political institutions are adapting to an increasingly unsustainable reality.

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As the world changes so rapidly because of the spread of the Coronavirus, it is a time for us humans to take stock of the society we have created for ourselves and make decisions about the world we want to live in moving forward. After this historical ongoing event, some conventional wisdoms and ideological dogmas will have to be cast aside. Dr Rutger Vos joins Gil Kidron for a conversation about the world after the Corona pandemic.

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The Israeli elections of January 2020 were heading towards a victory for acting prime minister Benjamin Bibi Netanyahu, who needs 61 seats in parliament to avoid standing trial for corruption. As of the time of this taping, he has 59 seats and has fallen short. Sadly, his rivals have proven themselves incapable of mounting a serious charge and make their case to the public. At the same time, the Jewish left has been decimated while the Join Arab List has gotten a record number of seats. Actor and former activist Yonatan Miller joins Gil Kidron to make sense of it all.

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The Australian fires have already affected the global climate crisis and will also impact the local (and global?) economy. How did Australia get to where it got in January, where venturing outside was as dangerous as smoking 37 cigarettes in one day? Gil Kidron welcomes patron and Australian environmentalist Alex Rooke to break it all down.

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The jungle has long been a very attractive topic in movies and books, with its unstoppable nature teeming with mysterious and dramatic creatures and plants. In this episode, Dr. Rutger Vos joins Gil Kidron to talk about the jungle from a scientific perspective, as well as about how it is perceived in the human imagination. We explore the topic through five movies: Apocalypse Now (1979), Avatar (2009), Apocalypto (2006), Jungle Book (2016) and The Legend of Tarzan (2016). One fictional jungle and jungles in Latin America, India, Africa, and South East Asia. 

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U.S. President Donald Trump triumphantly announced his so-called Deal of the Century for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu clapping alongside him. But what is actually in the deal? What's not there? How does it correlate to reality? Who wins? Who lost? Why is the Israeli government rejecting its own deal? Gil Kidron and Rutger Vos breakdown the reality behind the political theater.

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The Expanse season 5 highlighted two historical processes: 1. the Belter factions fighting for independence in different ways, reminiscent of many fights for freedom against colonial and post-colonial powers; 2. The American War on Terror. We also discuss the science of vacuum. 

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American filmmakers and storytellers have been fascinated with the concept of a white American man joining the natives to fight against his own people. Let's unpack that through three films: Dances With Wolves (1990), Avatar (2009) and Dune (2021). To support the podcast click here!

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The coronavirus 2019-nCov has been spreading out in the world and in the headlines. But what is a coronavirus anyway? Should we be worried? In this episode, Gil Kidron and Dr Rutger Vos (a biologist) discuss some of the basics of this thing that's going around (Is it alive? How is it structured?) and the search for some of the essential facts-on-the-ground (How fast does it spread? How lethal is it?). We also look at some of the social and political implications: the current events have led to very unfortunate outbreaks of another thing - racism against mainland Chinese people, who already have to undergo a very heavy-handed, dystopian government response.

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As the Democratic primaries in the United States kick off, we break down the candidates positions on Israel and the Palestinians: who is repeating talking points? Who is pandering? Who is taking it seriously? Who can really affect change? Political activist and data expert Benjy Cook, himself an Israeli-American, joins Gil Kidron to unpack the empty rhetoric, provide context, parcel the different coalitions and try to lay out what will things look like in the Middle East if this or that candidate becomes president.

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Harry Potter's three main characters are the heroes of the story, but in vastly different ways, which can teach us a lot about ourselves and how to face injustices in our societies. We welcome back huge Potterhead and patron Lireza Elezaj to join Gil Kidron in breaking down Harry's heroism in facing his inevitable fate with his head held high, Ron's decision to endanger his privileges and family to fight for the rights of other people and Hermione's journey to accepting that the deck is stacked against her and that others want to risk themselves for her.

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World War 1 has left an undeniable mark on the world, and in many ways shaped it, even though it is relatively under-represented on screen. It could be because of the lack of clear narrative for the war, the anti-Hollywood elements in trench wars and lack of goodies and baddies, or the fact that it preceded a much more interesting and important war. In this History in Movies podcast Gil Kidron welcomes again Rutger Vos, this time to talk about World War 1 in movies.

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In an offhand remark, The Expanse claims that other forms of life are possible, such as forms based on silicon rather than carbon. How plausible is that? And what else would need to be in place? You'd need liquid water, for one. In fact, a whole bunch of things would need to fall exactly into place. Things that are on the one hand rare - but given the enormous numbers of stars and exoplanets would still occur many times. So where are all the aliens? In this podcast, Gil and Rutger talk about habitability and the origin of life. 

