Zach Woods got his start at the Upright Citizens Brigade doing improv. Brandon Gardner followed a similar path, eventually shifting to playwriting and sketch. The two continued to share work and support one another as they moved from New York to Los Angeles. For their latest collaboration, In the Know, where they’re listed as co-creators with Mike Judge (Office Space, Silicon Valley), the story follows Lauren Caspian, the third most popular host of an NPR-like interview series, who happens to be...
May 13, 2024•34 min
Jeff Annison is the Co-Founder and President of 'Legion M,' the world's first fan-owned media company. With 50k investors, over $20M raised, and over 150k members overall in the community, 'Legion M' is paving the way to democratize the business, challenge the traditional studio system, and open the doors for fans to become genuine stakeholders in the creative process. This year the company has premiered the SXSW Audience Award Winner 'My Dead Friend Zoe,' self-distributed the documentary 'Willi...
May 08, 2024•29 min
“There was David Cronenberg (The Fly, Scanners), but not many other examples,” says Don McKellar, about his childhood as a Canadian where he felt there were few role models in the business. “But I did love theater. I created shows with my friends and all the disciplines — writing, directing, acting — blended together for me.” Those live performances helped to shape his work. “I co-wrote a musical called The Drowsy Chaperone on Broadway. In that kind of show, if you do a show and it doesn’t work,...
Apr 30, 2024•30 min
Ned Benson is a writer, director, and producer known for his profound storytelling. His debut film, 'The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby,' premiered at Cannes in 2014, showcasing his unique narrative approach by exploring dual perspectives on love and loss. His recent film 'The Greatest Hits' follows a love story centering on the connection between music and memory and how they transport us, sometimes literally. In this interview, we talked about 'Eleanor Rigby', networking, how he got into 'Blac...
Apr 29, 2024•25 min
“I was hungry,” says Kurt Johnstad, who took any position he could find to get on set. “I was just looking for an avenue to tell stories. I looked at all the jobs and the flow and rhythm of being on set. I realized a director or cinematographer needs all these people, but you could be self-reliant and self-generate — it’s the writer.” “The writer can just sort of be in their little shack and type away. I gave myself ten years to have a career, from my 20s to my 30s. Just try to do this. I don’t ...
Apr 26, 2024•38 min
Stephen Moyer is a renowned actor and director best known for his role as vampire Bill Compton in HBO's 'True Blood.' Starting his career on the London stage, Moyer transitioned to television and film, starring in productions like 'Quills' and '88 Minutes.' He has showcased his versatility by directing several episodes for different television projects, including 'True Blood', and more recently the film 'A Bit of Light.' In this interview, we talked about his trajectory as an actor, working with...
Apr 22, 2024•27 min
Lee Hardcastle is a renowned claymation director celebrated for his dark humor and innovative style. Through the years he has honed his skills to create captivating short films blending horror, comedy, and absurdity, and his unique storytelling and attention to detail have earned him a global following. Hardcastle's work ranges from grotesque parodies of popular franchises to original tales of macabre madness, pushing the boundaries of clay animation. In this interview, we talked about what led ...
Apr 19, 2024•26 min
In high school, Bill Kennedy got a job making copies at a law firm. Back then, he pictured himself taking the bar, buying a collection of three-piece suits, and making a career as a lawyer. But, when he met someone a decade older also making copies, who was producing records at the time, asked, “Dude, why would you want to do this? Why be a lawyer?” The beneficial challenger concluded, “[Do] you think the people here are happy?” The realization sunk in. “In college, I started to explore a career...
Apr 12, 2024•32 min
Whether through art, animation, or filmmaking, Julian Curi has dedicated his life and work to telling stories and helping others tell theirs. These days he is best known for his work in paper puppetry and animation. His latest work, GRUFF, a paper-made short film about his relationship with his late dad is out now: https://youtu.be/5p4s4k3eB_I?si=GHg0_z09Yx-xTqXF In this interview, we talked about what led him to animation, the origin of GRUFF, crowdfunding and how to start a campaign, dealing w...
Apr 11, 2024•27 min
Jeff Goins helps creative people succeed. Through his bestselling books, courses, coaching, and speeches, he shares his ongoing journey of transformation, inspiring creators like you to discover your voice and share it with the world. He is also the founder of Fresh Complaint, a bespoke creative agency that helps thought leaders turn good ideas into big ideas. Jeff and his team do this through the powerful medium of books: from proposals to editing to full-on ghostwriting, Fresh Complaint can he...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 2 min
“I started out in the acting world,” says Rebecca Flinn-White. “Acting, directing, theater. And that’s how Zak and I met actually. We were friends in college, didn’t date back then, but we’re married now,” she adds, about her writing partner, Zak White. Zak adds, “This is the only thing I ever wanted to do. I grew up in a small midwest town. I was a movie fanatic but I didn’t know people actually got paid to do it. I thought you had to be born in a magical world that doesn’t exist.” The duo both...
