136: Bringing Watership Down to Life

Stories Are Soul Food

#Religion #Christianity #Canon Press

32:08

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about a year ago 56:37

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Were you, like Nate and Brian, somewhat scarred by Watership Down -- and loved it because of that fact? Stories Are Soul Food welcomes on Joe Sutphin, the illustrator whose stellar pen & ink drawings you might recognize from Little Pilgrim's Progress, Word of Mouse, and the Wingfeather Saga. Joe's neverending project for the past five years, though, has been a full-length graphic novel adaptation of Watership Down, Richard Adams' fantastic rabbit epic. With Watership Down, Joe went crazy with all the colors of the English downs -- and turns out, that's a lot of green, plus a gazillion gnats (and a huge team to help him). The guys discuss what makes Watership Down a classic, what Joe is doing next, how to avoid burnout as an illustrator, and much more. Plus, a special offer: If you want to order a copy of Watership Down for Christmas, you can now get an exclusive limited SASF edition: Each copy ordered from Canon Press will come with an exclusive Stories Are Soul Food bookplate signed by the illustrator himself. Limited to 200 only, so order now. https://canonpress.com/products/water...

181 episodes

Stories Are Soul Food

136: Bringing Watership Down to Life

Stories Are Soul Food

17 subscribers

published about a year ago

MP3•Episode home

181 episodes

#Religion #Christianity #Canon Press

All episodes

1
The Boys Aren't Reading | (Ep. 180) 46:53

5 days ago46:53

46:53

It's old news that the boys aren't reading. The NY publishing industry was obsessed with the idea when they first took at look at Nate's work twenty years ago. This episode of SASF features the story of the (female) editor who wanted to reach boys with Nate's manuscript of Leepike Ridge by 1) taking out the treasure, 2) taking out the father figure, and 3) making the book about the relationship between the boy and his widowed mom. The industry at large moved on to graphic novels to try to get boys to read. But Nate says things have gotten worse since then: Boys weren't reading then; they aren't even watching now. Hollywood is currently freaking out over the difficulty of getting young adult males into theaters. Turns out boys play video games a bit and watch YouTube and p*rnography a lot (devastating). The rest of the podcast discusses how to defeat the algorithms by creating dopamine with your family instead of your phones. This is the first step to freeing a generation of young people enslaved to the doomscroll.…

1
Invasion of the Consumers | (Ep. 179) 38:55

12 days ago38:55

38:55

What should your decision process be when you are thinking about moving your family across the country to a new place? Well, the answer is rooted in story. Are you moving to a place where you can be a better character, where your kids can be more active, where your family can grow -- or are you relocating yourself merely to consume the products that are brought to you by this new community? Don't be a hummingbird, be an ant. Jump on the moving walkway and start running. This discussion of communities, moving, and what makes Moscow, Idaho different from other parts of the US is equal parts practical and (probably) offensive. Enjoy!…

1
Animation Studio Autopsy Feat. Nate's Daughters | (Ep. 178) 1:01:37

19 days ago1:01:37

1:01:37

Many of us remember a time when Pixar reigned supreme over the many competing Animation Studios. But now, 15ish years later, that distinction has become blurry. Can we bet on any one Animation Studio for quality? Join Nate, Amira, and Lucia as they talk about childhood movie memories and the problem with animation today.…

1
Severance Season 2 Shakedown | (Ep. 177) 40:16

25 days ago40:16

40:16

This week the guys discuss some frustrating creative decisions behind the new Season of Severance. #severance #benstiller #adamscott

