John August

Film Industry

No one makes those movies anymore

Episode - 204

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Film Industry, Follow Up, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA

Craig and John look at why certain genres of movies — mid-budget thrillers, adult dramas and romantic comedies — aren’t getting made, and whether there’s any way to get them back.

We also look at Apple Music, and what streaming means for screenwriters. Finally, we chart the screenwriter’s job from pitch to premiere, and how few of those steps are actually paid.

Big news: we have brand-new USB drives with the entire Scriptnotes catalog available at store.johnaugust.com. Quantities are limited, so don’t delay.

Links:

* [Scriptnotes 200 Episode USB drives are available now!](http://store.johnaugust.com/)
* [Ben Affleck to Produce FIFA Scandal Film for Warner Bros.](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/bookmark/fifa-scandal-ben-affleck-producing-805295)
* [Scriptnotes, 194: Poking the Bear](http://johnaugust.com/2015/poking-the-bear)
* [Is Hollywood Making Too Many Movies?](http://variety.com/2015/film/news/hollywood-making-too-many-movies-1201526094/)
* [Betteridge’s law of headlines](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge’s_law_of_headlines)
* [STX Entertainment](https://stxentertainment.com/) and [on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STX_Entertainment)
* [To Apple, Love Taylor](http://taylorswift.tumblr.com/post/122071902085/to-apple-love-taylor)
* [Taylor Swift Scuffle Aside, Apple’s New Music Service Is Expected to Thrive](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/29/business/apple-can-skate-by-taylor-swift-but-not-product-missteps.html?_r=0)
* [Supreme Court Ruling Makes Same-Sex Marriage a Right Nationwide](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/27/us/supreme-court-same-sex-marriage.html)
* [Neil Gaiman’s advice for getting idea on paper](http://neil-gaiman.tumblr.com/post/107713982316/i-have-been-trying-to-write-for-a-while-now-i)
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Rajesh Naroth ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed))

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_204.m4a) | [mp3](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_204.mp3).

**UPDATE 7-2-15:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2015/scriptnotes-ep-204-no-one-makes-those-movies-anymore-transcript).

How to Get Staffed on a TV show

Film Industry, First Person, Random Advice, Television

Gina Ippolito writes about how she [got staffed on her first TV show](http://ginaippy2.tumblr.com/post/122444556110/how-i-got-staffed-on-a-show):

> I went to the meeting and basically just talked with three of the dudes who work on the show, including the creator. They asked me about myself and I talked about my love of geeky sci-fi shows, the stuff I do at UCB and iO, and the fact that I’ve been playing chess competitively since I was little. The creator was also a huge chess nerd. One of the other guys loved sci fi shows. We geeked out for a while. Basically I just hung out with them and I left the room feeling like it was a fun time. The next day they emailed me to say they’d like to staff me.

> So that’s the story. No insane coincidences, no extreme nepotism, no “I saved the life of the president of Cartoon Network’s daughter from being hit by a car so they gave me a job!” All simple, straightforward, and something that anyone could accomplish, with the right tools.

Ippolito’s tools include persistence, collaboration, and being nice to everyone along the way. It’s classic advice, but also easy to forget.

You should also read her post on [How to Get and Keep Writing Jobs](http://ginaippy2.tumblr.com/post/104687941895/how-to-get-and-keep-writing-jobs).

Nobody Eats Four Marshmallows

Film Industry, Follow Up, QandA, Scriptnotes, Transcribed, WGA, Writing Process

John and Craig take an in-depth look at turnaround and reversion, and how screenwriters get their scripts back from a studio.

We also look at the latest developments in the Gravity saga, and answer a bunch of leftover questions from the live 200th episode.

Links:

* [Scriptnotes 202, in which we discuss FAST Screenplay](http://johnaugust.com/2015/everyman-vs-superman)
* [Scriptnotes 183: The Deal with the Gravity Lawsuit](http://johnaugust.com/2015/the-deal-with-the-gravity-lawsuit), and follow up from [Scriptnotes 186](http://johnaugust.com/2015/the-rules-or-the-paradox-of-the-outlier)
* [The Gerritsen Ruling, in its entirety](http://www.scribd.com/doc/268738073/Gerritsen-Ruling)
* [Turnaround](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turnaround_(filmmaking)) on Wikipedia
* [The 200th Episode Live Show](http://johnaugust.com/2015/the-200th-episode-live-show)
* [“Nobody eats four marshmallows”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMh8D9Bce40&t=47s) from The Hangover 3
* [Scriptnotes 82, featuring Ben W’s Three Pages](http://johnaugust.com/2013/god-doesnt-need-addresses)
* [Minecraft Hololens demo at E3](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xgakdcEzVwg&feature=youtu.be&t=2m25s)
* [The “Some Guy” Anthem, by Jonathan Mann](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ird715k0t-g)
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Jonathan Mann ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed))

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_203.m4a) | [mp3](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_203.mp3).

**UPDATE 6-25-15:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2015/scriptnotes-ep-203-nobody-eats-four-marshmallows-transcript).

Everyman vs. Superman

Film Industry, Follow Up, Scriptnotes, So-Called Experts, Three Page Challenge, Transcribed

From Wolverine to The Rock, male action heroes have literally gotten bigger over the last decade. Craig and John look at how that impacts story. Is there hope for the the ordinary man in an extraordinary situation? Will we ever get back to Kurt and Keanu?

Then it’s time for three new Three Page Challenges, with entries ranging from campus riots to suburban detectives.

Links:

* [John jumped off a bridge](https://twitter.com/johnaugust/status/608473352420925440)
* [FAST Screenplay’s Jeff Bollow at TEDxDocklands](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH6AyjGgcns)
* [Action Movies, Stop Taking Away Our Everyday Heroes](http://www.wired.com/2015/06/action-stars-impossible-man/) on Wired
* NEDA’s [Statistics on Males and Eating Disorders](https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/statistics-males-and-eating-disorders)
* [SAG-AFTRA Threatened To Sue Director Amy Berg Over ‘An Open Secret’](http://deadline.com/2015/06/sag-aftra-threatening-sue-an-open-secret-director-amy-berg-1201438339/) on Deadline
* [Submit your Three Pages here](http://johnaugust.com/threepage)
* Three Pages by [Zach Kaplan](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/ZachKaplan.pdf)
* Three Pages by [RM Weatherly](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/RMWeatherly.pdf)
* Three Pages by [Olufemi S. Sowemimo](http://johnaugust.com/Assets/OlufemiSSowemimo.pdf)
* [The Fallen of World War II](https://vimeo.com/128373915) by Neil Halloran, and [fallen.io](http://www.fallen.io/ww2/)
* The Great Big Book of Horrible Things: The Definitive Chronicle of History’s 100 Worst Atrocities by Matthew White
* [CellarTracker](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cellartracker/id893759800?mt=8) for iOS
* [Outro](http://johnaugust.com/2013/scriptnotes-the-outros) by Scriptnotes listener Adrian Tanner ([send us yours!](http://johnaugust.com/2014/outros-needed))

You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_202.m4a) | [mp3](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_202.mp3).

**UPDATE 6-22-15:** The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2015/scriptnotes-ep-202-everyman-vs-superman-transcript).