Matt Buechele breaks down Trump’s mysterious $2 billion “slush fund,” why no trustworthy operation has ever used the phrase “slush fund,” and the growing trend of college graduates booing AI commencement speeches delivered by men who look like they own underground bunkers in New Zealand.

Then he sits down with filmmaker Celine Song to talk about modern masculinity, internet identity, vulnerability in art, adapting The Seagull in The Sims 4 on Twitch, and their shared addiction to Fortnite and other deeply time-consuming video games.

Topics covered: 

Personality tests, identity, and labels

Social skills and meaningful connections

“Past Lives” misinterpretations 

Heroic masculinity and men behaving well 

Challenging the trope of male characters as lazy or villainous 

Consent culture vs. rape culture 

The pandemic and creative transitions 

The haenyeo, elderly Korean free-divers

Addictive personalities and gaming culture 

Writing, directing, and acting 

Chapters: 

00:00:00 Critiquing AI obsession and modern tech culture

00:02:53 Celine Song on astrology and Virgo personality traits

00:05:48 The importance of reading the room and social skills

00:09:10 Vulnerability and open-hearted communication

00:14:00 Why "Past Lives" is not a love triangle movie

00:15:47 The problem with internet film discourse and movie reviews

00:17:35 Depicting heroic masculinity and men behaving well in cinema

00:22:57 Historical context of consent culture and generational decency

00:30:00 The impact of the 2020 pandemic on theater and playwriting

00:37:00 Directing Chekhov’s "The Seagull" inside The Sims 4

00:43:20 Hardcore gaming: Fortnite, Elden Ring, and addictive creativity

00:54:40 Movie franchise predictions and voice acting careers

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