PODCAST · science
Cinematica Animalia
by Cinematica Animalia
Welcome to Cinematica Animalia! If you share our love of both science and movie monsters, then tune in as we - two ecologists, one veterinarian, and a writer - explore the ecology and physiology of cinematic creatures; explaining what works, what mostly doesn’t, and how the movie’s plot is subsequently affected. At the end of the day, we just love talking about science.
Episodes
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S5E31- The Movies That Made Us (Series Finale)
The Cinematica Team finishes off their series by returning to the movies that inspired, guided, and helped them to become the people they are today. Join them one last time to discuss science and storytelling within a shared love of films. Thank you so much for listening and joining us over these...
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S5E30- Red vs Blue (The Sea Beast- 2022)
This week, the CA Team goes into the belly of the beast, The Sea Beast (2022) that is. It's a whale of tale as we discuss all things cetaceans. What would really happen if you got swallowed by a whale? What is whale culture? How were whales hunted and why? Libby also reveals what happens if...
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S5E29- Madmartigan's Maternal Mayhem (Willow- 1988)
Raise your wands, prepare your blades, and grab your magic babies and join the Cinematica Team as they explore the world of Willow (1998). What would happen to humans if they were mouse sized? Could a brontosaur evolve a taste for meat? Is the Fantasy genre still profitable? All of these…
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S5E28- Crab-tivating Journey (Love, Death, & Robots: Bad Travelling- 2022)
The Cinematica team gets "hooked" by the latest season of Love, Death, and Robots and "wade" into Bad Traveling (2022). Join them as they explore "shellfish" crews, basic "claws" of developmental ecology, and how short stories can "chitin" your day. Please don't be "crabby" and come join them.…
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S5E27- Squatch Out! (Exists- 2014)
Check your sasquatch, because it's time to talk about Bigfoot. This week, the CA Team analyzes the found footage from Exists (2014). Adam walks in the creature's footsteps, exploring why these hairy Hendersons might be solitary; as well as why they ended up in North America. Dave's segment might…
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S5E26- Book-In It
The Cinematica team leaves the realm of movie adaptions and returns to the source material with an exploration of their favorite books they wish would be turned into films. TIME POINTS 00:00:38- Introduction & News 00:03:21- Literature Trivia 00:05:56- Galactic Football League Series by Scott...
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S5E25- Crit-ical Hit (Critters- 1986)
What do you do when your local farm is invaded by a group of 80's aliens that don't want to phone home, help you become the last starfighter, or fight the decipticons? The answer involves homemade fireworks and a shotgun. Join the Cinematica team this week as they explore the world of Critters...
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S5E24- Grabthar's Hammer Time (Galaxy Quest- 1999)
By Grabthar's hammer and by the suns of Warvan, the CA Team goes intergalactic this week with Galaxy Quest (1999). Listen to our historical document as we probe into dick-headed octopus culture and the very real city of Octlantis. Adam proposes a theory of sentience matching body plans and breaks...
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S5E23- For Crichton Out Loud (The Lost World. Jurassic Park- 1997)
Time to get lost in a world full of deadly dinos. Join us as this week the CA Team takes an island vacation with The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997). What should you do when you find a baby T-Rex in the wild? What is a "complete ecosystem"? Does Cretaceous Park have the same ring to it? And why…
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S5E22- What to Expect When You're Expecting a Carnosaur (Carnosaur- 1993)
Peace green brother! This week the CA Team is pregnant with possibilities as we give birth to our worst movie yet: Carnosaur (1993). What is a T-Rex's proper posture? Do anti-viruses actually exist? What is so shocking about an experiment with snails and genetic memory? And what is a mockbuster;...
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S5E21- Don't Hate The Flayer, Hate The Game (Stranger Things S2/3- 2017)
Things just got stranger as the CA Team take on both demi-dogs and the power of Billy's mullet in our continuation of Stranger Things (2016 - present). Could the Upside Down be a meteor impact site? What is a fungal shotgun and did Hopper take one in the face? Is a virus jumping species common?...
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S5E20- Dungeons And Demogorgons (Stranger Things S1- 2016)
Hold tight and flicker the light, the CA Team is upside down this week and next as we explore all the dimensions of the Stranger Things TV series (2016 - present). What type of predator is the Demigorgon and what does it lam-prey upon? Why is our bipedalism more significant than our brains as...
