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Welcome to... So What Are You Into?!
83 Plays3 months ago
Talking out loud about the stuff that won’t leave us alone. Hosted by James Tolbert and Curt Mega, So, What Are You Into?! is a low-stakes conversation podcast built around interpersonal cultural commentary. Each episode, we bring the movies, shows, music, ideas, and random cultural obsessions we’ve genuinely been engaging with lately. No homework required. Not reviews. Just honest, sometimes ranty conversations about why something’s sticking and what happens when you talk about it with other people.
This week we talk about why “ordinary” characters have been speaking to us in a moment that feels anything but ordinary. When the world feels unstable, why do stories about flawed, working-class, quietly moral people hit harder?
James brings: • Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die • No Other Choice • One Battle After Another • The Secret Agent We dig into foreign-language films and the way they smuggle in profound social commentary without announcing themselves as Important Cinema. What makes these stories feel urgent? What are they revealing about systems, survival, and the quiet absurdity of modern life?
Curt brings: • Wonder Man • A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms
Both shows circle back to a core question: what does it mean to live fully in your calling - even when nobody sees or cares?
We talk about: • Vocation vs. visibility • Excellence in a culture that rewards frauds • Why “doing the right thing” feels radical again • And why we’re craving stories about people trying - imperfectly - to be decent
What are you into right now?
Email us: sowhatareyouintopod@gmail.com
Follow along: Instagram + TikTok: @sowhatareyouintopod
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Transcript
Starting a Podcast: Purpose and Identity
00:00:00
Curt Mega
um We don't have to have a hard start or anything, but ah wow.
00:00:02
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:00:04
Curt Mega
Okay. We're doing it.
00:00:04
James Tolbert
<unk> yeah but It's happening. We're two dudes with live mics, just what the world needed.
00:00:09
Curt Mega
What the world needs is another podcast with two guys.
00:00:14
James Tolbert
and And, and we know people have just been clamoring for this. I woke up this morning knowing that I was going to fulfill my glorious purpose and ah provide, I need to provide my, another podcast, please.
00:00:20
Curt Mega
That's what the people have been saying. Can we get another podcast?
00:00:25
James Tolbert
We just need, what what do men think? We need to know what men,
00:00:27
Curt Mega
Yeah. What do guys think about movies and art? That's what I need to know.
00:00:32
James Tolbert
That's what i need to know.
00:00:32
Curt Mega
up You know what I will say? i was talking to my buddy about this because I was telling him about, oh, I'm starting this podcast with James. You know, and I said, oh, i know everybody. eats And he goes, you know, I understand that sentiment.
00:00:43
Curt Mega
But he's like, nobody says that about like a book or music. No one's like, oh, another book. So, you know, I mean, yes, we're at a we're at peak podcast right now in our culture that and maybe it's also podcast is responsible for the downfall of ah America in 2026.
00:01:00
Curt Mega
But we're going to try to be the antidote to that. Yeah.
00:01:03
James Tolbert
Do you think by definition, are are just because we're two men with microphones, are we just already in the manosphere? Like that just by default?
00:01:10
Curt Mega
oh no but no Yeah, like, is that by default you start at that place and you have to prove that you're not?
00:01:14
James Tolbert
thank
00:01:18
James Tolbert
Right.
00:01:19
Curt Mega
yeah
00:01:20
James Tolbert
hey
00:01:21
Curt Mega
honestly.
00:01:22
James Tolbert
okay and but it's only But it's only by ah producing at least 10 episodes in which we're not espousing ah fascism and and misogyny that we are expert claim that we're not part of that.
00:01:31
Curt Mega
That we get to get to give that card back.
00:01:35
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:01:36
Curt Mega
Yeah.
Media Evolution and Podcast Theme
00:01:37
Curt Mega
what You know what? I just want to say, you and I both have were podcasting before Manosphere Fascism took over. So they encroached on, it was like a weird, nerdy thing to do.
00:01:46
James Tolbert
That is true.
00:01:51
Curt Mega
The year was 2016, 2017.
00:01:51
James Tolbert
Yes. Oh, yeah.
00:01:53
Curt Mega
And you're like, wow, you're doing a podcast? um So we were here before it was fascist.
00:02:01
James Tolbert
Before it was fascist.
00:02:02
Curt Mega
Yeah.
00:02:03
James Tolbert
Before it took a hard right turn and it's it's careening. Although I do see that that it's kind of changing, right? Because like even Joe Rogan is starting to see a little bit of the error of his ways.
00:02:14
James Tolbert
um So
00:02:16
Curt Mega
Good job, dude.
00:02:16
James Tolbert
it
00:02:17
James Tolbert
good way way to be late to the party, but congratulations.
00:02:17
Curt Mega
Good job.
00:02:20
Curt Mega
eight yes yeah
00:02:21
James Tolbert
Okay.
00:02:22
Curt Mega
um Well, what is this? what What are we doing?
00:02:26
James Tolbert
what is this? So, uh, the, the title of this podcast is, so what are you into? And it's, it's, it's suggestive.
00:02:32
Curt Mega
And that can mean anything.
00:02:35
James Tolbert
No one knows what it means, but it gets the people going, you know?
00:02:38
Curt Mega
It could be anything.
00:02:39
James Tolbert
Uh,
00:02:41
Curt Mega
What are you into about anything? We could ask it suggestively. What so what are you into? And whatever that strikes in you, that is the answer.
00:02:48
James Tolbert
with a deep voice, just a little ASMR about what are you into?
00:02:52
Curt Mega
yeah
00:02:54
James Tolbert
Yeah. ah but But really, we we did this because Kurt and I, you know we'll we'll meet up a lot and just talk about the things that are inspiring us or enriching our spirit a little bit.
00:03:06
James Tolbert
And and you know we can go on tangents and talk for hours about it. And i don't know, one day we just kind of figured out, wouldn't it be nice to just do this in a formal setting, like a podcast?
00:03:18
Curt Mega
I think we both have this love of discussing media and and storytelling and that's a broad, it's a broad category. It's like film, television, storytelling, music, the stuff that speaks to our soul, the stuff that prompted us to want to do what we do with our lives, but not always frame it in like a review context.
00:03:38
Curt Mega
Like, ah, I give this seven out of 10, but more like, how is, how is the stuff that you're engaging with speaking to your life?
00:03:38
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:03:45
Curt Mega
How is it inspiring you? Maybe it's providing needed escapism. Maybe it is helping you think about your specific life or obstacles or deal with the
Art as Escapism and Perspective Sharing
00:03:57
Curt Mega
world. Like i just, you know, for me, storytelling is not just about it's good, it's bad. it is a framework through which to view the world around you, ah interpersonal, and then also the larger like conflicts and and and events and happenings. And so, yeah, we wanted to maybe create a space where it's not about a review. It's not about um you know ah making good or bad judgments. It's like, what are you what are you vibing with and how is it speaking into your life? um
00:04:30
Curt Mega
and And what does that mean for you? And I think you get to know a lot about somebody by What kind of media, you know, it's like that that's like the age old question, you know, you go to coffee. oh what kind of music music do you listen to whatever but like, but really unpacking that like no really what does that mean?
00:04:43
Curt Mega
Why is this song resonating with you? Why is this TV show working for you, you know, and so i think that's kind of the conversations we want to have about a lot of stuff.
00:04:49
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:04:53
James Tolbert
Absolutely. yeah Yeah. Coincidentally, I had a session with my therapist yesterday and he brought to light the fact that artists in general feel the world very sharply.
00:05:04
James Tolbert
And that was where he used sharply.
00:05:04
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:05:05
James Tolbert
and i And I really understood that because I feel like there's so much intersectionality between what is happening in the general populace in the world, but then how we as artists use that, whether it's in our, how we act in a show, how we create a story, how we shape ah the way that we sing songs. You know, I really think there is something there that makes ah an artist in any form tick. So, you know, our goal, ah while yes, there's gonna be a lot of conversations with just me and Kurt, we want to bring friends on, we want to bring other people that are have different focuses. So it's not just actors, but we also have ah musicians, we're going to have people that are behind the camera, we have writers, you know, we want to talk to the many people that are involved in the entertainment industry and just figure out what it is that makes them tick and what makes them the artists that they are today.
00:05:59
Curt Mega
Absolutely. Yeah. And I, ah one of the conversations we had that I thought really inspired maybe both of us thinking about that is last summer, we both had watched centers. We loved it. And we had a great conversation that we, we did as a podcast.
00:06:13
Curt Mega
And the thing I took away was that as much as I love that movie, getting to, talk about it and hear about it through your perspective. I got way more insight out of the film and I had already seen the film twice. And I like had a whole new fresh perspective instead of eyeballs to then revisit it through your perspective. And I, I found that to be super meaningful.
00:06:35
Curt Mega
And it's like, that is the, that is the joy of getting to discuss things through other perspectives with other people. And that's hopefully what I would love to share with people listening is, you know, you, you get perspectives and ideas and and takes on things. And this, you know, back, back when I first got interested in stories and movies and TV shows, you know, i think I was so, um, understandably naive about like, Oh, discussion is, i is it good? Is it bad? And the older I get, the more I'm like,
00:07:05
Curt Mega
it doesn't really matter what, what is much more interesting is like why somebody is interested in something or why something rubs someone the wrong way.
00:07:07
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:07:13
Curt Mega
And like what that says about their perspective and their experiences. And, you know, I, I think that's, that's way more interesting than just putting a, you know, rotten tomato score on a piece of art and going, okay.
00:07:18
James Tolbert
Totally.
00:07:26
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:07:27
Curt Mega
You know, it's like, at at its core to criticism and we're not we're not doing criticism but i great criticism about art is not about saying is it good it's bad it is really helping the an audience better have more perspective to think about something so that they can arrive at the conclusion themselves with more clarity and more ways in and so yeah we're not doing criticism but i do love that idea that like What something means to you to me is far more interesting than whether or not it was good. It was bad if it made money, if it didn't, whatever, if it checked boxes.
