Podcasts about Deadline Hollywood

Send us a text Episode 128: Today Is the First Day of the Rest of Your Life https://youtu.be/pv50YW4n6og "Fringe Psychology of the 1960s In Breakthrough/Momentus Training". Matt Novak (29 September 2014). "The Man Who Fought the Synanon Cult and Won"Her life with "One Big Brother", San Jose Mercury News, March 19, 1999, Michael D. ClarkMorgan, Fiona (30 March 1999). "One big dysfunctional family". Salon. "Synanon's Sober Utopia: How a Drug Rehab Program Became a Violent Cult". Kobler, John (February 8, 1969). "The second coming of Synanon".Janzen, Rod A. The Rise and Fall of Synanon: A California Utopia.Pollock, Dale (1999). Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas. Reid, Max (October 1974). "The Making of California Split: An Interview with Robert Altman"https://www.sundance.org/blogs/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-synanon-fix-like-frogs-boiling-slowly-in-water/https://www.teenvogue.com/story/this-1970s-cult-inspired-abusive-teen-rehabilitation-methods-still-used-today"Nation: Life at Synanon Is Swinging". TIME Magazine. December 26, 1977D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (December 6, 2023). "Sundance Unveils Packed 2024 Lineup That Includes A.I., Pedro Pascal, Kristen Stewart, Satan, Devo & Steven Yeun". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 21, 2024. ^ "HBO Original Documentary Series THE SYNANON FIX Debuts April 1". Warner Bro "A Violent, Deadly Cult With Forced Abortions and Shades of Scientology". Roberts, Sam (November 1, 2023). "David Mitchell, Weekly Editor Who Exposed a Corrupt Cult, Dies at 79""The Man Who Fought the Synanon Cult and Won" https://youtu.be/SFtEkD0pGy8Patreon Supporter: Support the show

The Oscars plan to introduce a stunt category, beginning with movies released in 2027, Deadline: Hollywood reported.

First it was the pandemic, then the writer’s strike, and now the ever-encroaching threat of AI – Hollywood has had its struggles over the years. But what does the future of the industry hold? Will the industry leave LA in search for better tax breaks? Will AI take jobs away from creatives? And after a bleak first quarter, what does the future of movie-going look like? Joining us to share their take on the industry is Tim Cogshell, film critic for LAist with Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com and Dominic Patten, executive editor for Deadline Hollywood.

Happy New Year! Last year Jim had over 50 thoughtful conversations on The CMO Podcast, and he's kicking off 2025 with a doozy. The business of entertainment is increasingly the business of brand building, so Jim is beginning this year with a woman who really gets entertainment. His guest this week on The CMO Podcast is Dea Lawrence, the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer of Variety, the number-one source of entertainment business news. Variety was founded 120 years ago–amazing–and it has evolved into a multi-platform content company. Its iconic publication is available in 84 countries, but Variety in 2025 is so much more: 90 plus live events, podcasts, television specials, a content studio, and on and on. Variety is privately owned by Penske Media, which also owns Rolling Stone and Deadline Hollywood. Dea is not just a COO and CMO, she is also an actor, which has helped build a foundation for her experience rising to become an executive. Dea has been CMO at Variety since 2015; in the last three years she has also been the Chief Operating Officer. Join Jim and Dea as they ring in the new year with a conversation full of predictions and resolutions!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Eon Productions, Amazon MGM working on a remake of the 1968 Chitty Chitty Bang Bang musical, Deadline: Hollywood reported.

Barbara Broccoli, chief of Eon Productions, met with Qatari officials on Monday night in Venice, the Deadline: Hollywood website said.

The Writers' Hangout dives into some entertainment news.  Sandy and Terry cover the latest hot Hollywood lawsuits, which are plural, involving screenwriter R. Lance Hill, Amazon, and the remake of the 1989 ‘Roadhouse.' A cult classic, ‘Roadhouse was a starring vehicle for Patrick Swayze, produced by Joel Silver and directed by Rowdy Herrington.Then, Terry shares an article by David Courtney, Ten Colorful Ways to Say It's Hotter Than Hades in Texas, featured in Texas Monthly.  Research for this episode includes:Amazon, MGM Accuse Original ‘Road House' Screenwriter of Fraud in Countersuit By Ross A. Lincoln for TheWrap by Samantha Bergeson for IndieWirehttps://www.indiewire.com/news/breaking-news/road-house-screenwriter-sues-amazon-over-copyright-ai-use-1234958090/#:~:text=Lance%20Hill%2C%20who%20uses%20the,movie%20was%20released%20in%201989‘Road House' Rumble: Amazon Denies AI Used To Create Actors' Voices For Remake During Strike As Original Pic's Scribe Sues To Shut Down New Movie by Dominic Patten for Deadline Hollywood https://deadline.com/2024/02/road-house-lawsuit-amazon-copyright-1235839774/Ten Colorful Ways to Say It's Hotter Than Hades in Texas, which was featured in Texas Monthly.  https://www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/folksy-sayings-heat-weather/?utm_source=pocket_shared&utm_source=pocket_sharedThe PAGE International Screenwriting Awards sponsors the WRITERS' HANGOUT.Executive Producer Kristin OvernProducer Sandy AdomaitisProducer Terry SampsonMusic by Ethan Stoller

Afin de propulser leur album ‘'All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade'' au sommet et devenir numéro un des ventes, dans une nouvelle vidéo humoristique, on peut voir Peter Doherty discuter avec Carl Barât des astuces pour décrocher une première place, se basant sur les suggestions de son label. Le groupe anglais The Libertines aimerait jouer aux USA, motivé par le succès de ce nouvel album, explique Carl Barat, chanteur et guitariste du groupe, car le chanteur Pete Doherty y est interdit depuis 20 ans. A voir sur RTBF actu, près d'une heure d'un concert de Led Zeppelin, images tournées par le photographe Jim Kelly au Forum de Montréal, le 6 février 1975. Après la révélation d'une rencontre avec John Lennon qui a mis mal à l'aise Mick Jagger, le nouveau livre "All You Need Is Love" sur les Beatles continue de faire des révélations, Yoko Ono, sa veuve, nie avoir "mis John sous Héroïne". Ce sera bien l'acteur du film ‘'The Bear'', Jeremy Allen White, qui incarnera le Boss dans le futur film ‘'Deliver Me From Nowhere'' sur la période de l'album ‘'Nebraska''. Bruce Dickinson, chanteur et leader d'Iron Maiden, s'est dit choqué du nombre de petites salles de concert qui ferment leurs portes au Royaume-Uni. Mots-Clés : problèmes, addiction, soucis juridiques, États-Unis, sobriété, leader, obstacle, public, Europe, billets, Madison Square Garden, tournée, nord-américaine, Physical Graffiti, bouquin, femme, contrainte, moral, méchanceté, danse, Tik-Tok, single, Run Run Run", chorégraphies, favori, site, Deadline Hollywood, Bruce Springsteen, Disney, 20th Century Studios, carrière, spectacles, marché, époque, argent, droits d'auteur, disques, live, essence, existence, stade, livres sterling, britanniques, prestations, boutique. --- Classic 21 vous informe des dernières actualités du rock, en Belgique et partout ailleurs. Le Journal du Rock, chaque jour à 7h30 et 18h30. Merci pour votre écoute Pour écouter Classic 21 à tout moment : www.rtbf.be/classic21 Retrouvez tous les contenus de la RTBF sur notre plateforme Auvio.be Et si vous avez apprécié ce podcast, n'hésitez pas à nous donner des étoiles ou des commentaires, cela nous aide à le faire connaître plus largement.

Marvel Studios, as part of a Fantastic Four movie, may be gender-swapping the Silver Surfer, according to Deadline: Hollywood.

Dans une interview accordée au New York Times, Pete Townshend a été interrogé sur la possibilité que les Who arrivent avec de la nouveauté, soulignant que le groupe a sorti seulement deux albums depuis 1983, et la réponse semble catégorique. Selon le site Deadline Hollywood, la star du film ‘'The Bear'', Jeremy Allen White, serait pressentie pour incarner Bruce Springsteen dans ‘'Deliver Me From Nowhere'' un futur film sur l'élaboration de l'album ‘'Nebraska'', sorti en 1982. ‘'Surfin' U.S.A.", "Wouldn't It Be Nice", "Kokomo", tant de tubes qui ont fait le succès des Beach Boys et qui se retrouveront dans un documentaire prévu en streaming le 24 mai. Liam Gallagher s'impose une "discipline de fer" après des années à faire la fête, l'ancien membre d'Oasis veut désormais prioriser sa santé. Le Boss, Bruce Springsteen, devient le premier auteur-compositeur international à devenir membre de l'Ivors Academy pour sa "contribution exceptionnelle à l'art de la composition" et son impact sur le paysage culturel britannique. Les deux batteurs, Lars Ulrich (Metallica) et Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), sont pressentis pour la suite de "Spinal Tap" et rejoignent un casting déjà bien complet avec Paul McCartney, Elton John, Questlove, Trisha Yearwood et Garth Brooks. Mots-Clés : AC/DC, identiques, groupe d'idées, Roger Daltrey, jeune, mythe, spectacle, avatar, acteur, favori, sortie, goûts, images, archive, inédit, témoignage, interview, Shut Down Vol.2, édition limitée, livre, édité, librairies, alcool, drogues, clope, britannique, question, hygiène de vie, musicien, Figaro, sobre, prix, cérémonie, Londres, récompense, américain, membre, Sir Paul McCartney, Kate Bush, Joan Armatrading, Sting, film, original, David St. Hubbins, Michael McKean, Derek Smalls, Harry Shearer, Nigel Tufnel, Christopher Guest), heavy metal, anglais, fictif, Deadline Hollywood, production, rôles. --- Classic 21 vous informe des dernières actualités du rock, en Belgique et partout ailleurs. Le Journal du Rock, chaque jour à 7h30 et 18h30. Merci pour votre écoute Pour écouter Classic 21 à tout moment : www.rtbf.be/classic21 Retrouvez tous les contenus de la RTBF sur notre plateforme Auvio.be Et si vous avez apprécié ce podcast, n'hésitez pas à nous donner des étoiles ou des commentaires, cela nous aide à le faire connaître plus largement.

Hello and welcome to Episode 52 of Jurassic Minutes, The February issue.  Where we discuss recent movie, toy and franchise news for the Jurassic series.    Introductions Brad David   On this episode we will be discussing  Yes we are going to talk about the new film. Actually that's pretty much all we are going to talk about…   So stay tuned as we discuss all of that and more... But first,   Recent Toy or Prop Purchases? Brad - nil  Dave - TLW Bull T-Rex HC repaint   Now for the news 00:12:07 -new Jurassic film on the way, and a lot closer to release then most thought. Now all this must be taken with a grain of salt. We've already seen new stories confirmed and then things have fallen through so nothing is set in concrete. It's why we don't rush to get news content out there like everyone else. The other podcasts have already had lengthy discussions about the new movie news and now most of it is a mute point because of what we will discuss shortly.    Here's what we know; -The Hollywood reporter wrote an article about David koepp returning to pen new Jurassic film. Lastest works include Indy 5. And although his final script wasn't used by mangold, the original story idea was Micheal koepps.    Universal said the script was written and in a place they thought was strong enough to start production on the seventh film. https://www.facebook.com/100064603813478/posts/pfbid02Wjqesv1ixRrtwo5qJn2Q4FWEhBgmUktB18cTVN4cemsX4GmmWV9FE2iW64fBcn2el/   -it was then revealed Steve Brusatte was returning as paleontology consultant for upcoming Jurassic film!  https://www.facebook.com/100064603813478/posts/pfbid02yZs7eHqWXZLKWfk1qonZxLFPzjbiVka5qxbSoMimuifFG3HSPnZdL9SmC2cG2m5fl/   -and then came the flood of small click bait articles about Bryce returning, maybe directing, Brian Cranston wanting to be in it with Bryce. Apparently Bryce was asked to return, spoiler alert for later she said no. And then someone reported that none of the original or world cast would be returning. No would Colin travarrow. Which is for the best. He gave us a trilogy story. Time for someone else to give us a new take and story.    -next, According to Deadline Hollywood, David Leitch was in talks to direct the next Jurassic film and its release date was confirmed as July 2nd, 2025!   As for the release date. A lot are saying that's way too early, including me and the feeling of it being rushed is very present.     First up to defend it, don't forget dominion was pushed back a year. In that year they wouldn't have changed anything with the film, we've discussed this before. But it would have given them an early start on what was coming next. And yes during the marketing for dominion it was said to be the final chapter in the jurassic story etc etc, but frank Marshall had said it's the start of a new jurassic era. So it can be pretty much assumed the new film will feature the post dominion world.     As for the director, His known in the franchise as the second unit director for jw, he also did a fast & furious and John wick film, and some others that aren't really important now because…… https://www.facebook.com/100064603813478/posts/pfbid02WzamZGuJHZLK4i8BtujTcSA8cX7vSCbuNnV8NgtbjhaXD393xqUkyP98atRZHuvJl/   -Deadline reported talks have fallen through with David Leitch, who will no longer direct the next jurassic film.  It would appear fans jumped the gun with shit talking the director before he was even locked in to direct. All the previous articles and reports state “in talks” or “in negotiations” everyone assumed it was a sure thing. https://www.facebook.com/100064603813478/posts/pfbid0371aBJfwiDDs5EpF3z3miVZ3R71WNBjXGxUkxr1vyo5SvQR8rw2HGV93hpnR7TeTql/   We talked earlier about David koepp writing the Indy script and then mangold coming in and changing a whole part of it. Even David's the lost world script changed a lot during production, we've talked a lot about that. Having a strong scrip now doesn't mean you'll have a ready film in just 15 months. No director at this point concerns me, either a puppet director will come in and make the film universal want, or they will hire someone that will then make changes to the script and next thing the films being moved to July 2026.     We also don't know what else has been going on behind the scenes. At this point animatronics and pre production should be started and leaks will probably start coming out shortly, plus principal photography will most likely start mid year with a large portion being filmed in England once again.   So time will tell. With all the Jurassic films averaging a billion dollars we were wrong to think universal would just sit on the franchise for a few years. This also probably rule out any live action tv show for the time being, unless assets made for this film will continue on in a tv format. It hasn't been announced if this is the start of a new trilogy, but personally with the world being a lot smaller then a star war or trek universe maybe go back to individual movies with maybe one or two through points but new casts, new locations and maybe some old ones, and just give us good story telling and dinosaurs.    00:47:17 -okay so also in the news docket, while we are talking David Leitch, he was the second unit director on jurassic world, and filmed the unimog chase scene from that film. A scene we talked a lot about because of some interesting structures in the back ground that looked very abandoned jurassic park. His production assistant recently dumped a heap of info on twitter, including the location of that scene.  https://maps.app.goo.gl/PMjUVa6oXP47LJfu6   01:06:36 -original JP Rex assets used in resent episode of La Brae. Beloved to be season 3 episode 6.    -that's pretty much it for the news, there was an announcement of a Hammond collection Claire but no photos yet so we will check that out next month. We are also heading into the 10th anniversary of jurassic world so expect a lot of jw themed figures on the way. Mattel hasn't done a lot with the first film so this year we might be getting thier chance on that toy line.   -also just yesterday beyond the gates posted up some images from 1996 of some of the ingen unimogs presumable parked on the back lot either pre or post filming of the lost world. These photos keep surfacing, what else is out there yet to be found.   Outro Thank you for listening.  -Anything else we'd like to bring up? You can find us the following ways   web site: www.jurassicminutes.wordpress.com Email: thelostworldminute@gmail.com Facebook page: groups/jurassicminutes Twitter: @jurassicMinute Instagram: Jurassicmimutes Links to The Lost World and Jurassic Park 3, and Jurassic World Minutes can be found at the web site.   

On this week's episode, I have Writer/Executive Producer, Jonathan Collier (Bones, The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Monk, and many many more) and we dive into the origins of his career. We also talk about his side hustle and how that came about! Tune in as we have so much more.Show NotesJonathan Collier on X: https://twitter.com/collierjonathan Jonathan Collier IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0171927/Jonathan Collier on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_CollierA Paper Orchestra on Website: - https://michaeljamin.com/bookA Paper Orchestra on Audible: - https://www.audible.com/ep/creator?source_code=PDTGBPD060314004R&irclickid=wsY0cWRTYxyPWQ32v63t0WpwUkHzByXJyROHz00&irgwc=1A Paper Orchestra on Amazon: - https://www.amazon.com/Audible-A-Paper-Orchestra/dp/B0CS5129X1/ref=sr_1_4?crid=19R6SSAJRS6TU&keywords=a+paper+orchestra&qid=1707342963&sprefix=a+paper+orchestra%2Caps%2C149&sr=8-4A Paper Orchestra on Goodreads: - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/203928260-a-paper-orchestraFree Writing Webinar - https://michaeljamin.com/op/webinar-registration/Michael's Online Screenwriting Course - https://michaeljamin.com/courseFree Screenwriting Lesson - https://michaeljamin.com/freeJoin My Newsletter - https://michaeljamin.com/newsletterAutogenerated TranscriptJonathan Collier:It was after season eight, and I thought they were trying to get me to go to King of the Hill, and I had whatever, I had the chance to stay at Simpson's. And I thought, well, there's no way it goes past season 10.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Or any show goes past season 10.Jonathan Collier:It just doesn't happen. And so I left. I thought, I kind of felt badly leaving, but I thought, what's much better? Do you want to show with some like in itMichael Jamin:You are listening to What the Hell is Michael Jamin talking about conversations in writing, art, and creativity. Today's episode is brought to you by my debut collection of True Stories, a paper orchestra available in print, ebook and audiobook to purchase. And to support me in this podcast, please visit michael jamin.com/book and now on with the show.All right, everyone, welcome back to What the Hell is Michael Jamin talking about? My next guest is an old colleague of mine, old friend from my days on King of the Hill before I let him talk his name's John Coly or welcome to the show, but let me tell you what he's done. The Sky's credits are pretty incredible. So you sit back and relax. Lemme tell you what he's done. So he wrote on The Simpsons. Okay, we've heard of that show and I'm only giving some of the highlights, some of the highlights, some Scooby dos, which I did not know. King of the Hill Monk, the Good Family Bones, the Good Cop Law and Order. I mean, this guy has done well. He's done a lot. But thank you so much, man, for doing the show.Jonathan Collier:Oh, it's a pleasure, Michael. Thank you for having me.Michael Jamin:Let me tell you about who you are because I remember very clearly walking to my, on my way to my office on King of the Hill. Yours was, I would always walk past you and I would often stop and say hello. Or sometimes I would just sit and you always had a big smile. You're always so happy to greet me and have me there. And I never felt like I was getting in the way you Yeah, come on in. Come on. You're always very kind.Jonathan Collier:I am endlessly in search of distractions.Michael Jamin:Well, I do remember walking past you on days when you're on script and just looking miserable. IJonathan Collier:Am. Thank you. Nope, that's exactly it. Well observed. I am never more miserable than I am alone in writing.Michael Jamin:But why is that? Do you feel?Jonathan Collier:Oh, it's a horrible thing to do. TV writing is one of the most fun, engaging, productive things you can do if you're with other people. And I love that part of it. And the small portion of the job that relies on you being alone entails, I should say, you being alone and actually writing something without people around is misery for me.Michael Jamin:But is it the comedy part? You also do drama now? Which one is harder?Jonathan Collier:Comedy is harder.Michael Jamin:Okay. But yeah, I would agree with that as well. But is it miserable to write drama as well?Jonathan Collier:I find the process of keeping stuff alive and interesting and propulsive is really, really hard.Michael Jamin:And how do know? You know when it's alive?Jonathan Collier:What, sorry?Michael Jamin:How do you know?Jonathan Collier:How do I know when it's right?Michael Jamin:Yeah. How do you know?Jonathan Collier:Part of what makes it so miserable is you can always second guess yourself. And even more so when there's jokes involved.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Well, for jokes for sure. And what was that transition like for you? I'm amazed that anyone can do it.Jonathan Collier:Oh, I got very lucky. What happened was that King of the Hill was, we got canceled. You remember? It was time. The show got canceled. It was canceled two times.Michael Jamin:We left after the first time.Jonathan Collier:Yeah, left. So it got canceled. And I really realized it was for real when they started moving our furniture out of the officeMichael Jamin:Because you were going to squat there.Jonathan Collier:I had every intention of squatting.Michael Jamin:You thought it was all Big bluff until they moved at the furniture.Jonathan Collier:And so that was happening. And I had done comedy for about 17 years at that point. And I didn't love doing for camera comedy. I liked doing animation and there were no real single camera comics, comedies on the air at the time, and I didn't quite know what to do, but I knew I stopped watching comedies. I kind of could feel the sweat on them and the work on them because I worked in so many comedy rooms. And I got really lucky, which is that Andy Breckman, who was running Monk at the time, who created the show, he used to have three guest writers come in every season. And he did that because he felt like he kept him on track. If you came in as a guest to the room in New York, it made him concentrate and work harder and make sure that in five days you would break a story.Michael Jamin:Why? Because people flew in, you mean?Jonathan Collier:Yeah, because the network would fly, the studio would fly you into New York and put you up and they would only keep you there for five days.Michael Jamin:Okay, that's interesting.Jonathan Collier:I got one of those. So I got one of those guest shots. And the other thing I got way I got lucky wasMichael Jamin:Wait, but how did you get that guest shot?Jonathan Collier:I got that guest shot because this is embarrassing. My agent at the time who I didn't think was doing enough for me, got me a meeting with Andy Breckman, and I thought it was just one meeting with Andy Breckman, who's a great guy, and I love the show, but who knows if it's going to turn into anything. I fired my agent, moved on to another agent, and then Andy called me up and said, oh, we want you to do this episode a month.Michael Jamin:Right.Jonathan Collier:But there was no,Michael Jamin:But I've already fired my agent.Jonathan Collier:That was done. What happened was that, anyway, Andy used to only hire comedy writers to do guest episodes.Michael Jamin:Why?Jonathan Collier:Because his theory was that he could teach a comedy writer how to write a procedural. He could not teach a procedural writer how to be fun. So anyway, they flew into New York, I was in the room, we broke a story and I wrote it and it went well. The whole thing went well, and I got very lucky again because no one had ever really left the show or been added to it. This was the fourth season and one writer was leaving and Andy offered me the job. So I came in and went on staff the next season.Michael Jamin:How many seasons did you do there?Jonathan Collier:I did two more seasons and then the writer's strike of 2007 happened. And when that happened, I didn't know how long that would go on. Mike and the Good Family was starting up and they got what was called a strike waiver, and there were certain production companies and one was MRC, media Rights Capital, and they made a deal with the WGA, with the Writers Guild that they could do shows that were during the strike and it would not be strike breaking to work on those shows if they agreed to abide by the Wgas terms, the writer's terms. The WGA was using that as a tactic to try to force the studios to,Michael Jamin:And it's funny, they didn't really do that this last strike.Jonathan Collier:No, I don't think it really helped.Michael Jamin:You don't think it helped?Jonathan Collier:I don't know if it did or actually, no, I can't say if it did or not. I thought all I can say is I think this last strike was better run than the first one. I think a lot was learned from the first one. Anyway, I left Monk because I got a job right away rather than being strike.Michael Jamin:Right. Let me ask you that. When you're on Monk and you are with procedural writers who are not comedy writers, when they would pitch something that you and I would call a clam, or if you would pitch it in the room at the Simpson, the King of the Hill, someone would say, right? Was there a lot of that going on? Were you the guy who said, yeah, that's not really a joke?Jonathan Collier:Well, no. At Mon though, you had, first of all, it was comedy writers. It was a small staff and it was four people whose background was comedy, including Andy Breckman, and then one High Conrad, who was just a terrific mystery writer. And he had written something like 200 mystery books. Oh,Michael Jamin:Wow.Jonathan Collier:And the way he got on was that Andy met with him and took him out for lunch and said, look, I love your mystery books, and you have two choices. One is you come on staff or two was I'm just going to steal all your plots anyway.Michael Jamin:Oh wow.Jonathan Collier:Hi was on whatever came on staff, and he was on UNK for the whole run. And then he was on The Good Cop with Me Too. It was on, that was another Andy Breckman show.Michael Jamin:Right. It's so interesting. And to what did you think of that world? I mean, compared to comedy?Jonathan Collier:Well, it was a really kind of easy, delicate transition because it was a mystery show once again, written by comedy writers.Michael Jamin:Writers. It was light. It was fun.Jonathan Collier:Yeah. A procedural written by non-com writers would've been a tougher adjustment for me.Michael Jamin:But even the procedural explain to me and everyone else, how do you write a procedural?Jonathan Collier:I think there's many different ways to write a procedural. The way I write a procedural is what really happened comes first.Michael Jamin:What really happens comes first. What does that mean?Jonathan Collier:Okay. What you have to think of is what was our crime? What's the procedure about? What are we investigating?Michael Jamin:Okay, so give me an example.Jonathan Collier:It's not a medical procedural. This is a criminal procedural. I'm talkingMichael Jamin:About, okay, so someone's dead,Jonathan Collier:Someone is dead. And then you have all sorts of questions you can ask that can form the basis for an episode. You can say, oh, is it an accident? Is it a suicide? Is it a murder? If it is a murder, or who did it? Why did they do it? Who could have done it? There any number of, is it an open book where the audience knows what happened? Is it a closed book where the audience doesn't know and learns along with our investigators?Michael Jamin:Did you basically do both?Jonathan Collier:Monk did both opened and closed book. And Monk also did a combination of who done, its who was the killer, why done, its, we know who the killer is, but why on earth would they kill someone? And that's how we can prove they did it. And how done its, it's an incredibly, it's a locked room mystery, for instance, where someone was killed inside the locked room, how did the killer get in there and doMichael Jamin:It? Interesting. HadJonathan Collier:To figure out how the crime was done.Michael Jamin:And so these words are so funny. So as you were breaking the story, you'd break 'em in the room with all the writers, I assume, right? And then throw out ideas, and then someone would say, okay, but let's do this, make it a wide, let's make it a wide done at this week. Is that what it is?Jonathan Collier:Well, I think we'd look at the killing and say, what's a really, really ingenious killing? We could do?Michael Jamin:Okay.Jonathan Collier:Say, okay, let's look at the motive. And then we'd say, last, you'd spend probably say you were breaking a story over the course. If it was just us, we probably spent seven to eight days breaking a story. We weren't having a guest writer in. And the first three or four days probably spent just figuring out how the crime was done and why really gettingMichael Jamin:It seems very hard to me. This seems very hard to me.Jonathan Collier:For me, it was somewhat natural way to do it because it was really fun. And for some, I feel like I was using my comedy muscles, even my plotting muscles to figure out why you did it. And then you work backwards once, and this is just us. Other shows do it different ways. There's probably a million different ways to do it.Michael Jamin:Okay. But you start work backwards. So first you decide if it's going to be a who, what or why is that what it's,Jonathan Collier:First of all, first of all, you can't figure out who kills who and why, who killed who, who kills who. How do they do it, why do they do it, where do they do it? All those things. Then you figure out how do we solve it? And for a show like Monk, he'd also say, well, I have someone who has OCD. I have someone who was painfully shy as someone who was any number of traumas in his life. Also a comic character who happens to be the saddest person on television, and he has a tragedy to his life. And what's the world I can put him in to make him the most uncomfortable?Michael Jamin:Right? And that's how you begin. That's where you start. That'sJonathan Collier:Often where, that's often where the fun of it comes from. The comedy is from seeing him in the world where he's uncomfortable, because comedy is all about discomfort. The emotional story would often come from how he will relate to the world and what it would bring up in his own life. And then the procedural story is how you solve the crime.Michael Jamin:YouJonathan Collier:Go ahead. Sorry.Michael Jamin:No, no, go ahead.Jonathan Collier:The way one could look at it is for us on that show, the procedural story was almost with the armature. It's what you would call the plot, I guess. And the real story was the emotional story that was threaded through the plot.Michael Jamin:Right, of course.Jonathan Collier:And the two of them dovetail and one comment on the other, like a musical comedy, for instance, where songs are the twists, they provide the transition points in the story. You could say the emotional twists or the procedural twists would provide a transition point for each other.Michael Jamin:It still sounds very hard to me. Does it get easier?Jonathan Collier:Well, I think it probably sounds hard because I'm probably overcomplicating it.Michael Jamin:Well, not really, because you're solving, because see, and I are thinking of writing a procedural, and so we're watching some, and I'm like, I don't know. I don't think I know how to do this.Jonathan Collier:Oh, I'll help you with it.Michael Jamin:Oh, good. You're hired.Jonathan Collier:It is not that hard because it's actually easier I found than writing an episode of King of a Hill where someone buys a new hat and it changes their life and life. You have to make a whole story out of that.Michael Jamin:Right. But you still have to figure out, it's a mystery. You're solving a crime and you have to make it so it's smart. I mean, I've watched other ones where they throw in a clue just when you need it, oh good, I dug a new clue so I can figure out another scene.Jonathan Collier:And there's shows that do that. And there's shows that I like, if you don't get a show like Merab Town,Michael Jamin:Right? I haven'tJonathan Collier:Seen it. Okay. That's real lies procedural. And what you realize is it is not about solving the crime. I mean, it's all the crime, but it is really about the emotional drama that's happening. And the crime is, once again, is almost the backdropMichael Jamin:For it. But to me, that's what makes it so that's why I want to get rid of the crime. Can we just focus on the relationship between the mother and the daughter that I get?Jonathan Collier:And the one I thought does comment on the other, and they're both of us family, and I felt like that show worked pretty well. It's very much not a show that I would know how to do.Michael Jamin:Well, and that takes me to law and your latest, but Okay, bones, and let's talk about what you're doing now. That's very different. Law and order.Jonathan Collier:Well, I'm not doing Law and Order now. I stopped after last season.Michael Jamin:Oh, you did? Okay. But that must be very procedural. I mean, procedural.Jonathan Collier:Procedural, very procedural, very different beast. I mean, it was a challenge to figure it out, but I think I'm much more comfortable in this space where there's more character involved.Michael Jamin:Yeah, right. I would thinkJonathan Collier:The part I like best is where I've been most comfortable and enjoyed the most is character driven procedurals.Michael Jamin:Right. Which is kind of like what USA does, right?Jonathan Collier:Well, back when they existed,Michael Jamin:Back when they were doing it.Jonathan Collier:So no, in other shows, there's been a lot of character-based procedurals on TV over the years, and that's what Bones was. Keone was a character-based procedural.Michael Jamin:And you were the showrunner that you were the executive producer?Jonathan Collier:I was the showrunner for a while, yes.Michael Jamin:Yeah. And that was the first time. Was that the first time you ran a show or no?Jonathan Collier:No. I've run another show on the CW called As IfMichael Jamin:Before. Oh. But this is the, I still would imagine now that you're the boss of a procedural, I don't know. I need help. So it seems so hard to me. Wellm hung up on that.Jonathan Collier:I took over a show that was already working veryMichael Jamin:Well.Jonathan Collier:Har Hansen, who created, it was a hundred yards away on the Fox lot in his office. I could always go running to him for help if I neededMichael Jamin:It. Right. And you had the same staff,Jonathan Collier:Sorry.Michael Jamin:And you had the staff, the previous same staff.Jonathan Collier:We had much of the same staff. And I had a co-Ho Runner, Michael Peterson, who was terrific. And I had Steven Nathan, who I took over the show from and only left because I was still a very close friend, and I could call him up whenever I needed to.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Jonathan Collier:I think starting from scratch is always much harder, or walking into a situation not immediately comfortable is always much harder too.Michael Jamin:But now that you've, I see this as opening a lot of doors for you. Has it? Because now you have two genres under your belt.Jonathan Collier:Yes and no. It's always hard. I mean, you have to always be out there in whatever writing. And there's a limited number of jobs that a lot of people want to do, and the people who want to do those jobs tend to be, when you think of it, just in terms of being practical, it's a great profession when you're doing it. But it's one of the stupidest professions to try to do because your competition is really smart, really talented, really talented, really inspired, really wants to do it and works really hard. There's a lot of businesses that aren't like thatMichael Jamin:You are listening to. What the Hell is Michael Jamin talking about? Today's episode is brought to you by my new book, A Paper Orchestra, A collection of True Stories. John Mayer says, it's fantastic. It's multi timbral. It runs all levels of the pyramid at the same time. His knockout punches are stinging, sincerity, and Kirks Review says, those who appreciate the power of simple stories to tell us about human nature or who are bewitched by a storyteller who has mastered his craft, will find a delightful collection of vignettes, a lovely anthology that strikes a perfect balance between humor and poignancy. So my podcast is not advertiser supported. I'm not running ads here. So if you'd like to support me or the podcast, come check out my book. Go get an ebook or a paperback, or if you really want to treat yourself, check out the audio book. Go to michael jamin.com/book. And now back to our show.How do you know, were you in a lot of businesses?Jonathan Collier:I have a side business.Michael Jamin:What is your side business? Is it you rent folding shows for parties?Jonathan Collier:Well, no. I actually do multifamily housing.Michael Jamin:Wait. Oh, I knew about this. Right.Jonathan Collier:And believe me, my competition in multifamily housing will be damned if they want to spend 80 bucks to fix the toilet the right way.Michael Jamin:Now, do you build or you refurbish? What does that mean?Jonathan Collier:I do it with a partner who's also a writer, and we refurbish and build and rent.Michael Jamin:And Is it in LA or all over the country?Jonathan Collier:It's in Los Angeles.Michael Jamin:This is amazing. I remember, but I don't know. That's a whole different skillset. Who told you you were qualified to do that?Jonathan Collier:I think we always revert back to who we are,Michael Jamin:Which was, you were always a real estate mogul in the beginning.Jonathan Collier:Oh, I'm not a mogul by any means. We're mom and pop level of multifamily housing, but whatever. My family had small family businesses probably going back to the Middle Ages and they were butchers and bakers and ran a little in, did all those things. And that's where I immediately felt comfortable doing this.Michael Jamin:Really. Was it your idea to get into, how did that idea come up?Jonathan Collier:That came up during the 2007 strike also?Michael Jamin:Yeah, everything comes up during the strike when you're out of work.Jonathan Collier:So you're out of work, you're walking around with a picket sign. Yeah. I was thinking, wait a second. I'm walking around with a picket sign with a lot of angry, middle-aged guys. We're all mad at their fathers and taking it out in the studio.Michael Jamin:Okay,Jonathan Collier:We are at the mercy. We're putting yourself in a position where we're walking around with a sign waiting for a giant multinational corporation to pay us a lot of money to do something that we frankly love to do. And I'm not really in control of my faith here.Michael Jamin:No, we're not.Jonathan Collier:And so that's where my partner and I decided to do it. And then fortunately for us, I know what happened. I talked about it and I started talking about it with one of my daughter's, babysitters.Michael Jamin:How many babysitters does she have?Jonathan Collier:We had a hundred babysitters, a hundred best babysitters in all of LosMichael Jamin:Angeles. She required a lot of babysitters. Okay,Jonathan Collier:Whatever. When we go out, we'd have whatever, five people we call, whatever. And I've all come over at once. This woman was actually getting, I talked to her about it because while she was babysitting for us, she was getting her real estate license.Michael Jamin:Okay. Wow.Jonathan Collier:And so she called me up and said, I have a building for you, and it is a really good deal, and Washington Mutual Bank is trying to unload it really fast. This is now 2008 or so, and the whole real estate market's falling apart.Michael Jamin:And how many units is this building approximately?Jonathan Collier:This building has five units.Michael Jamin:Okay. So it's small. WeJonathan Collier:Did not know what we were doing, but we went and looked at it. We bought it.Michael Jamin:Okay. We had to make a company first. You had to do all the legal stuff.Jonathan Collier:Yeah. We formed what's called an LLC. We talked to a lawyer who was a cousin of someone, and they told us what to do.Michael Jamin:Real estate. As it turned out, a brilliant idea. It was probably the best idea you've ever had in la.Jonathan Collier:It was a very, very lucky time to do it. And so people, I found once again, like I was saying earlier, my competition in real estate was not as talented or hardworking or smart as my competition in television writing, but they were a lot luckier. And just by the strange confluence of events where interest rates went down and the economy started to pick up eventually, we all just by good fortune, by luck, it worked out well. It worked. Yeah.Michael Jamin:This is important because as you mentioned, nothing is guaranteed as a writer, nothing is guaranteed. And so to have something on the side is really helpful. Gives you some breathing. I highlyJonathan Collier:Recommend to people. I always tell whatever, when I talk to actors, I'm always thrilled when I hear that they're writing, even though they tend to be very good writers, and I don't like that. Or when they're doing something, when they're going to law school, when they're doing anything else, it's just nice to have a backup. It helps you sleep better at night.Michael Jamin:It does. Yeah, it really does. What's that?Jonathan Collier:You have your podcast.Michael Jamin:This is my empire, as you see. There youJonathan Collier:Go.Michael Jamin:Yeah. My media empire. Now, you wrote an episode of King of the Hill, because when I talk about King of the Hill, and this is 20 years ago, we were doing it. One episode people often bring up to me is Bobby is the Pygmalion episode, which you wrote.Jonathan Collier:Oh,Michael Jamin:People want to know about that. And we were just joining the show at that time. I'mJonathan Collier:Glad to hear that. I still think about that episode actually, when I said, I hate writing alone. I don't hate all of writing alone. I love the last two or three days of writing alone, punching up. I feel like face with a blank page. And once I've kind of taken a sledgehammer and beaten that script into shape, actually turning it from serviceable to good is actually fun. That part of it. And I remember the last three days or so on that script were really fun.Michael Jamin:But how did it, I mean, that was a departure. I mean, everyone there said, this is the departure. This is the episode, which ended in a really dark place.Jonathan Collier:It was a gothic thriller.Michael Jamin:How did you sell it to Greg? To the staff? I dunno if he was running the show then How did you sell? It was there. It was a departure.Jonathan Collier:Greg was there, so Greg was still there. I don't know if he was officially running the show, but he was there. Greg had to approve everything. He was basically, and Greg, God bless him. Not only did he embrace the gothic nature of it, but he pushed it even more. And some of the really strong gothic elements like killing.Michael Jamin:Yeah. The guy died at the endJonathan Collier:Who loved. I think that may have been Greg's idea.Michael Jamin:Was there a moment though, when you go, wait a minute. Are you sure that this doesn't seem like the tone of the show? I mean, it's mostly Hank watering his lawn.Jonathan Collier:Oh, no. Once we were going to do it, I was off full speed ahead. I wanted to embrace it also. Now, there were other people there at the time. It was a big staff and whatever. Everyone had valid opinions or people who did not embrace it the way that they were entitled to that. But I think we pretty much got the episode we wanted up on the screen forMichael Jamin:Sure, man. I mean, that got some big, I remember watching the Color in the animation. We watched the color in the Room. That's a big, it was like, whoa.Jonathan Collier:Yeah. There were very large twists and turns. Yeah. It is always really fun to push a genre.Michael Jamin:It isJonathan Collier:Carefully, closely observed family comedy and turned it into a large scale gothic drill.Michael Jamin:I had a conversation with Dave Krinsky. He ran the show at one point that, and the funny thing is, because people on social media, they're still watching King of the Hill. I haven't watched it since we were on it, because that's it. You leave it alone, you're onto the next show, and people really remember it. They remember it. They want to talk about it. And I'm like, I'm sorry. I don't really remember this episode. And Krinsky felt the same way, and he ran it. It's like, I don't really remember this. Do you remember everything? Oh, no. No. It's interesting that I think people have this expectation of the writers that we should still be living in it and we can't because we have to move on to whatever else we're writing.Jonathan Collier:Yeah. No, you only have so much room in yourMichael Jamin:Head. Yeah.Jonathan Collier:I mean, part of it is we're too busy hanging on every grudge and slight and moment of shame in our lives to use in our comedy.Michael Jamin:Yeah. Well, okay, so I know you don't have too much time, but what do you writing? What do you want to write next? Do you want to write procedural comedy? What do you want to do? IJonathan Collier:Really like the procedural space. I'm working on a procedural right now with a terrific writer who I was on bones withMichael Jamin:To sell as a pitch.Jonathan Collier:Yeah,Michael Jamin:Yeah. Yeah. Well, that makes sense. I mean, and given your track record, I would assume it'd probably be easier for you to sell a procedural. I don't know. There, no,Jonathan Collier:I have no idea. We are in an odd market, so we'll see.Michael Jamin:What do you know about the market? I hear just from talking to other writers, I don't think anybody really know. What do you know about the market?Jonathan Collier:Oh, nothing. I know what I read in the trades. I know what I read in Deadline Hollywood.Michael Jamin:And by that you mean what's getting picked up?Jonathan Collier:Yeah, I know what everyone else knows. I have no information. I do know anecdotally, my friends at least have had trouble selling things.Michael Jamin:They're having trouble selling right now. That's what I'm telling them, because they don't know how much money they have. Yeah.Jonathan Collier:It is an inflection point in the business, and there's been periodic inflection points, whatever, where it's pointed in one direction or another, but no one really knows what they mean while you're in them.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah. It's so, so smart about real estate. I'm still hung up on that, and I know this is not a podcast about that, but in a way it is. It's a podcast about having your fingers in many whatever it is, pots or something. Pies. What is it? I don't know what the expression is.Jonathan Collier:It is generally pies.Michael Jamin:Is it? What about a pot pie, like a chicken pot pie? It's generally pies, you said, man. So, okay. So that's kind of what you're taking out there is you're working on, and how often do you meet and do you work on it?Jonathan Collier:Oh, we meet every day really? More or less every day. I like to work for about three or four hoursMichael Jamin:In person. You meet?Jonathan Collier:No, we work on Zoom. And I don't like Zoom rooms, and I've been in some of those, but I like working with just one writer on Zoom, if you know them Well, it's fun. I mean, I found that in a regular room, and I'm sure people have told you this on your podcast and otherwise that, especially when you're No anything character based, any show, if it is not character based, the fun of it really is. And a lot of the creativity comes from what's not going on in the room. It comes from walking to lunch. It comes from Brow Cup coffee. It comes from killing time doing something else on the lot or your office. And that's when the ideas kind of come out of you. And you don't get that on Zoom.Michael Jamin:No, you don't. I wonder. Yeah. So was never Back. The rooms never got back. The last show I was on, it was still Zoom. Have you gone back in person?Jonathan Collier:No.Michael Jamin:No. Isn't that weird?Jonathan Collier:Really? I mean, I helped out, I did some punch up on a movie, and that was in person and on some punch up on an HBO series. Really? That didn't go, but that was whatever, a mini room. And those were both in person, but they were small and they were limited duration. So like a full functioning show in person. I have not done since theMichael Jamin:Pandemic. I wonder. Yeah, I wonder. They're just trying to save money. I don't think they're about saving lives. I think it's about saving money.Jonathan Collier:I think they're saving money. I think that sometimes one thing they found during Zoom is you get to writers in different cities. And so if you have writers in different cities to even the playing field, whatever, everyone's on Zoom rather than someone being in New York and someone being in Seattle and someone being in Los Angeles. But I certainly enjoy and benefit from the physical presence of other writers. It's hard enough to do it much easier and more fun when you're with other people.Michael Jamin:For me,Jonathan Collier:I have worked with writers who love being alone doing it. They have an entirely different experience and approach to it.Michael Jamin:Well, a lot of it's about the commute to work. You're probably central.Jonathan Collier:I'm fairly central, but I know people who actually, they don't want to be in a room. I've worked with wonderful writers who would much prefer to be alone and knock it out.Michael Jamin:Do you like going, working on set? Do you like being on set?Jonathan Collier:Yeah, I do. I mean, I think it depends. Every set has its own character politics, and it's not particularly fun being on set if you have a difficult lead or whatever, if there's something going on there or if there's tension between the stars or if there's, there's any number of ways you can have tension on the set. By and large, I've been very lucky. They've been good sets, and it's been fun. And also, it's the last step and whatever. One thing you realize on the set is when you spend significant time on the set, you realize how many people are really offering the show that you may have ridden,Michael Jamin:That you may have, I'm sorry, what?Jonathan Collier:Your name is on a script, but everyone on that set, hair and makeup, your whatever, your director, everyone has your camera operators. They're all helping create that show.Michael Jamin:Yeah.Jonathan Collier:Writers in their own way, and they're adding elements to it.Michael Jamin:Yeah. And I know I have to ask this because we have so many fans of The Simpsons, but what was that whole experience like for you? Because you were there in the early days?Jonathan Collier:Fairly early days. It was really, first of all, it was a huge break in my career that was good for me. I didn't have my first child until very late in my stay there. And that changed everything where suddenly, oh wait, sitting here with our comedy writers till 1130 at night might not be as energizing and fun when you have a baby to get homeMichael Jamin:ToJonathan Collier:That you want to see. So the hours were fairly brutal back then, but I still wouldn't trade it for anything.Michael Jamin:I can't imagine, though, that the hours were like that now, right?Jonathan Collier:No, they're fairly from what friends, were still there. And the hours are very sane now. And they're generally home for dinner.Michael Jamin:I mean, that's so interesting is that they've made a career that show's been on 30, what, 35 years or something?Jonathan Collier:Oh, yeah. And they can still turn out some terrific episodes,Michael Jamin:But it's a career. Your career, okay. You might as well be working at Exxon. That's your career. You get a gold watch and then that's you're done.Jonathan Collier:When I left, it was after season eight, and I thought they were trying to get me to go to King of the Hill, and I had whatever, I had the chance to stay at Simpson's. And I thought, well, there's no way it goes past season 10Michael Jamin:Or any show goes past season 10.Jonathan Collier:It just doesn't happen. And so I left. I thought I kind of felt badly leaving, but I thought, what much better do you want to show with some life in it?Michael Jamin:Yeah. But then again, it's also these people that's, they have job security, which is unheard of in Hollywood.Jonathan Collier:It is absolutely unheard of. And no, actually, that's one of the great gigs to have right now.Michael Jamin:Yeah, yeah. For sure. For sure. I know you got to go. We talked about this earlier, but I want to thank you in person as we want to hang up and then briefly thank you, and then I'll let you leave.Jonathan Collier:Oh, thank you for having me. This was really fun.Michael Jamin:This is, honestly, it was so interesting catching up and just hearing your perspective on all this. And yeah, you're going to be our, if the show ever goes, you're our first hire to make a procedural. I don't know how to make, I don't know how to do any of this. Oh, thank you. Yeah.Jonathan Collier:Are we on air now or are we recordingMichael Jamin:Still? Not yet. I'll sign off and I'll stop recording. Okay. Okay, everyone, thank you so much. That was John Collier. Great guy. Okay,Jonathan Collier:Everyone. He promised me a job on air. You heard it.Michael Jamin:I did say that. Yeah, but there's always got to go. That's a bigger, so it's an empty promise. So, all right, everyone, thank you so much. Go. Yeah. A paper orchestra dropped this week, my new collection of True stories@michaeljamin.com. Go check it out. Alright, everyone, thanks so much. Until next week. Keep writing.Wow. I did it again. Another fantastic episode of, what the Hell is Michael Jamin talking about? How do I do it week after week? Well, I don't do it with advertiser supported money. I tell you how I do it. I do it with my book. If you'd like to support this show, if you'd like to support me, go check out my new book, A Paper Orchestra. It asks the question, what if it's the smallest, almost forgotten moments that are the ones that shape us most? Laura Sanoma says, good storytelling also leads us to ourselves, our memories, our beliefs, personal and powerful. I loved The Journey, and Max Munic, who was on my show says, as the father of daughters, I found Michael's understanding of parenting and the human condition to be spot on. This book is a fantastic read. Go check it out for yourself. Go to michael jamin.com/book. Thank you all and stay tuned. More. Great stuff coming next week.

