Under The Lens with Byron Lafayette

A KAIJU CHRISTMAS is a children's book for All Ages based on The Night Before Christmas, but instead of a Santa flying down to drop off presents a giant monster snowman appears through an extra-dimensional portal to ruin the holidays! And it's up to a group of brave children to save Christmas and the world!

Check out the Kickstarter campaign here: A Kaiju Christmas — Kickstarter

Bios:

Today I had the pleasure of speaking with Director Polaris Castillo and Producer Dan Marcus about their film El Luchador, which was chosen to be screened at the 2022 San Diago Comic Con. The film follows a professional wrestler who goes into seclusion after his undefeated streak comes to an end.

In this raw and unfiltered conversation, we chat about representation, how fiction is inherently cultural, and how the pro wrestling icon The Undertaker inspired this film to be made. 

I hope you enjoy this interview as much as I did 

2016 saw the big-budget reboot of the Tarzan franchise in theaters, directed by David Yates (Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, and Where to Find Them), and starring Alexander Skarsgård, Christoph Waltz, Margot Robbie, Samuel L. Jackson, Djimon Hounsou. In this episode of Under The Lens, I am joined by Manly Movies Podcast host J.B Huffman as we discuss the themes of The Legend of Tarzan and if it holds up all these years later. 

Today I had the pleasure of sitting down with Curtis Clow, 

Curtis is an American Indie Comic book Author/writer/co-creator best known for his books THE WILD COSMOS, BEASTLANDS, SLIGHTLY EXAGGERATED, and MAJESTIC which he self-published through his own imprint TO INFINITY STUDIOS using crowdfunding. Thanks to an ever-increasing fanbase, he has had 13 fully funded KICKSTARTER campaigns.

His work on BEASTLANDS caught the attention of distributor Dark Horse comics and they are releasing a Trade Paperback of issues 1 through 5 which will launch on June 15th in comic stores and June 28th on Amazon and in traditional book stores. 

Curtis also is a passionate gamer who has worked on the video game Deadtime Defenders which was released on Steam by Ravenous Games 

I hope you enjoy the following conversation as much as I did! 

Today I had the pleasure to sit down with Game developer David Szymanski, you may know him from such hit games as DUSK, IRON LUNG, and the upcoming stealth horror FPS Gloomwood. In this sprawling conversation, David and I discuss many things, such as what horror films still scare him, his love of classical music, and what it takes to be an indie game developer. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did, so sit back relax and enjoy this conversation with David Szymanski. 

In this episode, Byron Lafayette discusses the claims over COVID by such as John Campea and Nerd-O-Rama's Mo'Kelly that theaters were dead and gone. Are theaters back for good? Byron looks at box office numbers and various films such as Top Gun"Maverick, Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Madness, and Downton Abbey: A New Era while giving his opinion on this topic. 

In 2016, Dr. Maha Hosain Aziz, an NYU professor, World Economic Forum risk expert, and author in global politics drew the crowdfunded political comic book, The Global Kid, which stars the superhero character of 14-year-old Sami. Sami lived in different countries with his family (much like Dr. Aziz did – 7 countries by age 14) and observed political problems (much like Dr. Aziz does in her day job), The Global Kid in 2021 won its seventh education award and was a Top 16 Amazon bestseller.

Now, The Global Kid is flying into the virtual and augmented realms with its long-overdue sequel! I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dr. Aziz to discuss her book and talk about the world today and where we are headed in a post-pandemic era.

I hope you enjoy our conversation!

I had the great pleasure of speaking with legendary artist and writer Rob Liefeld, his work has spanned decades and such iconic characters like Deadpool and Cable among others! In this sprawling interview, we chat about Rob’s series “G.I Joe Snake Eyes: Deadgame” 

The fifth issue finale of G.I Joe Snake Eyes: Deadgame features an All-Star list of comic book legends providing inks and finishes to Rob’s penciled art. Not satisfied with just putting together an All-Star team, Rob decided to round out the cast by adding legendary artist and creator Kevin Eastman (TMNT), Ryan Ottley (Invincible, Amazing Spider-Man), Eric Canete (Justice League), and Karl Kerschl (Deadpool, Superman).

Not content with this unparalleled assemblage of All-Star talents, Liefeld wanted to take the event one step further. The Deadpool creator enlisted the Living Legend of G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero, Larry Hama. Rob will ink over Larry Hama’s pencils for a special once-in-a-lifetime collectible cover event.

I hope you enjoy this fun and lively interview!

In today's episode, I am joined by Feelin Films' own Caless Davis, who comes on the show to discuss The Matrix Revolutions, the much-maligned conclusion to the Matrix Trilogy. Is the film as bad as people say? Or is it misunderstood? It's a conversation not to be missed as we discuss this much talked about film and discover there may be more to it than meets the eye! 

Summery

In a dystopia overrun by robots, Neo (Keanu Reeves), mankind's greatest hope, is trapped in a limbo world. Meanwhile, the majority of the planet's population remains in a state of suspended virtual reality. The few humans who are cognizant of the grim realities of the world desperately try to hold off their mechanical enemies long enough for Neo to escape and save the day, but things turn disastrous when all-powerful computer program Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) arrives in the flesh.

In today's episode, we are discussing the controversial sequel to the iconic film The Matrix! The Matrix Reloaded is loaded (Pun intended) with theological and philosophical ideas concerning love, action, free will, and what it means to be human. It's a wild and exciting conversation that will see us chatting about everything from the Architect, Neo, Smith and Trinity to the Merovingian and his spurned lover Persephone. 

Did you decide to listen to this podcast episode or was it already decided for you? Well, the only way to understand your choice is to listen and let us know what you think! 

Summery 

Freedom fighters Neo (Keanu Reeves), Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss), and Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) continue to lead the revolt against the Machine Army, unleashing their arsenal of extraordinary skills and weaponry against the systematic forces of repression and exploitation. In their quest to save the human race from extinction, they gain greater insight into the construct of The Matrix and Neo's pivotal role in the fate of mankind.