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Treefort Media & Touchy Feely Films

chin-wag: to have a chat, a friendly conversation.

Actor Paul Giamatti and Stephen Asma, author and philosopher, join forces for a freewheeling series of conversations that dive deep (like, really, really deep) into the wilderness of the mind.

Featuring prominent guests from diverse fields, Chinwag is esoteric in the best way possible, as Paul and Stephen delve into anything and everything: Are we living in a simulation? What’s the most perfect sentence in literature? Is Bigfoot interdimensional? Science, the occult, philosophy, magic mushrooms… it’s all fair game!

Unexpected, hilarious, and maybe even profound — Chinwag is all about having a really, really good chat.

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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Website: http://chinwagpod.fm



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Paul Giamatti’s CHINWAG with Stephen Asma

🤖🎞️🧬

Transcend into Office Hours with Professor Asma as he breaks down the consciousness of artificial intelligence through the lens of iconic films. He examines how movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey, Ex Machina, and After Yang tackle the question of whether AI can truly possess consciousness—or even the will to exist—delving into emotions, desires, and memory.

Do you need language to be conscious? Could we one day upload our consciousness to the internet? These questions and more are explored in this thought-provoking dive into the intersection of cinema, philosophy, and the science of artificial intelligence.

Paul Giamatti is an award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🤖🎞️🧬
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Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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The Reel Mind: AI Through Film

🐰👣😱

Paul and Stephen welcome back Ian Simmons from the Fortean Times for another dive into the eccentric, the uncanny, and the downright bizarre. In this episode, the trio explores everything from conspiracy theories’ transformation from quirky fun to dangerous obsession, to the KLF’s wild antics, including burning a million pounds and wielding fake machine guns.

They also venture into giant rabbit sightings, Taylor Swift’s rumored occult connections, and the enduring weirdness of Aleister Crowley’s alleged descendants. They dive deep into the mysteries behind Havana Syndrome and explore the strange intersections of social panics, urban legends, and technological anomalies. From phantom jetpack sightings and the eerie behavior of drones near military sites, they weave through bizarre contemporary events with the precision of conspiracy theorists—minus the paranoia.

It’s a freewheeling Chinwag filled with folklore, conspiracies, and questions best left unanswered. Wag on, weirdos!

Ian Simmons is the News Editor of Fortean Times, the world's leading magazine for weird news. He has written for Fortean for over 30 years.
Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🐰👣😱
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Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

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Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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The Great Fortean Taylor Swift Conspiracy

🥳🎁🎄

This holiday season, we’re looking back at one of our favorite guests of 2024, with an encore incomparable Paul Rudd recorded live from Brooklyn! Two Pauls and one Stephen dive into fears, phobias, and weird childhood memories, exploring everything from stage fright to public speaking. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Chinwag without creepy puppets, recurring nightmares, and tales of real-life bears on a movie set. Ring in the joy, laughs, and a touch of weirdness—perfect for the holiday season!

Paul Rudd is an American actor known for films like Clueless, Anchorman, and his role as Ant-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🥳🎁🎄
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Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

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Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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ENCORE: Ruddiculous Holiday Party

🎆🎆🎆

To ring in the New Year, we’re celebrating with a special encore featuring Natasha Lyonne, where the conversation takes a wonderfully strange and quantum-tinged turn. Paul and Stephen read a letter from a very interesting Wagger before they follow Natasha around her home, feed Rootbeer the dog, and uncover her unusual bedtime habit: falling asleep to quantum physics audiobooks. Hear why discipline and restraint and the structure of mathematics is grounding and leads to talk of Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange, Barry Lyndon, and Peter Sellers.

Paul quotes French writer Gustave Flaubert and kills the vibe, and this is before he reveals his desire to try cat food. Natasha’s man of choice is a doomsday prepper and there’s a crisis in American masculinity (ask yourself men, can you fix a toilet?) Next they go deep into body horror films, and Natasha goes down a Google search rabbit hole about the movie Slither (not a Cronenberg picture). Existentialism is definitively defined (thanks Stephen!), Russian Doll is unpacked, along with Kierkegard, Ted Chiang, and Albert Camus. That’s a LOT - thanks Natasha! And have a happy New Year!

Natasha Lyonne, an actress, writer, and producer, is best known for her roles in Poker Face, Orange Is the New Black and the acclaimed Russian Doll, which she co-created and stars in.

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🎆🎆🎆
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Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

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Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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ENCORE: Natasha Lyonne’s Infinite New Year

🧜🦕🦇

Live from Town Hall Seattle, Paul and Stephen venture into the Pacific Northwest’s strangest and creepiest cryptids. What’s the deal with Batsquatch, the massive winged terror spotted near Mount Rainier? Or the Gumbaroo, a rubbery bear-like creature rumored to explode during forest fires? They also unearth the legend of the dog-headed saint—how does it stack up on the ultimate creepiness test? And let’s not forget "Caddy," the mysterious sea serpent lurking in Puget Sound. Packed with weird tales, sharp insights, and a dash of humor, this episode is a thrilling exploration of the eerie unknown.