Steve speaks with awards analyst and Deadline Hollywood film critic Pete Hammond about the current crop of 2023 awards contenders, including "Killers of the Flower Moon," Oppenheimer," "Maestro," "American Fiction" and many more.

Welcome to a special Halloween 2023 edition of Pop Culture Weekly with Kyle McMahon! Listen in as your host Kyle McMahon, aka Spooky Boy, chats with Valerie Complex from Deadline Hollywood about the world of horror movies. They share their all-time favorites, recent releases, and the divisive films that still have us debating. From The Exorcist and Halloween to the Ring 2 and Midsommar, their conversation explores the intricacies of the horror genre, highlighting the elements that make a great horror film. Valerie & Kyle also discuss the underrepresentation in Hollywood that has found a home in horror. They celebrate the genre's recent inclusivity and the triumphs of filmmakers like Jordan Peele, Yatu Jusu, and Nia D'Costa. As they navigate the nuances of the genre, they also touch on the power of horror at the box office, exploring how it has become a renaissance within the film industry and its consistent success. Then the conversation turns to the music industry's embrace of spooky culture, as LVCRFT's MNDR (Amanda Warner) returns to discuss LVCRFT's new album V. They explore the impact of horror-inspired music, discussing their huge and continually growing successes and the inspiration behind their latest album V. We round off our chat with a fun exploration of the spooky season celebrations and anticipation for upcoming Halloween events. From major labels signing artists with spooky brands to the competition for the biggest spooky hit, they leave no tombstone unturned. Join us for this thrilling conversation that's sure to send chills down your spine! Listen to V by LVCRFT here!Go in depth with Deadline's Valerie Complex here!Get the very latest, 24/7 breaking news from Deadline.comKyle McMahon's Death, Grief & Other Sh*t We Don't Discuss is now streaming: https://www.deathandgrief.show/Chapter-One-The-Diagnosis-AKA-WTF/---------------Get all the Pop Culture Weekly podcast info you could want including extra content, uncut interviews, photos, videos & transcripts at: https://podcast.popcultureweekly.comWatch celebrity interviews at: https://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahon/videosor Kyle McMahon YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonRead the latest at http://www.PopCultureWeekly.comFollow Kyle on:Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kmacmusicFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahonInstagram: http://www.instagram.com/kmacmusicYouTube: http://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonWebsite: http://www.kylemcmahon.mePop Culture Weekly twitter: http://www.twitter.com/popculturepodca

