Creative Principles

Xan Parker is a seasoned documentary producer, obsessed with character. Across her career, she’s worked on projects like The Hill, Racing Dreams, Big Men, Tigerland, and most recently, Rebuilding Paradise.

The latest story, directed by Ron Howard, focuses on the community of Paradise, California, a town in the Sierra Nevada foothills and their attempt to rebuild after the wildfires of 2018.

In this interview, Parker talks about the history of documentary filmmaking, how to quickly make decisions or pivots as a true story unfolds, how to choose subjects within a story, and how to tell the truth about the spirit of what happens.

Also, if it’s your first time listening, make sure to subscribe and visit my new website for information on the YouTube channel, the blog, this podcast, and my new book ‘Ink by the Barrel’ which takes advice from these 200+ interviews at www.writerfieldnotes.com

I’m Your Woman is a 1970s-set crime drama that stars The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s Rachel Brosnahan. The story follows a woman when she’s forced to go on the run with her baby when her husband betrays his partners.

The film is directed by Julia Hart, and co-written by Hart and her husband Jordan Horowitz. The duo have also created films like Fast Color, Miss Stevens, and Stargirl, among others.

In this exclusive interview, Julia and Jordan discuss how their writing partnership works logistically, why writing partners need the same outlook on life, how to properly write a gender-bending film, and why Hollywood has such as a misconception around it as an industry.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

A self-described theater brat, Tara Miele realized there was a storyteller behind her favorite films when a friend invited her to come watch a series of student films.

“I grew up a blue-collar kid in Long Island and never assumed that was a job you could do.” At the event, however, she said “it was like somebody pulled back the curtain on Oz. I just knew I was going to be a filmmaker.”

The following week, she marched into the Film Studies office and announced she wanted to make a movie. Her first student film premiered at Slam Dance in 2000. “Taking a film to Sundance this year, after 20 years on the journey, was a really special thing for me.”

In Miele’s latest film, Sienna Miller and Diego Luna star in Wander Darkly. According to the description, “New parents Adrienne and Matteo are forced to reckon with trauma amidst their troubled relationship. They must revisit the memories of their past and unravel haunting truths in order to face their uncertain future.”

In this interview, Miele talks about how Sienna Miller ability to be a chameleon actress, what it means to work with nurturing creative partners, how her circular process works, why creatives need to “make time for their heart,” and what it means to have integrity as an artist.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

When Sarah Goldfinger saw her first play produced, she knew she wanted to become a screenwriter. She decided to move to Los Angeles (because it’s better to be poor in warm weather), where she worked as a nanny until earning her first job on a new show called CSI.

Goldfinger wanted to write character-driven stories, which led her to a spec script and then on other shows like Brothers & Sisters, Hawaii Five-O, Grimm, Parenthood, then Jane the Virgin, Charmed and now, Trinkets.

In the latest series, Trinkets, the story follows three teenage girls in Portland, Oregon, who meet at a Shoplifters Anonymous meeting.

In this interview, Goldfinger discusses how to create a cozy writer’s room, why writers should lean into their skillset, the difference between writing as a group and as an individual, the benefits of group-think, and how YA genre stories can best approach their audience.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

As a teenager, Sam Boyd would make short films and write screenplays with friends. This led him to eventually making the short “In a Relationship” at NYU with Nicholas Braun (Succession) and Dakota Johnson (50 Shades of Grey).

“That was where I learned to cut stuff together, how to Direct, and I was able to make it into a feature a couple years later with Emma Roberts (We’re the Millers) and Michael Angarano (Almost Famous).”

This work eventually led him to the spec script for Love Life, which is now an anthology series on HBO Max. In his latest series, Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect) stars as Darby, where audiences are invited to follow her through an anthology series about first love and lasting loves.

In this interview, Boyd discusses taking the pressure off of drafts and shorts, why he appreciates humanistic filmmaking, how to push the boundaries of television real estate, and why profoundly simple truths make the best stories.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

Natalie Krinsky always knew she wanted to become a writer. In college, she started writing a column at the Yale Daily News.

Since it was 2002 at the time, these sex-column articles were published online, sort of like a blog. Readers enjoyed the articles so much they started to forward the column to friends at other colleges.