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🧜🦕🦇
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Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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CHINWAG LIVE: Beware the Batsquatch

🧜‍♂️👻👹

Paul and Stephen hit Town Hall in Seattle for a wild audience Q&A. Paul’s crowned King of Neptune, a Brooklynite gets deep with hardcore Buddhist philosophy, and Bigfoot? He’s back—and Stephen’s sure he’s still out there, buried somewhere. Fans fire off questions about ghosts, cryptids, mermaids, and Guillermo del Toro… 

Later, Stephen drops a demon-hunting masterclass in Office Hours, featuring St. Anthony, St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and Heinrich Kramer, the Inquisitor.

Buckle up, Waggers—this one’s a ride!

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

🧜‍♂️👻👹
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Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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Paul Giamatti, King of Neptune + Demonology 101

👽🛸👾

Brace yourself for an intergalactic Chinwag as Professor Asma brings you into Office Hours to take on the ultimate extraterrestrial thought experiment: how would we deal with aliens? From UN protocols and risk management strategies to spotting laser pulses and heat signatures, they explore the practical, the philosophical, and the downright bizarre. Stephen looks at sci-fi classics like HG Wells’ War of the Worlds, and contemporary works like Zixin Liu’s Three-Body Problem.

Do aliens think like us, or is their science beyond our logic? Could ancient Cambodians have glimpsed serpentine visitors from the stars? And is it possible to think of aliens as modern-day gods? This cosmic wag is out of this world—don’t miss it!

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.

👽🛸👾
=========
Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

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Aliens 101

🏴‍☠️🍔🥶

Join Paul and Stephen for a double feature that kicks off with a dip into the Wag Bag! Dave writes in about the May Day Mystery, which somehow spirals into airtime pirates, the Max Headroom hijacking, the Ashtar Galactic Federation, and the meaning of this entire podcast (yes, we go there).

Then, DEVO co-founder Mark Mothersbaugh crashes the party to talk time travel, AI, Neuralink, and—wait for it—cheeseburgers having sex. He spills on aliens, ghosts, and the time Timothy Leary casually mentioned his cryogenic freezing plans. Meanwhile, Stephen reveals his caveman preference for staying offline forever. The trio also tackles sensory deprivation tanks, tour bus naps, John Lilly chatting with dolphins, and even Dick Tracy. This is a weird one folks…

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art. 

Mark Mothersbaugh is an artist, composer, and co-founder of the influential rock group DEVO. His latest art book titled Apotropaic Beatnik Graffiti is a collection of neo-dada streams of conscious visual poetry.

🏴‍☠️🍔🥶
=========
Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

=========
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Max Headroom, More Mothersbaugh

🗿🗿🗿

Live from the hallowed halls of Harvard University, Paul and Stephen tackle one of the universe's greatest enigmas: monoliths. What's the deal with Stonehenge? Why were mysterious bodies buried nearby? Are aliens behind these stone wonders, or is it just really bored Druids? Paul’s got theories—and a suspicious amount of insider knowledge. Did he really climb Stonehenge? And how in the world did he fall asleep in a neolithic tomb?

Animal carvings, Gobekli Tepe, and a mini ice age—yes, all in one episode. Don’t miss this whimsical wander through history’s strangest rock stars!

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art. 

🗿🗿🗿
=========
Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

=========
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CHINWAG LIVE: Monolith Mania

🐢🎸🌆

Paul and Stephen’s Q&A at Harvard! Megaliths! French comics where Gauls endlessly pummel Romans. Paul’s unexpected relationship with the theremin. And the big question—should Paul and Stephen finally start their paranormal blues band? Theremin, guitar… what more do you need? Let us know in the comments if you’d give that album a listen. Plus, will today’s skyscrapers become the megaliths of the future? 

And stay tuned for a special treat—live from Sketchfest in San Francisco, Stephen sits down with Beth Lisick and Arline Klatz at the iconic Great American Music Hall for their fantastic Porchlight Storytelling Series. Stephen shares a pretty wild story that of course combines extreme sledding, the Great Wall of China, and male enhancement. You know the drill, Waggers!

Paul Giamatti is a Golden Globe award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art. 

🐢🎸🌆
=========
Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

IG: https://www.instagram.com/chinwagpod/

Tik: https://www.tiktok.com/@chinwagpod

Website: http://chinwagpod.fm

YT Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chinwagpod

Send your stories, Qs, or thoughts to 📧 questions [at] chinwagpod [dot] fm

=========
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CHINWAG LIVE: He Said Droids, Not Druids!

📯📯📯
Your fan mail gets answered this week!

Arthur from Japan writes in and asks Paul and Stephen to discuss Thomas Edison’s spirit phone, a little known device to contact the dead. What happened with Edison’s quest to prove life after death, and what’s TikTok got to do with it? 

Also learn about a ghostly human voice recording from the 1840s (predating known technology)!

Add to that a bonus visit with William Shatner musing about ghosts and paranormal activity.

Your takeaway? As usual, none of us really know sh*t.
Paul Giamatti is an award-winning actor and producer. Stephen Asma is a professor and author specializing in the philosophy of science, religion, and art.
Note: This episode was recorded prior to the SAG-AFTRA strike.
📯📯📯

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🎥 CATCH A LIVE RECORDING OF CHINWAG 🎥

October 14th at MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA

October 17th at the Murmrr Theatre in Brooklyn, NY

🎟️ Buy Tickets before they sell out! 🎟️
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New episodes drop Wednesdays for free... n(🧊)
Make sure to follow us @chinwagpod 👉🏼

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