The Kaiju Transmissions Podcast

Byrd and Matt welcome writer/director Mitch Teemley to the show to discuss his new kaiju comedy, Notzilla!  This loving send up of classic kaiju films had a rocky path to being made.  We discuss the original script, how it had interest from Hollywood studios and stars, and the decision to rework the film and complete it as an independent feature years later.  We also get into the special effects techniques and challenges, filming in Matt's town of Cincinnati, what makes a good spoof movie, how the fandom has received the film, and Ohio chili preferences!  Tune in and enjoy.

Byrd and Matt are joined by frequent guest host Kevin, as well as Justin Mullis (the Man Creates Dinosaurs blog) to talk about the recent Netflix anime series, Japan Sinks 2020.  This new adaptation of the Sakyo Komatsu disaster novel (which got two tokusatsu adaptations from Toho) takes a new approach to the material with a new storyline, new characters, and a lot of commentary on the current state of Japan.  We'll review the series, as well as discuss how the themes relate to the current climate.  We talk about neo-religions, Fukushima, nationalism, and much more!

Live streamed as part of Kaiju Con-Line, Byrd and Kevin held a panel on Takashi Miike's 2005 Yokai epic.  Before Kadokawa rebooted Gamera to be more Brave or gave Daimajin a brand new Kanon, they revived their third most-popular monster franchise: Yokai Monsters. The resulting picture, The Great Yokai War, has an interesting history tying together Japanese mythology, manga, and popular culture in a way that hasn’t been replicated before or since. Join Kaiju Transmissions’ Kyle Byrd and Kaiju for Hipsters’ Kevin Derendorf as they unpack this maze of monsters, Miike, Mizuki, and Megolopolises.

Byrd and Matt are joined by Trev (Days of Future Podcast/Failure to Franchise) to take a deep dive into Starship Troopers, a Western series with many ties to Japanese sci-fi.  We discuss the original novel, the 1980s anime mini-series, the three live action films, and the two recent Japanese-American animated sequels.  We will examine the novel's influence on Japanese science fiction, how the subtext of Paul Verhoeven's film differs from the novel, our favorite giant bugs, and just how the franchise stacks up as a whole.  Would you like to know more?

Byrd and Matt are joined by author John LeMay (Jaws Unmade/The Lost Films) and Connor Anderson (Easter's Kaiju Kompendium blog) to discuss and review the fourth show in the Ultra series, the Return of Ultraman!  We discuss the show's early concepts, Ishiro Honda's involvement, our favorite and least favorite episodes, why the MAT are terrible at their jobs, and more!  Tune in and join the conversation!

Byrd and Matt are joined by artists Nick Shev and John Bellotti to take a detour into an American monster franchise and discuss all six (!) Tremors films (to date).  We start with the origins of the classic original film and go through the entire series, including some brief talk about the canceled television series, the actual television series, the problem with Shriekers, the OTHER canceled television series, and more!  Get on top of the nearest rock and tune in!

Byrd and Matt welcome Norman England back to the podcast, this time to reflect on his directorial debut film, 2006's the iDol!  The iDol is an independent Japanese science fiction film that features plenty of prolific tokusatsu veterans both in front of and behind the camera and is just now finding a release in the United States.  It tells the story of an obsessive toy collector whose reality is warped when he adds a mysterious alien figure to his collection.  Norman tells us all about his memories making the film including the script, the casting process, working with such genre veterans as Kiyotaka Taguchi, Takashi Yamazaki, Takako Fuji, Ko Otani, Bob Eggleton, Yukijiro Hotaru, and more!  We also talk about the toy collecting culture and how its changed over the years, the importance of a good run time, and its recent USA blu-ray release from SRS Cinema!

The iDol can be ordered here: http://srscinema.com/home/?p=2301

Byrd and Matt are joined by director/editor Brandon Smith to discuss his upcoming crowdfunded film The Legend of the Bear Lake Monster!  Described as "The Goonies + Jaws," the film is based on the cryptid that allegedly resides in the titular lake in Utah.  We talk about a variety of topics such as the appeal of cryptozoology in a post-smart phone world, the history of the Bear Lake Monster, what makes a good horror movie for kids, the leap from documentaries to features, the strange career of Peter Jackson, using Kickstarter and more! 

The Legend of Bear Lake Monster's crowdfunding page is still active, so be sure to support it here:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-legend-of-the-bear-lake-monster

Byrd and Matt are joined by indie creature creator Rashaad Santiago to talk about his upcoming crowd funded monster film, Terror From Beyond Beyond!  In addition to discussing the genesis of Rashaad's new project, we also talk about his work on the Godzilla fan film, Godzilla: Heritage, his directorial debut Beast of the Water, winning season six of SyFy's competitive series Face-Off, and advice for anyone looking to break into the art of monster making!  Relax and enjoy the conversation! 

The Terror From Beyond Beyond Kickstarter is still active!  Be sure to support it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/146385329/terror-from-beyond-beyond

Byrd and Matt are joined by Kyle Yount of the Kaijucast/Collect All Monsters to take a plunge into the world of Japanese mythology!  Here, we discuss the Shinto legends of Yamato Takeru, Prince Susanoo, and the slaying of the eight headed dragon, Yamata no Orochi.  We will talk about the original stories, as well as three feature film adaptations:  The Three Treasures (1959), Little Prince and the Eight Headed Dragon (1963), and Yamato Takeru (1994).  We will discuss the productions, review them, compare them to the original Japanese legends, talk about how they tie into the Godzilla series, and more!  Relax and enjoy the discussion.