The incredibly talented scribe that is Francesco Dimitri stopped by the show for a chat! We talked about his graphic novel Cutting Edge, which is being released by Titan Comics in just over a week!

Francesco is Italian and explains why the book was initially printed in French and what differs between the original and the new versions of Cutting Edge. We also spoke at length about his work as a novelist and how his approach to storytelling differs between mediums.

I learned a ton from Francesco, and I'm certain you will too. If you dig what he has to say, make sure to check out his new comic Cutting Edge from Titan Comics, on sale beginning November 2nd!

This chat is in support of Twitch's Artificial, and actress Emily Morales Cabrera is the woman of the hour!

Emily provides the voice acting and the motion capture performances that embody Ember, the A.I. from Artificial's newest season, Factions. We dug into her experience with the technology and what it was like for her to join a series that features so much interactivity.

It was an amazing experience and I think you guys will have a thrill with this one! Be sure to check out Emily each Friday with new live episodes of Artificial: Factions on Twitch at 5 pm PST!

In support of Season 4 of Twitch's interactive sci-fi series Artificial, appropriately titled Artificial: Factions, I got the awesome chance to chat with Jae Kim, the motion capture and voice actor that brings Kai, the A.I., to life in the show.

Check out what Kim has to say about the process of performing motion capture in a live and interactive setting, and be sure to tune into Artificial: Factions live on Twitch every Friday at 5 PM PST!

Daemon Hillin stopped by the show to discuss and promote his new western feature film Apache Junction which stars Thomas Jane and Trace Adkins. He spoke with us about the business side of the film industry and exactly what he does behind the scenes for the movies he produces. Daemon worked with the late DMX on Fast Vengeance shortly before the rapper/actor passed, so we also spent time learning a little about him as well.

In support of Dreamworks releasing Doug Unplugs Season 2, we spoke with co-executive producer Aliki Theofilopolous. She told us about her experience with regular animation vs computer-generated animation and how the challenges help her navigate the story-telling in a more clever way.

She's also known for her work on Descendants, but she kicked off her career on films like Tarzan, Mulan, and Hercules, so we obviously discussed her time with Disney as well as her career with Dreamworks. Aliki also provides her voice to a character in the series so we got her perspective from several angles and had a great time!

Be sure to check out Doug Unplugs Season 2, now on Apple TV+!

We had the incredible opportunity to connect with multi-talented actor Stephen A. Chang ahead of his debut in the newest season of Artificial. Speaking about his return as Sebastian for Season 4, we discussed how Artificial: Factions differs from previous seasons - primarily the virtual animation and motion-capture additions. With Stephen having provided the mo-cap as well as the voice for Jesse in The Last Of Us II, he was very familiar with the technology being brought in to up the ante in Artificial: Factions. As always, we had a killer time! Make sure you tune into Artificial: Factions every Thursday at 5pm PST on Twitch to weigh in on how the story goes and choose an A.I. to side with.

Rachel Nichols stopped by to promote her upcoming horror/thriller Demigod, in which she leads the cast. The actress spent a good amount of time chatting about her dog before we got into the thick of things, so enjoy! Once we started chatting about her work, Rachel shared her thoughts and takes on a number of projects she has been in. She told me quite a bit about her time on Star Trek, Alias, G.I. Joe, DC's Titans, Continuum, and how all of those things led her to Demigod. Rachel and I are both exceptionally radical, so beware: you're gonna have a great time.

The inimitable director, writer, producer, and innovative creator Bernie Su stopped by to promote Artificial Season 4 - Artificial: Factions - which sees the audience steer two motion capture created virtual AI's, ultimately splitting the viewers down the middle and forcing fans to pick a side.

Bernie walks us through the ways each prior season stepped up the interactivity, and he helps talk us through all the ways he's managed to outdo himself in the newest installments of the series. He talks about how LifeScore will continue to be used to make the music interactive and reactive to the tone the audience sets in the chat.

We also learn that Artificial: Factions will see the return of characters played by Dante Basco, Stephen A. Chang, Jennifer Field, and more, as well as the chances of encountering others from past seasons. Bernie broke down the new currency method which will allow twitch streamers to team up and combine the points they gain from viewing the show to influence how their faction's AI will function and respond, even going so far as to providing upgrades such as "fire hands".

Obviously, we dug in to find out how extensive the motion capture is and how the businessmen played by Basco and Chang will face off in the new episodes. We learned about the virtual AI and what the intent is behind each of them and how they are represented as well as how they represent different members of the viewing audience.

This is an extremely insightful chat, and the third time I've been lucky enough to feature Bernie as a guest. The pilot episode of Literary Joe's Inner Child Podcast featured Bernie as the very first guest on the show, way back when we were restricted to garbage audio quality and no video to include. We managed to snag Bernie again later on in 2020 to discuss the trial of Matt Lin as Season 3 came to a close. And now, more than a year after our first chat, you can finally see Bernie interact (pun intended) with me as we have a wonderful time delivering you the news and updates for Artificial Season 4 - Factions.

We're both pretty rad all around, so I have no doubt you guys will enjoy this. Once you realize how cool Bernie is, be sure to tune into Artificial: Factions on Twitch every Thursday at 5pm PST, starting this week on September 9th.

Artificial Article Coverage: https://toonado.com/user/LiteraryJoe

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Multi-talented with a voice that glitters like gold, Megan Hilty stopped by for a chat in support of today's launch of TrollsTopia Season 4.

Having performed on Broadway in notable roles such as Glinda the Good Witch from Wicked and Doralee Rhodes from 9 to 5, we asked plenty of questions about how vastly the two fields differ as well as what techniques she picked up on stage and has taken to the voice booth with her.

As Megan has multiple children, we learned how they respond to her performance in TrollsTopia as Holly Darlin' and how their classmates geek out over their mom.

There's so much fun stuff here to digest, so dig in and have a wonderful time, and don't forget to check out Season 4 of Trollztopia, released today!

Director, animator, screenwriter, voice actor, and all-around gentleman Tom McGrath took some time out of his day to speak about his DreamWorks projects.

He told me a lot about how the first Boss Baby and the brand new sequel Boss Baby: Family Business were conceptualized and the vision behind the force that is the Boss Baby franchise.

We obviously took a bit of time to focus on what is often considered Tom's crown achievement - Madagascar. We talked about how he created the films, wound up voicing Skipper the Penguin, and the unexpected trajectory that character would wind up on.

It's an incredibly informative chat, and there are lots to learn from this experienced creator, so I hope you enjoy it!