Future of StoryTelling (FoST)
The Future of StoryTelling (FoST) is a passionate community of people from the worlds of media, technology, and communications who believe that better stories can create a better future. Join FoST Founder and CEO Charlie Melcher for a series of conversations with expert storytellers from a range of disciplines to learn how they’re navigating the changing media landscape, focusing on how stories can help create positive and lasting change in the world. Conversations address a breadth of topics, from immersive storytelling to emerging technologies, the neuroscience of narrative, and much more. www.futureofstorytelling.org
Episodes
Today’s conversation is with Liz Rosenthal and Michel Reilhac, the curators of Venice Immersive, the Extended Reality section of the Venice International Film Festival. For close to a decade, Liz and Michel have put together one of the world’s leading showcases for immersive arts and media, convening a global community of artists, technologists, and producers to experience and celebrate the evolution of immersive media. In this epi...
Today on the podcast, we revisit an all-time favorite conversation with Annie Murphy Paul, author of The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain. Annie's insightful and informative book about embodied cognition is an invaluable read for any storyteller interested in creating embodied, multi-sensory narratives.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
To get your copy of Charlie's upcoming book, The Future...
In this revisited conversation, renowned photographer Stephen Shore talks about the craft of photography, tells stories from his illustrious career, and shares his philosophy on art and life.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
To get your copy of Charlie's upcoming book, The Future of Storytelling, visit thefutureofstorytelling.com
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© 2025 Future of StoryTelling, Corp.
Produced by Future of StoryTelling, Corp.
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Jeffrey Seller is the legendary Broadway producer behind shows like Rent, Hamilton, In the Heights, and more. His shows have won a combined 22 Tony Awards, including four for Best Musical, and he's the only producer to have mounted two shows that went on to win the Pulitzer Prize. This spring, Jeffrey published his autobiography, Theater Kid, an honest and moving reflection on his path to finding his place on Broadway, as well ...
French photographer and street artist JR is best known for his striking large-scale black and white portraits that he flyposts in public spaces. Today on the FoST Podcast, we revisit a conversation with him about his foray into digitizing the collaborative Inside Out project—where communities are invited to create their own public art in his style—and what the project has taught him about the power of giving people the space to tel...
Demise of the Gricers is a groundbreaking "real-life game" by interactive experience studio Entered. Brought to life in a former train yard in As, Belgium, it combines elements of immersive theater, video games, escape rooms, and LARP to create a first-of-its-kind story experience. In this conversation, Entered co-founder and creative director Jeroen van Hasselt takes us behind the scenes of the project to share how he and ...
Jason Zada and Eric Shamlin lead the team at Secret Level, an AI-native entertainment studio that’s exploring new frontiers in storytelling. They made waves this past winter when they created a TV commercial for Coca-Cola with generative AI, which sparked many conversations about AI’s role in the future of creativity. Today, Jason and Eric pull back the curtain on the advantages and challenges of this new technology that's help...
Yerba Madre (formerly Guayakí) is a certified B Corp that aspires to create more than just profits with their yerba mate teas. CMO Emily Kortlang and her team are doubling down on what makes the brand unique: their commitment to regenerating the planet and to creating dialogues, rather than just increasing sales. On today's episode of the FoST Podcast, Emily shares her fascinating insights on using a story-first approach to bui...
Today's guest is Eric Spring in 't Veld, founder and creative director of Dutch escape room company Mama Bazooka. Eric and his team created the Netherlands' first-ever escape room in 2013, as well as the award-winning Girlsroom experience. Their third project, The Dome, has been on TERPECA’s list of top ten escape rooms worldwide since 2019, and was ranked #1 in the world twice in a row in 2019 and 2020. In this e...
On today's episode, we revisit a conversation with Scott Harrison, founder and CEO of Charity: Water. Scott and his team recently opened The Experience Lab by Charity: Water just outside of Nashville, where they utilize experiential storytelling to help visitors foster empathy for people struggling to access clean water. To celebrate this new endeavor, please enjoy this conversation from 2020.
The Black List is a platform that helps writers get feedback on their work and connect with professionals who can bring their project to life. After twenty years of successfully uplifting writing for film, TV, and theater, they’ve now turned their attention to a new industry: publishing. Today, The Black List Founder and CEO Franklin Leonard and Creative Director of Fiction Randy Winston talk about the platform’s expansion into fic...
Today’s guest is Robert Brunner, founder and creative director of Ammunition. Robert is one of the world’s foremost industrial designers, having worked on popular products from the iconic Beats headphones to the omnipresent Square terminal to the Barnes & Noble Nook e-reader. In this episode, Robert shares his insights about the role that design plays in connecting people to brands and how he helps companies tell stories ...
Sissel Tolaas is an expert on the art and science of smell. Her endeavor to help people rediscover this essential sense and understand its importance has led her to collaborate with some of the world’s top research institutions, cultural organizations, and brands. Today on the FoST Podcast, she shares her learnings from thirty years of research on smell and how she imagines it could shape the future.
On today’s episode of the FoST Podcast, we revisit a conversation with Victor van Doorn, co-founder and creative director of escape room company Sherlocked. He and other escape room creators like him aren’t just making timed puzzle rooms— they’re creating embodied, social story experiences that players love.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
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© 2024 Future of StoryTelling, Corp.
Produced by Future of Sto...
Rohit Bhargava is a bestselling author, keynote speaker, and entrepreneur whose specialty is identifying the trends and innovations of the future that others tend to overlook. In this episode, he discusses his predictions for the next generation of stories, from immersive entertainment to generative AI to history itself.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
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© 2024 Future of StoryTelling, Corp.
Produced by...
For the last episode of 2024, we return to the very first conversation on the FoST Podcast with Angela Ahrendts. Angela has had an incredible career in business--she's been the CEO of Burberry, SVP of Apple Retail, and more--and in this discussion shares invaluable insights on her approach to brand storytelling.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
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© 2024 Future of StoryTelling, Corp.
Produced by Future of StoryTe...
Today on the FoST Podcast, we revisit a conversation with Joe Pine, co-author of the seminal 1999 book The Experience Economy: Competing for Customer Time, Attention, and Money. In it, Joe predicted that creating memorable experiences would become a key aspect of business in the future— a prediction we’ve seen borne out with the rise of immersive and experiential in entertainment, marketing, retail, and beyond. Joe is now working o...
Today, we revisit a conversation with Dr. Vivienne Ming, theoretical neuroscientist, author, and serial entrepreneur. Dr. Ming has worked in AI and machine learning for 25 years, inventing multiple systems to improve health outcomes and address social issues. She uses data to help foreground more just and diverse stories—a talent and commitment that now is more important than ever.
To learn more, visit our website at fost.org.
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Earlier this year, celebrated magazine editor Adam Moss authored his first book, The Work Of Art: How Something Comes From Nothing. Inspired by his experience as a painter, Adam interviewed dozens of the best creatives of our time, from Stephen Sondheim to Sofia Coppola to Ira Glass. The result is a detailed study of the process of making art in many different disciplines— and a rich resource for any creative person. He shares his ...
Ben Shewry is a chef, author, and co-owner of Attica Restaurant in Melbourne, Australia. Recognized as one of the top restaurants worldwide, Attica offers guests an experience that immerses them in Australia’s unique cuisine. In his new book, Uses for Obsession, and on this episode of the FoST Podcast, Ben discusses how that experience came to be, as well as his personal learnings on creativity and culture in and around the kitchen...
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