00:08:02
James Tolbert
Yeah, I'm definitely not here to argue any box office numbers. um And I'm sure i know I know I will have opinions about things. like there's i Actually, as we were talking, I realized there's something that we wanted to talk about that I i want to add another
Film Discussion: Creativity and Constraints
00:08:15
James Tolbert
caveat to that. But anyway, um but there's going to be things that Kurt and I agree on, and then we just see things very differently. And I'm excited to dive into some of that stuff, too. um So yeah, i'm I'm really glad we're doing this. I'm glad we're doing this, bud.
00:08:28
Curt Mega
This is episode zero. This is the beginning. So i guess um I guess we should start with the question, what are you into right now?
00:08:35
James Tolbert
Oh, he asked me, do you do you want me to go first?
00:08:38
Curt Mega
Sure.
00:08:38
James Tolbert
ah
00:08:38
Curt Mega
Yeah, let's start.
00:08:39
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:08:39
Curt Mega
Let's start.
00:08:39
James Tolbert
Okay.
00:08:40
Curt Mega
So what are you went into this week, James?
00:08:40
James Tolbert
So this week, um the timing could not have been more perfect because last night on a whim, I decided to go see Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die.
00:08:52
Curt Mega
The Gore Bravinsky movie.
00:08:52
James Tolbert
um have these yes Have you seen it yet?
00:08:55
Curt Mega
Yeah. I have not. I'm dying to see it, though.
00:08:58
James Tolbert
Okay, I'm not going to give you spoilers, which I feel like this is going to end up being a very spoiler heavy podcast in general. But um what what I love about this movie is it took me back to what got me into film, which is high concept. sci-fi imaginative stories. This would definitely still err on the side of a little bit of satire because it does talk about the technological revolution in our current time and how AI um can be our greatest ally, but yet our our biggest enemy as well. And um it is a funny movie.
00:09:36
James Tolbert
It is a dark movie. it is It's full of action. i i i caught myself grinning. and a lot a lot of the movie just because of how inventive and fun it was. And that's the thing, like you can have, um ah for perfect an opposite example, i I saw Hamnet not too long ago. And I caught myself enjoying certain, like you know when you're just watching a movie and you're just enjoying what you're seeing and you're just like, oh i couldn't help but smile a very specific scene in ham Hamnet when she's watching the play. But, ah but yeah, so I had a similar situation here during, during good luck where I was just grinning watching this movie because I love people that just take a risk and want to get something that, you know, yeah, has a message and it's going to speak to you, but they found a fun way to tell you this story. And, and that is what makes me want to create and want to be an actor is finding new ways to tell you like, Hey, your phone, it's probably going to kill you.
00:10:39
Curt Mega
i I genuinely think... i just There's a great YouTube channel that I love called VFX Guys React. um and And it's really fun because they always...
00:10:47
James Tolbert
I've seen those.
00:10:48
Curt Mega
They'll do like classic films, whatever, but they had Gore Verbinski on this week specifically to go through some of these scenes. And Gore Verbinski has like long been, for my money, in an underrated way, an incredibly inventive director.
00:10:55
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:11:04
Curt Mega
like Going back to like the Pirates movies, which still look...
00:11:05
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:11:08
Curt Mega
look
00:11:10
James Tolbert
Incredible.
00:11:10
Curt Mega
Phenomenal. Like, in in fact, often people will be like, why did CG look so good in 2004?
00:11:10
James Tolbert
Incredible movies. Yeah.
00:11:15
Curt Mega
What happened? And the reality is most of these companies don't pay enough and are crunch the workers.
00:11:16
James Tolbert
Yeah. Yeah. Hmm.
00:11:22
Curt Mega
And anyway, it's a whole work industry thing. But Gore Verbinski is such an inventive filmmaker. He did um he did a movie called... um Cure for Wellness, which is super weird.
00:11:33
Curt Mega
It's like about like an asylum in the 20s. And it's weird and it's out there and it's visually inventive. i i am so I'm s stoked to see this movie because i i he's the kind of director where doesn't make a ton of films, but every time he makes one, I feel like you go, he's got to take.
00:11:49
Curt Mega
like And he's taking a risk and he's making a swing.
00:11:50
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:11:51
Curt Mega
And even if I don't love the movie, the older I get, the more I'm like...
00:11:52
James Tolbert
yes
00:11:56
Curt Mega
I just want to see directors who have the the privilege and the resources to make a feature at that scale do something do something with it. You know what i mean? And I feel like he see it seems like he he has delivered something pretty like out of the box again, which is i'm I'm stoked to hear.
00:12:13
James Tolbert
Oh yeah. And he went with a smaller production company. So their budget was also not huge. And, but I think that's, and it's kind of the, ah the ethos of Starkid, right? For those of you who don't know who we are, which I guess we should have explained who we are to any new viewers.
00:12:26
James Tolbert
But anyway, well,
00:12:26
Curt Mega
yeah
00:12:28
Curt Mega
Well, you'd you're watching, you know.
00:12:31
James Tolbert
yeah yeah
00:12:31
Curt Mega
Or if you don't, look at that. um
00:12:33
James Tolbert
You know, we'll we'll figure it out. But, you know, Kurt and I are actors. We're part of this very popular online ah production company called Star Kid. And we've we've been together since I was in college at University of Michigan. We did some of first shows there back in 2009. And it's always been this kind of grassroots experience.
00:12:52
James Tolbert
figure out how to do the most with very little. And, you know, we only got our highest budget for our show last year in 2025. And that was what, 675K or 16 years in.
00:13:03
Curt Mega
16 years in. Yeah. yeah
00:13:05
James Tolbert
So, you know, so that whole time it's been trying to figure out how to put full scale shows on with no money and we You have a movie like Good Luck, which, yeah, it has a millions of dollar budget, but it's still not like ah it's not a Marvel movie. It's not you know some big epic ah thing. So you have to be very intentional about how you're filming this and a cast that is game to be creative and be inventive with what little you have. um and and and and And when you do that, when there's integrity, when there's heart,
00:13:40
James Tolbert
It works, and I just wish larger studios would recognize that.
00:13:45
Curt Mega
Man, having constraints is, I genuinely think, it' one of the most important aspects to being creative. Because when everything is a possibility, when everything is a we'll fix it in post, we'll we'll comp it, we'll CG it, we'll, you know. and And this is not to to belittle CG artists. CG art is a is an art. it is possibility.
00:14:05
James Tolbert
Mm-mm.
00:14:05
Curt Mega
incredibly difficult and challenging. So it's like, I'm not going to be like, Oh, CG is bad. No, some of my favorite films and stories only work because of this tool.
00:14:11
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:14:16
Curt Mega
But I would, they actually talk about this in the VFX guys react where they had Gore Bravinsky on where they were like, great CG works when the, the entire team has planned very specifically what that shot is going to be.
00:14:33
Curt Mega
and they were specifically were They were specifically looking at Stranger Things, the finale in this episode. and They were pointing out the shots that really work are when like a character, like there's like a big monster that like smashes down and then the characters are reacting to like this you know tidal wave shockwave. And they're like, it's clear they knew that this was going to be a moment, so they really planned it and the actors are are being thrown away and then the the particle effects and it works. And then there's other shots where you can tell they're just on a green screen, just kind of like, okay, you're kind of running and you're running more. And, and it's like, it looks, it looks good in the sense that it's photo real, but it doesn't feel tangible and tactile. And they were just like,
00:15:19
Curt Mega
knowing your constraints and knowing the limitations of what the shot is, is actually what then makes it believable and meaningful and good and real because you're building around your restraints.
00:15:21
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:15:29
Curt Mega
And it's something I think artists, it's, it's easy to think if I just had more money and it's like often, yes, money will solve a lot of your problems.
00:15:35
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:15:36
Curt Mega
It's true.
00:15:37
James Tolbert
True.
00:15:37
Curt Mega
But also, having the constraints and being like, here's what's off the table. It actually then means what you're focusing on the the little that you can do. You then can be very specific about it. And I do think like the Stargate is a good example. I mean, I genuinely, Jamie and I talked about this when we made this project called Space Baby, where we had very little resources, but it's like,
00:16:00
Curt Mega
Letting people see the strings a bit is part of the magic. And i think it would be amazing if, yeah, if Hollywood could learn the lesson that like, I don't think audiences are in love with perfection.
00:16:07
James Tolbert
Right.
00:16:15
Curt Mega
They're in love with specificity that feels so intentional to the world you're building. Um, but that doesn't seem to be a lesson. A lot ah a lot of studios take, uh,
00:16:23
James Tolbert
Oh, yeah, because I would rather take the dinosaurs from the original Jurassic Park over the Mind Flayer any day. i Give me puppets. Give me like actual handcrafted scary beasts rather than something computer generated any day.
00:16:39
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:16:39
Curt Mega
cause when you say everything is possible, it becomes very hard to make a choice.
00:16:44
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:16:44
Curt Mega
It's like everything, everything could happen versus like we go, no, we only have this, this amount of money and this stage and this space. And therefore we cannot do these 10,000 things. So we only can do these three things. So then we'll do this one thing. And then how are we get, it's like by narrowing down, you actually give yourself the gift of not having to be burdened by like every choice is on the table and actually just making a choice and then making it as you as possible.
00:17:12
Curt Mega
Um,
00:17:13
James Tolbert
Absolutely.
00:17:13
Curt Mega
It seems like such an obvious lesson, but but it's not.
00:17:16
James Tolbert
But it's always about money. It's because it's about
TV Shows: Humanity and Integrity
00:17:19
James Tolbert
money. At the end of the day, it's always about money and money will be the death of entertainment. um So that's, but that's a whole other story. Kurt, I'm going to flip it back to you. What are you into this week?