1
House of David, Raining Frogs | (Ep. 176) 53:33

8 weeks ago53:33

53:33

A project Nate worked on is arriving this February: It's House of David, a serious retelling of the life of David. But Nate only worked on early drafts, and it's now a Prime Video project. The guys watch the preview; Brian criticizes vestiges of what feels like Rings of Power; Nate talks about the vision for the project, and (even if he were to have quibbles about the final result) talks about what success for this series would do: Reignite some interest in telling faithful Bible stories. He talks about the importance of Christians telling real stories, and Brian makes a surprising pivot into the movie Magnolia (1999, directed by PTA, definitely NOT a Christian movie, don't show your family and then send us angry messages). Brian argues that Magnolia's director Paul Thomas Anderson is trying to take a divine perspective on the rise and fall of ten characters in Los Angeles. Nate gives his thoughts on a movie that is more honest about grace and judgment than any "Christian" film he has seen recently. As Magnolia's Christian Officer Kurring (John C. Reilly) puts it: "Sometimes people need to be forgiven. And sometimes they need to go to jail. And that's a very tricky thing on my part." This leads to a challenge: Christian directors should be more ambitious than Paul Thomas Anderson in their efforts to make Christian films great again.…

1
Animals are Soul Food | (Ep. 175) 49:19

10 weeks ago49:19

49:19

Yes, animals are real food -- but they're also soul food. You might think animal documentaries aren't that important, but imagine this: What if the only commentaries on the Bible were written by atheists? That's the modern-day situation we have with nature documentaries. Remember, God has revealed himself in two huge ways -- through the book of Scripture AND the book of nature. But for the past hundred years, it's only the atheists who tell stories about animals...and of course they hate the Author of that story and get the big stuff completely wrong: No, humans aren't a blight on the planet. No, the universe isn't uncaring. No, animals aren't just thumbless people. No, the funny animals didn't blindly evolve; Somebody designed them. The guys invite Riot & the Dance director James Engerbretson on to discuss the brand new season of Riot (four episodes now streaming on Canon+!). They talk about almost getting gored by a rhino and swimming with sharks and teaching your kids to appreciate the Grand Artist's work in their own backyards first (and maybe someday, on Komodo Island).…

1
Capitalism Doesn't Produce Great Art | (Ep. 174) 1:00:05

11 weeks ago1:00:05

1:00:05

As a conservative artist who's been working in the mainstream since 2007, Nate has an artistic opinion that's going to get conservative folks angry: Capitalism doesn't produce great art. Lest you join this commenter who said "this take is so dumb it got me to engage, brilliant", if you care about this topic, you need to listen to the whole episode. Nate's argument is that the incentives of capitalism reward the MOST entertainment, for the MOST people, for the MOST money. But actual greatness of art? That's not a problem that capitalism is solving for. Capitalism is a Delta stewardess serving cheese cubes to the Delta Sky Club Diamond members. It'll get you the most cheese cubes at the lowest price, but it's not not gonna get a steak. Instead, Nate argues for a return of patronage. Cathedrals, requiems, masses, paintings, statuary -- it's all been the result of patronage. Brian objects. Nate qualifies. The truth is that when streaming is king, an uncompromising demand for excellence and improvement only eats into your profit, because a creator's profit is capped by the streaming service. How do you resist the allure of cold hard cash if you're a creator? Better make sure you have principles you can hold on to beyond the desire for money.…

1
Year of the Looney Toon | (Ep. 173) 42:23

12 weeks ago42:23

42:23

This episode is a justification for the Stories Are Soul Food manifesto. First, Brian makes Nate react to the worst SASF episode from last year; then, Brian makes Nate react to the 2025 Golden Globes winners (The Brutalist, Emilia Perez, The Substance, Flow, etc.); and lastly Brian makes Nate justify the importance of story in a time when everybody else seems to be crazy. Kinda seems like we should be focusing on more important stuff than narrative, right? Nate describes 2025 as the year of living next to the insane asylum -- what can we do with our own lives when your neighbors are coloring on all their walls? Nate says story is not only part of the answer, it's the solution for how you, your spouse, and your kids are going to get through these "interesting times."…