Apr 01, 2024•38 min
‘I didn’t grow up in a place where I was hanging out with screenwriters,” says Melanie Marnich. “I grew up in Duluth, Minnesota. I was a voracious reader and I think that sparked something in me, but I didn’t know that that would be a career.” In college, Marnich was a journalism major with an emphasis in advertising. “I would up doing and loving TV and radio commercials.” She loved the job, but felt limited writing in spurts of 30- or 60-seconds. “Then I got the theater bug.” Feeling that she h...
Mar 23, 2024•32 min
Michael Jamin has been writing for television since 1996. His many credits include Just Shoot Me, King of the Hill, Beavis & Butthead, Wilfred, Out of Practice, Rules of Engagement, Lopez and Tacoma FD. He’s also served as Executive Producer/Showrunner on Glenn Martin DDS, Maron, and Rhett & Link’s Buddy System. In his debut collection of personal essays A Paper Orchestra, Michael recounts the true stories of a sensitive, anxious man searching for the things that are most important: iden...
Mar 13, 2024•29 min
“I wanted to be a filmmaker for as long as I can remember,” says Dave Boyle. “I wanted to be a writer-director but after I made my first couple of independent films, I was making more of my living as an editor. I didn’t really start pursuing screenwriting as a professional until I had done a couple of micro-budget films.” This would include films like Big Dreams Little Tokyo, White on Rice, Surrogate Valentine, Daylight Savings, and Man From Reno. “That’s when I became passionate about writing a...
Mar 08, 2024•30 min
Dori Zavala is an award-winning attorney and filmmaker with over 23 years of experience in the legal, business, and finance fields. She's the founder and CEO of Open For Show Business, a revolutionary consulting practice that provides high-level strategic consulting to filmmakers to guide them in the business, legal, and financing aspects of funding and distributing their films. In this interview, we talked about her work as an entertainment lawyer, how being a producer has helped her writing pr...
Mar 01, 2024•31 min
Chad Feehan’s parents took him to the movies nearly every single weekend. “They didn’t have much of a filter,” he joked about seeing heavy movies at a young age. “In my early teens, Tarantino exploded with Reservoir Dogs and Robert Rodriguez exploded with El Mariachi. I saw that not only did people get paid to make movies, but they could come from Texas.” As a screenwriter, he’s known for Paranormal Activity 4, Southland, Rectify, Banshee Origins, Banshee, Ray Donovan and Lawmen: Bass Reeves whe...
Feb 29, 2024•26 min
Rising Nashville pop artist and songwriter, Kyndal Inskeep, has been writing and performing since childhood. Her career took off after releasing her debut viral single “Honest” with Song House. It quickly accumulated millions of streams and inspired masses. Her second single, “Parachute” initiated the same response. Currently, Kyndal remains an independent artist with the desire to make music that inspires others to feel something again. Want more? Steal my first book, Ink by the Barrel - Secret...
Feb 23, 2024•24 min
“My family had a dude ranch in Colorado,” says Mark L. Smith, as to why he didn’t really starting writing scripts until his 30s. “It was 2,000 acres surrounded by a quarter million acres of natural forest. We were literally in the middle of nowhere.” “Our driveway was a 2.5 mile road that was an old stagecoach trail, through a canyon. It was a resort and we were open in the summers, but we would shut down early fall. I found I had nothing to do during those five months in the snow, so I would wr...
Feb 21, 2024•33 min
Amber Williams is a Screenwriter, Podcaster, Founder, and Creative Director of Whirleybird Productions. On her podcast 'The Film Finance and Distribution Podcast,' she deep dives into the business backbone of the cinematic world; engaging in insightful conversations with accomplished filmmakers, seasoned entertainment lawyers, and pivotal industry insiders. Her goal is to demystify the complex realms of film finance and distribution, equipping the next generation of filmmakers, producers, and ci...
Feb 15, 2024•17 min
Diego Vicentini is a Venezuelan writer and film director who has made several award-winning short films, including 'Simón', the predecessor to the feature, which had an independent world tour, selling out screenings in eight countries in eleven different cities. His first feature film also titled 'Simón', follows a Venezuelan freedom fighter exiled in Miami, who copes not only with trauma, but also deep guilt over a choice he must make: stay in Miami and start a new life, or return home to the l...
Feb 07, 2024•27 min
“The thing I always wanted to do was remember that what it means to be a writer is very big,” says Cord Jefferson, who lists writers like Joan Didion and James Baldwin as influences. “A lot of writers limit themselves. I’m a sports journalist or a novelist. I want to look at writing like a toolbox. You can use a toolbox to build a coffee table or a rocking chair or a house. These skills are applicable to different things.” For many years, Cord Jefferson was a journalist before he got into film a...