00:17:29
Curt Mega
Oh, man. Actually, it's a really ah there's great segue into that. There's two specific shows that I've been watching for the last few weeks that I wanted to talk about that very different shows, but there's an overlap in what it has been providing and giving to me as a as a viewer.
00:17:45
Curt Mega
um And that is the show Night of the Seven Kingdoms on HBO Max, which is a Game of Thrones.
00:17:49
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:17:52
Curt Mega
I guess you could call it a prequel. It it is. It takes place before the events of Game of Thrones. Honestly, very little prequel stuff in here. It's not like this is how the characters you love. be we're It's not. it's It really has nothing to do with most of the Game of Thrones that we've seen thus far.
00:18:08
Curt Mega
And the Disney Plus Spotlight show, i think it's called Wonder Man. Why? what do these shows have in common? um One of them is, you know, Wonder Man is Marvel. It's like a Marvel um superhero kind of show.
00:18:22
Curt Mega
Now, of the Seven Kingdoms fantasy. Both Game of Thrones and Marvel in recent years have been, for me personally, i have had, i there were things that when they initially came out, you know, going back to Iron Man in 2008, Game of Thrones, I think came out 2009 or 2010.
00:18:39
Curt Mega
So right around that same era, there was this, this, we had never experienced media on this scale before where episodic, and I will call Marvel movies episodic because they really, yes, they're movies, but there is an episodic nature to them.
00:18:41
James Tolbert
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:18:53
Curt Mega
So episodic storytelling on such a grand scale with the budget, the resources, that the the the the sort of the the wish fulfillment as a kid of like, wouldn't it be amazing if a TV show could have this or a movie or I could see these superheroes and it's not just one movie, but they're all connected.
00:19:11
Curt Mega
It was like this wish fulfillment.
00:19:13
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:19:13
Curt Mega
And it was glorious. And I i was obsessed with with... I mean, I loved Game of Thrones. It's funny because for me, fantasy has always been hit or miss. I'm not inherently drawn to fantasy like, ooh, dragons and magic. In fact, sometimes I find that challenging because I i struggle to buy into it.
00:19:31
Curt Mega
Game of Thrones has this very ah historical-based fantasy where the magic is like...
00:19:32
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:19:39
Curt Mega
is it real? Is it there? Maybe it is, but it's, but it's kind of about how ordinary people are living their lives and, and, you know, it's very brutal and that's very political.
00:19:41
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:19:48
James Tolbert
Well, it's it's political, right? It's political. And so we we can kind of, it's grounded in that way that we would want to tap in and we can key into these emotions of these characters.
00:19:56
Curt Mega
yes
00:19:56
James Tolbert
So yeah, yeah that makes sense.
00:19:58
Curt Mega
And I feel like Marvel, same same where Marvel really started in this kind of grounded place, even with Iron Man, you know, he's not like necessarily, yes, he's got powers, but his powers come from his brain. He's not like just shooting lasers out of his hands.
00:20:13
Curt Mega
And, you know, these shows and these franise the franchises the both got extremely successful, became ubiquitous, became cultural phenomenons. And in that process, one could say maybe lost a little of that magic that made them feel so accessible even even as they were on this grandiose scale.
00:20:34
Curt Mega
And I found myself, and listen, people still are are vibing with it, loving it, enjoying it, and that's super valid.
00:20:34
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:20:40
Curt Mega
I found myself in recent years kind of on the outside looking in a bit. Like, oh, you know, yeah, the new Marvel movies. Okay, great. You know, I don't know. I'm finding i'm not super invested or, oh this new Marvel TV show or. And I enjoyed House of Dragon a lot, but still very grandiose.
00:20:57
Curt Mega
What I love about these two shows coming out in this in this year. Both of these shows are about very average, normal, small people.
00:21:11
Curt Mega
I don't mean small in a dismissive way, but people where i go, I recognize humanity once again.
00:21:13
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:21:19
Curt Mega
i so that It's not about... It's not about earth-shattering, world-changing events. It's about the small folk. Literally, in Knight the Seven Kingdoms, it's about this this this knight named Dunk. And knight is used loosely because he's a hedge knight. He basically, the hedge knights are called hedge knights because they don't They sleep in the woods and they don't really, they're not powerful.
00:21:42
Curt Mega
They're not strong. He is, um he he is an orphan, ah kind of fell into this life.
00:21:44
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:21:50
Curt Mega
He's not particularly, he's not, royal he's not remotely close to royalty. He comes from the bottom of the barrel. And it's really about the question of the show is about um what, what does it mean to do the right thing when, when a nobody really cares and it doesn't get you anywhere.
00:22:07
Curt Mega
Right. What is to have integrity just because it's the right thing to do, not because your bloodline and your royalty and your the weight of the kingdom. It's like, no, it's just because it's the right thing to do.
00:22:18
Curt Mega
And then Wonder Man feels like a show that was custom made for me. It's about a guy who was an actor living in Los Angeles.
00:22:23
James Tolbert
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:22:28
Curt Mega
questioning what is the value in in being an artist and doing great work and having artistic integrity when it doesn't seem to get you anywhere, when nobody seems to care. And both of these, I started watching both of these shows in probably a week or two apart.
00:22:44
Curt Mega
Both of these shows just hit me like a ton of bricks because, a they are really cinematic and and and wonderful character pieces, but they just reminded me of, like, getting back to the humanity in the extraordinary circumstance.
00:22:59
Curt Mega
That is what I love about these kind of stories.
00:23:00
James Tolbert
Hmm.
00:23:02
Curt Mega
And they are just really flawed, not particularly cool. They're getting in their own way. You know, Dunk is constantly saying the wrong thing and going in the wrong door and stumbling over himself.
00:23:14
Curt Mega
um in In Wonder Man, the the the main character in Wonder Man, he's constantly in his own head and kind of sabotaging his own opportunities. And I haven't finished both series yet, but I am so in love with these shows. And it just has like reinvigorated. i just was like, oh my God, I love...
00:23:32
Curt Mega
I love these shows again. Oh, I can't wait for the next one.
00:23:34
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:23:34
Curt Mega
Oh my God. I like it's, and I haven't felt that way about this, this kind of storytelling in a hot minute. So yeah, I just, those are the two things that like stuck out to me this week of, I feel like, wow.
00:23:48
Curt Mega
And then, and we'll talk maybe a little about the pit later if there's time, but I just feel like we're like in this renaissance where I'm like, oh my gosh, television about people that feel really flawed and really human and really,
00:24:03
Curt Mega
ah trying to do the best they can in less than ideal circumstances. And that just speaks to me personally so much. so i don't know. Have you watched either of these shows, James?
00:24:13
James Tolbert
I haven't. And ah to be honest with you, I've had Marvel burnout. So i the last thing i I dutifully watched was Agatha all along.
00:24:18
Curt Mega
Yeah. Yeah.
00:24:24
James Tolbert
And then I kind of just like, I'm gonna not going to rewatch any of the movies. I'm not going to... I really wanted to separate myself because I was getting that fatigue. And I and I think is, I love that stuff.
00:24:35
James Tolbert
I grew up watching every Power Rangers episode, every X-Men, the animated series.
00:24:38
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:24:39
James Tolbert
Like I was inundated with that kind of television and movies. And yes, I have seen all the Marvel movies. But even I at a certain point said, I just need to take a step back because i it wasn't it didn't feel I didn't appreciate it anymore.
00:24:52
James Tolbert
i i just I was watching it just kind of out of habit. And um so Wonder Man is on my list. um But it's interesting that you bring that up because these themes of ordinary people, um and yes, we should talk about the pit too. But ah so have you've seen No Other Choice, yes?
00:25:11
Curt Mega
Yes.
00:25:12
James Tolbert
Okay. No Other Choice, which I also...
00:25:14
Curt Mega
The new ah Park Chan-wook film.
00:25:16
James Tolbert
yeah Yeah, yes.
00:25:17
Curt Mega
Yeah.
00:25:17
James Tolbert
and And he's phenomenal in it. um So, okay, so I'm going to combine this. No Other Choice, The Secret Agent, and One Battle After Another.
00:25:28
James Tolbert
three ah Three movies which are are about ordinary people. Now, they they splinter off into different themes and stories, but... I want to say that I've walked with this idea about the ordinary people and watching them because we're we're talking about things like classism. We're talking about revolution. We're talking about oppression from governments or um or just oppressive groups.
00:25:52
James Tolbert
And it's interesting because i I feel like in our current political climate, I am drawn to these stories about ordinary people surpassing their limitations or fighting back against these systems.
00:26:05
James Tolbert
And and no other choice.
00:26:06
Curt Mega
and And that it's just not to interrupt, but particularly in that sandbox of like, even when the machine and the ah the system pushes down on you and oppresses that, that it is still worth it to be, have integrity and to do the right thing.
00:26:07
James Tolbert
Oh, go ahead.
00:26:24
Curt Mega
Even when it seems like doing the wrong thing and being a liar and a fraud is the thing that gets you ahead in this world.
00:26:32
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:26:32
Curt Mega
choosing to be like, no, I'm still going to the right thing and have integrity. That message is like, it is cutting through the noise for me right now.
00:26:40
James Tolbert
yes
00:26:42
Curt Mega
It sounds like for you as well.
00:26:43
James Tolbert
It
Revolution and Community Resilience
00:26:44
James Tolbert
is. And and so so with that in mind, though, they get they go about that in a couple different ways in each movie. Because with no other choice, he's he's not necessarily doing the right thing. Like, is he doing the right thing for himself, for his family? Well, he's convincing himself that he's doing the right thing. It's a very Machiavellian idea and justify the means.
00:27:04
James Tolbert
So he has no other...
00:27:05
Curt Mega
and And for people who haven't who haven't seen No Other Choice, like the premise a man loses his job that he has been very good at and very dutifully dedicated to for much of his life, and he's being outsourced and and goes on a harrowing journey.