1
Mediocrity of Input | (Ep. 172) 40:53

14 weeks ago40:53

40:53

Longtime listeners will get that particular feeling in the pit of their stomach when they hear Nate start talking about life in a particularly bleak way -- you know, the "make that heartbeat count because we're all going to die" kind of way. Brian has named this manifestation of his podcast co-host "Black Pill Nate." For today's episode, Black Pill Nate goes on a rampage against those who desperately hope for excellence of output while inputting mediocrity. There are a million ways to drive off the road, and only one way to stay on it -- and this applies to film, art, creativity, work, and everything in between. Mediocrity of input, Nate says, may be the reason we have "Wicked" dominating the box office, and why Severance season 2 may fail, and (contrarily) why Silo season 2 is currently succeeding (with filters, people!). The flip side of this is that there is also a very exclusive fraternity of excellence. If that doesn't make sense to you yet, keep repeating "mediocrity of input doesn't deserve excellence of output" every night until you fall asleep.…

1
171: Flattering Your Kids 44:33

15 weeks ago44:33

44:33

Nate and Brian discuss flattering your kids versus telling them the truth, what would happen if we stopped giving gifts on Christmas (it would be really really really horrible), and touch on some Christmas movie classics.

1
170: A Judeo-Christian Christmas 48:09

16 weeks ago48:09

48:09

Listeners of this podcast know that when Christmastime rolls around, the SASF podcast likes to focus on the less appreciated Bible stories that lead up to the birth of the Christ:. You may remember past Advent episodes on the Levite's concubine, Onan, and Tamar. This year, the guys discuss the place of the Jewish people in the Christmas story. Why? Well, nobody needs a reason to talk about the Gospel, but in addition (if you're on X), you've definitely noticed a certain vocal minority who loves nothing more than to denigrate the Jews. Don't worry, we don't spend much time on those dummies -- but we do spend time discussing the meaning of Christmas, its place in history, the rights and wrongs of Zionism, Old Testament heresies like Talmudic Judaism, and, of course, the Jewish story that is the whole basis for the birth of our Jewish Savior... and why we're Christians now. You're also going to find out that you're the second lobster on the heavenly sheet in Peter's vision, so get used to not being the main character. Merry Christmas!…

1
169: Undermining Gladiator's Nobility 42:03

17 weeks ago42:03

42:03

Under duress, Brian admits that Gladiator (the original) is still his favorite movie, having stayed atop the BK Movie podium since Brian was a teenager. Nate attacks Brian for his bashfulness at recommending what is, in fact, an all-time great movie, and the guys have a pleasant reminiscence of Russell Crowe and 2000's Gladiator, remembering all the great parts and forgetting all the supporting actors' names. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and it turns out they just released a NEW Gladiator, and Nate had watched it with his kids. You get to hear Nate's analysis of how the new Gladiator fails to emulate the old, along with his hypothesis for why Ridley Scott keep churning out poor quality movies from potentially amazing IP. You'll also hear Nate's director's take on the casting in Gladiator II, which is a single point of failure (well, maybe the CG baboons are the single point of failure). But the worst of Gladiator II is the effort spent undermining the nobility of Maximus.…

1
168: Bored of That Hideous Strength (feat. Calvin Robinson) 47:43

19 weeks ago47:43

47:43

Get The Things of Earth today: https://canonpress.com/products/the-things-of-earth-treasuring-god-by-enjoying-his-gifts-2nd-ed

1
167: All Fiction is Fantasy 56:27

19 weeks ago56:27

56:27

The guys make a oliphaunt-sized announcement -- the 1977 animated Hobbit is now streaming on Canon+ (along with the cartoon Return of the King!). Naturally, it's our next LAMPC pick (Look At Moving Pictures Club, for those of you who don't know). The discussion of the Rankin-Bass cartoon Hobbit leads to a discussion of Family Movie Night, and how all fiction is fantasy, really. In process Nate pokes fun at one of the sci-fi greats, Robert Heinlein, for his definition of sci-fi, and the guys turn their attention to discussing the movie I Am Legend. Get The Things of Earth today: https://canonpress.com/products/the-things-of-earth-treasuring-god-by-enjoying-his-gifts-2nd-ed…

1
166: Potty Talk and Shrek Fulfillment 58:54

21 weeks ago58:54