“I sort of began to have this real following based on my silly student sex column. So I then I wrote a novel based on the column.” The novel was called Chloe Does Yale, which was published after she graduated.

These days, she’s best known for working on shows like 90210, Grey’s Anatomy, Gossip Girl, Red Band Society, and the new film, The Broken Hearts Gallery.

In Krinsky’s latest film, Geraldine Viswanathan (Blockers) stars as Lucy Gulliver and Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things) stars as Nick. The story follows Lucy after she decides to leave past romance trinkets in an art gallery, based on the Museum of Broken Relationships in Croatia.

In this interview, Krinsky discusses writing character point-of-view as prose first, her fascination and pet peeves about rom-coms, why working in a writer’s room is invaluable for a writer, and how to create daily victories as a screenwriter.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

As a kid, Richard Tanne was rewarded for good behavior with a movie on the weekend. He quickly developed a love for Tim Burton films, then short stories, then plays, but the entire time, he knew he wanted to one day become a filmmaker.

In this interview, Tanne discusses his first two features, Southside With You, about when the Obamas met in 1989 Chicago, and his latest film, Chemical Hearts, a high school romance built around pain and mortality.

In this interview, the writer-director discusses dialogue-driven screenplays, why everyone should write a play or contained thriller, how to remove variables in the screenplay, and what it means to follow your inner compass as a creative.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

As a kid, Mattson Tomlin felt like he was the last one of his friends to give up on the idea of play. While they were chasing girls or getting into sports, he still wanted to run around in the woods in a Batman costume.

Luckily, he discovered that if he made movies, he could inspire his friends to stick around, because they had a new reason to play. He then made a career out of this.

As of 2020, the screenwriter has credits on the Jamie Foxx action-thriller Project Power, with additional credits on upcoming films like Little Fish, Capcom’s Mega Man, and Matt Reeves’ new film, The Batman.

The Project Power description reads, “When a pill that gives its users unpredictable superpowers for five minutes hits the streets of New Orleans, a teenage dealer and a local cop must team with an ex-soldier to take down the group responsible for its creation.”

In this interview, Tomlin discusses what made him start writing ten screenplays per year, how the vision of his career changed when he became prolific, what it means to write your way to the table, how to learn confidence of craft, and which writing rule he got tattooed on his hand.

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

Steve Blackman was working as an attorney when he decided to use his experience and turn the environment into a spec script. When he sold the script, he quit his job that day to pursue his dream of becoming a professional screenwriter.

Over the past two decades, Blackman has written for shows like Wild Card, Bones, Las Vegas, Private Practice, Fargo, Legion, and Altered Carbon. He’s also the creator behind Netflix’s Umbrella Academy.

The latest series comes from a graphic novel by the same name, which reveals a family of former child heroes who have grown apart but are forced back together when new dangers enter our world.

In this interview, Blackman discusses his love for dysfunctional and broken characters, how to balance a heightened reality with grounded drama, his love for subverting expectations in genre, how to subliminally present character, and why each script ends with a “tone pass.”

If you enjoyed this interview, look for the print version on Creative Screenwriting’s website, and join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5

Alex Winter got started on Broadway at a very early age, where he landed roles in productions of The King and I and Peter Pan, which led him to NYU Film School and eventually to Hollywood.

These days, Winter is best known for his role in the Bill & Ted franchise, where the most recent film Bill & Ted Face the Music comes out this year.

However, when Winter is not playing a role, he’s often behind the camera, working on documentaries such as The Panama Papers, Zappa and HBO’s latest film, Showbiz Kids.

In Winter’s latest film, “ A documentary about the highs and lows of children in show business, featuring interviews and examinations of the lives and careers of the most famous former child actors in the world.”

In this interview, Winter discusses his experience as a “showbiz kid,” why he structures documentaries in a narrative fashion, how docs show subtle misconceptions (and misperceptions), why he sets parameters on his work, how docs deal with the “true nature of humanity” and fluid storytelling, and what it was like to step back into the shoes of Bill S. Preston.

If you enjoyed this interview, join millions of viewers for the new YouTube video essay series, Creative Principles, which dissects new films, series, and more: bit.ly/2FARJz5