00:27:08
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:27:21
James Tolbert
to say the least yes
00:27:22
Curt Mega
comedically too, but also a brutal journey to basically prove that he is the best for the job in this limited field.
00:27:24
James Tolbert
okay
00:27:28
Curt Mega
I think his field is like a paper. He's like a paper guy, like literally, which is such a funny, but like, it's this very tactile, very like physical thing.
00:27:31
James Tolbert
yeah yeah yes and thing that is necessary a thing that is necessary for people we need it yeah
00:27:37
Curt Mega
And he, and, um,
00:27:41
Curt Mega
and, he goes on a journey to basically prove that he is the man for the job by any means necessary, by any means necessary.
00:27:46
James Tolbert
Yes. And by any means necessary. And so, yeah, and it and you it's the folly of him making these very ah short-sighted decisions to try to further his life and the life of his family.
00:27:50
Curt Mega
Uh,
00:27:58
James Tolbert
ah But then you have something like the secret agent where – I'm not sure.
00:28:01
Curt Mega
I'm dying to see this. I have not seen it yet.
00:28:03
James Tolbert
It's so good. It's so good. I'm not going to, it's not going to ruin your viewing, but basically ah you find out that the reason that your main character is in trouble is because he is a teacher doing research.
00:28:15
James Tolbert
ah And the government is essentially saying, we don't want you to have your hands on this. We're going to take this from you and him in Brazil, in Brazil.
00:28:22
Curt Mega
This takes place in Brazil. Is that right? During like a Brazilian revolution in this, I think I think the seventies, I believe but based in very real events.
00:28:24
James Tolbert
Yes. Yes. Yes. In the seventies. Yeah. Yeah. And, And so, uh, and so the choice to fight against this could cost you your life at this point. So now on a flip side from no other choice and the secret agent, that act of resistance could mean the death of you and your family, the you and your loved ones, because you have, you are trying to do the right thing. You are trying to do this research. You're trying to help your fellow people, but that could be the last day on earth. Once you make that decision.
00:28:59
James Tolbert
Um, I say that to then go to one battle after another. Now, i've we've kind of talked about this before. you We have different views, or at least how we felt on this movie.
00:29:10
Curt Mega
Yeah, I think I, yeah, I think I, it it kind of one of my favorite movies the year. i it just, I felt for me spoke to the moment and really just, just lit a fire in me creatively, artistically, the messages and themes of it. I think for you, maybe it did not connect as much if I'm right.
00:29:29
James Tolbert
it It didn't. And and in yeah I know we're coming at it from different ways. I i have a few ways to look at it. So me just as a black man, right, I'm watching this and I'm seeing um this is a movie about revolution in the in America and how different races have to deal with said revolution.
00:29:47
James Tolbert
So when with with the black revolutionaries, um you're seeing specifically women in this movie.
00:29:48
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:29:53
James Tolbert
They're specifically going through black female revolutionaries. um it it It relies heavily on on sex. um And then when it's not about Profitia, you're dealing with all the other women that are involved.
00:30:07
James Tolbert
i I personally don't feel like they have as much agency in this movie. And so we're getting a very limited scope of what a a black female revolutionary has done like Asada Shakur like ah and they use and they and I've seen in interviews that they they based a lot of perfidia off of her yet I don't feel like they really got her essence in the movie and so I I do feel like that I personally feel like they came they came up short in that um any Any scene with Benicio Del Toro in that movie was so good.
00:30:24
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:30:37
James Tolbert
I love that. I love that that community came together. They had systems in place. They knew what to happen what would happen when um the feds came into the area. Like, this is what we go. This is our route. And they were taking care of their people.
00:30:48
James Tolbert
The reason I had a problem with this movie is because at the core of it, it's ah it's ah ah your your main protagonist, which is Leo DiCaprio, ah He's a bumbling white guy. And maybe that was the point.
00:30:59
James Tolbert
he's He's not supposed to be good at what he's doing. But everything kind of happens around him.
00:31:04
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:31:04
James Tolbert
And he is never... ah I don't know that he's the champion here that is fighting for an injustice. that he Because he he barely knows the password to save his own daughter.
00:31:15
James Tolbert
you know and and And I know it's supposed to be funny. And maybe that's supposed to break some sort of tension. But when you only have him. And then you have Sean Penn on the other end. Who is... I mean, this is the creepiest Sean Penn I've ever seen in a movie.
00:31:28
James Tolbert
ah And so kudos to him because he does a fantastic job. But I... i I could not remove just how um it felt like a fantasy.
00:31:42
James Tolbert
It felt like Paul Thomas Anderson was just writing like, what's the worst version of this I can write?
00:31:45
Curt Mega
Hmm. Hmm.
00:31:47
James Tolbert
what's the what How far can I push this? And how uncomfortable can I make you feel? And like and and I mean, you did that. That's fine. But I did not walk away completely. with that inspiration that you were able to to walk away with.
00:31:58
James Tolbert
i I felt like it was just cosplay for someone who wanted to maybe make a comment about revolution. But in this day and age, with what we like, i've we've already seen the racist.
00:32:09
James Tolbert
We've seen the people in power that are doing horrible things to their citizens. ah I don't feel like it told me anything new. I don't feel like it told me anything that is going to make me, that is going to inspire me in Revolution.
00:32:23
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:32:24
James Tolbert
It just felt like, oh, well, I have the power to write this version of of ah how I think these characters would have reacted in this time. and and and and And that's any movie. That can be any movie. So I don't know. So the praise that this one specifically is getting, I don't feel as strongly about that.
00:32:42
Curt Mega
ah it's I think that's super valid. and i Examining it not through the lens of what was left out, I think, is really important.
00:32:49
James Tolbert
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:32:51
Curt Mega
Especially, you know, one could say, well, it's just a movie. You're like, right, but you are trafficking in very specific imagery, which did whether I think when they developed this movie, maybe these things weren't as absolutely as relevant as they are literally in this moment.
00:33:05
Curt Mega
However, they've always been on the cusp, you know, so it's like you can't help but analyze it and hold it up to like what is really happening for me.
00:33:06
James Tolbert
yeah
00:33:14
Curt Mega
And it's just, you know, this is one of the things that I took away from it. Going back to the Benicio character, that to me was the glue for me that really made the movie come into focus where I'm looking at Leo being like this guy and I, you know, 100% you're right.
00:33:28
Curt Mega
Like he kind of sucks. You're like not not Leo.
00:33:30
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:33:31
Curt Mega
The the actor in the movie, he's he's great.
00:33:32
James Tolbert
You know, the character, Pat, I think was his name.
00:33:34
Curt Mega
But the character, you're like, he's not, he's pretty ineffective. And I, you know, and so that, and then you're like, why is he the protagonist here? The Benicio character for me, in the in the film, Benicio plays, he's like a, he runs a dojo, but he also is doing
00:33:50
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:33:53
Curt Mega
very compassionate and radical sort of revolutionary work in that he is, as you said, literally coordinating and helping our most vulnerable people, you know, people who ah ah literally like through a community effort, what I loved about his character in particular, and I found it so admirable and it actually gave me a sense of like, cause go, what, okay, what is this movie trying to say about,
00:34:08
James Tolbert
yeah
00:34:19
Curt Mega
I had a conversation with a friend of mine about this where they felt they felt the film was somewhat irresponsible in the sense of like
00:34:30
Curt Mega
Because the movie really is dealing with this fact of like, look at look at what we tried to do. We failed. Look at this revolution.
00:34:36
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:34:36
Curt Mega
we And I think it was rooted in part with it's like based off of a think a book and based off of real kind of stories of revolutionaries who tried to to do things and then and then felt like, hey, it didn't work out.
00:34:48
Curt Mega
What I thought was so beautiful is Benicio to me was the antidote to that kind of cynicism of like, well, we tried. We blew up the banks and we tried to make a difference. And guess what? None of it worked.
00:34:59
Curt Mega
so let' So much like Pat in the movie, like, let's just get high, let's get drunk, and like I'm going to take care of mine, and I'm going to just live in my hole, and we tried, we couldn't do anything.
00:35:11
Curt Mega
And Benicio's out there creating community and like radically helping people, but ah but in such a beautiful way.
00:35:11
James Tolbert
Yeah. Yes. Mm-hmm.
00:35:20
Curt Mega
And I guess I i found him to be, for me, that character, and not just him, but like the whole community around him.
00:35:27
James Tolbert
yes
00:35:28
Curt Mega
you know, his wife. And like, there's this great moment where they're walking through apartment. You're just seeing all these people, the skateboarder guys that help he helped relay information across. And I just went, Oh my gosh, like this is the, this is the sort of call to action for me of like creating community and creating safe spaces for people to then meaningfully help, not just be like, Oh, I stand against that thing, but like really creating pockets of safety and, I don't know.
00:35:53
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:35:56
Curt Mega
That that to me was the antidote to the the nihilism of, well, nothing worked at all, was a failure. But it's like, no, we have to start on a very small scale where you're at, in your communities, in your towns. And so I found that to be very...
00:36:12
Curt Mega
Not just, well, that's a nice idea. But like, really, I walked out of the movie being like, oh my God, when it when it feels like the everything is hopeless, there is this there is this character who in the face of hopelessness is like choosing joy. and not just false positivity, but choosing joy and continuing to like really, really help other people.
00:36:34
Curt Mega
So that was what I, that's the, that's the positive i I took away, but I think that your viewpoints and yeah, I think that's really insightful and it's important to like, this is about very real things happening right now.
00:36:35
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:36:46
Curt Mega
Like this is not just, it's escape is fantasy.
00:36:46
James Tolbert
Right.
00:36:49
Curt Mega
Like it is dealing with what's going on now.
