Welcome back! Tonight, we're having a steampunk interview with Bonsart Bokel, a blogger and writer from the Netherlands. Some of you might be familiar with his video blog on YouTube called Radio Retrofuture. His work covers steampunk basics, interviews, theories, costume tips, discussions, video game reviews, and more. Bonsart is quite informative and he's not afraid to be completely opinionated. I think it's time to learn more about him. Q: Why did you become interested in steampunk? A: My interest in history and science fiction go way back. As a kid, I loved to build things from circuit boards and made up stories for my Lego pirates. Star Trek: TNG was my first exposure to sci-fi and I've been a fan ever since. My gateway drug was cardboard crack (otherwise known as Magic: the Gathering). I got into Warhammer Fantasy and dabbled somewhat in various roleplaying games. During that time, I was also a big fan of the Elfquest comic books. When I grew tired of painting knights, I started reenacting in a 14th-century historical group called the Company of Cranenburgh. After ten years of doing that, I took up writing and worked on a setting in which I combined space opera with the aesthetic of the Dutch Golden Age and associated themes. I have always been fascinated with anachronistic aesthetics, especially for its ability to make unique visuals with familiar objects and styles. And then there are the obvious storytelling possibilities. I especially love the world of the anime called Last Exile, designed by Range Murata, that combined Art Deco with Napoleonic and Interbellum design. Q: How long have you been an active member of the steampunk community? A: I visited my first event, Emporium Vernesque, in October 2012. I joined as a volunteer because it was nearby and I already identified with the genre. There I bought the Steampunk Gazette by Major Tinker. I always considered myself to be a blogger on history or fiction and when I saw the potential of Steampunk, I decided right then and there I wanted to explore the subject. In December, I published my first blog on “Tupperware Steampunk." Q: Would you mind giving us some details about your Radio Retrofuture channel on YouTube? A: It is the largest YouTube Channel dedicated to Retrofuturism that I am aware of. My most watched videos are those of the Steampunk Beginners Guide, which is hosted by my character Dankaert Lexicon. I also have movie and game reviews, over ninety interviews with members of the Steampunk Community, and several discussion panels. Q: I believe you added a second video blog. Is it part of a special project? A: I was challenged to create a radio station for the world of Fallout, also called Radio Retrofuture. (These can be found on YouTube as Steampunk Music for Fallout.) I wrote a story and voiced the host of that radio station and finally added the sound effects. I wanted to do more, so for a Halloween special, I made several videos of my character Dankaert Lexicon reading SCP-stories. But due to the diverse content on the channel, I decided it might be best to create a second channel just for these types of videos. So, I created a second YouTube Channel called the Retrofuture Research Foundation. I also want to do lore videos on franchises I love, but are not necessarily Steampunk, like Shadowrun or Lovecraft. I intend to do these in character as well. I am also looking for researchers and cowriters for those videos. If people want to submit their own short stories, I am open to that as well. Q: You’re also a fellow writer. Are you penning anything in the near future? A: Currently, I am working on an online project called The Association of Ishtar. It is kind of a Steampunkish take on the SCP format, but it takes place specifically in an alternate reality in which humanity has access to parallel worlds. The intention is to showcase various high concepts and it's a way to demonstrate steampunk can be about more than airship pirates and time machines. People can send in their own stories and ideas about the universe in the same vein as SCP, so that would be great if we can realize that. And if I can find a cowriter, I want to base an audio drama on this universe that will be on our new channel, The Retrofuture Research Foundation. These can be found on https://radio-retrofuture.fandom.com/wiki/Library Q: Steampunk seems to be slowing down a little bit in my area. Maybe it’s growing more in the Netherlands. Would you say the steampunk community is growing or shrinking in your region? A: I don’t think size is the problem. As far I can tell, Steampunk is still overrepresented on the fairs. So, it’s aesthetic is still popular. There are plenty of events in Germany and England. I think communication and cooperation is a more pressing issue. What that would mean specifically for Steampunks on YouTube is that our videos could be shared. People come to us with subjects for videos or discussion panels. The platform and motivation is there, but the community at large don’t seem very eager to promote or use it. Q: It’s not easy to introduce steampunk to mainstream audiences. What are some good steampunk resources? A: Funny you ask, for I have an entire documentary series on the topic for beginners called the Steampunk Beginners Guide. Anyway, if you can’t make it