Film School

You cannot run from this -- it will follow you.

Happy Halloween everybody! We conclude Spooky Season 2022 with a bang. We're watching the film that made Blumhouse and (in addition to Blair Witch) inspired an entire generation of found-footage horror films: Paranormal Activity. The movie is almost fifteen years old now. How does it hold up???

Are you responsible for finding your own audience? And how much of your storytelling is a collaboration between you and your audience? This week, we dive into the realm of who we're writing for and how it impacts our art.

Also, Josh recommends Summit of the Gods which is on Netflix, and Ira recommends the Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes films, several of which are on Amazon Prime right now.

Why won't he die?

Jamie Lee Curtis is back in danger! Michael Meyers just can't seem to be stopped, even when she's supposedly safe in the hospital. It's one of the only sequels we can think of that literally starts AT THE END of the first movie and picks up from there. John Carpenter, man . . . he's on another level. We watch and discuss!

We call it "finishing energy." It's the effort it takes to push something all the way to the end. Usually, it's far more than we ever imagined. So, how do we muster "finishing energy?" When resistance is at its peak because we're *so* *close* to finishing, how do we suck it up and move forward? Josh and Ira discuss what's worked for them!

Also, Josh recommends The Professional and Collateral, and Ira recommends 1984 and Valkyrie.

If we stay here, we'll die.

Six women enter an unmapped cave . . . and shit goes down. This week for Spooky Season, we're diving into Neil Marshall's The Descent, which might have the coolest freaking movie poster ever made. So, how does it hold up? Does it bring the noise? We scream and discuss!

How important are ideas? Super important, right? Of course! BUT . . . are they the most important thing when it comes to telling a great story? What about execution? If an idea is just an idea until it's fully realized, how can we properly foster it and build it into something wonderful? Josh and Ira discuss their own experiences.

Also, Josh (does not) recommend Alone on Hulu, and Ira (kind of) recommends Treasure Planet on Disney+

Was that the boogeyman?

As a matter of fact, it is! For our first-ever "Spooky Season," we're watching a horror touchstone, and a seminal moment in "slasher" film history: John Carpenter's Halloween. Does it still deliver the scares and the screams? We watch and find out.

How do you take care of your BODY? We talk so much on this podcast about taking care of the mind, but our brains live inside a body. It's also so, SO important to take care of our physical selves, something we often forget. Josh and Ira talk about their own successes and failures with physical self-care.

Also, Josh recommends Top Chef (again) which is on Hulu, and Ira recommends Alone which is also on Hulu.

No man can be friends with a woman that he finds attractive.

This week, wrapping up our "You Gotta See This!" excursion, we're watching Nora Ephron and Rob Reiner's When Harry Met Sally, also known as the movie that taught us to fall in love with our best friend. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan shine. So does the script. It's practically a perfect movie. Enjoy.

How do you create a great character? We're revisiting the topic this week from a previous episode with a new twist on how to answer the question: when was a time that you went above and beyond to create a character, and it paid off big time? Both Josh and Ira share instances from their experience.

Also, Ira recommends Seinfeld which is not quite the show you remember in its earliest episodes, and Josh recommends the film Nocturnal Animals with Jake Gyllenhaal, both of which are currently on Netflix.