00:36:50
James Tolbert
And, and
00:36:53
James Tolbert
and And now, and so that's why I want to tie this back to, know, when we're talking about these stories of ordinary people and even in situations like Night of the Seven Kingdoms, you know, which are more fantastical in their storytelling, but still you relate to this because at at its core, it's about community. It's about how can I protect those that are that are around me? um Because in each of these movies, I think it was about that. It was about, um because a fundamental part of Secret Agent is that, you know,
00:37:23
James Tolbert
Again, I don't want to give you too many details because you haven't seen it yet. But ah but essentially, there there is a group of people that your main character will be with. And I wish there's a section of the movie where you get to know them.
00:37:33
James Tolbert
And it's probably one of those beautiful parts of the film because you recognize their humanity in the face of great conflict and great political persecution. And and that right now, well what we're going we especially after everything that just happened in Minnesota over the last few months, that is that's where we're at, is what is wanting community to so to stand up against this oppression.
00:37:52
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:37:57
James Tolbert
And you know yeah I was deeply affected by the the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Preddy and Keith Porter as well. um Because, you know, if we look at ah Alex Preddy's situation, his last words on this earth were about, how he was trying to, are you okay? He was helping the other woman. They pushed her down and and as an act of just compassion um because he he was a registered nurse and he lost his life because of some trigger happy blowhards, you know?
00:38:29
James Tolbert
and And so to see these stories of of real people looking out for their community, for each other, and they may be strangers. You don't know these people, but you know that you see something is wrong.
00:38:40
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:38:43
James Tolbert
You see something, an injustice is occurring right next to you, and you have to make the choice, like you were saying, the choice to do something right or wrong. And it's to protect me, protect mine, protect those around me.
00:38:54
James Tolbert
And, you know, the three movies that I just referenced, you know, they do go in different paths about how they do it. Because even at ah to the credit of the of the movie, As ineffective as Pat was in one battle after another, his whole thing was trying to get his daughter and protect his daughter.
00:39:10
James Tolbert
And so that by by that metric, he did succeed, you know, because it it works out. um I may have had issues with how he got to that point, but the point still stands that that's what he wanted.
00:39:21
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:39:22
James Tolbert
He wanted to protect. He wanted to do whatever he could so that he could save his daughter.
00:39:27
Curt Mega
And that's such a, you know, it's like you say that and it sounds, and a it sounds when you're saying it out loud, obvious and cliche, but and this is something I've been talking with Kim a lot about.
00:39:38
Curt Mega
One of the things that I've really been struggling with last year and this year in the, in the, in the face of everything happening in the world is, is this gnawing gut wrenching feeling of, so the bad guys just win.
00:39:54
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:39:55
Curt Mega
Like you just lie, steal, cheat your way to the top. And I'm not just talking about politics. I'm talking about so many different facets of the world, business, technology, the arts, like you go.
00:40:09
Curt Mega
So what's the point of doing the right thing. Like that is the, that is the, the scary question of like, you know, and as, and I think as a kid, you know, a lot, we, a lot of us were raised like have integrity, do the right thing, treat it.
00:40:25
Curt Mega
And to be like, and that's going to really be a force for good in the world. And then you look around and go, well, how come, how come all the people that in control of things are awful?
00:40:35
Curt Mega
Like what, and what i you know, wonder man less so.
00:40:35
James Tolbert
yeah
00:40:39
Curt Mega
Cause it's, you know, it's about an actor and, but, In both cases, Wonder Man, Night of the Seven Kingdoms, Night of the Seven Kingdoms especially, it asks the question, like, is it worth doing the and the the having integrity going to get you...
00:40:53
Curt Mega
even when you don't even when it's not going to get you the victory, the glory, the win. In fact, it might lead to your demise. It it very well it very well might lead to you losing your, your in some cases, life, but often your your status, your place.
00:41:14
Curt Mega
And Wonder Man, I think, is more creatively about that. I think one of his struggles is I see so many people getting opportunities who don't care, who have no, no, no passion for this thing. And, and he loves it so much. And he's so, he's so dedicated to this craft and the integrity of it.
00:41:35
Curt Mega
And he's like, do I just, do I just become a nihilist and just stop caring and just give up? Or to like, is it worth it to continue to, is it worth it to continue to care? Maybe that's the thing. It's like, that is the gnawing question that these shows.
00:41:48
Curt Mega
And as you pointed out, these films really, i think it's why it's speaking so much to me maybe you in this moment. Cause that's the question I'm asking, boy, is it worth it?
00:41:55
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:41:56
Curt Mega
didn it And I think the answer is Yes. To what end? Because it's the right thing to do. And because I have to believe that that good will and can come from that, even if in the moment it feels um bleak. you know And that provides a lot of hope for me to go, no, this these is this is the right thing to do. Now that the Seven Kingdoms says, what is it to be a knight? It is to take care of the innocent, to take care of the weak, to take care of the people who are marginalized,
00:42:26
Curt Mega
and And he does it even though it might end up killing him. and and and And people are like, why are you doing this, dude?
00:42:31
James Tolbert
Yes. Yeah.
00:42:34
Curt Mega
Just freaking, just coast, man. Just like, there's even a moment in 97 Kingdoms where he's like kind of offered a bribe to be like, Hey, just kind of like take the money and like get your, get your, get your glory and like check out dude.
00:42:49
Curt Mega
And he's like, no.
00:42:49
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:42:51
Curt Mega
And I think it's important to see characters doing that because it to me gives me courage to continue to try to do that to the best of my ability in real life, which is hard.
00:42:52
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:43:01
Curt Mega
It's really hard, you know?
00:43:01
James Tolbert
Yeah, I think there's no greater test of of choosing to do the right thing and and and and and the value of life than the pit, um which is why it it resonates so well to me.
00:43:13
Curt Mega
Mm.
00:43:15
James Tolbert
um So you know any any person that works in the hospital or really just the medical field, you know you just have an oath to help that life in whatever capacity, whether you know they're on their deathbed or they were just brought to this world.
00:43:16
Curt Mega
Same.
00:43:29
James Tolbert
Okay, so you have a responsibility to take care of your patient, regardless of their political bringing, their or their religious background, race, ethnicity, all that stuff.
00:43:37
Curt Mega
Even how they treat you, the the the the provider of the care, you you still have to help them.
00:43:39
James Tolbert
And even how they treat you.
00:43:43
James Tolbert
Yes. and And no matter what kind of stress you're under, no matter what kind of stress your your your unit, your floor, you know the one of the most brilliant things about this show, is it's I think, is its pacing and its humanity.
00:43:57
James Tolbert
So there are episodes where you know things are you know a little steady and, you know, a patient will come in and everyone's been able to make their rounds, but then, you a little trick, a trickle of Santos can't, you know, do her charting because she's behind and, but this she also
00:43:58
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
Medical Drama: Humanity in Healthcare
00:44:12
James Tolbert
has go see a patient.
00:44:12
James Tolbert
But then all of a sudden you're getting some more people in and more people in. And i I love that they don't shy away from the fact that these are still flawed humans that are are saving lives.
00:44:23
James Tolbert
And And so they're carrying whatever emotional baggage they have, their ah whatever biases they may carry, or yeah they might be dealing, like you said, with an unruly patient.
00:44:24
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
00:44:35
James Tolbert
And to watch them navigate those feelings while at the same time thinking about medical jargon, thinking about what are the possible scenarios in which we can save this person, or if we're losing them, how can we fix it? What is this? It is...
00:44:48
James Tolbert
i Their attention to detail is what draws me in and it's their humanity that anchors it for me.
00:44:57
Curt Mega
i This show to me is such a breath of fresh air because, hey it's just great to see a show that doesn't drop all its episodes at once so we can actually enjoy watching it every week.
00:45:05
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:45:07
Curt Mega
It's great. Like, did you see the newest episode of The Pit?
00:45:08
James Tolbert
Right.
00:45:10
Curt Mega
Like, I'm listening to podcasts about the...
00:45:10
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:45:12
Curt Mega
I'm like, dude, it's great. But, yeah, I think, like, why...
00:45:14
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:45:17
Curt Mega
why is it working so well for so many people? And I myriad of reasons, but it is like getting to see again, coming back to that theme of like ordinary people.
00:45:27
Curt Mega
And like, yes, these are exceptionally, you know, Dr. You know, Dr. Robbie. And, you know, a lot of these, they are exceptionally smart and competent characters, but you, I love getting to see the messiness of it and the imperfection of it.
00:45:44
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:45:45
Curt Mega
And, and it it really provides sometimes the pit can feel, i think a little, i don't know if the word is moralizing,
00:45:56
Curt Mega
but I don't think that's a bad thing. I've seen people kind of push against this and be like, oh my God, the pitch like preachy. And it's like, well, first of all, it's a teaching hospital. So there is a component to be like, that is organic to the story.
00:46:08
Curt Mega
But I actually appreciate the fact that it, it takes the time to be like, no, these, this person matters. This thing matters. The not making an assumption, not making a judgment call based on like taking the time to get to know somebody and what the problem is.
00:46:25
Curt Mega
And I think it's really important that it, that it like constantly does that, you know, um especially i actually think right now in this moment and in time, as there is a profound, um, anti-science, anti-intellectual kind of movement happening that sort of, uh, pushes back and says, you know, everyone in the medical profession is ah incompetent and is a scam, you know, so con artist, um,
00:46:29
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:46:50
Curt Mega
I really appreciate that the show is taking its time to demonstrate the competence and the rigor that medical professionals go through. And like you said, not to make them out to be these perfect, they nail it every time, they're theyre infallible, but to really reemphasize
00:47:08
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:47:10
Curt Mega
this is a job of competence and rigor that most people will never understand how difficult and have a, uh, one of Kim's good friends growing up is an yeah ER nurse at a, at a, at a hospital in Dallas and has, told It and reminds me of this where it's it's it's the hospital in Dallas where you go if you don't have health insurance. It's like it's very much like the pit.