On this week's episode, Writer/Executive Producer Alex Berger (Blindspot, Glen Martin D.D.S, Quantum Leap, and many many more) talks about his writing career, thoughts on breaking into the industry as well as his experiences taking a "Showrunners Course" through the studios.STORY NOTESAlex Berger on IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1584238/Alex Berger on Twitter: https://twitter.com/alexbergerla?lang=enFree Writing Webinar - https://michaeljamin.com/op/webinar-registration/Michael's Online Screenwriting Course - https://michaeljamin.com/courseFree Screenwriting Lesson - https://michaeljamin.com/freeJoin My Watchlist - https://michaeljamin.com/watchlistAUTOGENERATED TRANSCRIPTAlex Berger:They said, when you're interviewing a director, ask if you're the showrunner and you're interviewing somebody who's coming in to do an episode of your show, ask the director, do you cook? And if so, are you a person who uses a recipe or do you like to improvise? And there's no right answer to that, right? But if you cook and you're the person who is going to measure out the exact number of grams of flour and the exact number of grams of sugar, that's kind of how you're going to approach directing. If you're going to come in with a shot list, you're going to be going to stay on time. You're going to make sure that you move the set along. And if you're the person who likes to kind throw a little salt to throw a little sugar, you might be a little more improvisational on say you might be a little more, more. There's little things like that that you're going to how to dig in on this with those. NowMichael Jamin:You're listening to Screenwriters Need to Hear This with Michael Jamin.Hey everyone. Welcome back to Screenwriters. Need to hear this. Michael Jamin here. I have another wonderful guest today and this guest, we're going to talk about drama writing because he works primarily in drama and his story is fascinating how he broke in. And we're going to get to please welcome Mr. Alex Berger and he's worked on Alex. Let me introduce people to some of your amazing credits here and you can fill in in, I'm just going to go for some of the highlights. Well, I know you did Kil, you co-created Glen Martin d d s, which is the show. My partner ran Covert Affairs, the Assets Franklin and Bash the Mentalist Blind Spot. And currently you are a writer on Quantum Leap, so you got a lot of drama. Burger. Welcome, welcome to the podcast.Alex Berger:Thank you so much for having me. It's, it's good to be here. I've been enjoying listening to it.Michael Jamin:Oh man, I'm so happy you're doing this. Let's talk. Let's start from the beginning because I think it was so interesting about your background. So many people say, how do I get a showrunner attached to sell my show? And you kind of sold your show, your show, Glen Martin, d d s. You were pretty new to the scene and then you got a show on the air without much experience. So how did that happen?Alex Berger:Yeah, I'd been out here for probably five or six years and I'd had a couple of staff jobs. I'd had a job doing a sort of comedy variety show before that. That was a very sort of small potatoes thing. But that came about because Steve Cohen Cohen, who I know you've talked about before, was a friend of mine and had mentioned this idea that Michael Eisner had for a long time about a family who traveled the country in an rv and they had writers attached for a long time. Tim and Eric of Tim and Eric Show were attached to write the thing.Michael Jamin:I didn't know any of this.Alex Berger:They got a 60 episode order on their other show, and so they had to back out. And so Steve would come in and pitch a take. So I came in and I pitched a take, and Michael Eisner, who had just left basically running Hollywood, he was running, Disney had just started a company, and he had just had larynx surgery, so he couldn't talk. So every time I pitched something, he had to write his response on a computer, which was fun, but a little challenging.Michael Jamin:But what was the idea, how much, when you pitched your take, what did they give you?Alex Berger:He had said Family lives in an rv. Basically it travels the country and animation. And he had more than that. I mean, it is been almost 20 years, so I've forgotten. But he definitely had a real idea. He'd had this idea for 30 or 40 years that he'd wanted to do over the years at Disney and he wasn't able to do it. So he had a pretty formed idea of what he wanted the show to be. ButMichael Jamin:Was it dentist you came up with that throughAlex Berger:Development? I mean, that was sort of like Steve and I, Steve became sort of a, and it was almost like an incubator instead of a typical situation in which I would come in and pitch a show, he kind of brainstormed with me and created the ideas with me, and we kind of toyed with a couple of different versions of it and came up with the idea of him being, why is he on the road and what's he driving in? And came up with the idea of a dentist that was in his mobile dentistry unit and sort of built some of the characters around that. And it kind of kept getting added to,Michael Jamin:Because all that stuff became comedy gold throughout the seasons. We were like, what kind of idiot has a dental car? Who does he think, what kind of clients? How does that work? And it all became fodder for the show,Alex Berger:For the circus at one point. And it was doing dental work on animals, if I remember correctly. But it was definitely, I didn't think I'd seen that before. So that was kind of one of the things that was fun to explore.Michael Jamin:And so you came up with all the, well, at least the dynamics for the characters, because what I remember, we watched the, I dunno if it was a pilot or presentation that you saw, but yeah, the characters you invented were funny. You had the dumb kid, he had the daughter and she had an assistant, which we hadn't seen that before.Alex Berger:It was definitely even more than other experiences I've had in development, very much a team effort. And then we had sort of come up with a script, and then I think you had Eric Fogle on the show before, and Eric came on and was also sort of added his vision both in terms of look and feel and tone and story, and was digging in with us. And then Michael on his own, paid for an eight minute pilot presentation. So they made an eight minute stop motion, basically the first act of the show. And he took it downtown and took it everywhere. And we ended up setting it up at Nick at night with this 20 episode order. And I think that's when you guys sort of made the picture, right?Michael Jamin:So you started, I'm curious. It's funny how I never even asked you about this. So at that point you had to meet showrunners for a show you created, which we're going to talk about a second. Did you meet a lot of showrunners?Alex Berger:I met none of the showrunners. I met you guys after you'd been hired.Michael Jamin:Oh, really? I wonder how many they had. SoAlex Berger:The tote system was, they wanted to sort of make that decision. And so they met with showrunners and had decided they were very much immediately captivated by you guys and were really excited about, and I don't think it was a pretty quick decision. And then they had me come to meet you guys.Michael Jamin:Now the thing is, I imagine you were very easy to work with and to your great credit, I always felt like you just turned over the keys and it was like, okay, here you go. And it was never an ego thing if you, but was it difficult though for you?Alex Berger:I mean, I can give you the answer that I was thinking at the time, and I can give you the answer that I have in retrospect. I think at the time I felt like, I don't know. It's a good question. Let me give you the answer in retrospect first, which is in retrospect, I know that I was inexperienced to know, especially about comedy writing a lot and certainly about running a show. I think at the time I was very happy for you guys to come in and run it. And exactly as you said, take the keys. I think that I felt intimidated because it was a room full of really seasoned comedy writers. I knew I was one of the least experienced writers on the show, and yet my name was on the show. So it was a kind of a weird game. It's not like a typical situation in which a more experienced writer comes in, but they've never run a show.So they pair them with a show runner and then they're really a triumvirate or something. I definitely felt like experience wise and sort of comedy chops wise, I was with folks who'd broken 2, 3, 400 episodes of cool sitcoms that I really admired. So I felt like I wanted to contribute from a character and comedy perspective as much as I could, but I also felt like I was learning on the fly that I had my name on. So it was definitely tricky to sort of figure that out. But you guys were great about never feeling like you were stepping on toes, and you always would consult with me, especially at the beginning, but it was very clear that it was your show, but it was also that you wanted me to sort be on board with what we were doing.Michael Jamin:And I mean, it was a fun room. I mean, maybe I shouldn't speak for you. I thought it was a fun room. Yeah,Alex Berger:Yeah, it was great. I mean, it was like I'd never been in a sitcom room before. I mean, I've been in a couple of drama rooms as an assistant and a writer, and those rooms are more buttoned up and a little more like, let's come in at 10 and start talking about the story at 10 15. And there's definitely bits and sort of digressions, but a comedy room has a certain energy that you can't replicate. And it was really fun to be in that room. And I've been in rooms that are a little bit like that since, but never anything that was, I laughed quite so much, just had it.Michael Jamin:I was going to ask you about that, right? I haven't worked in any, we've done dark comedy, but never drama. And so I'm curious, you've done a lot of drama. So are the rooms, are they really what you're saying? Are they buttoned up? Are they sur because it's still a creative shop?Alex Berger:It's fun. I would say this is based on a very small sample size of my two years in Glen Martin. And then just listening to comedy writers talk, I think comedy writers find the genius through procrastination. I think that it takes the tangent sometimes to get you to the gold. And I know you guys, especially more than other comedy writers I've known, were very focused on story structure. I know from your time with Greg Daniels and Seaver had bought a book at the mall,And it was very important to you that the story felt like it had load-bearing walls, but it did feel like more free flowing and there were room bits and there was a whole sitcom inside that room of three characters, both people in the room and people we were looking out the window at. So that's definitely different than other shows I've been on, other shows I've been on, it's a little more like, all right, let's get to work. And especially these days with room hours have gotten shorter and so on less. And I've been in Zoom rooms for the last couple of years, so it's even less of a roomMichael Jamin:Basic. Oh, so gotten, haven't gotten, your last rooms haven't been in person either. YouAlex Berger:Haven't? Yeah, I've been in three Zoom rooms since the pandemic.Michael Jamin:It's funny you mentioned because comedy rooms have room bits and our offices were on Beverly Hills and Big glamorous street in Beverly Hills. We would look out the window, and you're right, we would create stories when we weren't making stories for the tv, we were making stories for the regular characters that we would see outside our windows.Alex Berger:Yeah, I mean truly. I know you had Brian and Steve and a couple of other people from the show on. I have not laughed that hard in a room.It was a blast. And I also think there's value to it creatively. It's not wasted time. I think it's just a different way of getting to the process. I remember hearing once of, I can't remember which one, it was a Simpsons writer who would be on draft. He had two weeks to write his draft, and he would past around the fox lot for 12 days and then write the draft in the last two days. And someone asked him, why don't you just write the draft for the first two days and then be done? And he said, because I need those 12 days of pacing to get me to the last two days. And I think copywriter are more prone to that kind of way of thinking. I think.Michael Jamin:See, see, I don't remember that way always. I always get nervous when that story's not broken. I always want to crack the whip seavers more. Like that's, but to me, I was always,Alex Berger:When you were in the room, it was more like, let's stay on story. And when see, it was a little more. And then when you guys were both out of the room, it was even more free flowing, which is not to say that all of the eps weren't trying to keep us on story, but its like it's was a silly show about silly characters and absurd, every premise of every episode had a massive degree of absurdity to it. And so you wouldn't be too serious in a room like that, or you wouldn't be ready to make that kind of show. I mean, at least that was my take on it.Michael Jamin:I would describe that as a writer's show. It was always about what made us laugh and not the 15 year old kids who shouldn't be watching or the 10 year old kids. I knowAlex Berger:It was either Brian or Steve who said it was a show with a demographic of nobody.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Alex Berger:The demographic of the 15 people in that room for sure. We all really enjoyed watch them. They're all really funny. They'reMichael Jamin:Funny.Alex Berger:It was on the wrong network.Michael Jamin:Oh, for sure. Steve and I were horsing around procrastinating on some work we were doing, and for some reason we stumbled on, maybe it was some guy's YouTube channel where he was talking about Glen Martin and this guy nailed it. It was like he was in the room. I don't know how he knew every, it seemed like he knew where we messed up. He knew where we got it. Right. I was justAlex Berger:Amazed. I saw that video and I was like, I can't believe somebody watched the show. I thought that literally, I could not imagine that this guy was that deep into the show.Michael Jamin:Oh no. I get a lot of comments on social media like, oh my God, you ruined my childhood. Really? Like you gave me nightmares.Alex Berger:My wife's cousin is like 25 or 26, and he's dating a girl. And on the second date, he asked her what your favorite shows are. And the second show she said was Glen Martin, d d s. And when he said, oh, my wife's cousin wrote that show, she was instantly smid with him. She gave him so much gr.Michael Jamin:Oh, that's so funny. I mean, it was a wild show, man. Too bad. That was a shame. We were going to spin it off too. We all, oh yeah,Alex Berger:Stone spin off right behind. OhMichael Jamin:Yeah, there you go.Alex Berger:The Drake Stone. Yeah,Michael Jamin:All my dolls. Yeah. As soon as they went under, they go here. Here take some. You must have some dolls, right? They give you some dolls. I haveAlex Berger:Alen Martin Puppet and an Alex Burger puppet, and my kids constantly want to play with them and I won't let them.Michael Jamin:Who were you in the show? I don't remember what kind.Alex Berger:I think I was a Greek God carrying somebody at some point in some fantasy sequence and they would reuse the puppets. That was what was so funny. So I think that was one thing, and then they reused me as another thing.Michael Jamin:And did you ever get out to Toronto to see theAlex Berger:No. Did you go upMichael Jamin:There? Oh yeah. We went once and Fogel and I had a very romantic dinner together on top of the Toronto Space Needle or whatever they call that. I sawAlex Berger:Them shooting the pilot presentation, which they shy in New York. It was incredibly cool, but just I've always found set to be tedious in general, but I can't imagine how tedious it must be to do stop motion.Michael Jamin:Do you go, oh, I think they wanted to poke their eyes out, but do you go on set a lot for dramas? Yeah. Is it just your episode or what?Alex Berger:Depends on the show. I did this show called Blind Spot for five years, and basically we would have a writer on set for every episode and we would try to make it your episode, but oftentimes it was the writer who wrote the episode had a baby and is on maternity leave or they can't go to New York at this time or if they went to New York and they wouldn't be back in LA for the breaking of their next episode. So we tried to shuffle it around a little bit and it's trickier when it's out of town. You've got to make people have life that they've got to plan around. But you're going for three and a half weeks to New York.Michael Jamin:Are most of your show shot out of town?Alex Berger:It's been mixed Quantum Leap, which is the show I'm on now is Shot Year on the Universe a lot. Blind Spot was New York Covert Affairs, which I went to a lot of episodes for, was in Toronto, which was a lot of fun. And then I've had a couple Franklin, imagine the Mentalists were LA and it's been sort of a mix.Michael Jamin:How many day shoots are most of your shows? Dramas?Alex Berger:It depends on the budget of the show. Blind Spots started as nine and then was eight and a half and some tandem days and by the end was eight. They keep pulling money budget every year. Quantum Leap I think is eight.Michael Jamin:Interesting. And then what do you, as a writer on set for comedy when on set, it's like, I want to make sure they're playing the comedy right, making jokes, but what are you looking for that the director isn't covering?Alex Berger:Well, first of all, it's a lot of times if you have a great director, it's a team effort. So the director is obviously in charge of the set, but if you have a director who's collaborative, they're asking you, do you feel like that works? Or which take do you feel like was better? It's blocking work for you and your main job is just to make sure that you're the protector of the script and a protector of the story. And it's not like, excuse me, you didn't say the word there. Although there a Sorkin set, they will keep you word perfect, but it's more like, actually, I know you want to change that line. It doesn't feel comfortable in your mouth, but it's really important that you say this. It's going to set something up that we're doing in three episodes, or Hey, just so you know, when you're saying this to this character, you're actually lying and you're going to be revealed to be.It's a lot of making sure that everybody knows the episode up to the episodes we're leading to. And then, yeah, there's still a lot of shows I've worked on have a fair amount of comedy. So you're still making sure jokes, land and actors, this doesn't feel comfortable in my mouth. Do you mind if I say it like this? Or if you work with an actor who wants to have a little bit and wants to assert a line, sometimes I need to be the one to say, okay, well then that means that this person needs to say this line after to keep a joke going.Michael Jamin:Right? Right. It's interesting, and especially when scenes are shot out of order, it is easy for actors to lose track of where they are in the story. So that is theAlex Berger:Part I really like is Prep, because I've worked on a lot of big shows, big action shows and into you fly to New York with your script in hand and you're so excited. And then the first thing that the line producer tells you every single time is, we're $400,000 over budget. Before you even say hello. The fun part to me is the puzzle of how do you protect the story with the constraints of we can't shoot this in nine days. I've walked into episodes that were supposed to be seven day shoots, and the board came out and it was 10 days. And so you've got to figure out, okay, we can move this back into the house so we can take this care, we can do this here. And actually the shootout that happens after the bank robbery, maybe that happens off screen, stuff like that.Michael Jamin:So are you doing a lot of rewriting on set then?Alex Berger:It's usually in prep.Michael Jamin:Okay. In prep,Alex Berger:By the time you're on set in a drama, you're pretty close to set to go unless something changes or an actor nowadays, if an actor gets covid, then all of a sudden you're taking that actor out of the scene and rewriting the scenes and why are they, that kind of thing.Michael Jamin:And then are your showrunners ever on any of these shows ever on set? Or are they always sending proxies? Yeah, itAlex Berger:Depends. It depends on the show. So typically on the shows that I've been on, the showrunner, the showrunner was there for the pilot. They're usually going to go for 1 0 2 just to, it's been four months and they want to reestablish a tone and kind of be a leader, and then they'll try to pop in and out a bunch during the year so that it's not like they're just coming when there's a problem. And then when the show's in la, the showrunner will usually try to pop by after set, especially if before the Zoom Room thing, the writer's room would wrap at seven, the production's still going, so they usually come for the last couple scenes, something like that.Michael Jamin:How many writers are there usually on these hour shows?Alex Berger:I mean, I'm curious to hear what your answer is for comedy too, because it's really shrinking in the beginning. I mean, Glen Martin was what, 10, 12, something like that, including if you're Partners is too, and then it's gotten down to 10 and then eight. And then I think Quantum Leap were about 10, which is a big staff, but the Netflix show I just worked on was six. The show, the Assets that I did, which was a limited series was five. And this is a lot of big issues of the strike is these rooms are getting too small. What are the root comedy rooms like now? Because I know there's been, it's like sometimes it's like 25 people in a roomMichael Jamin:Well, on animation, but I think those days are kind of overAlex Berger:Or big network sitcoms aren't there.Michael Jamin:I don't think they're that big. I don't think there aren't big network sitcoms anymore, but I don't think, I mean it was never,Alex Berger:What was the Tacoma room?Michael Jamin:Oh, it's probably eight or so. But that's a small cable show,Alex Berger:But they're all small. I think they're all like that now. Even the network comedies, unless you're Abbott, they're all 13 or eight orMichael Jamin:Yeah, I think even just shoot me back in. This was in the day, I want to say maybe 10 or 12 times. Oh really? That's it. Yeah. Yeah, Roseanne. Roseanne was famously Big. Fred had a big staff, but that was Roseanne. It was a giant show.Alex Berger:And The Simpsons, I know there's these shows that have the two, I mean the drama rooms, there's a bunch of writers who having a big staff and then they like to split the room in two and break two episodes at the same time. A lot of showrunners actually want a small staff and hate having too many voices. I like a big room. I like eight to 10 people because you're always in a drama room, especially you've always got one writer on set, two writers on draft sometimes set, so there's three or four people gone every single day. So your room thins out real fast, and I think you need at least five people to break a story.Michael Jamin:Oh yeah. Now the thing is, you're a funny guy. You have a good sense of humor. You started in comedy, but do you miss at all comedy or do you feel I'm a fish in water with drama?Alex Berger:Yeah, I was in over my head in comedy, I be the guy who can do a little bit of comedy on a drama staff than that guy in a comedy room who's mostly focused on story. I mean, I felt like, obviously I wrote Pilot and I felt like I had a voice on that show, but it was clear to me that this was not the type of show that I was going to be thriving at. I really enjoyed it, but it was like just comedy wasn't my thing. I love writing on a Funny One Hour, Franklin and Bash, which was a legal show, was essentially a comedy that had the stakes of a drama, but the tone of a comedy. And I love because I like being able to go to the serious scene to have the emotional he, to not have to have a joke at the end of every scene. And then I've written some pilots and stuff that have a fair amount of comedy, but I always want, and I've written half hour dramas. It's just I want the pressure of three jokes a page and beating a joke and beating a joke and beating a joke. It just wasn't my pace.Michael Jamin:Well, I got to say, I think it was probably the last script you wrote was you and Pava teamed up to write a Christmas episode. Oh yeah. And you guys crushed it. I remember coming back, you guys turned it in, whatever you guys did together, were like, you guys, you're going to do this together. Probably because PA wanted to write a musical. I was like, Papa, I'm not writing a musical. And he probably did, but you guys turned in a great draft. And I was like, if that show had gone, I'd be like, I remember thinking, well, these guys are going to be stuck in a room together for a long time. Because yeah,Alex Berger:That was a lot of fun. That was a lot of fun. And it's funny, I want to show my kids the show. They're really young and there's not a lot of episodes that are appropriate for little, that one's pretty tame. That one's pretty tame. We did a rom-com parody sort, the Wedding planner parody, and then we did a, what was it? I forget the other ones. It was a lot of fun.Michael Jamin:Oh yeah. What is nutty stuff? So now the dramas, I'm sorry. When you go off to write your own pilots, when you're developing your own, is there a unifying theme tone that you like to pitch? Yeah,Alex Berger:I would say two things. One is fun. I don't want to write some things super dark. I don't want to write. I like watching shows like that. I watch Last Of Us and The Leftovers and a lot of shows that are real bleak and I really enjoy them. But when I'm living in the world for 12 hours a day, for eight years, I want it to be fun. I want to have a certain amount of lightness to it and sort of levity to it, which is not to say it has to be a comedy, it can still be a drama. There just needs to be something fun about it. And even when I'm writing on a show like Quantum Leap, we've had episodes that are really serious, but the ones that I do, I try to make them, I did an airplane hijacking episode, but I tried to make it fun and sort of like an eighties action movie. And then the other thing I would say is sort of optimism. I try to write something that makes you think that the world is going to be a better place. I've written a lot of political shows and politics is pretty dark these days. One, my take is sort of, but if we do this, we can all get through it. None of those have gotten on the air. So maybe that says something about what people feel about optimism these days.Michael Jamin:Well, it's also a numbers game, but how do you feel, let's say you were given the keys to run your show, got on the air somewhere, eight episodes on the air. How do you feel? Feel about that? Yeah, let's do it. I'm ready. Or like, oh my God, what did I get?Alex Berger:Both. I mean, I did the Writer's Guild showrunner training program a couple of years ago, which is phenomenal. WhatMichael Jamin:Was that? Tell me all aboutAlex Berger:That. It was great. But so essentially it's a six week every Saturday, all day, every Saturday college course on how to run a show. And it's run by Jeff Melvoin, who's a really seasoned showrunner, and Carol Kirschner, who's been working in the business forever. And then they bring in John Wells is usually a big part of the program and they bring in really heavy hitter showrunners all the way down to people who were in the program last year and then got a show on the year. And they're like, bill and Ted when they come back at the time Machine and Bill and Ted's, and they're like, you're in for a crazy journey. And so it's really cool to hear from all of those people and they focus one day is on writing, one day is on post one day on production. And what I learned from that was having been on staffs for something like 250 episodes of tv, I've learned basically all the things you can do in terms of book learning to run a show.But the last 20%, you can't learn until you're there. Sort of like if you read a hundred books about swimming, you kind of know how to swim, but if you dropped out of a helicopter ocean, you're going to have to figure it out and you're going to be drowning while you're doing it. And literally, I don't know if this was your experience when you guys had it, but every other show I've talked to says nothing fully prepares you for it. So I have a couple shows in development right now, and if you told me that they were to go, I think the first feeling would be utter terror and like, okay, let's do it. Let's go. This is the time to do it. And I've run a lot of writers' rooms and stuff like that, but I've never actually had the keys to the castle, soMichael Jamin:Interesting. Right. Okay, so you've run the room, you've been breaking stories, you're in charge of that. Now time in terms of tell me about the short run is problem You apply, how do you get in?Alex Berger:You have to be recommended by somebody and applied and they want someone, they're trying to find people who are the next shows up. And so people in the program have a pilot that's already been shot and that's already ordered a series, but they don't know how to run a show. You people who've worked in features or worked in writing novels who are transitioning into television. So all the production stuff to them is totally new. And then you have lot of people like me who sort came up as staff writer, story editor and just worked their way up the ranks who've been around for a while, who just haven't taken that next step, who want to know more about what it's like to run a show. I loved it. First of all, it was like being in college, man, it was just absorbing material and taking notes at a frantic pace and reading that they recommended. But it was just so interesting to hear. It's like this, your podcast is so great because you could hear people speak, but these are people who are specifically targeted at the demographic of you're a co eep and you're about to run a show. Here's what you need to know.Michael Jamin:And so you don't pay for this, right? Or youAlex Berger:Do, the guild pays for it and the studios pay for it. It's a phenomenal program.Michael Jamin:And then it's so interesting. And then, alright, so then how big of a cohort, how big of a group isAlex Berger:It? 30. And it's a bummer because these days it's been on Zoom and so you don't really get to the year. I did it in 2017 or 2018. And so I got to know those folks and they were sort of, yeah, again, my cohort and three quarters of them are running shows and everybody else's EPS or eps, running rooms. It's a very fun dynamic to have a group.Michael Jamin:What are they teaching you? I'm so curious as what they teach you. I bet there's stuff I don't know. And we've done three shows. What are they teaching you about post that you were surprised?Alex Berger:The overwhelming, the first thing they tell you when you walk in the door is quality scripts on time. The bug that they gave me, the showrunner program, quality scripts on time, and that was basically the theme of it was being efficient, being and knowing when to cut your losses and say move on. And knowing when to say this isn't good enough. And so for posts, it's like, are you the type of person who wants to be in post for 10 hours a day? That's fine, but then you need to have somebody who's going to be overrunning the room, or do you want the writer who produced the episode to do the first and the second cut? And then you do the last cut and they bring in editors and they talk, editors tell you about what they want to hear. A lot of things that I'd been in post a lot before I was in that room and then editors were telling me things that I was doing that annoyed the crap out of them. And I was like, oh, little thing like what? Snapping, when you say cut there,Michael Jamin:Oh,Alex Berger:That annoys.Michael Jamin:That annoys them. It's like a dogAlex Berger:Thing. Yeah, exactly. And a lot of editors, some editors want line notes. Some editors want you to say, this scene doesn't feel funny enough, I'm not getting the comedy. And then they'll say, okay, let me take another swing at it. And you need to feel like, is this the type of editor that wants to do it on their own or that type of showrunner that wants to do that. But broadly speaking, it's essentially a leadership training program. The nuts and bolts stuff with all stuff that I had seen up close being a lieutenant on a show, there are a lot of little tips that I picked up here and there and when I get a show, I will go back to my notebook and frantically look through it, but it's mostly about how do you lead, how do you manage, how do you fire people? How do you delegate? How do you tell people that they're not doing a good enough job but give 'em a second chance? Interesting. They bring a lot of directors in, stuff like that.Michael Jamin:What was the last thing youAlex Berger:Said? How to interview a director? How to interview director. A big director came in and talked to you. Here's some questions you should ask when you're interviewing. Here's a great one that they said. They said, when you're interviewing a director, ask if you're the showrunner and you're interviewing somebody who's coming in to do an episode of your show, ask the director, do you cook? And if so, are you a person who uses a recipe or do you like to improvise? And there's no right answers to that, right? But if you cook and you're the person who is going to measure out the exact number of grams of flour and the exact number of grams of sugar, that's kind of how you're going to approach directing. You're going to come in with a shot list, you're going to be going to stay on time, you're going to make sure that you move the set along. And if you're the person who likes to kind of throw a little salt to throw a little sugar, you might be a little more improvisational. I say you might be a little more, more. There's little things like that that are like how to dig in on this with those people.Michael Jamin:Now I'm learning. What else can you share with me thatAlex Berger:Might be helpful? I can get my notebook you,Michael Jamin:Hey, it's Michael Jamin. If you like my videos and you want me to email them to you for free, join my watch list. Every Friday I send out my top three videos. These are for writers, actors, creative types. You can unsubscribe whenever you want. I'm not going to spam you and it's absolutely free. Just go to michaeljamin.com/watchlist.I remember when we're running Glen Martin, which is the first show we ran a lot of this, and you probably weren't even aware of this, A lot of it was me. If I was at the board or whatever, it was me like, okay, I want to make sure I'm not losing the room. I want to make sure everyone, no one's losing focus. And I think part of that was make a decision even if it's a bad one because you can lose the room if you can't pull the trigger. You know what I'm saying? It's so frustrating. You guysAlex Berger:Did a good job with that. And then I think that decisiveness, I think is actually one of the most important qualities in the showrunner, but also willingness to admit you were wrong if you made a decision and moved on and then a day later you realize you were wrong. You have to and say, I made the wrong decision. And one of the things I've learned running that I've really tried to do when I'm running a room is if there's an idea floating around that I hate, but it's getting energy and it's getting excitement, I try not to step on it until it either burns out on its own or it's reached a critical mass and I'm like, look, I think this is not going to work, but let's talk it out because there's nothing worse as having come up on staffs. And this is one of the most valuable things when you've been a staff writer and a story editor as opposed to getting your own show as the first thing that happens to you is you know how demoralizing it is when everybody's super excited about something now it's not going to work. It's so demoralizing. Yes, A lot of times you think it's not going to work. You just sit there back and listen for 20 minutes and you're like, oh, actually, you know what? There is a version of this that'll work if I just add this one thing. It's an organism and you're leading an organism and it's very hard. You guys did a great, and you guys are a team, which is even harder because you've got to read each other's minds aboutThis works.Michael Jamin:You bring a good point. I remember one time, so when Glen Martin, I would go, I would direct the actors on Wednesdays or whatever and see would be running the room, and I remember coming back at the end of a long day directing, come back to the room and you guys had made a lot of progress on the script and everyone's excited. Everyone's excited about this idea and you guys pitched it to me. I wasn't getting it. I didn't get it. I was like, I didn't want to shit on it because I could tell everyone was so excited about it. And so I just kept on asking questions just to explain it to me so that I would get on board.Alex Berger:That's a really hard part is and because I've never been the actual showrunner, I've never been the one, I would be like, I'm sorry we're vetoing this. A lot of times what I would do, because I was a number two, was if I hated something, if I left the room and then I came back and I hated something, I'd be like, look, I'm not totally on board with this idea, but let's give it its day in short and let's pitch it to the showrunner. And I would try, when I would pitch it to the showrunner be to not give away which side I was on or to say, look, here's one side of the argument, here's the other side of the argument. But when it's ultimately up to you, it is hard because I always analogize it to in Family Feud when the first four people give their answer and then that last person has to give the final answer and they want to go against the rest of the family. It's a hard thing to do. You're wrong.Michael Jamin:Yeah,Alex Berger:I guess, I don't know. What was that experience like for you? Did you feel like it was like you had to balance? What was your favorite idea versus losing another 10 people's morale?Michael Jamin:It wasn't even about my favorite idea. It was more like I just want to make sure if sea's on board than I trust, I trust him. But it's also like I wish I can remember what the episode was. It just didn't make anyAlex Berger:Sense to me. No, I remember that a couple times. Every show I've ever been on has had that. Every show I've ever, the showrunners left the room, the room gets excited about, something comes back in and it's not what they want, it's just part of show running. The value of having a staff that's been together for a while is the longer the staff has been together, the more you can say, oh, secret and Michael are going to hate this. We shouldn't even this path. Versus early on, you're going down a million paths you don't know. But once you get to know the showrunner, you kind of get to know what they like and what they don't like.Michael Jamin:Yeah. There was another idea that we had in that, I don't remember what we were all on board, but Seaver wasn't on board. It was something crazy.Alex Berger:Oh, I think it was the radio episode and there was something about wires or no wires, and they weren't recording the music the whole time,Michael Jamin:Who wasn't recording music.Alex Berger:Glen went to, you got to cut this out of the podcast.Michael Jamin:No one's going to care. ButAlex Berger:It was like there were a lot of room bits that I think that's the problem with room bits is they take on a life of their own and then they're an inside joke. And if the runner comes in and there's a room bit in the script, it's an inside joke. It just doesn't work. You weren't there for the beginning of it, which is a good sign that it's not a good story because the audience wasn't there for it either. But I think it was Glen becomes a radio producer named Stacey Rappaport.Michael Jamin:Yes.Alex Berger:His wife was also named Stacey Rappaport. Yes. And I know he works for Stacey Rappaport. And anyway, the whole time it was the, you guys were doing the Brady Bunch, Johnny Bravo episode basically as aMichael Jamin:Yeah,Alex Berger:Remember the debate was like, were they actually recording by the way? I will say again, you can cut this out early, but it's not relevant at all. But I grew up watching the Brady Bunch for whatever reason, even though I'm 10 years younger than you guys. And that was number one reference that you guys talked about. So I did feel like at least I got those references.Michael Jamin:Oh, it's so funny. I remember that. I remember because I think I was the one who pitched the name Stacey Rappaport.Alex Berger:I remember because I had a friend named StaceyMichael Jamin:Rappaport. Oh really? That's so funny. It was just a man's name that the joke was that Glen was going to choose a new identity for himself and he chooses a woman's name.Alex Berger:What have you gone back and just watched full episodes of the show?Michael Jamin:No. And everyone, people want to know about. People ask me that a lot. I don't touch. I should. I love that show, but I don't touch anything that I've written. I just don't. It's over and I don't know why, but you doAlex Berger:Just not even about Glen Martin. That is an interesting thing about writers is whether they want to go back. I go back and watch stuff and I hate it because I'm like, but because Glen Martin was not really mine. It was such an organism of the room. I laugh when I go back and watch it except the one I wrote, which I don't like.Michael Jamin:Oh my God. We had some fun in that show. But okay, so when you take, I have so many questions for you. When you were young, when you were a kid, did you want to be a writer? I know TimeAlex Berger:Know was a profession. I loved television. I was a youngest kid. I was raised by the Cosby Show and the Brady Bunch and G I F. And my idea of a family was basically what those families were probably to go back, rethink the Cosby one. And then even in college, I interned at Saturday Night Live and late night with Conan O'Brien back when he was on, which were fantasy camp, especially the s and l one was truly a dream come true. And it still didn't occur to me that it was a profession that I could go do. I was go to law school and then a buddy of mine, we were in Jerry's Subs and Pizza, which is an East coast person you probably remember. And we were sitting there talking about what we're going to do and he's like, like I said, I'm going to go to LA and be a writer. And I said, how do you do that? And he said, someone writes this stuff, why couldn't it be us? And it just gave me this epiphany of like, oh yeah, everybody who's out there as a writer at some point wasn't a writer and just got out there and learned how to do it. And so we all went out together and we kind of got our start.Michael Jamin:Did your friend become a writer too?Alex Berger:Yeah, we all ended up creating a show together. So the earliest thing that we did was we were on the high school debate team together and we walked into National Lampoon, which at the time was doing low budget cable programming, and the head creative guy there just made fun of my resume the entire time and made fun of debate. And then by the end of it said, there's a show here. And so we came, pitched him a show called Master Debaters that was a debating society, and we ended up getting to make, it was like our film school. I knew nothing about how to make a TV show and that one, I was throwing the keys to the castle. I was casting it, writing it, producing it. I was in it, posting it with every crisis. But it was so low stakes because the budgets were tiny and they were in syndicated cable stations and college campuses. No one would watch me. So I got to learn by doing and I loved it. It was great.Michael Jamin:Interesting. And then, all right, so then you became a writer and then you just kept on writing. I guess mean it's not an easy path, but you've made a really pretty good name for yourself over the years.Alex Berger:Yeah, I mean, thank you. It was a winding path when I came out, I thought for a minute I might want to be a development executive. I read a book by this guy, Brandon Tartikoff, who used to run N B C called The Last Great. It was like basically made it out to be, you're sitting in your room and the smartest people in the world come and tell you what TV show ideas they have, and then you pick the eight of them and pick the order in America Shears. And so I worked in development for a minute and I was not what it was like at all, and I was miserable and I was jealous of all the writers who were coming in. So I said, that's the job I want. And so I quit. WhatMichael Jamin:Was it I didn't know you worked at VO for? I wasAlex Berger:Assistant. I was an assistant in development at N B C.Michael Jamin:What was it like then?Alex Berger:It's very busy and not as creative as I wanted to be. I actually really enjoyed the conversations I had with the executives when it wasn't time to do my job and it was just time to talk about tv. But the actual job I was doing, I was terrible at, I mean, it was a lot of keeping track of who was calling, and I'm an absentminded first, butMichael Jamin:That you're an assistant. I mean, surelyAlex Berger:You, but it's a long time before your branded Tartikoff, right? Almost everybody else under branded Tartikoff has a lot of business responsibilities to do. And it wasn't, that's not how my brain works. My brain needs more free time. I think if I worked at a place that was smaller that was incubating three or four shows, I probably would've enjoyed it more. But we had 50 comedies and 50 dramas in development, and I was trying to get of all of them and who was calling and the letterhead changing and all this stuff. And it was just like I was not good at it. I mean, my boss even said to me one day, he said, you're a very smart guy. Why are you not very good at this? And we had a nice conversation about that. But the main thing was the writers that came in that I was, can I get you a coffee?Can I get you a tea? Can I get you a Coke? I was so jealous of them. Door would close to the pitch, and I just wanted to be in there listening to. And so I realized I should follow that. And so I didn't last that long. I left like eight months and I quit. I at the time had been, I think had a couple of writing jobs, like smaller writing jobs lined up that show Master Debaters had been optioned of VH one. So we were writing a pilot for VH one and a couple of their small writing jobs. So I went to go do those and then got back in the beginning of the line as an assistant, I was a writer's assistant on a show, and then I was an assistant to a showrunner and then I stop.Michael Jamin:So it's a brave move for you to leave that behind in.Alex Berger:It was definitely, I mean, I had some stuff lined up, but it was definitely a risk, but I just knew it wasn't the right, I was in the wrong place. But it's interesting, it was an incredible learning experience. I knew how development work from the inside, and I still think I know more about what's actually going on at the network than a lot of my peers because I was on the other side. And then the folks I met who are the other assistants to the other executives are now all executive vice presidents of networks or presidents of networks or I met my agent because he was an assistant to an agent that used to call, and then he signed me while he was still a coordinator. One of the people on that hall now became the president of Fox, another one who I've dealt with a lot became the president of N B C. I met a ton of great folks through that who have become friends and allies over the years, and I sold Joe to,Michael Jamin:But okay, so it's probably changed lot since you were in assistant that was probably 20 somethingAlex Berger:Years ago, 19 yearsMichael Jamin:Ago. So what is it like then that we don't understand?Alex Berger:I think the main thing that I didn't understand, and this has for sure changed and certainly in cable and streaming is just a volume. They are not spending as much time thinking about your script as you are by definition. But in development, there are literally 40 to 50 scripts at least back then on both on comedy and trauma. And so my boss, who was in charge of both has a hundred scripts to keep track of. So he was very smart and could make a judgment very quickly about a script, but he would read it once, sometimes read it again, and then he was making a judgment about whether it was a show. So as a writer now I know they're reading fast, they're reading it at three 30 in the morning, or they're reading it on the plane, I've got to grab attention fast, I've got to hook you in. I cannot lean, oh, the great twist, wait till the Great Twist. It's on page 55. And when I'm pitching, it's the same thing my boss said to me, I hear 300 pitches a year. I typically hear about five ideas I haven't heard before. The other 95 I've heard before. It's about take, it's about the writer, it's about their passion. And so when I go and pitch an idea, the substance of the idea is the second most important thing. And my connection to it and why it has to be me is the first most important.Michael Jamin:And that's the hard part. I feel that's the hard part because usually you think of an idea, you can't really, I don't know, you're a hundred percent right. They always, they want to know why are you the only one in the world who can write this idea truthfully? It's like a lot of times you're not a lot of times like, well, this is the characters we created. It's a funny situation, but there's probably a lot of people who could write this idea.Alex Berger:I think that what I have seen, and I've never done this, but I know folks who have is, I knew a writer once who his sort of why me paragraph was, I just run a show for a bunch of years. I came off of running that show and I didn't know what I wanted to do next and I had an identity crisis. And so it got to the idea of identity crises and here's a spy show, an action spy show, but at the center of it as a character going through an identity crisis. So it's notMichael Jamin:GrewAlex Berger:Up and my dad was a spy, and therefore sometimes it's emotional or sometimes I had this interaction with a guy on the subway and I couldn't stop thinking about it. And it led me to this show. And sometimes by the way, you retrofitted sometimes you already come up to the show and then you've got to come up with that first paragraph that's retrofitted and sometimes often it feels organic even though it was come up with thatMichael Jamin:Word. That's so interesting because I'm glad you said that to me. It almost sounds, it gives me some soce knowing that, because a lot of times we'll say, okay, this is why we're the only ones, and this is from seabird's idea home life or my home life, and then it doesn't sell. And you're like, well, I don't know what to do now. But you're actually broadening it out into a thematically, it's more personal to you. It's not necessarily a dynamic. It's more like,Alex Berger:Here's how I think about it. I think that, and I could be wrong, and by the way, it's different in a comedy because you've got to make 'em laugh in a comedy, and I know certain comedy executives don't laugh, but for the most, if you're funny in the room, they're thinking, okay, I want to be in business with these pets, but in drama, are there twists and turns? Am I hooked on this? Is this going to fit with something that we have on the air? Do we have something similar? But I always think what they're going to remember when they've heard six, they hear six to eight a day, and then at the end of the week they go tell their bosses about the ones that they bought. So what they're going to remember is, oh my God, you'll never believe the story this guy told about the time that he was held hostage on the subway, or you'll never believe that, or a cool twist or a cool character. They're not ever going to remember the third beat of the pilot, or when pitch episode ideas, here's soMichael Jamin:Interesting.Alex Berger:I think you need that stuff to be in there, but what they're going to remember, it's like when you walk into a house, when you're looking for a house, you remember, oh, I was dazzled by the kitchen and the master bedroom had the fullest bathroom and yeah, yeah, it had five bedrooms and five baths, which is what we need. But it felt like this when I walked in. It's like, how do they feel? That's another, I'm sorry to ramble, butMichael Jamin:No,Alex Berger:For drama. I think in a pitch, if you can make the executives feel how the show is going to make them feel, that's a successful pitch to me. Comedy's a little different, I think. ButMichael Jamin:Interesting. I feel like I'm learning a lot from you actually, because I mean, honestly, we'll sell shows and we'll not sell shows.Alex Berger:We're learning all that time from you guys for 40 episodes on the murder.Michael Jamin:But a lot of this is, like I said, we will sell a show or we won't sell a show, and I won't know why. I don't know. I'm not sure why this one sold this one, the other one didn't sell. I can, but that'sAlex Berger:Why I really don't like Zoom pitches because you can't. I love, that's actually my favorite part. I think it comes from, like I said, I was on the debate team in high school and college, and I loved trying to persuade someone who was not necessarily on my side at the beginning that I'm right. And I viewed every pitch as a miniature debate. I'm debating against the person who says, don't buy this. And I love the feeling of like, oh, I've got them hooked, and they're now, they are going to buy the show as long as it continues to go on this pace. And I hate the feeling of, I think they've checked out. And actually when I've memorized a pitch, when I think they've checked out, I'm talking, but my internal monologue is, well, I guess we didn't sell it to Fox. All right, well, if we can sell it to Fox, we can go to a B, C. Because I'm sort of like, I've moved on.Michael Jamin:How much off book are you have notes or not?Alex Berger:I've developed this method that I got from this guy, Martin Garra, who I've worked for eight or nine years for some blind spot, and now on Quantum Leap, it's different, but I love it, which is, it's different on Zoom, but when we go back to in-person pitches, what he does is he brings in his laptop and he puts it on the table in front of him and it acts as a teleprompter. And so he's looking up at you making eye contact and occasionally looking down. And then he is got a remote that flips page to page and the script is there word for word. So if you're like, oh shit, I'm about to get to the part that I always mess up, then you just look down and read for a minute and they know you've written this. It's not like no one is under the illusion that you walked in and RIFed for 20 minutes off theMichael Jamin:Topic. Does he do this in person or on Zoom?Alex Berger:Both. On Zoom, it's so easy because you can have your screen, but in person, I thought, oh, they're going to think it's offputting. But because I was practiced, I got to the point where 70% of it was eye contact and the laptop was there as the security one did.Michael Jamin:And what program is he using? That's a teleprompterAlex Berger:Work.Michael Jamin:Oh, so you're just scrolling. Oh, you're just clicking.Alex Berger:There's this Bluetooth remote that he uses that I was now in my drawer, and it's just you click and it's to the nextMichael Jamin:Page. You have a Bluetooth remote that works on your lap. I didn't even know this such a thing. I'm learning so much from you Burger.Alex Berger:Oh, you know what? I've lost it. Oh, here. Yeah, so it's like a little U S B that plugs into the back of your computer, and then you're just like, you click, click, click and it's, you look like you're giving its head talk it 5% easy. And I actually think in a comedy pitch, it might come off as too dorky, but for a drama it's like, I'm going to tell you a story. I'm going to deliver a pitch. And I wrote it. And the reason I find it useful is a lot of times when you're developing with the pod and the studio and then also the non-writing show runner, so many Sunday night, you're getting notes for a Monday morning pitch and stuff's changed. So if I get to the section that just changed, I might look down a little bit moreMichael Jamin:Interest. So I was going to say, are you going in mostly with pods these days for people who don't know that they're producers on the overall deals at studios, but is that how it works in dramas as well?Alex Berger:I don't think I'm going to show on the air anymore without an entourage. So when I was on Blind Spot, it was produced by Greg Ante and I did a couple pieces of development with him and then also with Blind Spot. I just think there's the business side of it, which is that these networks want to be in business with their 800 pound gorillas and the not. So if you walk in with one of them, even if it's my vision a hundred percent, and it's my personal story, the fact that this brand is behind it really helps. And then I also, I actually enjoy the process of crafting the idea with smart people. I don't want to work with a pod who's annoying and gives dumb notes or a studio who does that. But every pod I've ever worked with, if I'm stuck on an idea, I'll say, Hey, can we hop on the phone for half an hour and work out this story problem? You guys have each other so you can get in a room and hash out a story problem. But I need to talk. I cannot think through anyMichael Jamin:Interesting,Alex Berger:And we'll work it out. Oh,Michael Jamin:So you'll really use them as a resource. It's so interesting.Alex Berger:I mean, this guy, Martin Garrow who runs Blind Spot Quantum Leap, I've developed him a bunch of times and he's a writer.Michael Jamin:Yeah, it's differentAlex Berger:Stuff is acting as a pod. But I can call him and we have such a shorthand, we've broken 150 episodes a week, butMichael Jamin:That's different because he's a writer. He is not, I mean, he's a writer, is writer producer, but he's really aAlex Berger:Writer. So it's Greg Ante. I like working with folks who are on the creative things, and I've worked with producers who weren't writers, but could be because they're a creative, the worst part of that development is when someone gives you a note and they don't realize, oh, that's going to unravel. They think it's two lines, but it actually unravel all. Whereas when you work with people who've made a lot of tv, they're like, look, I know that this blows everything up to do this one little thing, but here's why I think it's better. Or Hey, they gave a huge note. Here's easy fix. It's only two lines.Michael Jamin:Yeah, I mean, that's so interesting. You're absolutely right. There's a huge difference between, I think between working with a producer, producer and a writer producer, because the writers, they just know what's going to unravel everything. I don't know. Yeah, that's ProducersAlex Berger:Are good for like, oh, you know what? Who'd be great for this is this actress. And they make the call and they're good.I find that you find everybody's in this business, they're good at something. Nobody who's come to this business and is just dashing a check. Well, probably not true, but the people that I try to find work with are people who are in this business smart. And even if they're not totally up on exactly what I wanted to do, fix the script, they have something that they're really good at that I want to use. So even if it's, there's one person at this company who's mostly the production person have a really good idea about like, Hey, if we shot this in Buffalo, we could do this.Michael Jamin:Right. Interesting. Wow. I think I've learned a lot from you. Before we conclude, you want to write drama withAlex Berger:Me? Let's go that. Let's talk about drama.Michael Jamin:I think I'm going to get into the drama business with you. I think you're going to be my pod. What advice do you have for young writers? You must have something to Wise to say.Alex Berger:Yeah, I mean, I probably don't have anything wise to say, but I'm happyMichael Jamin:To. Or how are they breaking in the business?Alex Berger:It's funny. The answer was so different 10 years ago to four years ago. It changed rapidly, and it's very different now because of the writer's strike. So if you're talking about what should I be doing right now, if I want to break in? I was just talking to a writer today and my advice to her was, just use this time to write. It's not a good time to try to get a producer attached or a showrunner attached or an agent. It's a good time to just be writing and really writing diligently. And then this is over. And in general, my advice is get a job in the industry, even if it's as an assistant. If you can't get a job as an assistant in a room, get a job as an assistant in post or get a job as a PA on set, just get into the room. Then just keep building a network and talking to everybody. And when your cousin comes and says, you know what? I used my college roommate, I think as a writer, I don't know what he take them up on all of those opportunities because you never know what's going to result in something. The first three jobs I got were from general meetings that I didn't want to take because actually two of them were from people. My mom had metParties in Washington dc but they were another assistant who was leaving their job and happened to open up. And then the last thing I would say is, I think the thing that people don't do as much of it that they should do is engage in the continuing education piece of this. So your listeners to your podcast are obviously trying to learn how to write, and that's important. There's a lot of other good podcasts out there. There's Deadline Hollywood, which everybody should be reading every single day. There's business podcasts like The Town and the Business and Fresh Air that people should be listening to understand the macro pieces of their business. So often you get people who come out here and they have