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S5E19- Viva la Evolution (Evolution- 2001)
Everybody Dar-wins this week as the CA Team explores Evolution (2001). We discuss why the universe doesn't really styles itself in one direction, no matter how much it paynes us to think there is a story of our lives. We divide the facts from fiction on the subject of cellular mitosis. We divide...
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S5E18- Qilin Me Softly With This Wand (The Secrets Of Dumbledore- 2012)
Say Expecto Patronum and hopefully summon another movie as the CA team returns for hopefully the final Fantastic Beasts film in The Secrets of Dumbledore (2022). We have serious concerns about why the Qilin would bow. We ask if this is actually a Manticore? We worry about how the Wyvern would…
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S5E17- Scamander Commander (The Crimes Of Grindelwald- 2018)
Say Accio and summon a sense of patience as the CA team returns to the world of Fantastic Beasts in the Crimes of Grindelwald (2018). We cheer with the Zouwu and its’ new found freedom. We worry about the carnivorous implications of the Kelpie. We freak out about the death of the adorable...
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S5E16- Newt, Scoot, and Boogie (Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them- 2016)
Say alohamora to a menagerie of magical and mythical beasties this week as the CA Team casts themselves into part one of three fantastic episodes, starting with Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them (2016). We can't get enough of Niffler and his bower bird tendencies. We harrumph at the...
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S5E15- Momster (The Monster- 2016)
Exactly how many monsters are in The Monster (2016)? Just like a car on an old back road, we breakdown this week's canid-like monster and ask the hard hitting questions. How can burns kill so quickly? Do wolves understand paved roads? Is it healthy to snack on other carnivores? How is an allegory...
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S5E14- Elden Ring Finger (Elden Ring- 2022)
This week, the CA Team bares their souls in the world of Elden Ring (2022). We wrap our tentacled brains around the strange, amorphous beaked blob that is the land octopus, now known as an octoplonk. We simp for imps as we analyze ambush predation tactics and social structures. We yabby-dabby-do...
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S5E13- In Too Deep (Deep Rising- 1998)
Out of the depths came Stephen Sommers's Deep Rising (1998) and you are in for a Treat (Williams). All aboard as the CA Team asks some unsinkable questions. How far back do human's tales of sea monsters go? What exactly are Archaea Ottoia? Why are octopi's brains located throughout their…
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S5E12- Bat to the Bone (The Batman- 2022)
The city of Gotham flashed the CA logo in the sky and we answered. For our very special 100th episode of the podcast, we chose the nontraditional, The Batman (2022)! Breaking from analyzing monsters to create our very own DCinematica versions of a realistic Batman, Catwoman, and Penguin, with the...
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S5E11- Eagly Eyes (Peacemaker- 2022)
You can't Cena me! It's time to make peace with CA's take on James Gunn's Peacemaker (2022). Are our flappy little foes, The Butterflies, really parasites? Where do bald eagle's fall on the eagle bad-assery scale (as ranked by an Australian)? Who are the Kazakh Eagle Hunters? What makes a...
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S5E10- Wheelie Time (Wheel Of Time- 2021)
For this week's episode, the CA Team rolls with the first season of The Wheel of Time series (2021). We call bollocks on Trollocs and discuss the real world examples of persistence hunters and pursuit predation. We discuss how blight ain't right by exploring the inner workings of mangroves plus…
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S5E9- Bru No, He Didn't! (Encanto- 2021)
We don't talk about Bruno, no, no, but we do talk extensively about the magical house known as Casita in Disney's latest Encanto (2021). This week we look at mobile ecosystems and dirty sloths, learn two new $5 words (pyriscence and serotiny), find that Nemo is probably a pretty slimy boi, and…
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S5E8- Blood, Fett, and Tears (The Book Of Bobba Fett- 2021)
This week, the CA team collectively places one hand on The Book of Boba Fett (2021) and swear to protect the perpetually poorly treated rancor. We look at what a spin off actually is, sexual imprinting (not the Twilight kind), real life 6 meter/19.7 foot giant sloths, and why keeping a rancor on…
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S5E7- Mist Opportunity (The Mist- 2007)
What does hentai-light, vengeful Jesus, and mislabeled fog have in common? All creep out of Stephen King's The Mist (2007). This week we are suckers for how tentacles suckers physically work. We theorize exactly how one might get caught in a caustic web. We are frank about four winged fabulously...
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S5E6- Why Halo There (Halo 2001-2021)
As a Last Resort, we welcome our audience this week to the Valhalla that is the Halo franchise (2001-2021?) We look at Covenant species with their methane breathing, wormy boi bridge building bodies, and birthday skulls; why Adam gives sentient culture two tactile thumbs up; and whether or not...
