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Adaptation

Craig Hates Dummies

Episode - 365

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August 28, 2018 Adaptation, Film Industry, Follow Up, Genres, Highland, News, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Transcribed, Travel, WGA

John and Craig are back at it with another installment of How Would This Be a Movie? They consider the story of a competitive mass Tinder date, a retirement home for ventriloquist dummies and the McDonald’s Monopoly heist.

We also revisit John’s WGA Corner for updates, follow up on the conflict within IATSE, and get a great sense of Craig’s passionate beef with ventriloquism.

Links:

  • Studios Back In Antitrust Spotlight As AMC Chain Loses Key Court Ruling by Dominic Patten for Deadline
  • Class Struggle in Hollywood, 1930-1950: Moguls, Stars, Reds, and Trade Unionists by Gerald Horne
  • @bvdhai’s Twitter thread about the mass Tinder date
  • Woman dupes dozens of dudes into weirdest Tinder date ever and Tinder hottie dupes dozens of dopes, but it’s all a marketing stunt by Ruth Brown for the NY Post
  • ‘Tinder Trap’ model claims she’s the victim after duping guys by Tamar Lapin and Ruth Brown
  • Monterey Jack’s Twitter thread about Vent Haven
  • Vent Haven’s official website
  • How an Ex-Cop Rigged McDonald’s Monopoly Game and Stole Millions Jeff Maysh for the Daily Beast
  • Behind Hollywood’s A-List Bidding War for a McDonald’s Monopoly Article by Chris Lee for Vulture
  • In a Town of 11 People, Mysterious Disappearance Turns Neighbor Against Neighbor by Jacqueline Williams for the New York Times
  • McGill music student awarded $350,000 after girlfriend stalls career by René Bruemmer for the Montreal Gazette
  • US judge orders 30-year-old man to move out of his parents’ house
  • Flat track roller derby, like Angel City Derby
  • 7 Billion Humans
  • 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 Timothy Vajda (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 9-4-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Where Movies Come From

July 17, 2018 Adaptation, Comics, Film Industry, Follow Up, Genres, News, Producers, Rights and Copyright, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA, Writing Process

John and Craig welcome Liz Hannah (screenwriter of The Post) to explore where movies come from, be it real life, storytelling social media sites, or all-powerful comic book IP. How do these story sources affect the writer’s relationship with the material and with the audience?

We also follow up on the meaning of “Jackman Shot” and answer listener questions about using accents to indicate foreign language, where low-budget holiday movies fit into a blossoming writing career and the responsibilities of adapting the work of someone with a questionable moral legacy.

Links:

  • Thanks for joining us, Liz Hannah! Liz’s film, The Post, was a Best Picture nominee.
  • Fred Jackman, cinematographer/writer/director/special effects hero, is the apparent namesake of the Jackman shot.
  • How Wattpad is Rewriting the Rules of Hollywood, by Chris Lee writing for Vulture
  • Hunting the Con Queen of Hollywood: Who’s the “Crazy Evil Genius” Behind a Global Racket?, by Scott Johnson writing for the Hollywood Reporter
  • Comic Book Shake-Up: DMG Entertainment Acquires Valiant , by Borys Kit for The Hollywood Reporter
  • Valkyrie, Schindler’s List and The Death of Stalin are examples of how one can handle the indication of foreign language.
  • Who We Are and How We Got Here: Ancient DNA and the New Science of the Human Past by David Reich
  • GamePigeon
  • Overlooked by the New York Times adds obituaries for remarkable people that were overlooked in their time, like Bette Nesmith Graham who invented liquid paper.
  • The Scriptnotes Listeners’ Guide!
  • The USB drives!
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • Liz Hannah on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Larry Douziech (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 7-23-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

All About Family

May 1, 2018 Adaptation, Education, Film Industry, Follow Up, Formatting, News, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig partake in another installment of How Would This Be a Movie? Which story is destined for the big screen: The millennial mother with her surprise, Youtube-guided childbirth? The couple that has the same fight for decades? The Japanese families-for-hire?

We also follow up on the logic of multi-cam formatting, Georgia’s success in diversifying crews through training programs, and effective character descriptions.

Tickets are now on sale for our next Scriptnotes Live Show on Tuesday, May 22nd at the ArcLight in Hollywood, with guests including Lisa Joy and Jonah Nolan of Westworld.

Links:

  • Our next live Scriptnotes will be Tuesday, May 22nd at the ArcLight in Hollywood. Tickets are on sale now — proceeds benefit Hollywood HEART, which runs special programs and summer camps for at-risk youth.
  • How 50 Famous Female Characters Were Described in Their Screenplays by Kyle Buchanan and Jordan Crucchiola for Vulture
  • Woman tells incredible story of how she used YouTube videos to carry out waterbirth of own baby she doubted she even had, while alone in hotel room written by Tom Embury-Dennis for The Independent
  • The Worrywart vs. the Zen Master by Tom Bowman and Brigid Schulte for Slate
  • Japan’s Rent-A-Family Industry, written by Elif Batuman for The New Yorker
  • Choir!Choir!Choir! is a choir in Toronto that meets once a week for drop-in singing events.
  • QTAKE Monitor is an app that lets you watch shots on set from your own device.
  • The Scriptnotes Listeners’ Guide!
  • The USB drives!
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Outro by Nicolas Curcio (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 5-8-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Love, Aptaker & Berger

April 10, 2018 Adaptation, Film Industry, Los Angeles, Producers, Scriptnotes, Television, Transcribed

John and Craig welcome Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger, the writing team that showruns This Is Us and just made history with Love, Simon.

We discuss their experience of breaking into the industry, writing with a partner, running a hit show, adapting YA novels for the screen, and the broccoli/marinara/pudding meals that got them here.

Links:

  • Thanks for joining us, Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger!
  • Love, Simon is in theaters now! Isaac and Elizabeth also run This Is Us on NBC.
  • Queer Qrosswords rewards your donation to an LBGTQ+ charity with crossword puzzles.
  • Taking Twitter off your phone while you’re on vacation
  • Not being on one’s phone while waiting for someone
  • Headspace guided meditation app
  • The Scriptnotes Listeners’ Guide!
  • The USB drives!
  • Isaac Aptaker on Twitter
  • Elizabeth Berger on Twitter
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Outro by Travis Newton (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 4-16-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

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Each week, screenwriters John August and Craig Mazin discuss screenwriting and things that are interesting to screenwriters, everything from the craft to the business to the best ways to actually get yourself writing.

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