John August

Transcribed

Reviving a Dormant Project

Episode - 633

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Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John welcomes back John Gatins (Flight, Coach Carter) to talk about reviving a dormant project and actually getting it made – like he just did with his new film Little Wing. They look at how films die, what brings them back to life, and go deep into the mechanics of sports movies.

We also follow up on flu tests, the Tiffany problem and pet names before answering listener questions on professionalism, mid-credit scenes, and work ethic.

In our bonus segment for premium members, John Gatins talks abut transitioning into a writing team and reveals his process of negotiating credits.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 4-10-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Mystery and Suspense

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John has the flu (or does he?) and Craig is missing, so we’re going back through the vaults to look at the mechanics of mystery and suspense. How do writers exploit the audience’s curiosity? What builds and breaks their trust? How do you use suspense across genres? And what do these techniques look like on the page?

But first, we look at the current agency shakeups and share our thoughts on OpenAI’s new engine, Sora.

In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Drew talk about their experience with the Apple Vision Pro.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 04-01-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Adapting for Television

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John welcomes writer and showrunner Francesca Sloane (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Atlanta) to talk about her process of bringing a big-screen property to television. She shares how she and Donald Glover found their way into the story, how it evolved in development, building a room that was all women of color, re-writing on set, and the many lessons she learned as a first time showrunner.

We also follow up on writing partners and phonetic alphabets before answering listener questions on writing samples, casting on the page and why some screenplays are free to read.

In our bonus segment for premium members, we dig into the benefits (and drawbacks) of film schools and fellowships.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 04-01-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

The One with Celine Song

Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John welcomes Celine Song (Past Lives) to chart her journey from playwright to Oscar-nominated screenwriter. We discuss the intricacies of writing bilingually, the similarities between theater and a writers room, finding the right collaborators and how writing prepared Celine for the rigors of directing.

We also follow up on foreign courts, the Tiffany problem, and answer listener questions on American grad schools and table reads.

In our bonus segment for premium members, Celine looks back on her production of The Seagull in The Sims 4 and reflects on the importance of experimenting with form.

Links:

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 03-15-24: The transcript for this episode can be found here.