In this episode of Pop Culture Weekly, Kyle is joined once again by Dominic Patten, senior editor for Deadline Hollywood. It's about to get real with a deep-dive into the Hollywood strike. They're dissecting the ongoing turmoil, the recent studio proposal, the Writer's Guild's reaction, and the potential implications that could shake the very foundation of the industry. Trust us, this is a conversation you don't want to miss, as they shine a light on the strategy and posturing of both sides in a bid to give you an insider's perspective. As the world grapples with the pandemic, Kyle and Dom are not ignoring the elephant in the room. They look at how the coronavirus has sent reverberations through the entertainment industry, marked by the dwindling of linear TV and the surge of streaming services. They ponder over possible solutions to this predicament, discuss the pandemic's effects on movie releases, and question the future of the cinema experience. Plus, they tackle the exciting prospect of Apple's new VR range, its potential to promote upcoming films, and how it could revolutionize cinema. They wrap up with a compelling discussion about the changing viewing habits and what it means for the world of entertainment. Analyzing the success of original films versus franchises, and the impact of labor strife, they cover all corners of the industry. They explore how this dynamic industry can weather the storm and continue to thrive amidst uncertainty. There's plenty to unpack here, so tune in for a truly enlightening episode.Get the very latest, 24/7 breaking news from Deadline.comKyle McMahon's Death, Grief & Other Sh*t We Don't Discuss is now streaming: https://www.deathandgrief.show/Chapter-One-The-Diagnosis-AKA-WTF/---------------Get all the Pop Culture Weekly podcast info you could want including extra content, uncut interviews, photos, videos & transcripts at: https://podcast.popcultureweekly.comWatch celebrity interviews at: https://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahon/videosor Kyle McMahon YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonRead the latest at http://www.PopCultureWeekly.comFollow Kyle on:Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kmacmusicFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahonInstagram: http://www.instagram.com/kmacmusicYouTube: http://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonWebsite: http://www.kylemcmahon.mePop Culture Weekly twitter: http://www.twitter.com/popculturepodca

