My sense is that the production design for ROP was one of the few things Tolkien fans universally loved from the series.
This conversation got me thinking about The Shire as a utopia (or at least Tolkien's ideal utopia). One of the core challenges Frodo faces, especially in the books, is the sorrow of leaving his home while knowing he'd likely never see it again.
I feel like we could start an entire Tolktopia series on The Elysian.
Dubai (where I live) is weird because it’s pretty high-tech but does have that dry and cracked feel to it’s surroundings so it’s a mix between utopia and dystopia for sure. I bet if they placed water and a LOT more greenery, opinions could change though.
This was a cool interview and I loved the transcript! To more :)
I read the whole thing to my daughter, because she's a fiction writer. But I was a little surprised when she blanched at the mention of voice-control over hand-control. (The disappearance of switches, buttons, levers, you name it.) So I thought more about that and realized, why, yes, of course that could be a concern. The voice is invisible. The button or switch, visible and dependable. Also, I was suddenly reminded of the importance of hands altogether, on the emotional level. Not just metaphor. But how our hands interact with our brains, through neurological pathways. Okay, so a vote for keeping buttons and switches and levers and pulleys and doors and and and... in a place that is going to feel humanly utopian. :)
I found his comments fascinating on including water and trees into a community to make it feel more connected to the world around it. This is intriguing to me from a world-building perspective.
I have a town in my novel that has been a little run down for many years, but despite distance from other communities and finances, I wanted it to gradually reflect positive change - true growth. And even though my small town is surrounded by forest, now I know how I'm going to show that change. Clean up the crime, invest in the infrastructure of the town, and bring the nature that surrounds the town, into the town. Maybe not the bears and mountain lions though.
But because my novel is a mystery, of course there has to be conflict. Secrets, the struggle for power, a mine that promises riches, precious gems...a town that is undergoing an evolution.
Because of all the work you've done and shared with us, now I know how to help my town evolve.
What a wonderful interview. Your optimism shows through yet you ask a great series of questions that challenge Ramsey to open up about vision in his creations as well as the future.
Personally, I feel like technology has a place as a tool in society, but not a tool for us to be overly dependent on. I feel like the current path is drastically changing things, and not for the better.
Great interview Elle! Ramsey has done so much amazing work! I was intrigued by this quote from him:
"I think it's eminently possible to have a high-tech future. I think it's not as possible to have a high-tech future that feels utopian."
I'm going to have to sit with that for a bit. My initial reaction is to reject that notion. But, perhaps I'm too much of an imaginative idealist at heart.
There's a lot of great stuff here. Thanks for your hard work!
Hi Elle, I'm very glad you put this together and I'm a new fan of Ramsey (I followed him immediately on Linkedin). The idea of Utopia is one I constantly explore along with all the other aspects of what our future could look like so this really resonated. Lots of really solid insight from someone who is obviously an expert on the subject in a very practical sense. I probably geeked out on this more than is socially acceptable. =]
Catching up on my Elysian back catalog.
Wow! What an insightful interview.
My sense is that the production design for ROP was one of the few things Tolkien fans universally loved from the series.
This conversation got me thinking about The Shire as a utopia (or at least Tolkien's ideal utopia). One of the core challenges Frodo faces, especially in the books, is the sorrow of leaving his home while knowing he'd likely never see it again.
I feel like we could start an entire Tolktopia series on The Elysian.
Dubai (where I live) is weird because it’s pretty high-tech but does have that dry and cracked feel to it’s surroundings so it’s a mix between utopia and dystopia for sure. I bet if they placed water and a LOT more greenery, opinions could change though.
This was a cool interview and I loved the transcript! To more :)
Really enjoyed this interview :)
I read the whole thing to my daughter, because she's a fiction writer. But I was a little surprised when she blanched at the mention of voice-control over hand-control. (The disappearance of switches, buttons, levers, you name it.) So I thought more about that and realized, why, yes, of course that could be a concern. The voice is invisible. The button or switch, visible and dependable. Also, I was suddenly reminded of the importance of hands altogether, on the emotional level. Not just metaphor. But how our hands interact with our brains, through neurological pathways. Okay, so a vote for keeping buttons and switches and levers and pulleys and doors and and and... in a place that is going to feel humanly utopian. :)
Beautiful! Ramsey expressed my feelings about what makes a utopia in words
What a terrific interview!
I found his comments fascinating on including water and trees into a community to make it feel more connected to the world around it. This is intriguing to me from a world-building perspective.
I have a town in my novel that has been a little run down for many years, but despite distance from other communities and finances, I wanted it to gradually reflect positive change - true growth. And even though my small town is surrounded by forest, now I know how I'm going to show that change. Clean up the crime, invest in the infrastructure of the town, and bring the nature that surrounds the town, into the town. Maybe not the bears and mountain lions though.
But because my novel is a mystery, of course there has to be conflict. Secrets, the struggle for power, a mine that promises riches, precious gems...a town that is undergoing an evolution.
Because of all the work you've done and shared with us, now I know how to help my town evolve.
Thank you.
Great interview! Nobody ever talks to the production designer and he probably has more interesting things to say than the cast. Thanks for this!
Great read this. The breadth and depth of this is brilliant. Love this
Amazing interview! Shout out to Montreal, I can attest it’s a hipster utopia!
Such a great interview! Ramsey's designs are fantastic. And I didn't know about Neom; what a mind-blowing concept.
What a wonderful interview. Your optimism shows through yet you ask a great series of questions that challenge Ramsey to open up about vision in his creations as well as the future.
Great piece and interview, thanks Elle.
Now I want to visit Montreal even more!
I thought the visuals in the Rings of Power were superb. The story, unfortunately ... not so much.
Personally, I feel like technology has a place as a tool in society, but not a tool for us to be overly dependent on. I feel like the current path is drastically changing things, and not for the better.
Great interview Elle! Ramsey has done so much amazing work! I was intrigued by this quote from him:
"I think it's eminently possible to have a high-tech future. I think it's not as possible to have a high-tech future that feels utopian."
I'm going to have to sit with that for a bit. My initial reaction is to reject that notion. But, perhaps I'm too much of an imaginative idealist at heart.
There's a lot of great stuff here. Thanks for your hard work!
Hi Elle, I'm very glad you put this together and I'm a new fan of Ramsey (I followed him immediately on Linkedin). The idea of Utopia is one I constantly explore along with all the other aspects of what our future could look like so this really resonated. Lots of really solid insight from someone who is obviously an expert on the subject in a very practical sense. I probably geeked out on this more than is socially acceptable. =]
I love this -- it brings together my lifelong love of sci fi, urban planning and utopianism.
Also inspires me to transform some of my own podcast interviews into posts based on transcripts.
Nicely done!
Don’t want to be picky, but I think „Casa Doom“ is spelled Khazad-dûm. 🙈