00:47:34
Curt Mega
And i I actually haven't asked him about the pit. I don't know if he i don't know if he'd want to watch. i don't know if he'd be like, after a shift at the yeah ER, r what I want to do is watch.
00:47:43
James Tolbert
My job.
00:47:44
Curt Mega
But I remember him talking about, you know, how you have to just be competent in horrific, like you have to be okay with just this, like stuff that you and I would be like, oh my God, I can't, I'm going to be sick.
00:48:00
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:48:01
Curt Mega
I can't deal with that.
00:48:01
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:48:02
Curt Mega
That there are humans out there that are not only willing to deal with it, but are, but are like, except like, give me your worst.
00:48:09
James Tolbert
with be you have to be You have to be desensitized to possibly losing a life.
00:48:12
Curt Mega
Yes.
00:48:14
James Tolbert
That's the thing. is like You're going do everything in your power to keep that person alive, whatever, but then sometimes it's just out of your hands and you can't do anything about it. And then you have to basically call that patient, say what time they died, and then move on to your next one.
00:48:24
Curt Mega
wo
00:48:26
James Tolbert
I mean, maybe, know yeah.
00:48:26
Curt Mega
And i I love that it should i love that it it shows the the reality of how
00:48:27
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:48:35
Curt Mega
kind of desensitized you have to be, but that it always finds moments to humanize these the the patients, the people and, and the doctors and like seeing the weight, the weight that it has on them.
00:48:44
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:48:46
Curt Mega
And i just, yeah, again, it's like, I don't, I don't need a show to always be like speaking to the moment of what's happening in our world. And I don't know if this show was created with that in mind, but I think it rises to the occasion so beautifully as we've had this, just like I said, wave of anti-science, anti-media.
00:49:01
James Tolbert
here
00:49:07
Curt Mega
intellectualism to be like, these are competent and remarkable people doing something that is almost impossible and doing it at a, at a, at a level and a rate and a, with, you know, especially last season in the wake of the, the, the last few episodes of the show deal with a shooting and seeing what that is like.
00:49:25
James Tolbert
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
00:49:28
Curt Mega
I had never thought it's so silly, but I had never considered in the wake of these tragedies that happen so very often. I'd never thought about it from that perspective. I've only thought of it from the the perspective of like being it, you know, being a victim of that and whatever that space. But I was like, Oh my gosh, like being, being the the hospital that receives all these people, like that was so moving and so astonishing. And then they just have to continue. And then they'd have to, and then the next day is the next day. It's like,
00:49:55
Curt Mega
we all like, Oh, let's stop and reflect.
00:49:55
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:49:57
Curt Mega
And it's like, but for them the next day, then, and I love what you said too. I love how they go from like, I'm dealing with like a, a sprained ankle. Now I'm dealing with like a person dying from a motorcycle crash. and Now it's like to just be able to go from thing to thing. I just, I think the show is really remarkable in it and it's authenticity and willingness to create humanity in these moments that feel horrific.
00:50:22
Curt Mega
um
00:50:23
James Tolbert
Right.
00:50:23
Curt Mega
It's great, man.
00:50:23
James Tolbert
um One of my many freelance jobs is I'm a standardized patient at a med school. And so I'm dealing with anywhere from first year to fourth year students that are trained to be, you know, physicians, assistants, registered nurses, some doctors, things like that. And we will go through something as simple as a checklist where I'm just there for them to, you know, look at the ears, eyes, all that stuff. And then Other times I'm coming in and I act as a patient. I've done cases where I've had sickle cell disease and I was going through a crisis and things like that. And this specific program that I work with, their intention is to produce medical professionals who understand empathy and compassion with their patients, is specifically in underserved areas. I bring that up because when we're talking about community,
00:51:08
James Tolbert
When we meet with these students, they're in inundated with so much technical knowledge. They have to learn so many parts of the body. And and why why would why would this person be described this medication?
00:51:20
James Tolbert
and But then they also have to learn the real world application. Oh, you don't have access to this because you live in an underserved area. So no one's been paying attention to this illness that you have. Or i might be I might be portraying a patient who has so much distrust in the medical system because I've been run around through the insurance companies or um I have parents who did not trust doctors so we never saw one.
00:51:30
Curt Mega
Right. Right.
00:51:42
James Tolbert
that we've They've come up with so many different cases and
00:51:43
Curt Mega
right
00:51:46
James Tolbert
There are times where I've broken down. I've had the student but that broke down because the case just affected them so much because you can teach them as much of the vocabulary and as possible.
00:51:59
James Tolbert
But when you're dealing with another human across from you, it becomes a different story. And you have to now remember that there's two people talking here. yeah Yes, I am your patient for right now, and you're probably going to go into another room and deal with a completely different case.
00:52:08
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:52:12
James Tolbert
But while I'm here, I just need you to see me as a human. And those moments when it does connect with the student, it's worth everything. you know and i And I thank them for that. you know like i Obviously, I have nothing wrong with me.
00:52:23
James Tolbert
I'm just an actor. i'm I'm here to present the case. But to see that click, that little light in their eye when they realize, like oh, I can talk to you as if you're my friend.
00:52:33
James Tolbert
And it's almost like they were they granted themselves the permission to do so. And that is how we build community is in instances like this. um And so I really I really find doing a program like that ah profound. And also I've talked to them about the pit. I've mentioned this many times to some of these students and a lot of them say the same thing. Yeah, it's very realistic. It's very.
00:52:53
James Tolbert
A lot of them have already done some residencies, so they say, yeah, this is very similar to what we went through. And so they appreciate the pit from that angle, too.
00:53:02
Curt Mega
It is also funny on an industry side
Cultural Performances and Open Perspectives
00:53:04
Curt Mega
of things. It's funny to see like executives being like, the pit has shown us that consumers are interested in an episodic-like model with weekly releases.
00:53:17
Curt Mega
like like they're it's like It's called television. It's like, wow, good job.
00:53:22
James Tolbert
yeah
00:53:23
Curt Mega
Good job streaming CEOs being like, What if we released an episode every week for ongoing weeks and people liked it We just invent interlike, dude, that.
00:53:39
Curt Mega
Yeah.
00:53:39
James Tolbert
and then they get And then they get bonuses for basically recreating cable.
00:53:40
Curt Mega
Yeah. it's
00:53:43
Curt Mega
it
00:53:44
James Tolbert
They get money at the end of the year for saying the same shit we've been doing since the, it's like, it's just so, it's so maddening. Yeah.
00:53:51
Curt Mega
I will say good on HBO too for like being willing to stick with the weekly release model because it actually creates moments. It's fun to be like, did you see the newest episode of so much?
00:54:02
Curt Mega
Like, I love that.
00:54:02
James Tolbert
Yes. yes
00:54:03
Curt Mega
We've lost that joy. um i also saw a delightful video recently, which two things. First of all, apparently on the pit, the set, they don't have sides, which blew my mind.
00:54:16
Curt Mega
Sides, for anybody who doesn't know, is like the little sort of daily, like what the scenes are. They're frequently in your trailer. And and that show, i would be like, I'd be looking at my lines every take, but apparently you were expecting
00:54:28
James Tolbert
Wait, so how?
00:54:32
Curt Mega
you're expected to come to set memorized and like, which is nuts.
00:54:35
James Tolbert
That's crazy.
00:54:36
Curt Mega
Cause if you watch the show, it's like so much medical, like they'll go in these very interpersonal moments. Like how was your day? Whatever, whatever. And then all of a sudden they're like, we got a 302. need a piano when whatever,
00:54:47
James Tolbert
ah yeah Yes. And then he'll be like, oh yes.
00:54:49
Curt Mega
just
00:54:50
James Tolbert
What do we do with a C7 factor? Like, oh, well you can apply the bottle. all i Like, oh, man, that's insanity.
00:54:55
Curt Mega
So they don't allow sides on set and apparently don't allow of phones either. So I guess there's a video that Noah Wiley, for I think from the Pitt Instagram, but they have an on set library and all the actors and crew have like brought books that they love that they can vouch for.
00:55:09
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:55:12
Curt Mega
And backstage they have this big library and you can check out a book. So he's like, everybody has contributed several books to the library. And I was like, that's such a lovely, like, I just thought it was a cool way of like sharing with each other and connecting with each other.
00:55:23
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:55:27
Curt Mega
Like I read this book and this book was really meaningful to me and I'm going to check out this book from so-and-so. um But that's crazy that they don't allow sides and or phones on the set.
00:55:32
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:55:35
Curt Mega
i Not that I would want to be on social media, but I would be on my phone looking at my sides that they didn't print for me. so apparently that they don't have those, which kind of blew my mind.
00:55:44
James Tolbert
yes
00:55:49
James Tolbert
um Okay, so we're we're getting close to an hour here, so I do want to throw one more thing in here that we both wanted to talk about.
00:55:55
Curt Mega
Yeah.
00:55:55
James Tolbert
um And everyone's talked about it enough, but I want to add my two cents.
00:55:56
Curt Mega
Yeah.
00:55:59
James Tolbert
I want to talk about this is Bad Bunny Halftime Show.
00:56:02
Curt Mega
Halftime show. Super Bowl.
00:56:03
James Tolbert
it All right, so I'm going to say this right now. i don't I don't care.
00:56:06
Curt Mega
You mean not to not the Turning Point USA halftime?
00:56:08
James Tolbert
I'm not talking about that.
00:56:09
Curt Mega
We're not going to talk about that one Okay.
00:56:10
James Tolbert
We're not going to talk about that. It's not even worth
00:56:13
Curt Mega
I just want to kiss my fish.
00:56:15
James Tolbert
I think i've we've given it 15 seconds of airtime now.
00:56:15
Curt Mega
Drive my truck.
00:56:19
James Tolbert
I think that's more than enough. Okay, so... Yes.
00:56:21
Curt Mega
Just go watch the Bill Burnham country song and you've seen you've seen that. You've seen the Turning Point halftime show.
