The TV Sect Podcast

In this week’s episode, Sierra and Moni talk all about characters. What goes into creating characters for TV? What makes a character good, a character you want to watch week after week? What is it about your hero that makes you want to root for them? 

We discuss all the things we think about when creating characters: Wants and Needs, Objectives, Tactics, Backstory, Motivations, Being Identifiable, Relationships, and Personality.

We also talk about villains and how villains have many of the same aspects as your hero, which leads us into the idea of the anti-hero and the concept of The Difficult Man in television and why aren’t there more Difficult Women? 

In our devotional, Sierra testifies to her recent binge-watching of the show BROTHERS AND SISTERS and Moni brings forth further proof how television can save the world, or at least one man’s life, as she discusses the Netflix documentary LONGSHOT. 

Today’s show is all about Comfort TV! 

What is comfort TV? Why do we need it? And what makes it so darn cozy?  We've got some answers! In this episode, we discuss the shows that bring us comfort, why they do, and how TV gets us through difficult times. 

I interview Suzanne Gundersen, the founder of Transformed Connections. She joins us to talk about stress relief and self-management techniques, including how watching our favorite shows can help us heal. 

Bonus for screenwriters! Suzanne is also the founder of ScreenwriteNOW! She tells us all about her new program that helps stressed and struggling screenwriters become authentic, embodied in their work, and break through the dreaded writer’s block! 

After my interview with Suzanne, we continue to profess the healing power of television. Hear about the fantastic TED talk by TV executive Lauren Zalaznick about The Consciousness of TV.  And, of course, we fawn over our favorite shows, including Ted Lasso, because, we LOVE Ted Lasso. 

Our devotionals today: Music in TV, and the love of rewatching favorite shows.  

Come join us in our devotion to the cult-like love of television! 

Welcome to The TV Sect! A podcast dedicated to the cult-like love of television. We’re your hosts, Moni Wood and Sierra DuCharme-Hansen, two emerging TV writers, expert TV watchers. Come share in our devotion to the Cult of TV, as we explore all the sacred things of scripted television. In each episode, we highlight a different aspect of a TV series and explore how it influences a show’s cultism. From teasers to tags, characters to costumes, aliens to zombies, and everything in between. Let us give you guidance into your binge-watching ways and provide a sanctuary for your episodic esotericism. Join us as we testify to our cult-like love of television and how we believe television can change the world. We welcome you to the fold!