Brendan Agnew is a writer, blogger, and podcaster. He shares his passion and deep knowledge for film by writing reviews on his own website, The Norman Nerd, and in featured guest appearances on podcasts like School of Movies, Geeks with Shields, and Matinee Heroes. You can find more of his work on Twitter at @BLCAgnew, on his website normannerd.blogspot.com, and cinapse.co.
On this episode, Mike and the Norman Nerd talk about all things film and how Brendan turned that passion for movies and television into a successful blog and guest star spots on popular podcasts. They discuss how difficult new media ventures can be to start, how to balance creative projects with everyday life, and the Norman Nerd’s love of animated, visual storytelling. They wrap up with some of Mike and the Norman Nerd’s favorite shows and movies of the year and where they see media, old and new, going in the future.
“If you want something that you’re putting out there to resonate with people, you’ve got to do it in a way that’s fun for you” – Brendan Agnew
“Lord of The Rings is this beautiful poetic lyrical high fantasy but it’s also like the coolest metal shit! You’ve got demons with fire whips crashing with these underground wizards. Why are we stopping on this mountain to have a sword fight with a giant spider? Because it’s cool. That’s why. Shut up.” – Brendan Agnew
“There are so many types of stories that we haven’t been able to see fully explored because of such a narrow pinhole that the greatest storytelling media machines on Earth have been focusing on. And so the more we expand that, I think the better for everyone.” – Brendan Agnew
“So much of what appeals to me about animation as a medium is how deliberate you can be in doing that show don’t tell. Especially if you have someone who knows what they’re doing, they can do things in animation far more effectively than you can even in live action because of just the way animation presents frames of film. You can do things at speed that you can’t literally anywhere else.” – Brendan Agnew
Highlights This Week:
- The Norman Nerd talks about how Peter Jackson helped inspire him to start fan content on message boards and blogs online and how that grew into writing movie reviews for websites.
- The Norman Nerd and Mike break down how passion is key to having the stamina to start and grow a new media venture when the audiences are small. Like Siskel and Ebert!
- Mike and the Norman Nerd discuss Amazon’s latest series, Ring of Power, and how it’s bringing largescale romantic adventure fantasy back into the zeitgeist and how it stacks up against other popular fantasy series including The Witcher, Game of Thrones, and Xena: Warrior Princess.
- The Norman Nerd shares some of the biggest obstacles he faces in creating new media content, including finding the mental and emotional energy to be creative and discusses some of the projects he’s covered recently that he’s most excited about.
- The Norman Nerd breaks down how he transitioned from writing about film and television into the world guest hosting podcasts and the creative differences between writing reviews solo and discussing content with peers. He compares it to making music with an ensemble orchestra.
- Mike and the Norman Nerd talk about growing and learning by doing, including how important experience is to perfecting creative ventures.
- Mike and the Norman Nerd share their love of Tollywood films and how Telagu cinema is pushing boundaries creatively, both visually and in storytelling.
- The Norman Nerd discusses the rewards of being creatively active, from guest appearances on others’ projects to creating your own, but also the time commitment it takes to create content.
- Mike and the Norman Nerd talk about balancing his process for creative projects with every day life.
- The Norman Nerd talks about one of his more popular pieces of writing about the Disney animation renaissance – how it started, and how it’s coming back today. Mike and the Norman Nerd talk about their favorite Disney animated films.
- Mike and the Norman Nerd break down the complications of remaking animated classics as CGI-live action hybrid films.
- The Norman Nerd talks about his favorite films from 2022 so far.
- The Norman Nerd talks about the buffet of Marvel content available since End Game.
- Outroduction including where you can find more of The Norman Nerd’s content.
Connect with Brendan Agnew (The Norman Nerd)
The Norman Nerd on Blogspot
The Norman Nerd on Medium / Cinapse
The Norman Nerd on Matinee Heroes Podcast
The Norman Nerd on School of Movies Podcast
The Norman Nerd on Twitter
Connect with The Mike Show
The Mike Show on Youtube
The Mike Show on TikTok
The Mike Show on Instagram
The Mike Show on Twitter
Mike Slemmons on IMDB
Mike Slemmons on Instagram
