This week, Oren Uziel, the screenwriter behind 22 Jump Street and Freaks of Nature looks back on how he got his start in the film industry and his first experience directing his own screenplay, Shimmer Lake. Then, Uziel joins The Hunger Games: Mockingjay screenwriter Peter Craig and Rise of the Planet of the Apes writing duo Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver for a discussion on sequels and trilogies.

Oren Uziel wrote and directed the feature film Shimmer Lake which previously won an award at the Austin Film Festival Screenwriting Competition. His other credits include 22 Jump Street, Freaks of Nature, and The God Particle.

Uziel spoke with Austin Film Festival’s Executive Director Barbara Morgan following the release of Netflix’s Shimmer Lake in 2017.

Oren Uziel joins fellow screenwriters Peter Craig, Rick Jaffa, and Amanda Silver for a discussion on writing sequels and trilogies.

Peter Craig’s writing credits include The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Parts I and II, as well as The Town and Blood Father. Writing partners Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver are known for their work on Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, as well as collaborating on Jurassic World, The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, Eye for an Eye, and The Relic.

Uziel, Craig, Jaffa and Silver spoke at the 21st annual Austin Film Festival with moderator Allen Odom in 2014.