The STARLOG Podcast

Jordan Hoffman
  • 5.0 (11)
  • Science Fiction
  • Updated Weekly

From the team behind STARLOG, a weekly podcast at the intersection of science fiction, science, and the stories shaping what comes next. Host Jordan Hoffman talks to the writers, filmmakers, scientists, and creators imagining tomorrow. Each week, expect: Archival deep-dives that unearth what made science fiction matter in the first place Exclusive interviews with the people building the future for real Conversations with the storytellers using genre to ask the questions our culture is afraid to ask out loud If you grew up with the original STARLOG magazine, you know the territory: space-time, alternate worlds, the unknown. If you didn't, welcome. The podcast is part of STARLOG's 2026 relaunch as a modern media platform, the audio counterpart to STARLOG Magazine (returning fall 2026) and The Lodestar (the weekly newsletter from STARLOG's editorial team). STARLOG is the sister publication to horror magazine FANGORIA. Produced by Dave Gonzales. New episodes every week. Subscribe to The Lodestar at starlog.com.

Episodes

  1. 1d ago

    The Odyssey and High Strangeness with Daniel Noah

    Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! This episode, Jordan and Dave have to check up on the Buzz Aldrin life-saving pen auction before jumping into a review of Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, which is currently in theaters. This bombastic film has a new interpretation on Homeric myth and some fascinating developments in IMAX camera rigs that went into its production. For this week’s STARLOG Archive we dive back to issue #104 from 1986 to unearth some exclusive news about Peter Meyhew and revisit why shooting Return of the Jedi in the California Redwood Forest was particularly dangerous for his character.  Founding partner and head of production for SpectreVision, Daniel Noah joins the podcast as this week’s guest. After recounting his STARLOG magazine memories and how he and Elijah Wood formed SpectreVision, Noah explains his conversion from skeptic to experiencer and how that inspired him in life and for his newest project, the graphic novel project High Strangeness. Next week, filmmaker, scientist, and explorer Ariel Waldman talks about filming Antarctic portions of her PBS documentary series Life Unearthed on one of the least hospitable places on the planet, and how diverse life finds a way. The STARLOG Podcast is hosted by Jordan Hoffman, edited and produced by Dave Gonzales. The STARLOG Podcast Theme was composed and performed by Michael Tritter. FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome! 02:16 - What's happening in Science Fact? 04:51 - Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey  17:13 - The STARLOG Archive 26:02 - Daniel Noah! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    The Odyssey and High Strangeness with Daniel Noah

  2. Jul 15

    Black Holes and Prog Rock with Prof. Scott A. Hughes

    Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! This episode, Jordan has heard The WOW! Signal , the new album by the band Muse, and reports back on its science-fiction themes. Then, we recount the story of the pen that saved Neil Armstong and Buzz Aldrin from being stranded on the moon (and was included in an auction of Buzz Aldrin memorabilia). In the STARLOG Archive, your hosts dig into STARLOG #31 where a notice about "four-letter-words" in Disney’s first PG rated film The Black Hole (1979) suggests a boycott.  Professor and Associate Department Head of M.I.T.'s Department of Physics, Professor Scott A. Hughes is this week's interview. Prof. Hughes tells us about the newest discoveries in our understanding of Black Holes and explains how shifts in gravitational waves can be measured using extremely precise tools like L.I.G.O. and his current project L.I.S.A.. Then, he lets us in on how he was inspired by the band Rush. Next week, Daniel Noah, producer of films like A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night (2014) and Mandy (2018), appears on the podcast to discuss experiencing paranormal phenomena and his new graphic novel series High Strangeness. Want More? The WOW! Signal by Muse is currently available wherever music is streamed and/or bought. The Sotheby’s listing for the Apollo 11 pen and broken circuit breaker switch. Disney’s The Black Hole (1979) is available to stream on Disney Plus. Hear more LIGO and LISA sounds at:Astrophysical general relativity @ MIT - Research in the group of Professor Scott A. Hughes FORMAT: 00:00 - Welcome! 03:42 - What's happening in Science Fiction? 08:57 - What's happening in Science Fact? 18:02 - The STARLOG Archive 29:37 - Professor Scott A. Hughes! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Black Holes and Prog Rock with Prof. Scott A. Hughes

  3. Jul 8

    Science, Storytelling, and Star Trek with Dr. Erin Macdonald

    Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast! This episode, Jordan encourages you to check out an independent sci-fi film releasing this weekend on Video On Demand: The Outer Threat.  An astrophysicist's alien discovery forces him and his family to flee their home, chased by a mysterious pursuer. In science fact, there's a new top government alien guy, and we drill back into the STARLOG Archive to unearth a very special interview with William Shatner from STARLOG #9. Astrophysicist, aerospace engineer, and science consultant for the Star Trek franchise - Dr. Erin Macdonald of Starfleet Academy is this week's special guest. Dr. Erin schools your hosts on what gravity actually is, before diving into the most difficult science explanation she had to concoct for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, and her appearances (as herself!) on Star Trek: Prodigy.  Next week, Professor and Associate Department Head of M.I.T.'s Department of Physics, Professor Scott Hughes will join the podcast to talk about the sounds of black holes and the band Rush. WANT MORE? The Outer Threat is available on digital VOD Friday July 10th Harvard professor with polarizing alien theories is picked to lead Trump administration UFO council William Shatner Live Side 3: The Movie [YouTube] Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Trek: Lower Decks, Star Trek: Discovery, and Star Trek: Prodigy are all streaming on Paramount Plus. FORMAT00:00 - Welcome to Episode 003!03:21 - What's Happening in Science Fiction08:37 - What's Happening in Science Fact17:09 - The STARLOG Archive - STARLOG #929:45 - Dr. Erin MacDonald! The STARLOG Podcast is hosted by Jordan Hoffman, edited and produced by Dave Gonzales. The STARLOG Podcast Theme was composed and performed by Michael Tritter. Follow STARLOG! Starlog.com @STARLOGmedia on Instagram starlogmedia.bsky.social @STARLOGmedia on YouTube Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Science, Storytelling, and Star Trek with Dr. Erin Macdonald

  4. Jul 1

    002 - ID4 Anniversary and Disclosure Day with David Koepp

    Welcome back to The STARLOG Podcast!This week, ALIENS and DINOSAURS. It's been 30 years since the Summer of ID4: Independence Day, years since SETI at Home, and mere weeks since we all got to see Steven Spielberg's newest alien movie Disclosure Day. Since Spielberg is in the air, Jordan opens up the STARLOG archive to see how the magazine covered Jurassic Park.Producer, writer, and director David Koepp joins the podcast to talk about his relationship to STARLOG Magazine, Godzilla, and how he adapted Spielberg's treatment PDF into the movie we know as Disclosure Day. Next week, Dr, Erin MacDonald, scientist and consultant for the Star Trek franchise will tell us that we can't warp through debris.WANT MORE?ID4: Independence Day is currently available to stream on Hulu and Disney Plus. Why SETI Might Have Been Missing Alien Signals at seti.orgHow They Made Jurassic Park's T-Rex - Sculpting a Full-Size Dinosaur by Stan Winston School on YouTube Disclosure Day is in theaters now!FORMAT00:00 - STARLOG is Back!04:05 - What's Happening in Science Fiction10:45 - What's Happening in Science Fact16:55 - The STARLOG Archive - STARLOG #19127:19 - David Koepp!The STARLOG Podcast is hosted by Jordan Hoffman, edited and produced by Dave Gonzales. The STARLOG Podcast Theme was composed and performed by Michael Tritter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    002 - ID4 Anniversary and Disclosure Day with David Koepp

  5. Jun 24

    STARLOG is Back! with Annalee Newitz

    Welcome to The STARLOG Podcast! This week, your host Jordan Hoffman is proud to introduce himself and podcasting XO Dave Gonzales, reintroduce STARLOG and begin The STARLOG Podcast. In celebration of STARLOG's 50th Anniversary in 2026, the team behind FANGORIA is bringing STARLOG through a portal to our future. Later this year, STARLOG will be available as a print magazine in bookstores, on newsstands, and at the supermarket checkout. This week, STARLOG Editor-in-Chief Annalee Newitz joins the podcast to talk about the contents of the upcoming STARLOG Magazine and how it's changed from the original publication. They also discuss founding the Gawker Media futurist blog io9, their non-fiction book Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction, and how a train can love a cat in their fiction novel The Terraformers. Next week, Disclosure Day's screenwriter David Koepp joins us to talk about aliens and Steven Spielberg. WANT MORE? Project Hail Mary is still in theaters! There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm Sci-Fi Short Film "There Is No Antimemetics Division" | DUST | Starring Jasika Nicole Robots with fingernails can grasp thin edges The Republic of Memory: A Novel By Mahmud El Sayed Buy Annalee Newitz Books including The Terraformers and the new Automatic Noodle FORMAT 00:00 - STARLOG is Back! 07:37 - What's Happening in Science Fiction 13:25 - What's Happening in Science Fact 18:01 - The STARLOG Archive 26:34 - Annalee Newitz! The STARLOG Podcast is hosted by Jordan Hoffman, edited and produced by Dave Gonzales. The STARLOG Podcast Theme was composed and performed by Michael Tritter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    STARLOG is Back! with Annalee Newitz

  6. Season 1, Episode 1 Trailer

    Introducing The STARLOG PODCAST

    STARLOG is back! Join host Jordan Hoffman and producer Dave Gonzales on a weekly journey into the vastness of space time. Each Wednesday, The STARLOG Podcast will cover the newest happenings in science fiction and science fact, delve into the 50 years of the STARLOG magazine archive, and interview a special guest from the realms of filmmaking, science, fiction, and fandom. Blast off with the STARLOG Podcast by subscribing now on your podcast device. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Introducing The STARLOG PODCAST

Trailer

5
out of 5
11 Ratings

About

From the team behind STARLOG, a weekly podcast at the intersection of science fiction, science, and the stories shaping what comes next. Host Jordan Hoffman talks to the writers, filmmakers, scientists, and creators imagining tomorrow. Each week, expect: Archival deep-dives that unearth what made science fiction matter in the first place Exclusive interviews with the people building the future for real Conversations with the storytellers using genre to ask the questions our culture is afraid to ask out loud If you grew up with the original STARLOG magazine, you know the territory: space-time, alternate worlds, the unknown. If you didn't, welcome. The podcast is part of STARLOG's 2026 relaunch as a modern media platform, the audio counterpart to STARLOG Magazine (returning fall 2026) and The Lodestar (the weekly newsletter from STARLOG's editorial team). STARLOG is the sister publication to horror magazine FANGORIA. Produced by Dave Gonzales. New episodes every week. Subscribe to The Lodestar at starlog.com.

Information

  • Creator
    Jordan Hoffman
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    6
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Starlog Publishing, LLC
  • Show Website
    The STARLOG Podcast

You Might Also Like