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The Expanse might be set in the 2300s, but it is written by 21st-century people and inspired in many ways from history and current political contexts. In this episode patron Omri Goldshtrom, history buff, joins Gil Kidron to find the very many similarities between The Expanse, the path towards the independent Belter nation and the histories of the United States and Israel. We will get into the founding of these immigrant nations vs the immigrant Belter nation, refugees, terrorism and more. 

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In this episode, we dive into The Expanse season 4 and its many layers. As humans travel farther than ever before, to a new world - new evolutionary opportunities arise. And pitfalls. Rutger and Gil break down the evolutionary opportunities and pitfalls that await organisms that move to new habitats. In our own world, new environments sometimes open up either because they suddenly appear - like volcanic islands rising up from the ocean floor - or because key innovations in the evolution of a lineage make the environment accessible. For example, when a lineage evolves the ability to fly and the skies open up. In The Expanse, a whole universe of different planets has suddenly opened up. What might that mean for humans if they radiate outward into this vast space? And what about the organisms they might bring along? What do bats have to do with it? And jellyfish in the Mediterranean?

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To mark Christmas, we look at movies depicting the life and times of perhaps the most controversial rabbi of the Second Temple period: Jesus of Nazareth. We rewatch the Life of Brian and are reminded of Empire and of the brutality with which the Romans imposed their will homogenously across enormous swathes of land, ironically setting up the environment in which the ideology of the guy they executed could spread. We then go over the odious Passion of the Christ, which features prosthetic noses and blood curses, and wrap it up with the interesting but slow-moving Last Temptation of Christ. Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, and everything else!

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The Expanse season 4 has been out on Amazon Prime since December 13, and it is the best season of this scifi story, rife with historical elements, such as Mars collapsing after reaching a truce with Earth in the same vein that the USSR collapsed after the end of the cold war, the expansion out to the American west or Age of exploration elements, all the way to compelling scientific questions such as new biomes and the sounds guns make in space. Rutger joins Gil to celebrate this season, its writing, acting, production value and pace, and complain a bit about the final two episodes.

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The UK elections will be held on Thursday, December 12, and the results will impact not only the British people but Europeans at large - for decades to come. Will unelected incumbent conservative Boris Johnson win an outright majority? What will that mean? Will opposition leader and beleaguered head of Labor Jeremy Corbyn shock the world by tiptoeing around Brexit and focusing on social programs? Will the smaller parties make a splash? Gil Kidron hosts patron John Ellis, a Welshman with a B.A in Politics, to break it all down.

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Our film journey in this episode goes through three painters from the last 400 years, Johaness Vermeer in Girl With a Pearl Earing (2003), JMW Turner in Mr Turner (2014), and Jackson Pollock in Pollock (2000). Support our podcast on Patreon!

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The Expanse is a political story about a society set 200 years in the future, led by humans who are making the same sort of calculations leaders today make - weighing options, trying to figure out what other people will do in all kinds of situations. Rutger joins Gil to talk about game theory, the thinking behind it and its applications in all walks of life, including when dealing with a trans-planetary conflict with several factions, and the sub-factions within them. The conflict between, Earth, Mars and the Belt is shaped by the decisions, assumptions and misjudgments of its leaders, and exploring game theory through this Amazon Prime show is a great way to learn more about The expanse and game theory.

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After long years of on-and-off investigations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been indicted for corruption charges - including bribery. His upcoming trial changes the political situation in Israel after 10 years of solid reign for King Bibi, which increasingly now seem like they will soon be in the past. Therapist Noga Ariel Galor is joining Gil Kidron on the podcast to break down Bibi's deteriorating mental state and how it endangers the fabric of a society that is very diverse to begin with.

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The King (2019) is a Netflix movie adapting a play from William Shakespeare's Henriad, about Henry V of England, who united the realm and went to successful wars in France. Rutger joins Gil to talk about the political relevance of The King in the UK's shattered politics in the age of Brexit, as the union is breaking apart at the seams. We go into detail about the actual historical context of the 100 years war that fostered national sentiments on both sides of the English channel, leaving an old world of warrior kings behind, to be later replaced by rich royal courts, all-powerful monarchs and world explorations. We also discuss the historical figures and the context in which the plays were written, some 200 years later.