Feb 01, 2024•20 min
Hardly recognizable from one character to the next, Alanna Ubach has starred in over 150 theater, film and television projects, including the Peabody Award-winning "Men of a Certain Age", the Oscar-winning "Coco" as Mama Imelda, the family's matriarch, and critically acclaimed "Euphoria" as "Suze." She was nominated for a SAG award for her performance as Jeanine Pirro in "Bombshell" and noted by the New York Times as "a seriously talented actress" to "keep your eye on." Her most recent role is T...
Jan 23, 2024•20 min
The son of Canadian TV host Elwy Host, Graham Yost grew up with a love for film, television, and books. “If I told my parents I wanted to be a doctor or lawyer, they would have said, ‘Are you sure you don’t want to be a writer?’” Graham’s impressive career began with Nickelodeon’s ‘Hey Dude’ but the movie ‘Speed’ changed his life. His credits include Broken Arrow, Hard Rain, Band of Brothers, The Last Castle, Boomtown, The Pacific, Justified, Sneaky Pete, and most recently, Silo. The Apple + ser...
Jan 18, 2024•35 min
“I love storytelling and I think I’ve always been an observant person, when it comes to reveling in human dynamics,” says Dan Levy. “As an observer of people, writing felt like an easy outlet to express my curiosity about who people are, how they work, and the flaws and joys of who we are as people.” In addition to growing up in the business thanks to his father Eugene Levy, Dan Levy had a teacher pull him aside and encourage him in his writing. “I really attribute so much of my feeling capable ...
Jan 11, 2024•35 min
Tory Tunnell’s original dream was to the Editor for Vogue. In college, she interned at places like The New Yorker and Harper’s Bazaar, but she minored in Film, which started a trek to working as a Producer. These days, Tunnell is known for Holy Rollers, My Blind Brother, King Arthur - Legend of the Sword, Underground, Robin Hood, Spinning Out, and now Monarch - Legacy of Monsters. The latest series stars Kurt Russell, Wyatt Russell, Anna Sawai, Anders Holm, Kiersey Clemons, and Ren Watabe. The p...
Jan 01, 2024•35 min
“My favorite thing was going to the movies,” Emile Hirsch says about his childhood. Emile is best known for Into the Wild, but with over 70 credits to his name, you’ve seen him in The Girl Next Door, Lords of Dogtown, Alpha Dog, Speed Racer, Milk, Killer Joe, Savages, Lone Survivor, and Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. His latest film, Walden, Emile plays an unassuming court stenographer in a small southern town. When he discovers he is dying, he decides to exact revenge on criminals who escape pr...
Dec 21, 2023•21 min
In the film, Eileen, the story follows a woman’s friendship with a new co-worker at the prison facility where she works, but the friendship takes a sinister turn. In the previous interview, screenwriters Ottessa Moshfegh & Luke Goebel discussed how they created this adaptation, based on Ottessa’s novel. In this interview, stars Anne Hathaway and Thomasin McKenzie discuss their interpretation of the work. We also discuss the problem in Hollywood that still exists in terms of great roles for w...
Dec 16, 2023•15 min
“I always wanted to write for movies but didn’t really admit it until I moved to LA and someone asked me if I wanted to write a movie,” says Ottessa Moshfegh, the novelist turned screenwriter behind Eileen. “I studied other movies and loved learning the new form.” Ottessa’s screenplay credits include Causeway and Eileen, and some of her novels are Eileen, My Year of Rest and Relaxation, Death in Her Hands, Lapvona, and McGlue. “It felt totally unnatural in the beginning,” she says of screenwriti...
Dec 15, 2023•28 min
“I love antiheroes,” says screenwriter Amber Noizumi. “As a woman, this idea of the goody two shoes girl next door has always annoyed me. The girl who looks and acts perfect. I don’t relate or find it interesting unless I’m rooting for her and against her at the same time.” “I’m more selfish about it,” added Michael Green. “Any character that has a degree of specificity that’s so unique to them that you can put them in situations and know how they’ll behave. It creates story.” In their current p...
Dec 14, 2023•27 min
It’s been 500 episodes! Thank you all so much for listening. As a special celebration episode, I’ve included some of the best clips from the past 500 episodes and I’m also releasing a never-before-heard episode with William Monahan, the Oscar winning screenwriter of The Departed, Body of Lies, London Boulevard, Kingdom of Heaven, The Gambler, and Mojave. But, to get us started, here’s Aaron Sorkin on the difference in character and real people, followed by Taylor Sheridan on his writing process,...
Dec 13, 2023•39 min
