John August

Follow Up

Advice for a New Staff Writer

Episode - 368

Go to Archive

Film Industry, Follow Up, Scriptnotes, Television, Transcribed, Writing Process

John welcomes Alison McDonald (American Dad!, Nurse Jackie, the remake of Roots) and Ryan Knighton (In the Dark) to talk through the basics of the TV writers room, covering how they got in, how much to talk, how to make a living, what to wear and what’s for lunch.

In follow up, we look at disappearing digital purchases and the further fallout from Les Moonves.

We have new Scriptnotes T-shirts available — Colored Revisions! Thanks to Alison, Ryan now knows about magenta.

Links:

* T-shirts are available [here](https://cottonbureau.com/people/john-august-1)! We’ve got new designs, including [Colored Revisions](https://cottonbureau.com/products/colored-revisions), [Karateka](https://cottonbureau.com/products/karateka), and [Highland2](https://cottonbureau.com/products/highland2).
* Anders G Da Silva’s [tweet](https://twitter.com/drandersgs/status/1039270646243414016) about missing movies from his iTunes library
* [‘Designing Women’ Creator Goes Public With Les Moonves War: Not All Harassment Is Sexual](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/designing-women-creator-les-moonves-not-all-harassment-is-sexual-1142448), a guest column by Linda Bloodworth Thomason for the Hollywood Reporter
* [Succession](https://www.hbo.com/succession?pid=googleadwords_int&c=Google%7CSearch%7CMKL%7CIQ_ID_-VQ16-c&camp=Google%7CSearch%7CMKL%7CIQ_ID_-VQ16-c) on HBO
* [Be My Eyes](https://www.bemyeyes.com) app
* Improv classes for TV writers
* [The USB drives!](https://store.johnaugust.com/collections/frontpage/products/scriptnotes-300-episode-usb-flash-drive)
* [Ryan Knighton](https://twitter.com/ryanknighton) on Twitter
* [Alison McDonald](https://twitter.com/shegotproblems) on Twitter
* [John August](https://twitter.com/johnaugust) on Twitter
* [Craig Mazin](https://twitter.com/clmazin) on Twitter
* [John on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/johnaugust/?hl=en)
* [Find past episodes](http://scriptnotes.net/)
* [Scriptnotes Digital Seasons](https://store.johnaugust.com/) are also now available!
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Rajesh Naroth ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed)).

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode [here](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_368.mp3).

**UPDATE 9-27-18:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2018/scriptnotes-ep-368-advice-for-a-new-staff-writer-transcript).

One Year Later

Citizenship, Film Industry, Follow Up, Los Angeles, News, Producers, Scriptnotes, Strike, Transcribed

Aline Brosh McKenna joins John and Craig to discuss the progress made in the year following the Weinstein revelations. Have the systems for reporting and preventing sexual harassment improved, or are we still just dealing with hurricanes?

We also follow up on The Academy’s decision to nix the Popular Film category, the IATSE agreement, missing movies, and Craig’s distaste for ventriloquism. And Final Draft teaches us that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Links:

* [The Academy decided against adding the Popular Film Category this year](https://deadline.com/2018/09/oscars-most-popular-film-category-scrapped-academy-board-1202458508/).
* [Site supporting the IATSE Basic Agreement](https://www.iatsebasicagreement.com)
* A listener let us know when he saw a [familiar looking typewriter](https://twitter.com/dtsarmento/status/1037520618898374657), but [Final Draft apologized](https://twitter.com/johnaugust/status/1037773489510305792).
* Matt followed up with insight on [how murky rights keep movies in limbo](http://johnaugust.com/2018/its-mostly-about-underlying-rights).
* Even [Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxoYKt65vSQ), [12-year old Darcy Lynne on America’s Got Talent](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=rk_qLtk0m2c#) and [Avenue Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXnM1uHhsOI) can’t change Craig’s mind about ventriloquism.
* An [iPad stand](http://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XVFKYL5/?tag=johnaugustcom-20)
* [Awards Are Stupid](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u-dxn8IgQo), Jerry Seinfeld’s acceptance speech for his HBO Comedian Award
* [The USB drives!](https://store.johnaugust.com/collections/frontpage/products/scriptnotes-300-episode-usb-flash-drive)
* [Aline Brosh McKenna](https://twitter.com/alinebmckenna) on Twitter
* [John August](https://twitter.com/johnaugust) on Twitter
* [Craig Mazin](https://twitter.com/clmazin) on Twitter
* [John on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/johnaugust/?hl=en)
* [Find past episodes](http://scriptnotes.net/)
* [Scriptnotes Digital Seasons](https://store.johnaugust.com/) are also now available!
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Luke Davis ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed)).

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode [here](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_367.mp3).

**UPDATE 9-19-18:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2018/scriptnotes-ep-367-one-year-later-transcript).