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S5E5- Night At The Museum (The Relic- 1997)
Take a field trip to the Field Museum with us as the CA team analyzes the Kothoga from 1997's The Relic. Answered questions this week: Is our poor monster actually an addict? How did this movie get academia right and how did it get it very, very wrong? What are some real world South American...
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S5E4- Rash Of The Titan (Clash and Wrath Of The Titans- 2010/2012)
What's kraken CA fans? Take an epic journey this week with our double snake header, Clash of the Titans (2010) and Wrath of the Titans (2012). We look, but not directly at, Medusa's possible use of tetrodotoxin, djinns using advanced prosthetic technology, how civilization, not heroes, were the...
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S5E3- As Good As It Fetts (The Book Of Boba Fett- 2021)
When a worn out Bounty Hunter with dubious credentials gets lost in the sands of Tatooine, what happens? He meets a collection of creatures with dessert adaptations of course! Join the Cinematica team this week as they explore giant lizards, environmental catastrophes, and reptile-mammals in...
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S5E2- Pitch, Please! (Pitch Black- 2000)
This week, we turn out all the lights as the CA team, aka our little psycho fuck family, flies blind alongside the bio-raptors of Vin Diesel's breakout role, Pitch Black (2000). How does an entire species develop a sun allergy? What came first for bats: echolocation or flight, and why? What…
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S5E1- Which Witcher Is Witched? (Witcher Season 2- 2021)
Season 5 is here! So we decided to kick things off with Season 2. Of Netflix's The Witcher, that is. And while all of us are rightfully bewitchered by Henry Cavill, we deal with monsters, not hunky monster hunters. So this week the CA team talks invasive species, why Lamarckian evolution might…
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S4E42- Everything Is Not Ok-Ja (Okja- 2017)
Prepare to ugly cry as this week the CA Team discusses Bong Joon-ho's super pig Okja (2017). Learn all about hippo and pig teeth, the good and bad of GMO's, the depravities of factory farming, and how emotional storytelling can change your brain. Bonus, hear why Sam thinks he should be able to...
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S4E41- Hell Boy Toy (Hellboy II: The Golden Army- 2008)
This week the team dives into Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy 2. Join them as they explore rapidly growing plant gods, angel of death eye wings, and the ravenous tooth fairies. When things go bump in the night... Cinematica Animalia tries to explain them. TIME POINTS 00:00:36 – Introduction and News...
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S4E40- Stag-Nant (Antlers- 2021)
This week we take a pronged approach to deconstructing the monster of the 2021 movie, Antlers. We ask who, what, where, why, and wendigo did the legend of this Algonquin creature first take shape. We look at every tine-y detail, from parasitic lifecycles to the ritualistic, cannibalistic side of...
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S4E39- Slithery Slope ft. Scott Sigler (Slither- 2006)
This week the Cinematica team joins New York Times best selling author Scott Sigler to explore the 2006 cult classic, Slither. Would the Lone One make a suitable parasite for humans? Would a hive mind be possible? How do authors like James Gunn and Scott Sigler come up with their monsters? Why is...
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Cinematica Animalia Trailer
Cinematica Animalia Trailer by Cinematica Animalia
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S4E38- 10 Rings I Like About You (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings- 2021)
The team ventures into the fantastical realm of Ta Lo within the 2021 smash hit, Shan-Chi. Join them as they discuss scaled horses, vestigial wings, wormy dragons, and the dangers of inbreeding. TIME POINTS 00:00:36 – Introduction and News 00:04:22 – Movie Introduction, Discussion, and Trivia...
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S4E37- Bad Science Tropes 2: Back in the Habitat
Taking a short detour this week, we've talked bad movies, but now we talk bad movie tropes, both science and story. Listen to Sam, Adam, and Libby give some monster sized roars about untested hypothesis, how microscopes actually work, and lazy writing. TIME POINTS 00:00:37 – Introduction and News...
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S4E36- Bowie In Maze (Labyrinth- 1986)
Dance magic dance with us as we unravel the secrets of Jim Henson's Labyrinth (1986). How do Gigantopithecus's get their rocks off? Can organism's live without their heads? Is there something scarier looming over the multi species society of the Goblin Kingdom? Most importantly, is Sarah, the...
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S4E35- Global Worming (Dune- 2021)
Dust off your stillsuits, this week we are turning up the Arrakis heat and discussing the newest version of Dune (2021). We cover desertification and not the ice cream kind, how sand could become water-like, worm on worm cannibalism, and that weird mother son scene, you know which one. A question...
