James Gunn - The Literature of Science Fiction Lecture Series

This is a series of filmed lectures about science fiction.

To help teach his new science-fiction course in 1969, James Gunn began producing a series of films featuring prominent science fiction writers (and one prominent fan); scroll down to see Gunn's essay about creating the Lecture Series. Through interviews with Gunn as well as some lectures, they tell the story of the SF genre:

Science Fiction Films: A Lecture By Forrest J. Ackerman
Plot in Science Fiction: A Lecture by Poul Anderson
The History of Science Fiction After 1938: A Lecture by Isaac Asimov
Science Fiction and the Mainstream: A Lecture by John Brunner
Theme in Science Fiction: A Discussion Between Gordon Dickson and James Gunn
New Directions in Science Fiction: A Seminar with Harlan Ellison
The Early History of Science Fiction: A Lecture by Damon Knight
The Ideas in Science Fiction: A Lecture by Frederik Pohl
An Interview with Clifford Simak: A Career in Science Fiction
The Early Days of the SF Magazines: An Interview with Jack Williamson

DMZ Productions has gone to great effort to restore these films and present them in original image quality in a two-DVD set. Including an introduction by James Gunn, explaining the beginning of the initial project, notes by Eric Solstein about the restoration, and transcripts of each individual film (such as this one of Isaac Asimov), this is the first and foremost audio-visual record of science fiction.