• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

John August

  • Arlo Finch
  • Scriptnotes
  • Library
  • Store
  • About

Indie

Writing Memorable Dialogue

Episode - 371

Go to Archive

October 9, 2018 Adaptation, Arlo Finch, Film Industry, Follow Up, Formatting, How-To, Indie, News, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA, Words on the page

John and Craig have a dialogue about dialogue. They discuss how thinking about memorizing lines can help write them, and how to service quieter characters in a scene.

We also answer listener questions about adapting plays for the screen, creating a different experience for your reader than your viewer, and whether to trust sketchily worded release forms.

Links:

  • The Arlo Finch series trailer is live!
  • Chunking
  • How Shrek 2 has been redubbed for the UK market by Leslie Felperin for The Independent
  • You Might Be the Killer, written by Brett Simmons and Thomas P. Vitale and directed by Simmons, born from this Twitter thread between Chuck Wendig and Sam Sykes.
  • Evercast allows Craig to be in the Chernobyl edit from home
  • T-shirts are available here! We’ve got new designs, including Colored Revisions, Karateka, and Highland2.
  • The USB drives!
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Matthew Chilelli (send us yours!).

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 10-16-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

What Is a Movie, Anyway?

September 25, 2018 Awards, Film Industry, Follow Up, Indie, Scriptnotes, Stuart, Television, Transcribed, Videogames

John and Craig welcome Franklin Leonard to weigh in on the current definition of “movie.” In the age of streaming, this distinction is not only important for audiences and awards, but has a meaningful effect on how writers are paid.

We also take umbrage with Awards Season as a Hollywood fixture, and follow up on a five year-old prediction about iPads in movie theaters.

Links:

  • Scriptnotes, Episode 108: Are two screens better than one? addresses the fear of iPads in theaters
  • Become a premium subscriber in time for our bonus Q&A episode. Submit your questions here.
  • Show Us Your Room and the Instagram hashtag
  • Rusty Lake’s new game, Paradox, with video of actual people
  • Roma, written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón
  • Inneresting, a new John August newsletter. You can subscribe here.
  • T-shirts are available here! We’ve got new designs, including Colored Revisions, Karateka, and Highland2.
  • The USB drives!
  • Franklin Leonard on Twitter
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Matthew Chilelli (send us yours!).

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 9-28-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Netflix Killed the Video Store

August 21, 2018 Film Industry, Follow Up, Indie, Los Angeles, QandA, Resources, Rights and Copyright, Scriptnotes, Video

John welcomes Kate Hagen to talk about missing movies and the role that video stores play in archiving film history, preserving access to all movies and creating a sense of community. They discuss some of the barriers to films getting digital distribution, from limited music licenses to struggles with chain-of-title when companies fail.

We also discuss what it is to be a script reader, write coverage and clash with a boss’ taste. And we follow up on Moviepass and its legacy.

Links:

  • Thanks for joining us, Kate Hagen!
  • In Search of the Last Great Video Store by Kate Hagen
  • The Black List
  • Netflix’s DVD service
  • Fresh Horses was one of those missing movies.
  • The Fall of MoviePass and its reverse stock split
  • Kate recommends Ladies & Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains, Mikey and Nicky and FilmStruck to watch classic movies.
  • My Life as a Goddess by Guy Branum
  • Tees-En-Scène sells shirts that highlight and support female writer/directors.
  • The USB drives!
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • Kate Hagen on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Luke Davis (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 8-28-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Upgrade

June 12, 2018 Directors, Film Industry, Genres, Indie, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

Craig welcomes Leigh Whannell, writer of the Saw and Insidious franchises, to discuss low-budget filmmaking, sequels on sequels, the horror landscape and his new movie, Upgrade.

We also answer listener questions about sharing an agent with your writing partner and the ethics of hiring someone to punch up your own script.

Links:

  • Thanks for joining us, Leigh Whannell!
  • Leigh wrote Saw, Insidious, and, most recently, Upgrade, (here’s the fairly violent trailer).
  • I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara
  • Matthew Lillard’s company, Beadle & Grimm’s Pandemonium Warehouse, is releasing a luxury Dungeons and Dragons campaign called Platinum Edition Dungeons & Dragons: Waterdeep: Dragon Heist, which is available to pre-order.
  • The Scriptnotes Listeners’ Guide!
  • The USB drives!
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • Leigh Whannell on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Outro by Matthew Chilelli (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 6-20-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Newsletter

Inneresting Logo A Quote-Unquote Newsletter about Writing
Read Now

Explore

Projects

  • Aladdin (1)
  • Arlo Finch (27)
  • Big Fish (87)
  • Charlie (39)
  • Charlie's Angels (16)
  • Chosen (2)
  • Corpse Bride (9)
  • Dead Projects (18)
  • Frankenweenie (10)
  • Go (30)
  • Karateka (4)
  • Monsterpocalypse (3)
  • One Hit Kill (6)
  • Ops (6)
  • Preacher (2)
  • Prince of Persia (13)
  • Shazam (6)
  • Snake People (6)
  • Tarzan (5)
  • The Nines (118)
  • The Remnants (12)
  • The Variant (22)

Apps

  • Bronson (14)
  • FDX Reader (11)
  • Fountain (32)
  • Highland (72)
  • Less IMDb (4)
  • Weekend Read (34)

Recommended Reading

  • First Person (87)
  • Geek Alert (147)
  • WGA (123)
  • Workspace (19)

Screenwriting Q&A

  • Adaptation (66)
  • Directors (90)
  • Education (49)
  • Film Industry (486)
  • Formatting (129)
  • Genres (90)
  • Glossary (6)
  • Pitches (29)
  • Producers (59)
  • Psych 101 (117)
  • Rights and Copyright (96)
  • So-Called Experts (47)
  • Story and Plot (170)
  • Television (164)
  • Treatments (21)
  • Words on the page (238)
  • Writing Process (178)

More screenwriting Q&A at screenwriting.io

© 2023 John August — All Rights Reserved.