John August

Transcribed

Love and Money

Episode - 637

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HWTBAM, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig look at four unbelievable stories in the news and ask, How Would This Be a Movie? Stories include a finance journalist who was scammed out of her savings, men who offer dating bounties, a franken-sheep made of cloned animal parts, and how standardized tests changed one woman’s life.

We also reveal which modern classics we’ve never seen (We meant to! We’re sorry!) to decide which – if any – we need to watch. But first, we follow up on D&D for kids, ESL, AI in reality TV, and Tiffany problems before answering listener questions on formats and recommending your spouse.

In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Craig look at new guidelines for AI and how they might affect our future.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 4-2-24: Listener Luke Rankin created a Letterboxd list of all the movies featured in this episode. You can view it here.

UPDATE 4-30-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Whispering Loudly

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John welcomes back Pamela Ribon (Nimona, My Year of Dicks) to quietly ask: what’s with all the whispering in movies these days? They discuss trends and techniques in voice and volume, picking the right moment to whisper, and the value of voices across decibel levels.

We also revisit Pamela’s work on Moana to look at what you can learn from reading early drafts, ponder the threat of TikTok and YouTube, follow-up on vetting potential co-workers, and answer a listener question on writing animation.

In our bonus segment for premium members, Pam shares all her star-studded stories from sitting in the 5th row at this year’s Oscars.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 4-29-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Is This Person Going to Ruin Everything?

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig wring their hands and ask, how do you make sure the person you’re hiring isn’t a monster? They look at best practices for vetting colleagues, sussing out problematic people, and managing your own emotions when you’re the person with power.

We also discuss writing for non-native English speakers, using three examples to illustrate the importance of syntax, musicality and authenticity. But first, we answer listener questions on giving notes and kids playing D&D.

In our bonus segment for premium members, we spill the kool-aid on our fears and fascinations with cults.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 04-22-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

What If? Hollywood Edition

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig explore the counterfactuals of Hollywood history — the relatively small moments that, if the coin toss had gone the other way, would have massive ramifications on the world as we know it.

What if Edison was allowed to keep his monopoly on motion pictures? What does our industry look like without the Paramount Consent Decree? What if George Lucas died in his car accident? Would superhero movies have dominated our culture if Iron Man had bombed? What studios would have gone down if Titanic had sunk? And what if Netflix had stayed with its DVD-only model?

In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Craig talk capitalism and solve its problems once and for all.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 04-22-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.