to events, YouTube is a good place to start. You get a lot of DIY channels on how to make Steampunk stuff. Other YouTubers and I have a lot of videos regarding the community. If viewers ask more questions, it will help us make more videos to address their questions. Facebook and Reddit have a lot of groups as well. I am very active on the Steampunk Animo and we also have an RRF Discord group. Q: Many steampunk fans have read a favorite story by H.G. Wells. Is there a favorite story by Wells on your list? A: The only book by Wells I read from cover to cover is War of the Worlds. I still intend to listen to The New Machiavelli. Q: Are you noticing any popular steampunk trends in fashion, literature, cosplay, etc.? A: I have to concur with Ruud de Korte's observation. There are more bought props and clothing than there used to be. I've noticed a lot more reproduction because it has become more available online. A lot of young steampunks appear on Animo (probably because their parents are on Facebook). They focus more on online trends or Tumblerisms, like making OCs or Original Characters. These are roleplaying characters they use in chatrooms (I think). I jokingly used the term OC when I finally wrote the story for Dankaert Lexicon, but it is not a type of culture I am attracted to. Q: I know you’re very opinionated about the slew of “punk” labels, such as steampunk, cyberpunk, dieselpunk, etc. What are your honest thoughts about punk science fiction in general? A: Then I have to ask what do you mean with Punk. Here is my problem. People often throw terms at me. “Please talk about Bonepunk or talk about Waterpunk." When I ask for examples of these types of fiction, there is either no response, or they come back to me with mainstream movies or stories that could be placed in any of the conventional genres, or are a cosmos into itself that defies any label. As a result, I don’t know any representative works of these Punkpunks. Q: What do you enjoy the most about steampunk cosplay? A: I don’t think we understand the same thing under cosplay, so I’ll just translate it as costuming. I want to tell a story and make characters come to life. In an extension of that, we try to build a world people can walk in. Build an outdoor museum, as it were, that includes items from our fictional universe in The Association of Isthar. Q: Radio Retrofuture also has some material from Fallout. Would you mind giving a basic explanation? A: During a podcast I did with Mark Petty from the Steampunk Stompers, we tried to come up with a way to introduce a new audience to Steampunk music. It just so happened I learned about Old World Radio, a game modification for the game Fallout 4 that adds a number of radio stations to the game in which the players can tune in. I asked the creator if he’d be interested in a Steampunk radio station. His first response was skeptical, but five minutes later he replied with, “Let’s do it." So, I contacted dozens of artists and asked for their permission. Now you can listen to your favorite Steampunk bands in the game. In between songs, you can follow the adventures of the presenter, Balthazar Gerards and his robot servant A.S.P. Q: Speaking of games, what are some of your favorite individual games and/or franchises? A: I enjoy more strategic genres. I really enjoy Star Sector, BattleTech, and Fallout 76. I play off and on, and I'm looking forward to the next expansions this autumn. I'm intending to play Mutant: Year Zero's next expansion as well. Maybe I will find some more games. I recently posted a vlog called Let’s Play Close to the Sun. I am also looking forward to Atomic Heart. It looks very promising. Finally, I'm looking forward to the final segment of Iron Harvest, which is inspired by the art of Jucub Rosalski. Q: His Dark Materials is being adapted as a television show on HBO. Are you looking forward to it? A: Never heard of it before, so I can only judge it by the trailer. Meh. The music was very distracting though. I watched half of The Golden Compass movie. Didn’t enjoy it and have no intention to return. But I am not much of a fantasy buff to begin with. Q: What else should we know about you? A: I am always looking for collaborations, especially for my new channel. I am looking for researchers and voice actors. If the readers appreciate what I do, they can also support our projects on... Main channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiBftXucArbRyVeqrdjJmZA Retrofuture Research Foundation https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiEhVAfe7s101wyBqoruWkw Stories, The Association of Isthar https://radio-retrofuture.fandom.com/wiki/Library All right! That concludes another steampunk interview. I hope you learned something new, as always. You can check out Bonsart's links for more steampunk resources. Keep your eyes open for more steampunk interviews and discussions. Please leave comments if you have anything to say about this particular interview. Next week, I'm probably going to post two or three movie reviews because there's a lot of content being crammed into the summer season. We only have a third of the year to go and there's still plenty of material to cover. Thanks for visiting again and I'll see you guys next week.
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