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Professional Realism

Episode - 382

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January 8, 2019 Arlo Finch, Books, Directors, Film Industry, Genres, How-To, Pitches, Producers, QandA, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Television, Transcribed, WGA, Words on the page, Writing Process

John welcomes Derek Haas (Chicago Fire, 3:10 to Yuma, 2 Fast 2 Furious) to talk about writing accurate portrayals of different jobs, and when to sacrifice reality for storytelling. They also share their time-management strategies in honor of those New Year resolutions to get writing done.

We also answer listener questions about the necessity of entertainment lawyers, how to keep your energy high pitch after pitch, Story By credits, and how to stay alive after that first staff writing job ends.

Links:

  • Thank you, Derek Haas!
  • Join us for the WGA’s Princess Bride screening on January 27th. Seating opens up to non-WGA members 15 minutes before showtime.
  • How Hollywood Gets the Publishing Industry Wrong by Sloane Crosley, author of I Was Told There’d Be Cake, for The New York Times
  • Is Grover swearing in this video? This is Christian DiCanio’s blog post about it.
  • David Kwong’s The Enigmatist
  • Holding down the spacebar on a text so you can move the cursor more accurately on an iPhone.
  • T-shirts are available here! We’ve got new designs, including Colored Revisions, Karateka, and Highland2.
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • Derek Haas on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by James Llonch and Jim Bond (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 2-12-19: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Double Ampersand

December 25, 2018 Adaptation, Books, Directors, Film Industry, Genres, Producers, QandA, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Transcribed, WGA, Writing Process

John sits down with Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson and Philippa Boyens to discuss their new film Mortal Engines, and their approach to writing as a team, worldbuilding, and rewriting through production, because one does not simply walk into Mordor.

We also answer audience questions about the difference between ideas for television and movies, and working through dialogue out loud.

Links:

  • Thanks to Fran Walsh, Peter Jackson and Philippa Boyens!
  • Mortal Engines is in theaters now.
  • Mortal Engines is based on the book series by Philip Reeve.
  • T-shirts are available here! We’ve got new designs, including Colored Revisions, Karateka, and Highland2.
  • John August on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Matt Davis (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 1-2-19: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Commencement

November 20, 2018 Arlo Finch, Directors, Film Industry, Follow Up, Producers, QandA, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA

John and Craig discuss commencement, the official moment to start writing. It can be easy to get pressured into free producer rewrites, starting to write before a deal is done and other pitfalls of blurry boundaries, so the WGA is introducing the Start Button, designed to help writers define their timeline and let the Guild be the bad guy.

We also answer listener questions about procedural television, binge-watching, and crossing the line in dark comedy.

Links:

  • Signed Arlo Finch bookplates are available with a copy of your receipt.
  • Tickets for the Scriptnotes Holiday Live Show are on sale now.
  • Scriptnotes, Ep 296: Television with Damon Lindelof
  • Start Button for WGA members
  • Dungeons and Dragons Art and Arcana box set or just the book
  • This Chemical Is So Hot It Destroys Nerve Endings — In a Good Way by Matt Simon for Wired
  • T-shirts are available here! We’ve got new designs, including Colored Revisions, Karateka, and Highland2.
  • John August on Twitter
  • Craig Mazin on Twitter
  • John on Instagram
  • Find past episodes
  • Scriptnotes Digital Seasons are also now available!
  • Outro by Andrew Burns (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 11-28-18: The transcript of this episode can be found here.

Only Haters Hate Rom-Coms

October 16, 2018 Directors, Film Industry, Follow Up, Genres, Los Angeles, Scriptnotes, Story and Plot, Writing Process

John and Craig talk romantic comedies with screenwriter Tess Morris, whose film Man Up is unapologetically part of the genre.

We discuss what distinguishes rom-coms from other comedies, and why they get singled out for disdain and death-of articles.

Also this week: Amazon Storywriter, overused dicks, and follow-up on Whiplash.

This episode originally aired on November 24, 2015.

Links:

  • Amazon Storywriter and Fountain
  • Scriptnotes, 224: Whiplash, on paper and on screen
  • Tess Morris on IMDb and Twitter, and Man Up on Wikipedia and Rotten Tomatoes
  • Why Are Romantic Comedies So Bad? by Christopher Orr
  • CinemaBlend’s 30 Best Romantic Comedies Of All-Time
  • The New Yorker on Nick Bostrom
  • Wait But Why on The Fermi Paradox
  • Fallout 4, and on Amazon
  • The Vista Theatre
  • 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 Jon Spurney (send us yours!)

Email us at ask@johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

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