The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

It's no secret that plays and movies are entirely different mediums, so how do you give the cinematic treatment to a play as celebrated as "The Piano Lesson" by Pulitzer Prize-winning August Wilson? From the start, co-writer and director Malcom Washington came in with a very specific take on the material, and was incredibly grateful when Oscar-nominated "Mudbound" co-writer Virgil Williams came on board to help nurture that take on the page. In today's conversation, you'll hear how the two of them wrote together in the desert, creating a routinized approach to the material, while still leaving space for discovery.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

What sounds harder? Writing a pilot alone at your desk, or running your own TV show with 300 folks trying to execute your vision? For Liz Feldman, it's the former, which affirms what we often say on this show: writing is really, really hard. Despite that, Liz has almost 30 years of TV writing experience under her belt, including two hits for Netflix that she created and showran: Dead To Me and No Good Deed. Join us as she unpacks her creative process.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

Pixar story genius Mike Jones gets candid with Meg about endings: what makes a great ending, and more important, what makes an emotional ending. Meg and Mike also discuss selfish characters, narrative feature film engines, and how to keep our storytelling fresh when we feel like we're locked in the same old patterns. DREAM PRODUCTIONS, which Mike developed (and even helped direct!), is on Disney+ now.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

To say that Kelly Younger is a fairy tale expert is an understatement. He's built an entire career around his obsession with fairy tale principles, so much so that he's become a coveted story consultant, and a frequent writer for THE MUPPETS universe, with credits on MUPPETS NOW and MUPPETS HAUNTED MANSION. Younger has developed at Amazon, Apple, Hulu, Disney Studios, Paramount Animation, Warner Animation Group, DreamWorks Animation, Disney Originals, and has also consulted at Skydance Animation, in addition to Illumination on both SHREK 5 and PUSS IN BOOTS 2.

So why should we care so much about a centuries-old art form? Today, Kelly breaks it all down.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

Glen Mazzara has produced, created and/or showran a litany of amazing projects. His impressive resume includes The Walking Dead (he showran seasons 2 and 3) and Damien, which he also created. But even Glen is the first to admit that there's a certain amount of luck that comes with getting the coveted greenlight. Navigating producers, networks, and the studio can be a complicated game of chess, but today, Glen breaks the game down with a refreshing amount of candor.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

As promised, here is part two of our writers' assistant dive. We chat with Anthony Musella, writer's assistant to Rodney Barnes, who's known for some of the most subversive shows and movies of the last 15 years, such as The Boondocks and Winning Time. Anthony dives deep into what it's like working in development with one of Hollywood's busiest creatives.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

To help support relief efforts related to the fires in LA, consider donating to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation: https://supportlafd.kindful.com/?campaign=1040812

Listen as former writers' assistants Maggie Gottlieb, Lauren Halberg, and Jonathan Hurwitz detail their experiences as writers' assistants. They answer the important questions like: how do you actually get a writers’ assistant job, how can you elegantly parlay that job into bigger opportunities, and... the Big Scary Question: can I pitch in the room?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

Clint Bentley, our guest on today's show, and his filmmaking partner Greg Kwedar, co-write and co-produce every feature film project they tackle, with one of them taking on the role of director. This wildly unique and successful partnership has led to one of the year's most beloved movies, "Sing Sing."

Today, Clint unpacks how he and Greg decided to tackle the project, how they involved the real life creators behind the program that inspired the movie, and - yes, this is true - how they managed to pay everyone on set the exact same day rate.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

Part 2 of our 2024 TSL guests answering the Three Big Questions: What brings you the most joy when it comes to writing? What pisses you off about writing? And what advice would you give your younger self?

Happy New Year!

:45 - Dave Holstein (Episode 196)

7:04 - Kelsey Mann (Episode 197)

12:40 - Meredith Scardino (Episode 198)

17:11 - Todd A. Kessler (Episode 199)

19:48 - Joey Slamon (Episode 200)

25:28 - Christopher Vogler (Episode 204)

31:29 - Nitza Wilon & Elizabeth Kaiden (Episode 207)

33:25 - Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky (Episode 209)

39:28 - Andy Breckman (Episode 210)

42:51 - Kelly O'Sullivan (Episode 211)

46:18 - Barbara Stepansky (Episode 212)

47:42 - Tate Hanyok and Alex Convery (Episode 213)

1:02:09 - Jon Huertas (Episode 214)

1:08:06 - Patton Oswalt (Episode 215)

1:11:15 - John Hoffman (Episode 216)

1:16:00 - Jenna Lamia (Episode 222)

1:20:40 - Sharon Horgan (Episode 225)

1:23:52 - Justin Kuritzkes (Episode 226)

1:27:25 - Susannah Grant (Episode 227)

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

JOIN TSL WORKSHOPS: https://tslworkshops.circle.so

At the end of every episode, we ask our guests the Three Big Questions: What brings you the most joy when it comes to writing? What pisses you off about writing? What advice would you give to your younger self? Today's supercut captures the heartfelt answers from TSL guests over the past year.

Part 2, coming soon!

1:04 - Charlotte Stoudt (Ep 164)

7:24 - Tom McCarthy (Ep 169)

12:24 - Paco de Leon (Ep 172)

15:38 - Adam Grant (Ep 173)

26:04 - Jodie Foster (Ep 174)

31:22 - Michael Arndt (Ep 176)

34:16 - Celine Song (Ep 177)

41:12 - David Hemingson (Ep 178)

45:24 - Elizabeth Hargrave (Ep 180)

50:06 - Lloyd Taylor (Ep 181)

53:38 - Dave Mullins, Brad Booker, & Sean Ono Lennon (Ep 182)

1:09:43 - Jennifer Deaton (Ep 184)

1:17:38 - Cole Haddon (Ep 185)

1:22:43 - Jeff Melvoin (Ep 186)

1:26:28 - Debby Wolfe (Ep 187)

1:29:29 - Octavio Solis (Ep 188)

1:37:32 - Carole Kirschner (Ep 189)

1:42:34 - Navid McIlhargey (Ep 190)

1:47:00 - Linda Seger (Ep 191)

1:52:35 - Billy Mernit (Ep 194)

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices