Ronald D. Moore has one of the coolest jobs in Hollywood -- he gets to play god in science fiction worlds that he creates. Before 're-imagine' and 'reboot' were buzzwords, Moore re-invented the cheesy 1980s TV show “Battlestar Galactica” as an allegory for the War on Terror. His new series on the Syfy Network is called “Caprica,” and it's a prequel to “Battlestar.” For Studio 360's series on works of art that have changed people’s lives, I talked with Moore about how “Star Trek” has been his creative muse since he was a kid.

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I'm a big fan of his work – and of his podcasts. After each episode of “Battlestar” aired, Moore would upload a post-mortem commentary he recorded while enjoying a good cigar. Analyzing a scene, he'd jump from creative introspection to referencing historic military battles and on-set anecdotes. I was thrilled to finally be able to respond back to that interesting voice.

In one of the best parts of our conversation (which had to be left on the cutting room floor), Moore talks about the constraints of writing for 'Star Trek' and the need to break away when he reimagined 'Battlestar.' Two immediate changes: no captain's chair and no big view screen.

'Caprica' resumes next month.