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The Overexamined Life

Recovering From Burnout With Vic Zerbst

Season 1, Ep. 82

Vic Zerbst is a weapon of mass creation. They co-wrote and starred in Optics (Logie-nominated for Best Scripted Comedy) and the Christmas movie Nugget is Dead. They are also one half of the award-winning sketch duo Fruidian Nip, and this year premiered Converted! which is a queer musical developed through the Rebel Wilson Comedy Commission.

But we had Vic on not just as a comedian, but as a razor-sharp thinker. In this conversation we dive into creativity, burnout, chronic pain, Vic's thoughtful takes on AI and epistemology, and of course free will.


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