How murky rights keep movies in limbo

First Person, Follow Up, News

Following up on [my conversation with Kate Hagen](http://johnaugust.com/2018/netflix-killed-the-video-store) about why I can’t legally stream The Flamingo Kid and many other films, listener Matt wrote in with some helpful insight into the hurdles for re-releasing old titles:

—

Happy to hear you talk about digital distribution. I worked on that side of the industry for a major cable network for several years. Wanted to share some insight on the day-to-day realities of releasing catalog titles on the EST/DTO platforms (that’s electronic sell-through and download-to-own [interchangeable terms], and iTunes/Amazon/Google Play/Vudu, etc.).

I worked in TV, but I’d guess that a lot of what I experienced applies to film as well. My sense is that most movies or TV episodes still not available on digital platforms have some issue holding them back.

The decision to release these older titles all comes down to risk, and it rarely makes sense on an individual title basis to take the risk. The risk is either financial (spending money to clear a song or a piece of stock footage) or legal (when there’s an unclear chain-of-title, either for an entire TV series/movie or for licensed media within an episode or movie).

In my experience, new release titles drove nearly all of our team’s revenue, with catalog episodes bringing in comparatively little. So on a case-by-case basis, it’s very difficult for digital distribution teams to make the argument to their superiors that it’s worth spending money, sometimes a lot of money, to license music for home media use, or to release an episode or movie with an unclear chain-of-title and hope no one comes out of the woodwork with a lawsuit claiming they hold its distribution rights.

Older movies or TV episodes may only bring in a few hundred dollars a year to the studio or network, when new releases are making millions. Frankly, if you go to your Senior VP asking permission to spend $30,000 to clear a song so you can release a 25-year-old TV episode that’s projected to make $40 in a year, you’re an idiot. It’s much easier for everyone involved to not bother with the mess of issues surrounding some of these movies and shows, and instead to just let the money roll in from new releases.

From my experience, I think the only way we get every TV show and movie released digitally is if high-ranking executives at networks and studios decide it’s worth it in the long run to have full distribution rights to their entire libraries, and take a one-time financial hit to clear many episodes and movies at the same time. The cost/benefit rarely makes sense one at a time, but it would likely be worth the cost for networks and studios to have complete libraries of content they can license over and over again to different streaming services.

Tying Things Up

Books, Film Industry, Follow Up, Go, News, Random Advice, Rights and Copyright, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Videogames, Words on the page, Writing Process

John and Craig cover endings, both for craft and for business. First they articulate the importance of the denouement and the social contract it fulfills with the audience. Then they discuss what happens to a writer’s work after their death.

We also follow up on pitching, and introduce a new segment: Change Craig’s Mind. This week: Ventriloquists!

Links:

* You can listen to John & Craig on another podcast: [Jordan, Jesse, Go!](http://maximumfun.org/jordan-jesse-go/jordan-jesse-go-episode-546-pegging-place-john-august-and-craig-mazin)
* You can check out our episode with [Mindy Kaling](http://johnaugust.com/2018/the-one-with-mindy-kaling), or our episode with [Susanna Fogel and David Iserson](http://johnaugust.com/2018/from-indie-to-action-comedy) for some context in this week’s follow-up.
* John’s attempt at “Changing Craig’s Mind” about ventriloquism: [Nina Conti](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSNAi2jB490)
* Edward Albee’s estate has [special rules](http://www.playbill.com/article/albee-estate-clarifies-position-on-casting-controversy-surrounding-whos-afraid-of-virginia-woolf) about casting for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.
* [Erin Gibson](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2407202/?ref_=nv_sr_1): [Throwing Shade](http://www.throwingshade.com/#tour) podcast, [Gay of Thrones](https://www.funnyordie.com/authors/gay-of-thrones), and her new book, [Feminasty: The Complicated Woman’s Guide to Surviving the Patriarchy Without Drinking Herself to Death.](http://www.amazon.com/dp/1455571865/?tag=johnaugustcom-20)
* [Phoebe Waller-Bridge](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3564817/): [Killing Eve](http://www.bbcamerica.com/shows/killing-eve), [Fleabag](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KUE7P8K/ref=atv_feed_catalog), and she’s the [robot, L3-37, in Solo](https://www.indiewire.com/2018/05/solo-phoebe-waller-bridge-l3-37-star-wars-1201968300/)
* [The Witcher 3: Blood And Wine DLC](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Witcher_3:_Wild_Hunt_%E2%80%93_Blood_and_Wine)
* [The USB drives!](https://store.johnaugust.com/collections/frontpage/products/scriptnotes-300-episode-usb-flash-drive)
* [John August](https://twitter.com/johnaugust) on Twitter
* [Craig Mazin](https://twitter.com/clmazin) on Twitter
* [John on Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/johnaugust/?hl=en)
* [Find past episodes](http://scriptnotes.net/)
* [Scriptnotes Digital Seasons](https://store.johnaugust.com/) are also now available!
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Rajesh Naroth ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed)). And thank you, Luke Davis, for Craig’s musical intro!

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode [here](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_366.mp3).

**UPDATE 9-12-18:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2018/scriptnotes-ep-366-tying-things-up-transcript).