John August

Drew Marquardt

The Best/Worst it Will Ever Be

Episode - 671

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HWTBAM, Scriptnotes, Transcribed

John and Craig look at three extraordinary news stories and ask, How Would this be a Movie? Stories include the United Healthcare CEO assassination, a small town’s process for licensing fortune tellers, and a harrowing I.V.F. mixup.

We also follow up on AI, Flightplan’s source material, Craig’s Belfast accent, and answer a listener question on the order of surnames for writing partners.

In our bonus segment for premium members: Hey Alexa, play John and Craig’s conversation about home automation. I don’t think she heard– HEY ALEXA, PLAY JOHN AND CRAIG’S CONVERSATION ABOUT HOME AUTOMATION.

Links:

Email us at ask@dev.johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

UPDATE 1-15-25: The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Featured Friday: Prison

Weekend Read

Weekend Read, our app for reading scripts on your phone, features a new curated collection of screenplays each week.

This week, we look at how stories of the incarcerated allow characters from all walks of life to interact, and how prisons as a location are able to accommodate many different genres and tones.

Our collection includes:

  • A Hidden Life by Terrence Malick
  • American History X by David McKenna
  • Black Bird – “Pilot” by Dennis Lehane
  • Brawl in Cell Block 99 by S. Craig Zahler
  • Cool Hand Luke by Donn Pearce and Frank Pierson
  • Escape at Dannemora – “Part 1” by Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin
  • Get Hard by Jay Martel & Ian Roberts
  • I Love You Phillip Morris by Glenn Ficarra & John Requa
  • Just Mercy by Destin Daniel Cretton & Andrew Lanham
  • Orange is the New Black – “Pilot” by Jenji Kohan
  • Sing Sing by Clint Bentley & Greg Kwedar
  • The Green Mile by Frank Darabont
  • The Rock by David Weisberg & Douglas Cook and Mark Rosner
  • The Shawshank Redemption by Frank Darabont

Read these and other featured collections only on Weekend Read 2, available on all Mac and iOS devices. Download for free!

Writing Animated Movies (Encore)

Scriptnotes

John welcomes Linda Woolverton (Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Homeward Bound) to talk about her experience writing animated features, from the parallel processes of writing and production to her paltry paycheck for Beauty and the Beast. They consider the blurring lines between live-action and hyperrealistic CGI, as well as the history of animation writers’ exclusion from the WGA.

We also answer listener questions about whether there is such a thing as a bad character want and how to manage story days within a screenplay, which prompts exploration of wardrobe changes, thinking in terms of color rather than time and Linda’s penchant for naked characters.

In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Drew look back on their goals for 2024 and discuss how to make New Year’s resolutions you’ll actually accomplish.

Links:

Email us at ask@dev.johnaugust.com

You can download the episode here.

Featured Friday: New Year’s Eve

Weekend Read

Weekend Read, our app for reading scripts on your phone, features a new curated collection of screenplays each week.

This week, we say goodbye to 2024 with some favorite features that perfectly capture those last few days of the year. You survived ‘til ’25 — congratulations!

Our collection includes:

  • Fruitvale Station by Ryan Coogler
  • Phantom Thread by Paul Thomas Anderson
  • Strange Days by James Cameron & Jay Cocks
  • The Apartment by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond
  • The Holdovers by David Hemingson
  • When Harry Met Sally… by Nora Ephron

Read these and other featured collections only on Weekend Read 2, available on all Mac and iOS devices. Download for free!