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Game of Thrones turned several gay side characters from the books into caricatures of contemporary gay people, weak gay men and butchy gay women, while the gender fluidity in the books of characters like Cersei and Daenerys was left in the editing room. Gotributor John Taggart, with a BA Film and Television Studies and currently working on his Masters, joins Gil Kidron for a pleasant conversation that devolves into frustrated rants.

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Is Severus Snape a horrible person who abused a traumatized child or a fighter against the dark forces? Is he a cynical person who only saw the light when the darkness consumed his loved one, or is he a victim of his upbringing? Anke Bosma, a long time patron of Got Academy with a Masters in Literary Studies and an ardent Potterhead, is coming to defend Snape against the evil forces who want to disparage him, aka Gil Kidron and his arguments about child care.

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One of the best things about The Expanse is the language spoken by the Belters, who live in the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Saturn. Belters are made up of Americans, Chinese, Russians, South Africans and more, and the society that they have created, under the oppression of Earth and Mars, is very much represented in their common language, that unifies people who live millions of kms (or miles) apart. Mallory Aler, linguist extraordinaire, comes back to the podcast and joins Gil Kidron to talk about the history of creole languages, the role of languages in forming new nation-states and what we can learn from the history of our own world and project into The Expanse.

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Wall Street and its flaws are a common theme in movies, which emphasize the excesses, the risk-taking, and the societal fallout. But once upon a time, banking and finance were boring, steady occupations - and even before that, they were the domain of Florentine family businesses and Venetian Jews. What changed, and why? In this History in Movies podcast Gil Kidron welcomes again Rutger Vos, this time to talk about how Hollywood portrays the world of finance capitalism.

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Is Dumbledore really to blame for the flaws in the wizarding world? Should he have done better? After last week's podcast with writer Ariella Yashar, airing out her beef with the great Albus Dumbledore, huge Potterhead and patron Lireza Elezaj comes to his defense with very compelling arguments. He is a powerful wizard, but not a deity, so he doesn't know everything that is going on in Hogwarts; his hiring practices are inclusive, look at the big picture and are oftentimes restricted by reality, and he knows that young wizards need to go through trials and tribulations to be prepared for the wizarding world, knowing and controlling their powers. Gil Kidron waves a white flag, apologizes to the great Dumbledore and tries to repent.

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Hogwarts principle Dumbledore is a revered wizard and beloved character in the Harry Potter series, but is he any good? Harry Potter is a timeless story that has captivated millions and millions of people, with its world-building, loveable characters, steady narrative through the years and holistic feel. Even though we admire it and its writer, JK Rowling, we need to talk about Albus. Writer Ariella Yashar has a beef with Dumbledore and she wants to set things straight - he's very bad at his job. Gil Kidron tries to rush to the legendary headmaster's defense.

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In this Science in Movies podcast Gil again welcomes Rutger, this time to talk about how global epidemics (known as pandemics) have been portrayed in movies. We talk about Outbreak (1993), Contagion (2011), Philadelphia (1993), and Black Death (2010). We discuss the scientific aspects of these epidemics, fact-check their movie versions, how they have affected society in the past or will affect us in the future, and how the depiction of pandemics has evolved in the past few decades.

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Three films that came out in 2022 highlight the general sentiment of aggression and disdain to the rich and powerful elite that lord over us: Glass Onion, The Menu and The Batman. To support our podcast go to our Patreon page.

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For the second time in 2019 - Israelis went to the polls, to elections that were unlike any previous elections. Thankfully, we evaded the worst and acting prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to get the majority he needed to evade corruption charges. And not for lack of trying: he tried to postpone the elections by initiating a war, broke election laws several times and incited against the Israeli Arabs population. Gil Kidron speaks with Got Academy patron Ariella Yashar about it all. For the full Patreon exclusive podcast https://www.patreon.com/posts/30153314.

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For the second time in 2019 - Israelis are headed to the polls, but these elections are unlike any previous elections, because if current prime minister Benjamin Bibi Netanyahu gets his way - he'll be able to form a ruling coalition with the most racist, vile and violent parts of Israeli society in a coordinated effort to avoid standing trial on corruption charges, while dismantling what is left of Israel's democratic identity, replacing it with a strongman state, backed by factions who seek violence and apartheid. There are several better scenarios too - Gil elaborates on some of them in this shortened version and on all of them in the complete podcast, exclusively for patrons on https://www.patreon.com/posts/29981054

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Mindhunter by David Fincher is a Netflix show about the history of profiling serial killers by the FBI. There are clear psychological and historical elements to it, but in our conversation with contributor Mallory Aler, who is doing her Masters in linguistics, we want to focus on the linguistic aspects: language, performance, procedures, and the politics and society from which those are born.

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