On the Show Lauren Tom actress. Her roles include Lena St. Clair in The Joy Luck Club, Julie in the NBC sitcom Friends, Dot in the final season of Grace Under Fire, and the voices for Amy Wong in Futurama, Dana Tan in Batman Beyond, Jinx and Gizmo in Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go!, Minh and Connie Souphanousinphone in King of the Hill, and Numbuh 3 in Codename: Kids Next Door. She portrayed Celia Mack in the Disney Channel series Andi Mack and also played Mrs. Tran in the CW series Supernatural.Hasbro is bringing back the Furby. It will arrive at retailers on July 15th. The new Furby comes in purple and coral and can say over 600 phrases and jokes. The Furby will be able to respond to hugs, pats on the heads, shakings and feedings - The USA Today newspaper says a new limited edition Super Mario Bros Oreo cookie will hit stores on July 10th.The cookies are embossed with 16 different Super Mario characters including Mario, Luigi, a Super Star, Bowser and a Goomba. The Gamer says some people have pre-ordered the $5 cookies and are scalping them on eBay for as much as $50.Epic Stream says Ben Affleck may make a cameo in ''Deadpool 3''. The website claims he has been seen on the set with Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman. Epic Stream says Ben may be reprising his role as Matt Murdock aka Daredevil. ''Deadpool 3'' will be released on May 3rd, 2024 The NY Post says Ryan Reynolds is getting into Formula 1 racing. He and his business partners have purchased a 24% stake in the Alpine Formula Race Team. Ryan and his investors are putting up $218 million. Michael B Jordan is also an investor. The Daily Mail says the FAA has approved a Back to the Future-like DeLorean that can fly. The electric car costs $300,000. The two-seater is called the Alef. The car can vertically take off and land.Geo TV says Tom Cruise recently congratulated Harrison Ford on the release of ''Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny''. He posted; "Congratulations, Harrison Ford, on 40 years of Indy and one of the most iconic characters in history."Bryan Cranston tells the Happy Sad Confused podcast that he has no plans to play Lex Luthor even though some fans want him to. ''I did Jim Gordon in the animated Batman thing. And that was fun. Because I had a bald head, they go ‘Ah! Lex Luthor!' It's like, come on. Let's think about this a little bit.”Giant Freakin Robot says Tom Cruise is developing a sequel to ''Days of Thunder''.''Top Gun: Maverick'' director Joseph Kosinski is involved with the project. Tom and Nicole Kidman starred in the 1990 racing movie. The new plot is being kept a secret.Arnold Schwarzenegger tells People magazine that his 1984 movie, ''The Terminator'', predicted Chat GPT and AI (artificial intelligence). "Given that "at that time we (had) scratched the surface of AI, artificial intelligence. Think about that. Now over the course of decades, it has become a reality. So it's not any more fantasy or kind of futuristic. It is here today. And so this is the extraordinary writing of Jim Cameron. I can only take credit of the character that I played and the way I played it. But I mean, he has created this character. He has written it so well, he's written the movie so well, and that's why he is, you know, the number one director in the world.”Harrison Ford tells Deadline Hollywood that the only reason he was cast as Indiana Jones is because Tom Selleck had a previous obligation. ''How I got the job? Tom Selleck had the job, but he also incurred an obligation to do a television series and he was unable to get out of that contract. I became the ‘second' choice, and I'm very grateful for Tom. Thank you, Tom, man. If you're listening, thank you again.''''Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny'' opens Friday