00:56:26
James Tolbert
Yes.
00:56:27
Curt Mega
um But let's talk about the real halftime show.
00:56:30
James Tolbert
Yes, dude. Okay. So, uh, you know, obviously we talked about movies and TV on here. I will eventually also want to talk about just performances and I'm a big choreography nerd as people who do know me probably know well. And from a production standpoint, that bad bunny performance is one of my favorite halftime shows at a super bowl.
00:56:50
James Tolbert
They, just, the way they immerse you um in in the Puerto Rican culture um from the stage design, the different ways they're moving through the ah the sugar cane fields, um ah ah the way that they have little carts set up. and and the people dancing around the cars and the and the and the light posts um representing when the power goes out in Puerto Rico. There was so much attention to the production value of this that I could not keep my eyes off of it. And then the choreography and staging alone, because this is the same choreographer that worked on Kendrick Lamar's last year.
00:57:25
James Tolbert
So...
00:57:26
Curt Mega
Oh, that's cool.
00:57:26
James Tolbert
Yes. Yes.
00:57:27
Curt Mega
Honestly, two banger back-to-back years. like Between Kendrick last year and Bad Bunny, I'm like...
00:57:31
James Tolbert
act yes
00:57:35
Curt Mega
These I'm, I'm, I am. Cause usually the halftime shows for me in general are like, I don't care.
00:57:39
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:57:41
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:57:41
Curt Mega
And the last two years have, has been the only years in recent memory where after it, I have like gone back and rewatched segments or moments just to be like, I just want to watch that again.
00:57:51
Curt Mega
I just want to, Ooh, that was a cool book, which I never, i never do.
00:57:51
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:57:54
Curt Mega
Like when it was like Coldplay or something, I'm not like, let me watch that again.
00:57:56
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:57:59
Curt Mega
i mean, you know,
00:58:00
James Tolbert
The funny thing about Coldplay is that the only reason people remember Coldplay's performance is because Beyonce and Bruno Mars were in it.
00:58:06
Curt Mega
That's true. Yeah.
00:58:06
James Tolbert
That's the only reason people remember it. um But no, but this, but I, I, I will never, ah I will never stop espousing the virtues of attention to detail and, and precision and choreography and production.
00:58:17
Curt Mega
yeah
00:58:19
James Tolbert
When you do these things like a live performance at a Superbowl halftime show, I, I don't know how I can convince people to care more about the integrity of performance. But when you do something like what Bad Bunny did, it's like, yeah, you can have a production and a show. It has has message. It has meaning. But also, it was fun.
00:58:40
James Tolbert
You can have fun and add all these elements into it.
00:58:43
Curt Mega
That was my my big, notzi not to go back to the other halftime show, but one of the, you know, the controversy, I put that in quotes.
00:58:53
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:58:53
Curt Mega
I was like are you, if you can't vibe out, if you can't watch that and just be like, this is a, like, what is wrong with you?
00:59:05
James Tolbert
What does it be?
00:59:05
Curt Mega
Like, i like like let's just parse out the the racism for a moment. Just like, What a blast. Like, like the energy, the joy.
00:59:14
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:59:17
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:59:17
Curt Mega
And I'm like, to me, there's something so so sad about being like so in, unhappled. Is uncurious a word? Not curious.
00:59:28
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
00:59:28
Curt Mega
And not like, and it's the same thing. It's the same thing with like things like watching films with subtitles or whatever. It's like, dude, on the other side of, of experiencing something that maybe, you know, I, I don't speak Spanish.
00:59:42
Curt Mega
I'm not fluent in Spanish at all, but the vibe and the energy was so electric and kinetic and joyful and fun.
00:59:48
James Tolbert
Yeah.
00:59:50
Curt Mega
And I'm like, It's just so it's so strange to be like, I didn't I didn't understand. It's like, are you do you not enjoy things? Like I i was just that was the weirdest like.
01:00:04
Curt Mega
If you were like, I take a I take a stance against this politically, OK, whatever, that's that's your right to do that.
01:00:09
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
01:00:09
Curt Mega
But when it's just like I didn't it's like, what do you not do you not enjoy fun things?
01:00:12
James Tolbert
Yeah. I mean, well, it, it literally just comes out to, I mean, yeah, we, I, at this point you can't separate it. Like it it really does come down to racism because like, listen, like I am not a country music fan, but I am not staging protests, you know, because they let and like Kenny Chesney perform down the street.
01:00:27
James Tolbert
You know, it's truly about people that don't, it's, I guess I should, I'm, yeah, I'm, I've been going the wrong way about this, but yeah, but it, it, it,
01:00:30
Curt Mega
but But maybe you should. Maybe you should.
01:00:37
Curt Mega
I can say as a I'm from Texas, i i I really don't care for much country music. So I will stage that protest for you.
01:00:44
James Tolbert
Thank you. Thank You're the ally that we need. But like, yeah, it just truly feels like these people, they want, quote, their culture, which that's a whole other podcast and a whole other issue.
01:00:47
Curt Mega
but
01:00:55
James Tolbert
um But anything that is not for them, and I put that in quotes, has to be demonized and and eradicated. Whereas you realize Puerto Rico, A, is part of America, so so stop that.
01:01:09
James Tolbert
And second, even if you don't know the words, I'm only on a 143-day streak on Duolingo. i'm I'm not that great at Spanish, but I can at least hear every third word and I can throw ass.
01:01:20
James Tolbert
So everything about that performance was exactly what I wanted. And it was so and and and so like you something cannot, quote unquote, be for you, but you can appreciate the artistic value of it.
01:01:24
Curt Mega
Yeah.
01:01:30
James Tolbert
um In the same way that like I can watch a one battle after another. And like I said, it wasn't great, but I'm not sitting here saying death to Paul Thomas Anderson. What's wrong? You know, like that's that's just not how we should be viewing things.
01:01:42
James Tolbert
And I think this white and black way that we view art specifically in this country is is is is ah part of the problem. you know, it's either like, oh, I love this or I hate this.
01:01:53
James Tolbert
And like, no, like there should be gray area with which we can dissect this art and tell us how it, you know, which is what we're doing with this podcast is like, we, this is how it makes me feel.
01:01:54
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
01:02:02
James Tolbert
and this is what it evokes in me.
01:02:03
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
01:02:03
James Tolbert
And this is what it talks about. And it's okay if you don't like it, but to say that it doesn't have a place, that's where I have issue with your statement because he has every right to be up there on that stage and every right to be doing the entire thing in Spanish.
01:02:11
Curt Mega
Mm-hmm.
01:02:17
James Tolbert
And that is a part of our American culture.
01:02:21
Curt Mega
And, you know, this is like one of the, I'm sure it's like annoying to people in my life, but one of the things I like try to practice and also preach is just curiosity and being like, you know, even when people are like, oh, I don't usually like things like this and you go totally valid.
01:02:32
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:02:39
Curt Mega
You don't have to like anything. But give it a try. You know what I mean? My mom, God bless her, growing up with food was always like, you don't have to like it, but I want you to be open to trying new foods and and if youre just trying it.
01:02:55
Curt Mega
and if you know And if you try it and you know you though it's not for you, great. Then you never have to eat it again. But like when you're at someone's house or you know and you're like, I don't know what this is, be open to it. And I'm actually really so grateful that she raised me in thinking that because it really has shaped a lot of how I think about art and culture. And sometimes I, I encounter that with people where they're like, Oh, I don't like movies like this, or I don't like music like this, or I don't, and you go, that that's valid. But,
01:03:19
Curt Mega
I don't know. Try something. i also, don't know if you encounter this. I've encountered this where sometimes people are like, if somebody recommends something to me, I, I, I will double down on not. And I've always been, i I've always been confused by that.
01:03:30
James Tolbert
Yeah. Mm-hmm.
01:03:33
Curt Mega
And I'm not trying to put people on blast here, but that has always been strange to me of like, Oh, cause if somebody comes to me and and goes, you got to try this. I'm like, okay, maybe I won't like it, but I don't know.
01:03:45
Curt Mega
I guess I want to encourage people. To not bristle at the idea of, I don't think I would like it, so therefore I won't. And to like let yourself be a little curious about things that maybe you don't think you would vibe with.
01:04:01
Curt Mega
If you were like, hey, do you think you would enjoy a halftime show from an artist you've never listened to Maybe my gut is like, oh, I don't really know them, so no But I'm so glad I watched it Actually, I really love Bad Bunny from his film and TV work.
01:04:16
Curt Mega
So I was already kind of interested. But musically, I have to be super honest.
01:04:17
James Tolbert
Right.
01:04:19
Curt Mega
I have, I don't know. also don't listen to a ton of pop music. So I, I don't, I didn't know. I don't know his music. And on the other side of watching that, I was like, okay, I gotta, I gotta check out this guy's music. Like, this is great.
01:04:32
Curt Mega
Like, There's so much joy to be had in being curious about things that you're like, I don't know if I would like that. I don't. Maybe I wouldn't. Give it a try. You just you don't know. You don't know what you're missing.
01:04:43
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:04:44
Curt Mega
And then if you hate it, great. Now, you know, but I don't know. Be curious. Be curious.
01:04:49
James Tolbert
i was going to say, actually, that's ah that's a funny thing that you said that because my therapist and I, that's a thing that's been coming up a lot lately in our recent sessions where he tells me, just stay curious.
01:04:50
Curt Mega
Mm
01:04:58
James Tolbert
Yes, stay curious about the art, but stay curious about your um about you, about how you view the world, about how you are interpreting things.
01:04:58
Curt Mega
hmm.
01:05:05
James Tolbert
Question your own biases and question, you know, like I one of the best things I've gifts I've given to myself over the last year is expanding my knowledge of art.
01:05:08
Curt Mega
Yeah.