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S4E34- 30 Days of Bite (30 Days Of Night- 2007)
Count yourselves in for a treat and get sucked in to our fang-tastic vampire episode! This week on our Halloween tour, the Cinematica team wanted to take a bite into vampires with 30 Days of Night (2007). Do these undead monsters suffer from albinism or a plethora of skin disorders? Why are…
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S4E33- Pump-Kin It Up (Pumpkinhead- 1988)
It's that spooky time of year! Over the next few weeks, we will be covering some Halloween horrors starting with the legendary Pumpkinhead (1988). What does it mean to be a digitigrade in the swamp? Does our demon use estivation to survive? And what other vicious vice demons did the Cinematica…
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S4E32- Jager Bombs (Pacific Rim- 2013)
Delve into the interdimensional depths with the Cinematica team as we explore Pacific Rim (2013). This week we answer the monster sized questions. What do kaiju and 3D printing have in common? Do dinosaurs have a second brain? And will movies ever stop making boob armor? Full disclosure: we can't...
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S4E31- Bad Hobbits Die Hard (LOTR- 2001/2002/2003)
You shall not pass...this episode. Join the Cinematica team as they return to Middle Earth to explore the Wargs, Fellbeast, Mumakil, and more. Could you really fly on a Fellbeast? How long would it take to domesticate a bear dog? Does Adam even like Lord of the Rings? Listen in to get all the...
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S4E30- What You Tolkein Bout?(LOTR- 2001/2002/2003)
This week Adam and Sam sit down to talk about the general ecology of the world of Middle Earth. Where are all the animals? Why do ecosystems change at the drop of a hat? Why is no one talking about how scary Ents are? TIME POINTS 00:00:36 – Introduction and News 00:06:10 – Movie Introduction and...
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S4E29- It's A Clover, Not A Shower(Cloverfield- 2008)
This week the Cinematica team dishes on the 2008 rom-com Cloverfield! We learn how rebar impalement is a "walk it off" kind of injury, that found footage is really lost footage, and in addition to being lost in New York City Kevin McCallister style, poor Slusho was also heavily parasitized. TIME...
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S4E28- Things That Go Spelunk In The Dark(The Descent- 2005)
Descend into the horror of, well, The Descent (2005). Join the Cinematica team as we spelunk and debunk the common misconceptions of cave critters, why squirrels' ankles are relevant, and to see or not to see seems to be the question. TIME POINTS 00:00:34 – Introduction 00:02:13- News 00:06:45 –...
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S4E27- Hakuna Matata (Lion King- 1994)
A young boy's uncle murders his father and attempts to murder him in a bid for his inheritance and prime real estate. This week Cinematica Animalia journey's into the animated classic The Lion King (1994). We are joined by conservation ecologist, Maria Gatta to discuss why hyenas so unfairly get…
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S4E26- Mean Green Mother From Outer Space (Little Shop Of Horrors- 1986)
Who wants to talk about that unusual plant in the window? Join the team this week as they discuss the 1986 classic Little Shop of Horrors. Listen as they relive the songs, argue over how a plant would consume unsuspecting shop owners, and discuss which of theatrical endings was the best.…
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S4E25- To Catch A Predator (Predator- 1987)
This week, the Cinematica team decides who has the deadliest guns: Arnold, Carl, or the Predator (1987). In this classic film, we take a laser focused look into how this dreaded alien can not just climb up and down trees, but jump from them as well. We'll also "rave" about its glowing blood, talk...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Welcome to Cinematica Animalia! If you share our love of both science and movie monsters, then tune in as we - two ecologists, one veterinarian, and a writer - explore the ecology and physiology of cinematic creatures; explaining what works, what mostly doesn’t, and how the movie’s plot is subsequently affected. At the end of the day, we just love talking about science.
HOSTED BY
Cinematica Animalia
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Cinematica Animalia have?
Cinematica Animalia currently has 124 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Cinematica Animalia about?
Welcome to Cinematica Animalia! If you share our love of both science and movie monsters, then tune in as we - two ecologists, one veterinarian, and a writer - explore the ecology and physiology of cinematic creatures; explaining what works, what mostly doesn’t, and how the movie’s plot is...
How often does Cinematica Animalia release new episodes?
Cinematica Animalia publishes regularly with 124 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Cinematica Animalia?
You can listen to Cinematica Animalia on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Cinematica Animalia?
Cinematica Animalia is created and hosted by Cinematica Animalia.
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