We talk to legendary showrunner Cheo Hodari Coker.
He talks about his journey from music journalist to writer, what he learned from the tough world of hip-hop and how he used those skills in Hollywood.
Cheo talks about the similarities between running and writing, finding pockets of time to write and how screenwriting can be painful.
He describes embracing the suck, seizing his moment and writing as pie-eating.
A fascinating interview with a talented storyteller.

We speak to Keith Geller who talks us through his unscripted journey.
We talk game shows versus docu-follows, shrinking budgets and higher expectations and picking only proven formats.
He talks about his journey from Shakespeare to Wipeout, the role of social media and the changing attitudes towards mental health and crises.
Keith talks pitching new formats, creating his own show and trying to create a fun, fair and safe work environment.
An insightful look at the world of large scale unscripted television.

We talk to the lovely Daniel Kunka, writer of Netflix number one movie Lift.
We talk zombie apocalypses, impregnating wolves and the unlikely demise of a great script.
He tells us about his 15 year gap between movies, writing for a female lead and ending up with Kevin Hart and how it feels to have the number one movie on a global steaming platform.
Daniel also explains the anxiety of losing his health insurance while his wife was pregnant, anxiety and selling scripts that don’t get made.
A fascinating discussion with an articulate and funny writer.

Back from the winter break and we have another 'case study' episode of the podcast.
We talk to Marc Benardout and Hugh Broder, producers of He Went That Way, a new movie out tomorrow.
They talk about working with Jacob Elordi and Zach Quinto, about dealing with the death of their director but also Marc's son during production and the 19-year journey to get the film made.
We discuss prison visits, poetry professors and sibling serial killers.
And the costs of an animatronic chimpanzee.

We talk to the effervescent Ashley Michel Hoban.
She talks about the excitement for her new show coming out today, her journey from assistant to showrunner and what she learned along the way.
She tells about self belief, imposter syndrome and how’s she’s expecting to feel tomorrow morning after tonight’s Dr Death Season 2 premiere.
Ashley discussed the importance of just writing, the pressure of being a showrunner and what she’s learned from previous colleagues who have supported her.
A fascinating episode full of candour, humour and insight.

We speak to the excellent David Slack.
We talk about how an independent movie failure led him to Hollywood, the path from animation to live action and getting fired from Law and Order.
David tells us about the shows that didn’t make it, claiming unemployment and some of the poor behaviour that has gone on in Hollywood.
We also cover post-strike executive interactions (good), AI ruining civilization (not so good) and the hedge fundication of the industry (not good at all).

The day before his new movie hits 3000 theaters in 38 countries, we talk to the talented Adam Anders.
He tells us about his transition from a very successful music career with shows like Glee to  his 17 year journey to writing, producing, directing and songwriting for a Christmas family musical called Journey to Bethlehem.
Adam talks about being creatively unfulfilled, the tightrope to walk when working on a religious movie and his extraordinary pursuit of Antonio Banderas.
He explains how hard it has been to promote a movie without actors due to the strike, the emotional toll of being away from his family for six months and how he felt at the friends and family screening and the importance of putting his parents in the credits.
A case study in perseverance.

Must. Listen. Episode.
We have the legend that it David Kirschner. He talks getting his break designing an album cover for Neil Diamond, pitching Steven Spielberg at his July 4th party and Hocus Pocus going from abject failure to cult classic.
David explains the story of Hocus Pocus taking years to make, bombing and leaving him in tears and then growing into a massive success.
We hear about being sworn at by Harvey Weinstein, how he thinks naivety helped him navigate Hollywood and the importance of being nice.
An extraordinary interview with a man whose work everyone knows and loves.

We talk to Jeremy Adams about his life in animation.
He tells us about the difficulties animated writers face, how they are treated compared to TV writers and how hard it is to break out of the mould.
Jeremy tells us about his successes, the sacrifices his family had to make and the irony of creating great work for little pay and then watching millions be made in consumer goods products.
He explains what makes great animated writing, they joys of the comic world and his dream to writer a live action feature.
A fascinating insight into an unsung part of the industry that creates huge profits, memorable characters and shows that don't age.