01:05:15
James Tolbert
And, um you know, and that means I've been going to more museums. I've been listening to different lectures, just things that I normally wasn't doing because I told myself that that's not me. I don't do that. And I think the more you expand your mind and stay curious like that, the more you're able to experience new things and and or or even view the things you have already seen, but from a new lens. um So, yeah, I think maybe that's a good message for our our podcast is to stay curious.
01:05:44
Curt Mega
there's There's a beautiful idea that I've heard reiterated. Maybe I'll try to have this better clarified next episode, but i've read I've read a bit about this phenomenon of one of the reasons time can begin to feel really compressed is when you fall into the same patterns and the same exact sort of routines.
01:06:00
Curt Mega
over and over and your brain kind of goes, cool, we know exactly what every day looks like, what everything tastes like, smells like, sounds like. One of the best things you can do to kind of extend time in a way is that giving yourself new experiences, taking a different route to work,
01:06:18
Curt Mega
Listening to a music, you like it forces your brain. And yes, there was a part of it that Michael, go this is uncomfortable. And I think we often reject, oh, we don't want to be uncomfortable, but it, it can really amplify the day to day of your life of like, whoa, I, so that's something I've been really trying to do in this new year too, of like,
01:06:37
Curt Mega
Like, hey, I'm going to take a different hiking path today. You know what? I'm going click play on this Spotify playlist somebody shared, even though I don't think I would like it very much. But I'm going to just I'm going to see what what happens. And yeah, I just it's hard. It's hard on the other side of it. It's hard to to shout from the void and be like, I promise it's worth it. but That's kind of like what I especially with this podcast. I'm like, I want to be like.
01:07:00
Curt Mega
there's so much joy on the other side of curiosity, ah because you just don't know what you don't know yet. And there's like all these amazing things to experience creatively and artistically.
01:07:11
Curt Mega
um when you, I mean, a park Chan wook said it when parasite one is like, you know, there's an entire world. Once you get past the subtitles, There's an entire world worlds that can open up to you.
01:07:19
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:07:22
Curt Mega
um but, but you just have to be a little curious and willing to step outside your comfort zone.
01:07:22
James Tolbert
Mm-hmm.
01:07:27
Curt Mega
Uh, And I appreciated that on a the biggest stage one could have, ah you know, the NFL. And let's be clear, I don't think the NFL was doing a benevolent act.
01:07:37
Curt Mega
I think that they know that Bad Bunny is a ah one of the most successful artists in the world. So I don't want to give them more credit.
01:07:43
James Tolbert
on yeah
01:07:44
Curt Mega
But I do appreciate, like... that's what I want like that's what I want to see in these these moments where eyeballs are on a thing to like show me something new show me something fresh show me something different like that's that's what I want out of life um
01:07:58
James Tolbert
yeah
01:08:02
James Tolbert
Yes. Yeah, absolutely.
Podcast Launch and Listener Engagement
01:08:04
Curt Mega
yeah
01:08:04
James Tolbert
um Well, friends and neighbors, that's our episode zero.
01:08:09
James Tolbert
um That's, yeah. So what are you into? so what are you, so what are you into? Yes. um Our goal is to do this every week, you know?
01:08:09
Curt Mega
that's what are you into what into what are you into what are you into what are you into so what so what are into
01:08:16
Curt Mega
hey Yeah.
01:08:18
James Tolbert
So, um and then, yeah, we might have some special guests drop in every once in a while. Yeah. yeah
01:08:24
Curt Mega
Obviously this show is going evolve, but we would, I think would be really cool to have a component of listeners and viewers and watchers also chiming in with stuff that you're interested in. This is not just film and TV. like We really want to expand. you know I think in upcoming episodes, it's highly possibleus possible that we ah will talk about books and music and and dance and and like all all forms of of media and expression so this is not this is not a film bro podcast um that's that is the hope um
01:08:53
James Tolbert
not alllan no no no so that's so now we're moving out of the uh the beginning stages of manosphere and we're like inching away yeah yeah yes
01:09:01
Curt Mega
yes we're beginning to give that card back yes we're beginning to get that tattoo removed uh slow process uh
01:09:08
James Tolbert
slow very slow process lots of money
01:09:10
Curt Mega
But hey, genuinely, like, so what are you into? Like, but not to make it to a kid's TV show. Like, so what are you? But like, really, that's I that is like my biggest hope is that we can start a conversation with each other, with our friends and with you watching.
01:09:18
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:09:25
Curt Mega
So like, we'd love to know. We'd love to hear. Comment it. Maybe there's an email on the link. I don't know. Well, there is.
01:09:32
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:09:33
Curt Mega
Do we have an email?
01:09:33
James Tolbert
so there So we have an email now.
01:09:34
Curt Mega
Sweet.
01:09:34
James Tolbert
So it's, it's, so what are you into pod at gmail.com? All one word.
01:09:39
Curt Mega
Sweet. So you can write into us there.
01:09:42
James Tolbert
Yeah.
01:09:42
Curt Mega
um This should be up on YouTube and theoretically Spotify and all the places. But um yeah, i think it's a great first episode. i This is fun.
01:09:52
James Tolbert
This is so much fun. we're gonna The production value is going to be even better.
01:09:54
Curt Mega
Exactly what I wanted.
01:09:56
James Tolbert
We're going to have lights and streamers and and all kinds of stuff in a few months, I'm sure.
01:09:58
Curt Mega
yeah
01:10:01
James Tolbert
um
01:10:01
Curt Mega
ah it where can ah Where can people find you on on the internet and the things that you're working on and doing?
01:10:09
James Tolbert
Yes, I'm at JWTolb, T-O-L-B t o l b that is, on Instagram and on Blue Sky. I think that's all the socials I have. and i've I've deleted all the other ones.
01:10:20
Curt Mega
Good. Good for you.
01:10:22
James Tolbert
Yes.
01:10:22
Curt Mega
i need to.
01:10:24
James Tolbert
What about you?
01:10:24
Curt Mega
ah I'm pretty much at KurtMega everywhere. Let's see. I'm on... I'm on Instagram. Honestly, I post the same short videos on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. So follow me on one of those platforms. um I also write a newsletter on Substack, which is just storymatters.substack.com. I write about creativity and storytelling. I just wrote an essay about Lord of the Rings and how it's a story about failure.
01:10:52
James Tolbert
It's really good.
01:10:52
Curt Mega
um And I have a, I have a Patreon and I do that that supports the creative stuff that, that I do. um That's just patreon.com slash Kurt Mega. So I'm, I'm out there.
01:11:02
James Tolbert
God, that makes it sound. I need to do way more. You're out there.
01:11:06
James Tolbert
I'm just over here.
01:11:06
Curt Mega
no, I need to do less.
01:11:08
Curt Mega
I need, cause my brain is, whenever I sit down to post something, I'm always like, I'll post and I'm like, oh wait, no, I got, okay now, okay, take that, oh no, I can, oh YouTube, sure, it's not, if, if somebody could make an app where I could just post one place and it could just, that would be, that would be the goal, but yeah.
01:11:19
James Tolbert
Oh.
01:11:28
James Tolbert
Yes. Awesome. All right.
01:11:31
Curt Mega
Any, are there any projects you're working on right now?
01:11:31
James Tolbert
Well, oh, there are, um, I, oh, I hate this.
01:11:33
Curt Mega
or Anything like coming up? Are you,
01:11:38
James Tolbert
I can't talk about them.
01:11:39
Curt Mega
Can't say. He can't talk about it.
01:11:40
James Tolbert
Yes. I can't talk about it yet, but really fun stuff that's coming up, um, that will, uh, some of it will come out later in the year. Obviously, uh, I'm part star kids guy who didn't like musicals.
01:11:51
James Tolbert
That's going to London.
01:11:52
Curt Mega
Hey.
01:11:52
James Tolbert
Uh, I, I choreographed the show, so I will be in London. I'll physically be there. Um, if you happen to
01:11:57
Curt Mega
And you start rehearsals in what? Maybe a few weeks? if month? month two or two?
01:12:00
James Tolbert
that's such a That's such a great question that I don't have the answer to.
01:12:02
Curt Mega
You're like we TBD.
01:12:04
James Tolbert
The the numbers exist. I just don't know when I'm going to be there.
01:12:07
Curt Mega
ya
01:12:08
James Tolbert
um But yeah, so that and then, yeah. And yeah and do you have anything coming up?
01:12:12
Curt Mega
And I just worked on, I just did a guest star in a TV show that I also can't say what it is yet. So that'll come out later this year. and I'm, yeah, similar. I don't know why i asked this question now that I'm thinking about it.
01:12:21
James Tolbert
Right. right
01:12:23
Curt Mega
Cause I'm like nothing I can talk about.
01:12:23
James Tolbert
yeah
01:12:25
Curt Mega
So just disregard this.
01:12:27
James Tolbert
just To our non-existent editor, take this part out. But um yes, to the rest of you, yes.
01:12:32
Curt Mega
Take this part. Yeah.
01:12:34
James Tolbert
Once again, just email us at sowhatareyouintopod at gmail.com. And yeah, we can read your stuff on this channel.
01:12:41
Curt Mega
Or leave us leave us a nice little comment that you're watching this on YouTube, which would be great.
01:12:46
James Tolbert
Yeah, we will make a social media page at some point. We just got to get the graphics and everything ready.
01:12:49
Curt Mega
Yeah.
01:12:51
James Tolbert
So be on the wall.
01:12:51
Curt Mega
And hey, we'd love to like genuinely know you know as this format evolves and develops, what what really you're vibing with. and And if you have any ideas or like, ooh, it'd be cool to let us know. We'd we'd love to hear from you.
01:13:04
James Tolbert
Awesome. All right. Well, ah Kurt, thanks so much, bud. This is fun.
01:13:07
Curt Mega
This is great. One episode in.
01:13:09
James Tolbert
All right. All right. Peace and blessings, everybody.
01:13:11
Curt Mega
Bye.