Town Square with Ernie Manouse airs at 3 p.m. CT. Tune in on 88.7FM, listen online or subscribe to the podcast. Join the discussion at 888-486-9677, questions@townsquaretalk.org or @townsquaretalk. On July 14, 2023, the labor union SAG-AFTRA began a strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), joining the Writers Guild of America (WGA). This marks the second time since the 1960s that two Hollywood labor unions are striking simultaneously. First, we speak with Dominic Patten, Senior Editor for Deadline Hollywood, who discusses the latest on the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the issues brought up by the unions, and the responses we've seen from the studios and producers. Then, we're joined by Art Wheaton, Director of Labor Studies at Cornell University's ILR School, and Dr. Miranda Banks, Associate Professor from Loyola Marymount University, to share their thoughts on the Hollywood labor strikes, and other labor disputes in what's being called the “Hot Labor Summer”. Plus, Orange is the New Black star Lea DeLaria, joins the conversation to discuss her participation in the SAG-AFTRA strike and thoughts on the issue of residual payments for actors. Guests: Dominic Patten Senior Editor, Deadline Hollywood Art Wheaton Director of Labor Studies, School of Industrial and Labor Relations (ILR), Cornell University Dr. Miranda Banks Associate Professor and Chair of Film, Television and Media Studies, Loyola Marymount University Author, The Writers: A History of American Screenwriters and Their Guild Lea DeLaria Actor, Comedian, and Jazz Singer Town Square with Ernie Manouse is a gathering space for the community to come together and discuss the day's most important and pressing issues. We also offer a free podcast here, on iTunes, and other apps

Maureen Ann Collins American actress and comedian who was a member of the ensemble on FOX's sketch comedy series Mad TV. Collins became well known for several characters during her tenure on the show. She was a cast member from the 4th season (1998) through the 9th season (2004); she only appeared in fourteen episodes during season nine due to contractual reasons. She returned to Mad TV in the 10th season for one episode, and again when she made an appearance on the 300th episode doing her popular character Lorraine Swanson. Her best known role following her departure from Mad TV was as morning talk show host Joan Callamezzo on the sitcom Parks and Recreation.The nickname Mo was first given to Collins by the football/drama coach of her junior high school whom she credits with introducing her to improv comedy.Harrison Ford tells Variety magazine that he has no plans to retire even though he turns 81 next month. “I don't. I don't do well when I don't have work. I love to work. I love to feel useful. It's my jones. I want to be helpful” Most Anticipated Movies Of The Summer ... According to a new survey by Marcus Theaters (release dates in parenthesis)1. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (June 30)2. Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (July 12)3. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (in cinemas now)4. Oppenheimer (July 21)5. The Flash (in cinemas now)6. The Little Mermaid (in cinemas now)7. Fast X (in cinemas now)8. Barbie (July 21)9. Haunted Mansion (July 28)10. Blue Beetle (August 18) People Stealing Sriracha Because Of Shortage: The San Francisco Gate says the Sriracha shortage is still occurring because of poor climate conditions that have damaged the chile pepper supply. The newspaper says people are so desperate for Sriracha that they are stealing bottles of it from restaurants. Some grocery stores on the West Coast are selling Sriracha for as much as $30 a bottle. It typically sells for $3.99 Cereal Mascots Are Bad For Kids: A new study by the University of Ottawa reveals that mascots, like Tony the Tiger, the Pillsbury Doughboy, the PAW Patrol squad, Spider-Man and Lucky the Leprechaun from Lucky Charms, entice children to eat junk food.Researcher Monique Potvin says, “Children love marketing techniques specially targeted at them. So the characters like Tony the Tiger and Snap, Crackle and Pop, that really has a big impact on kids. The majority of their consumption is from ultra-processed foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt. 90% of food and beverage product ads viewed by kids and teens online were for unhealthy products. Healthy foods are rarely promoted to children, while fast food, candy, chocolate, sugary beverages and cereals dominate the advertising landscape.''50% Of Public Pools Closing Due To Lifeguard Shortage: NBC says half of America's public pools are going to close or reduce their hours this Summer because of the lifeguard shortage. The American Lifeguard Association says there are over 309,000 public pools in the U.S.. The Association says many lifeguards quit when pools closed due to the pandemic. The lifeguards have not returned because they have gone on to other jobs.Woman Has Barbie- Themed Wedding: The NY Post says Amy McNitt had a Barbie-themed wedding in Vero Beach, Florida. The Barbie addict got all 193 of her guests to wear pink. She says, “I absolutely love Barbie and pink has always been my favorite color. Pink was everywhere at my wedding. It was my dream.” The reception featured a pink cake, pink roses and pink cocktails. Deadline Hollywood says Walt Disney's Los Feliz, California mansion is for rent for $40,000 a month. The animator built the home in 1932. The house was the inspiration for ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs''. Walt also created ''Cinderella'' and ''Pinocchio'' in the home. The house has a spiral staircase, stained glass windows and hand painted murals. There is also a movie theater where Disney films are shownChris Hemsworth tells Entertainment Tonight that he is taking a break from acting now that he is done promoting his new Netflix action movie "Extraction 2". "I wanted to take off because I've been working for 10 years, and I've got three kids that I want to spend more time with. I've been running from project to project for long time, just to avoid being unemployed or that fear that it's the last job you'll get, you know?'' The Daily Mail says graphic artist John Romita Sr, the man who invented the Marvel comic book characters Wolverine and Mary Jane Watson, has died at the age of 93. He and Stan Lee launched the Spider-Man newspaper comic in 1977. People magazine says Carrie Fisher's final movie is going to be released on Friday, June 23rd. Carrie filmed 'Wonderwell' weeks before she passed in 2016.Tom Hanks' wife, Rita Wilson, tells the Table For Two podcast that many people don't know Tom could have starred in ''When Harry Met Sally''. “People, probably don't know this, but Tom was offered ‘When Harry Met Sally' and he turned it down because he was going through a divorce and he was very happy to be not married. And so he could not understand that a person going through a divorce would have anything other than just like, ‘I'm so happy.' But I loved that script.” .” Samuel L Jackson tells ET that he wants to star in more Marvel movies. “If had it my way, I would've been in every Marvel movie 'cause I mean he is Nick Fury, he knows everything that's going on. I'm still trying to figure out why I've never been to Wakanda. They didn't ask me to go, but I'm still trying to get there. I need a ticketMan Has 40 Surgeries To Look Like Ricky Martin: Oddity Central says an Argentinian man has undergone 40 cosmetic surgeries in order to look like his idol, Ricky Martin. Fran Mariano once had motor oil injected into his eyebrows. He says, “I don't feel half of my face, I don't feel my nose, I don't feel my chin. When I drink champagne I have to do it with the help of a napkin because it spills on me.” - WDIV says Disney has pushed the release date for ''Avatar 3'' to December 2025. - TMZ says the owners of the Ottawa Senators notified Snoop Dogg yesterday that they were selling their NHL franchise to another bidder. Toronto billionaire Michael Andlauer is buying the team for $1 billion. Vegas Cops Install Cameras At Home Where Extra-Terrestrials Were Spotted: The NY Post says the Las Vegas Police have installed surveillance cameras at the home where aliens recently landed. A 911 call about the aliens went viral. Two cameras have been placed on top of the home and are shooting into the backyard and front yard. Personality Profile - What Your Favorite Fast Food Reveals About Your Personality ... According to psychologist Emma KennyMcDonald's.. you are a comfort seeker and playful. You're a creature of habit and like nostalgia. You find joy in the little pleasures that life has to offerBurger King... you are an assertive go-getter with a flare for individuality. You like challenges and are very confident and independentKFC.. you love comfort food, have a warm personality and enjoy natureFive Guys ... you are an explorer, relaxed and enjoy being casualPizza Hut ... you are a social butterfly

Hollie McKay is a writer, war crimes investigator, and the author of “Only Cry for the Living: Memos from Inside the ISIS Battlefield.” (Jocko Publishing/Di Angelo Publications 2021). She was an investigative and international affairs/war correspondent for Fox News Digital for over fourteen years, where she focused on war, terrorism, and crimes against humanity.Hollie has worked on the frontlines of several major war zones and covered humanitarian and diplomatic crises in Ukraine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, Iran, Turkey, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Burma, Russia, Africa, Latin America, and other areas.Hollie was in Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, where she became one of the few western journalists to stay in the country during and after the government fell to the Taliban. She was then the only American journalist to stay behind for the long haul, witnessing the first four months of the new regime. Hollie was then based in Ukraine to cover the leadup and subsequent invasion by Russian forces. Hollie continued to write and report on Afghanistan for numerous publications, including the New York Post, Empire Media Group, National Review, Liberty Dispatches, National Interest, Deadline Hollywood, The Independent, Dallas Morning News, Skillset Magazine, Recoil Magazine and SmartHer News.Her globally-spanned coverage, in the form of thousands of print articles and essays, has included exclusive and detailed interviews with numerous captured terrorists, as well as high-ranking government, military, and intelligence officials and leaders from all sides.Hollie also provided television and radio coverage for dozens of major outlets, including BBC World Service, NPR, ABC News Australia, Fox News, Sky News, The Ben Shapiro Show and KTLA.Her coffee table book collaboration with combat photographer Jake Simkin is “Afghanistan: The End of the U.S. Footprint and Rise of the Taliban Rule” (DiAngelo Publications).Hollie is also a 40 Under 40 Honoree with the Middle East Policy Council (MEPC) and a 2022 Media Fellow for the Foundation of Defense of Democracies (FDD) honorary board member for EMERGENCY USA, a non-governmental organization that assists victims of conflict worldwide. She was the 2021 recipient of the EMERGENCY honors award for “her commitment and dedication to providing surgical and medical care to people affected by war and poverty.”Hollie serves as the Outreach Director for Burnt Children Relief Foundation (BCRF) to bring severely bomb-burned Syrian children to the U.S. for life-saving treatment.Hollie is based in Washington, D.C.Follow her here.Subscribe to her Substack here.

The Hollywood Writers Guild of America strike is into its second week, and studios are taking a hit. The list of shows delaying or stopping production is growing by the day, and already includes Daredevil: Born Again, Billions, FBI: Most Wanted, and the Pretty Little Liars sequel. Deadline Hollywood's Dominic Patten says the strike started with picketing in the first week, but has since escalated, as the two Writers Guilds on each coast have been taking direct action. "There's the Writers Guild of America East and there's the Writers Guild of America West. The Writers Guild of America West clearly has more members, cause that's out where Hollywood is. The Writers Guild East, though, have played to their strengths of being a smaller, leaner, meaner organisation." LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Independent investigative journalism, broadcasting, trouble-making and muckraking with Brad Friedman of BradBlog.com

Independent investigative journalism, broadcasting, trouble-making and muckraking with Brad Friedman of BradBlog.com

The news to know for Tuesday, May 2, 2023! America's lawmakers need to make a deal, and time is running out. We'll explain what's at stake If they can't address the debt ceiling in the next few weeks. Also, we'll tell you about the second-largest bank failure in American history and what regulators now want to change about the whole system. Plus, AI that can turn people's thoughts into text, a writer's strike that could impact your favorite TV show, and a famous rock group is calling it quits after one last tour. See sources: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/shownotes Sign-up for our bonus weekly email: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/email Become an INSIDER and get ad-free episodes: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/insider This episode was sponsored by: Better Help: https://www.BetterHelp.com/newsworthy Castle Flexx: https://www.CastleFlexx.com (Listen for the discount code) To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to sales@advertisecast.com

Today's guest is something new for the show, our first film critic! Beginning her career in the world of music magazine editing, she soon transitioned to freelance writing on her favourite topic: movies. In the years since she's graced every publication and TV channel you can imagine from the likes of Deadline Hollywood, Sight & Sound, the BBC, Sky News and many more. In addition to her day job, she is also co-founder and host of the chart-topping interview podcast ‘Girls on Film' and former president of the UK Critics Circle. My guest is Anna Smith. 

In this episode of Pop Culture Weekly, Kyle McMahon talks with the cast and filmmakers of Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret". Featuring exclusive interviews with legendary author Judy Blume, stars Rachel McAdams and Abby Ryder Fortson, Writer / Director Kelly Fremon Craig (Edge of Seventeen) and super producers James L. Brooks and Julie Ansell. They explore the cultural impact and challenges of bringing the cherished novel to the big screen.Plus, Kyle is joined by Dominic Patten, Senior Editor at Deadline Hollywood, to discuss Disney's ongoing legal conflict with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the implications for the entertainment industry. The conversation delves into Disney's unique jurisdictional position in Florida, their influence on politics and copyright laws, and the potential consequences of their legal battles for both parties involved. Tune in for an intriguing exploration of pop culture news, views, reviews, celebrity interviews, and more!Are You There, God? It's Me Margaret book on AmazonWatch Judy Blume: Forever on Prime VideoKyle McMahon's Death, Grief & Other Sh*t We Don't Discuss is now streaming: https://www.deathandgrief.show/Chapter-One-The-Diagnosis-AKA-WTF/---------------Get all the Pop Culture Weekly podcast info you could want including extra content, uncut interviews, photos, videos & transcripts at: https://podcast.popcultureweekly.comWatch celebrity interviews at: https://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahon/videosor Kyle McMahon YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonRead the latest at http://www.PopCultureWeekly.comFollow Kyle on:Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/kmacmusicFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/realkylemcmahonInstagram: http://www.instagram.com/kmacmusicYouTube: http://www.youtube.com/officialkylemcmahonWebsite: http://www.kylemcmahon.mePop Culture Weekly twitter: http://www.twitter.com/popculturepodca

In the midst of a year that saw pandemic disease, social unrest, and bare-knuckled politics, Hollywood churned out a tremendous body of work—even while theaters closed, and films created for the big screen streamed directly to our homes. Pete Hammond says this year's Academy Awards reflect the issues facing Americans.   Hammond, chief film critic for Deadline Hollywood, is widely considered to be one of the most distinguished awards analysts for both film and television. In addition to being chief film critic at Deadline, he has also been Awards Editor and Columnist for the past eight years. In his past he has reviewed films for MovieLine, Boxoffice magazine, Backstage, Hollywood.com and Maxim, as well as frequently contributing to Variety. Outside of writing, Pete is also in his seventeenth year as host of the year-round KCET Cinema Series in Los Angeles, where he screens a selection of films prior to their theatrical release and interviews filmmakers. He is also host of UCLA extension's Sneak Preview for the past ten years, and has hosted panels at AFI Fest, the Santa Barbara Film Festival, Palm Springs International Film Festival, Los Angeles Film Festival, Mill Valley Film Festival, CineVegas, San Francisco Film Festival, and Cannes Film Festival. He has interviewed prestigious filmmakers and stars from groups such as SAG, DGA, BAFTA, and WGA. He previously held producing positions at Entertainment Tonight, Extra, Access Hollywood, The Arsenio Hall Show, The Martin Short Show and AMC Network. He is the winner of both the 1996 and 2013 Publicists Guild of America's Press Award, making him only the second journalist in the 50-year history of the organization to receive the award twice. He served on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for six years and is the recipient of five Emmy nominations for writing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sadhvi Siddhali Shree is the first North American Jain monk, a US Army Iraq-war combat veteran, a TEDx speaker, an activist, and an award-winning filmmaker.Driven by her deep-seated devotion to humanity, she uses her talents and skills to raise awareness about non-violence, personal and spiritual transformation, and social issues. Since 2008, she has served as the Spiritual Director of Siddhayatan Tirth & Spiritual Retreat, a 250-acre retreat, ashram, monastery, and meditation park based near Dallas, Texas.Determined to bring about positive change and to help those who have suffered, she directed and produced two award-winning documentaries Stopping Traffic and Surviving Sex Trafficking. Surviving Sex Trafficking, which was released in early 2022, was picked up by a major streaming company, had a 20 theater nationwide release in partnership with anti-trafficking non-profits, and met the Academy qualification requirements for Oscar consideration. Her current film, For The Animals nearly complete. Sadhvi Siddhali Shree and her work have been featured on CNN, Good Morning America, TMZ, Newsweek, the Associated Press, Deadline Hollywood, The Daily Beast, Los Angeles Times, and the NY Post. Despite being a filmmaker, she considers herself a simple monk trying to do good in the world.

