FFR 209: eXistenZ with Kristian Bruun

For episode 2 of Cyberpunk Summer, Anita and Kat are joined by by actor, producer, and writer Kristian Bruun to discuss eXistenZ. While you may think that sounds like an off-brand male enhancement supplement, it’s actually a sci-fi film from David Cronenberg. The filmmaker—known for his work defining the body horror genre, like The Fly and Dead Ringers—made waves at the Cannes Film Festival this year with his feature Crimes of the Future. Back in 1999, after interviewing Salman Rushdie for Shift magazine, Cronenberg reportedly came up with the idea of "a Fatwa against a virtual-reality game designer." In eXistenZ, Jennifer Jason Leigh stars as the designer of the titular game, leading a cast that includes Jude Law, Ian Holm, Sarah Polley, Christopher Eccleston, and Willem Dafoe.

Note: Enjoy this episode of the podcast as a video at patreon.com/femfreq or on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/FdEWrzNXixI

Time Stamps:

47:11 - What’s your Freq Out?

• Kat on the Netflix series Heartstopper
• Anita on this Letterboxd review of Top Gun: Maverick - https://twitter.com/ASovietOnion/status/1536375850979012610?s=20&t=8Ly5LJWWGkUbbfNJRnz0SQ
• Kristian on the novels Song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller, the book The Whisper on the Night Wind: The True History of a Wilderness Legend by Adam Shoalts, and taking walks in the morning

Links Mentioned:

• David Cronenberg’s 1995 interview with Salman Rushdie for Shift magazine: http://www.intralinea.org/monographs/zanettin/sr/cronemberg.htm
• Cancon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_content

Find Kristian:

• https://twitter.com/MrKristianBruun
• https://www.instagram.com/mrkristianbruun/

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