Scriptnotes Podcast
By John August and Craig Mazin
To listen to an audio podcast, mouse over the title and click Play. Open iTunes to download and subscribe to podcasts.
Podcast Description
Screenwriters John August and Craig Mazin discuss screenwriting and related topics in the film and television industry, everything from getting stuff written to the vagaries of copyright and work-for-hire law.
| Name | Description | Released | Price | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Optioning a novel, and the golden age of television | For their 25th podcast, John and Craig tackle listener questions. How does a screenwriter option a novel he wants to adapt? When can a writer say he "wrote" a movie -- particularly if there are other credited writers? Finally, should an aspiring writer focus on television or features? | 2/21/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
2 |
The Brotherhood of Screenwriters | John and Craig reach into the listener mailbag and come up with questions about laying out lyrics, foreign dialogue, overall deals and title trademarks. | 2/14/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
3 |
The Happy Funtime Smile Hour | After last week's depressing reality-check, Craig and John float back to the lands of joyful possibility with a look at theme, or central dramatic argument, or whatever you choose to call that narrative glue that helps hold a story together. | 2/7/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
4 |
Six figure advice | Following up on their conversation about "five figure advice" for newly-employed screenwriters, Craig and John discuss the changes and challenges that come when writers start making six figures -- that is, more than $100K per year. | 1/31/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
5 |
Casting and positive outcomes | Craig and John discuss the screenwriter's role in casting, then segue to the New York Times profile of producer/executive Lindsay Doran's approach to story. | 1/24/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
6 |
How credit arbitration works | John and Craig take an in-depth look at how screenwriting credits are determined. In some ways, credit arbitration is a luxury problem -- the movie you wrote got made! -- but it's one of the most controversial, contentious and misunderstood parts of a screenwriter's career. | 1/17/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
7 |
56 Days Later | Craig and John take a look the week's news, including the WGA nominations, Warner's shift to a 56-day video window, the folly of SOPA and the launch of Bronson Watermarker. | 1/10/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
8 |
Zen and the Angst of Kaufman | Craig and John discuss the year ahead, from resolutions (we don't have any) to reunions (20th!). Along the way, we discuss archery, piano and left-hand weakness. The bulk of the episode is a discussion of Charlie Kaufman's BAFTA speech about screenwriting and screenwriters, artistry and artifice. | 1/3/12 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
9 |
What do producers do? | Craig and John explain what producers do -- at least, what they're supposed to do -- and discuss the myriad subclasses of producers that litter the opening titles of many movies. | 12/20/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
10 |
Thirteen questions about one thing | Craig and John plug a book by their very first sponsor and discuss elective brain surgery, before tackling an exhaustive but illuminating list of questions from listener Daniel Barkeley. | 12/13/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
11 |
Screenwriting gurus and so-called experts | Craig and John look at why the books and seminars purporting to teach screenwriting are generally terrible, trying to reduce the hard work of the craft to a series of formulas and templates. | 12/6/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
12 |
How residuals work | Craig and John take a look at awards-season screeners before going deep into a discussion of how residuals work and why they're so important to screenwriters. Plus, a visit from Craig's cleaning lady, who thinks he's insane. | 11/29/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
13 |
Undervalued simplicity, and WGA coverage for videogames | John and Craig tackle reader questions about self distribution, pseudonyms, separated rights, and studios' feelings about international versus domestic box office. | 11/22/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
14 |
Follies, Kindles and Second-Act Malaise | On episode 12 of Scriptnotes, Craig and John discuss musicals, split time lines, split personalities and the human brain. | 11/16/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
15 |
CleanHow movie money works | When you read articles claiming every Hollywood movie loses money, an obvious question arises: "Why do they keep making them, then?" In this installment, John and Craig explain how the film industry spends and makes money. | 11/8/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
16 |
CleanGood actors and bad writing partners | Craig and John go through the mailbox to answer listener questions. Can great actors save bad writing? What happens when writing partners split up? Are flashbacks always a bad idea? Should a young British comedy writer move to America? | 11/1/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
17 |
CleanFive figure advice | Craig and John tackle a listener question about the early stages of a screenwriting career: deciding which meetings to take, which projects to pursue, and how not to go broke in the process. | 10/25/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
18 |
CleanThe Good Boy Syndrome, and whether film school is worth it | John and Craig discuss why screenwriters want to please people -- and how it often hurts them and the movie they're writing -- before a lengthy discussion of the pros and cons of going to film school. | 10/19/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
19 |
CleanFiring a manager, and trying new software | John and Craig answer a listener's question about whether (and how) to ditch an ineffective manager, then discuss daily work habits, hardware and software. | 10/13/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
20 |
CleanHow kids become screenwriters | John and Craig discuss the new fall shows and how little kids become screenwriters, with discussion of D&D, Malcolm Gladwell and daisy-wheel printers. | 10/3/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
21 |
CleanWGA, copyright and musicals | In episode five of Scriptnotes, Craig and I dive deep into the esoterica of the WGA, copyright and separated rights as prelude to a discussion of two ongoing lawsuits: Jessica Bendinger vs. the Bring It On musical and Harlan Ellison vs. In Time. | 9/26/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
|
22 |
CleanWorking with directors | In episode four of Scriptnotes, Craig and I discuss migraines and zombie apocalypse preparations before we segue to the main topic: how screenwriters work with directors, from the first meeting to on-set etiquette to giving notes in post. | 9/16/11 | Free | View In iTunes |
| Total: 22 Episodes |
Customer Reviews
Fear the Emperor
I'm but a loyal serf in John August's rapidly expanding kingdom. In exchange for my monthly bounty of sheep and lamb (and sometimes, my wife), I get blog posts, snarky nerd humor, stellar iOS apps, blockbuster films and now, an informative and entertaining podcast. Where does it stop?!
So far, so good.
Hard to evaluate on just one podcast, but nicely balanced between John and Craig. Target audience is working writers. Hope this has legs!
Pretty great...
Short of lucking out and getting a seat at the bar next to two highly successful and chatty screenwriters, its hard to imagine a better way for working or aspiring scribes to spend a half hour. Filled with all kinds of useful information. I actually turn off Howard Stern to listen to this.
Listeners also subscribed to
- The Dialogue
- The Dialogue: Learning From the Masters
- View In iTunes
- On The Page: Screenwriting
- Pilar Alessandra
- View In iTunes
- TV Writer Podcast
- Gray Jones
- View In iTunes