UNEQUAL SEQUEL - S04 EP05 - ANNA SMITH Joining Dave and Rich on this episode to discuss her best ever sequel, worst ever sequel and dream sequel is the brilliant film journalist Anna Smith Anna is a leading film critic and broadcaster in the UK. She is the former President of the Critics' Circle and the co-founder and host of Girls On Film, a podcast that shines a light on female filmmakers and film critics. Girls On Film was listed as the ‘Best Feminist Film Podcast' by Stylist magazine, nominated at the British Podcast Awards and has attracted guests including Barbara Broccoli, Rosamund Pike, Carey Mulligan, Amma Asante and Linda Hamilton. A contributor to Deadline Hollywood, Time Out, Metro and The Guardian, Anna appears regularly on Radio 4, Sky TV and BBC News Channel. She filled in regularly for Mark Kermode on The Film Review, which ran from 2007 to October 2022. She tweets from @annasmithjourno and is on instagram @annasmithfilmcritic If you like what you hear and want even more of us talking to Anna then check out our subscriber service at www.anotherslice.com/unequalsequel it's only £2.99 a month for loads more bonus content. We'd love it if you could share our little pod with your friends and family. All you need to do is send them a link like one of these... Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5BRZK1OAklN8AAF0zpAO9L Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/unequal-sequel/id1569119013 Google Podcats - https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81YzdhMTczMC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw== If you want to get in touch with the show here's how: EMAIL: unequalsequel@hotmail.com TWITTER: @UnequalSequel INSTAGRAM: @unequalsequel We hope you enjoy the pod and don't forget please give us a rate and review (5 stars would be great!) and if you want to hear what other great guests are coming up on the pod then click the subscribe button to always know when the next episode drops. Thanks, we love you -- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

UNEQUAL SEQUEL - S04 EP05 - ANNA SMITH Joining Dave and Rich on this episode to discuss her best ever sequel, worst ever sequel and dream sequel is the brilliant film journalist Anna Smith Anna is a leading film critic and broadcaster in the UK. She is the former President of the Critics' Circle and the co-founder and host of Girls On Film, a podcast that shines a light on female filmmakers and film critics. Girls On Film was listed as the ‘Best Feminist Film Podcast' by Stylist magazine, nominated at the British Podcast Awards and has attracted guests including Barbara Broccoli, Rosamund Pike, Carey Mulligan, Amma Asante and Linda Hamilton. A contributor to Deadline Hollywood, Time Out, Metro and The Guardian, Anna appears regularly on Radio 4, Sky TV and BBC News Channel. She filled in regularly for Mark Kermode on The Film Review, which ran from 2007 to October 2022. She tweets from @annasmithjourno and is on instagram @annasmithfilmcritic If you like what you hear and want even more of us talking to Anna then check out our subscriber service at www.anotherslice.com/unequalsequel it's only £2.99 a month for loads more bonus content. We'd love it if you could share our little pod with your friends and family. All you need to do is send them a link like one of these... Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5BRZK1OAklN8AAF0zpAO9L Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/unequal-sequel/id1569119013 Google Podcats - https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy81YzdhMTczMC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw== If you want to get in touch with the show here's how: EMAIL: unequalsequel@hotmail.com TWITTER: @UnequalSequel INSTAGRAM: @unequalsequel We hope you enjoy the pod and don't forget please give us a rate and review (5 stars would be great!) and if you want to hear what other great guests are coming up on the pod then click the subscribe button to always know when the next episode drops. Thanks, we love you -- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

DADE HAYES, the New York Business Editor at Deadline Hollywood, writes about the media business as well as television, film, advertising and theater. During a 10-year run at Variety, he led the New York editorial team after serving in Los Angeles as an editor and reporter. He is the author, with Dawn Chmielewski, of “Binge Times: Inside Hollywood's Furious Billion-Dollar Battle to Take Down Netflix.” Host Jason E. Squire is Editor of The Movie Business Book and Professor Emeritus, USC School of Cinematic Arts. Music: “The Day it All Began and it All Ended” by Pawel Feszczuk (License: CC by 4.0)

Jason Michael Berman - Producing 5 Sundance Films & Making it in HollywoodSPECIAL SUNDANCE EDITION of the Indie Film Hustle PodcastI had the honor of speaking to Jason Michael Berman at Sundance this year. He's a Sundance vet. He has premiered 5 features at Sundance over the years and has the record for the highest selling film at Sundance ever, The Birth of a Nation which sold for $17.5 million. Crazy! This year he premiered the remarkable film Burning Sands at the festival. The film is about the intensifying violence of underground hazing on a college campus.Jason dropped some great knowledge bombs in our interview with my co-host Sebastian Twardosz. Here's a bit on Jason Michael Berman:Jason Michael Berman is the Vice President of Mandalay Pictures, where he is responsible for developing and structuring financing for Mandalay's slate of independent films, in addition to packaging projects.Berman has produced feature films that have debuted at premiere film festivals around the globe, including the Sundance Film Festival, Cannes Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, SXSW, Tribeca, Berlinale, and Edinburgh. Berman was named by Variety in 2011 as one of the Top Ten Producers to Watch, and by Deadline Hollywood in 2012 as one of the Top Ten Producers to Watch at Sundance.Berman produced Nate Parker's The Birth of a Nation, starring Parker, Armie Hammer, Jackie Earle Haley, Gabrielle Union, and Penelope Ann Miller, about the true life story of Nat Turner's slave rebellion. The Birth of a Nation premiered in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival. - WikipediaAll of these Sundance Series episodes are co-produced by Sebastian Twardosz from Circus Road Films and Media Circus.Right click here to download the MP3Download on iTunes DirectLINKS AND RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODEMandalay PicturesJason Michael Berman - IMDBSebastian TwardoszCircus Road FilmsMedia Circus PRSPONSORSDirecting Actors Master Course – (30% OFF – CODE: HUSTLE)Get Your Film on Netflix, Hulu & Amazon & Keep 100% off the Revenue - DistribberHollywood Camera Work: Mastering High-End Blocking and Staging (30% OFF – CODE: HUSTLE)Aaron Sorkin Screenwriting Master ClassHans Zimmer Film Scoring MasterClassKevin Spacey Acting Master ClassFreeFilmBook.com (Download Your FREE Filmmaking Audio Book)KILLER RESOURCES!!!INDIE FILM SYNDICATE Filmmaking Community

Dean is getting into the spirit of Halloween, Phil is dressing up in steam punk to judge a fashion show, and they are both curious about Jim Thorpe PA, and they talk about all of this! The death of Nikki Finke inspires a celebration and analysis of the Deadline Hollywood website that was her creation […]

Original Air Date: Monday 17 October, 9 pm EasternDescription:Dean is getting into the spirit of Halloween, Phil is dressing up in steam punk to judge a fashion show, and they are both curious about Jim Thorpe PA, and they talk about all of this! The death of Nikki Finke inspires a celebration and analysis of the Deadline Hollywood website that was her creation and a discussion of a recent headline on the site about ageism in Hollywood. In "Celebrity Deaths", Phil rants about people claiming anyone is "best known for" a particular work before he and Dean celebrate the lives and legacies of actress Angela Lansbury, actor Robbie Coltrane, author Peter Straub, groundbreaking disc jockey Art Laboe, and significant Hollywood matriarch Eileen Ryan. There is much discussion of the greatest film directors of all time (according to a 2002 Sight and Sound poll) before Dean and wrap things up where they began with Halloween-themed movie viewing.

Kanye West's words are rankling all the right people and I'm there for it...Is Madonna gay again?...Goodbye to Deadline Hollywood's Nikki Finke.

Amanda Grant, VP & Global Head of Social at GroupM, joins Kate as guest host this week as we get into the latest earnings reports from Twitter and Snap and discuss why social commerce has yet to gain as much traction in Western markets as it has in Asia. Then, Dade Hayes — business editor for Deadline Hollywood and author of the new book "Binge Times: Inside Hollywood's Furious Billion-Dollar Battle to Take Down Netflix" — shares insights on the streaming industry following this week's Netflix numbers. And, finally: mukbangs. Related Links: Binge Times by Dade Hayes & Dawn Chmielewski Music credit: Joseph McDade

WILL SMITH TIRA UNO SCHIAFFO A CHRIS ROCK agli OSCARWill Smith vince il suo primo Oscar come migliore attore ma ruba la scena con un alterco fuori programma con Chris Rock. Il neo-premio Oscar per "King Richard - Una squadra vincente" poteva essere arrestato rischiando fino a sei mesi di carcere e 100 mila dollari di multa se il comico che aveva ironizzato sulla testa rasata di sua moglie Jada avesse deciso di fare denuncia."Per ora ha deciso di non farlo", hanno detto fonti della polizia di Los Angeles a Deadline Hollywood mentre l'Academy censurava l'attore: "Non condoniamo la violenza in nessuna forma", ha fatto sapere l'organizzazione che attribuisce i premi piu' prestigiosi di Hollywood una volta conclusa la cerimonia.Jada Pinkett Smith soffre di alopecia e da qualche mese, anziche' coprire la testa con sciarpe e cappelli, ha optato per un radicale taglio alla "G.I.Jane": era stato questo il commento che Rock aveva fatto a sue spese per far ridere la platea. Smith, seduto con lei in prima fila, non ci aveva visto piu' lasciando esterrefatti gli spettatori della diretta sulla Abc."Tieni il nome di mia moglie fuori dalla tua fottuta bocca", aveva detto Will mentre la censura televisiva prontamente bloccava l'audio cancellando la parolaccia. Pochi minuti dopo l'alterco, Smith era tornato sul palco a ritirare il premio, e li', visibilmente emozionato, si era paragonato a Richard Williams, il padre delle star del tennis Venus e Serena Williams di cui ha interpretato il ruolo che gli ha fatto vincere il premio. "La vita imita l'arte. L'amore ti fa fare pazzie", ha detto l'attore con le lacrime agli occhi: "Richard era un feroce difensore della sua famiglia: in questo momento nella mia vita sono sopraffatto da quel che Dio mi chiede di fare". Smith ha poi parlato del suo dovere di proteggere le sue costar e della pressione a Hollywood a far finta di niente "quando vieni insultato" o ti si manca di rispetto: "Devi sorridere e fingere che vada tutto bene". Dopo lo scatto di rabbia, ma fuori dalla diretta, Denzel Washington aveva cercato di calmare il collega: "Nel momento piu' alto devi stare attento, e' li' che il diavolo viene a cercarti". Smith, che ha incassato il sostegno del figlio Jaden ("Cosi' si fa"), ha detto che spera di essere invitato di nuovo agli oscar dopo quello che ha fatto, ma nelle scuse con gli spettatori e l'Academy non ha incluso Rock.(ANSA)Seguimi live tutti i giorni su Twitch alle 12.00 e alle 18.30 - https://twitch.tv/ivan_grieco---Iscriviti al canale e attiva la campanella - https://bit.ly/3nIb6ZO---Patreon (contenuti esclusivi) : https://www.patreon.com/ivan_grieco---Link per codice sconto Cuffie ASTRO 5% : http://astro.family/rampageEMEA ---Instagram ►https://instagram.com/ivangriecoTwitter ► https://twitter.com/Ivan_Grieco

Jack and Alec Dent take the occasion of Fathers’ Day to discuss Top Gun: Maverick, the movie described by Deadline Hollywood as “the ultimate movie to take your dad to.” Topics hashed out include whether Top Gun is a good movie (no), why the sequel is so much better, whether Hollywood will learn important lessons from Top Gun: Maverick‘s […]

Jack and Alec Dent take the occasion of Fathers’ Day to discuss Top Gun: Maverick, the movie described by Deadline Hollywood as “the ultimate movie to take your dad to.” Topics hashed out include whether Top Gun is a good movie (no), why the sequel is so much better, whether Hollywood will learn important lessons from Top Gun: Maverick‘s success, and whether Maverick is dead for basically the... Source

Being a female young actor with nonimpactful roles for girls, turned young filmmaker craving and carving her own path. We go through the journey of making it as an indie female film filmmaker, the rise the fall, the reality of Hollywood and the depression all whilst having an Academy Award winning actor as a lead in a film with International creditable with awards from film festivals, in addition, to having an Oscar nom and still getting no acknowledgments or serious contract deals. Welcome to Web3 - Film3 where all your dreams can become your reality without getting the life sucked out of you. Jordan Bayne's speaks this week at the classic International Cannes Film Festival on two Web3 panels discussing the future of film making for all, esp women, non binary, pop and lgbtqia+ creators.   JORDAN BAYNE is an award-winning writer, director, actor and NFT film pioneer. Her career began acting with Golden Globe winner Martin Sheen in A STRANGER IN THE KINGDOM and includes Showtime's Poltergeist The Legacy, Law & Order and more. Her first role in the theatre landed her onstage with Golden Globe winner James Gandolfini and Oscar winner Marisa Tomei in the Naked Angels production of “Summerwinds”. Bayne had an award nominated turn in the film UNDER HELLGATE BRIDGE with Dominick Chianesemand Vincent Pastore where one critic noted, ”Jordan Bayne proves that true strength lies in vulnerability.” Bayne's writing and directorial debut was the short film ARGO, starring Jordana Spiro [Ozark, Good Wife]. Her critically acclaimed film THE SEA IS ALL I KNOW, starring Academy Award winner Melissa Leo won Best Short, Best of Fest, and Best Actress in its festival run earning consideration for an Academy Award. The film landed distribution with IndieFlix, and worldwide licensing with ShortsTV after becoming a Vimeo Staff Pick. Leo described Bayne as “one of the finest directors I have ever worked with”.  Currently she is overseeing development on her American feature THE LAW OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES as well as several US/Spain projects — THE LORCA PROJECT, a digital series, feature film BLACK SORROW and her upcoming NFT funded feature film project, SHADOW.  In February 2021 Bayne started the original Elevating Women in the NFT Space on Clubhouse, and founded the NFT Film Squad, the first Space and community for filmmakers trailblazing the Film3 eco system. She curated Spaces bringing attention to groundbreaking talent such as Julie Pacino, Miguel Faus, J Harry Edminston, and David Bianchi. Pioneering the NFT terrain, she was featured in Deadline Hollywood, The Blackchain, and NFT Evening for her truly cinematic, groundbreaking motion picture RED FLAGS which was minted on the blockchain in January 2022. Bayne's company Shooting Angels is powered by an international creative collective of established and emerging talent. Based in NYC and Madrid, the goal of Shooting Angels is to be a preeminent bridge producing films and television in both Spanish and English, in Spain and the U.S. Shooting Angels is also dedicated to the amplification of women and nonbinary filmmakers worldwide and revolutionizing the Film3 ecosystem for all under represented people.   Twitter: @jordanbayneTwitter @nftfilmsquadIG: @jordan_baynewww.jordanbayne.comDiscord: https://discord.gg/ZvwAn9sZrV Follow our sponsor DCP: Website: Decentralized Pictures Decentralized Pictures (@DCP_Foundation) / Twitter Decentralized Pictures (@decentralized_pictures) • Instagram photos and videos Connect more with Katie: Website: https://www.chonacas.com/ Merch and more: https://withkoji.com/@saintkyriaki

Spotify has been put into the media thanks to Joe Rogan and Neil Young. However, Spotify has actually been a debated topic for some time now. Journalist, Mark Dent, shares his investigative findings on how the billion dollar streaming service, is failing all of its artists. Bio: I'm a journalist based in Dallas and sometimes in the Kansas City area, where I'm from. I write about business, tech, urbanism, sports, religion, changing cities and ephemera from the 90s. I'm currently working on a book about Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes that is slated to be published in 2023 by Dutton. It tells the history of Kansas City, Mahomes, and the Chiefs and how the city and Mahomes are trying to usher in a new era as the city confronts its past and its inferiority complex. My work has been published in The New York Times, Texas Monthly, Vox, GQ, WIRED, Slate, Fortune, VICE, Runner's World, The Kansas City Star, The Philadelphia Inquirer, PolitiFact and Deadline Hollywood among other publications. Website - https://www.markjdent.com/ Artwork by Phillip Thor - https://linktr.ee/Philipthor_art To watch the visuals with the trailer go to https://www.podcasttheway.com/trailers/ The Way Podcast - www.PodcastTheWay.com - Follow at Twitter / Instagram - @podcasttheway (Subscribe and Follow on streaming platforms and social media!) As always thank you Don Grant for the Intro and Outro. Check out his podcast - https://threeinterestingthings.captivate.fm Intro guitar copied from Aiden Ayers at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7UiB9FMOP5s *The views demonstrated in this show are strictly those of The Way Podcast/Radio Show*

Guest: Pete Hammond, Chief Film Critic, Deadline Hollywood; What does the 94th Academy Awards mean for the film industry? Deadline Hollywood's Pete Hammond joins Wim and Jim on this podcast episode to discuss why the award ceremony is still must-see-TV and which of the films is most deserving of recognition. 

The 2022 Academy Award nominations are out.  Pete Hammond says they celebrate a remarkable array of films exploring topics as diverse as toxic masculinity and environmental catastrophe. Hammond is widely considered to be one of the preeminent awards analysts for both film and television and is the Chief Film Critic for Deadline Hollywood, where he has also been the Awards Columnist, covering the Oscar and Emmy seasons for the past seven years.  For the past eight years, he has been Awards Editor and Columnist for Deadline and previously covered a similar column for the Los Angeles Times.  He has also served as a frequent contributor to Variety and as a film critic for Boxoffice magazine, Backstage magazine, Maxim magazine and Movieline.  He is in his eighteenth year as host of the “KCET Cinema Series” in Los Angeles, and UCLA extension's “Sneak Preview” for the past eleven years.  He also hosts the TV series, “Must See Movies,” which showcases classic films every Friday night and Saturday afternoon on KCET.  He is the recipient of five Emmy nominations for his television writing and is the winner of the 1996 Publicists Guild of America's Press Award.  He is the second journalist in the organization's 50-year history to receive the award twice, winning again in 2013.  He also served on the Board of Governors for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences representing writers for six years. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Guest: Ted Johnson, D.C. Correspondent, Deadline Hollywood; What's behind the recent mergers and acquisitions taking place in Hollywood and how is the content race a catalyst for more than just new films and series? In this podcast, Wim Buyens and Jim Chabin are joined by Deadline Hollywood's D.C. Correspondent Ted Johnson to put today's headlines in focus and help make sense of a marketplace constantly in realignment.

Deadline Hollywood's Mike Fleming Jr and Peter Bart discuss the Golden Globe nominations, Amazon and Netflix getting into the Awards Game and a potential Code of Conduct that the Academy may be implementing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deadline Hollywood's Peter Bart and Mike Fleming Jr discuss two coming of age awards contenders and a possible deal between Fox and Disney. Produced by David Janove  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deadline Hollywood's Peter Bart and Mike Fleming Jr discuss the recent waves of sexual harassment and assault allegations in Hollywood, as well as the trend for the Oscars to embrace independent films in recent years. Produced by David Janove. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deadline Hollywood's Peter Bart and Mike Fleming discuss the New York Times piece "Louis C.K. and Hollywood's Canon of Creeps" as well as some new films with great female roles. Produced by David Janove Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deadline Hollywood's Mike Fleming Jr and Peter Bart discuss the recent surge of allegations throughout Hollywood, including those against Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and Brett Ratner. Plus, a brief discussion of Oscar parties and mingling. Produced by David Janove Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bart and Fleming are back for Season Two! Deadline Hollywood's Mike Fleming Jr and Peter Bart discuss the upcoming awards season, as well as the fall out from the sexual harassment and assault scandals that have hit Hollywood. Plus, Peter talks to film producer Mark Canton about his role in revitalizing the superhero movie genre. Produced by David Janove. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices