Stage/Screen
John August
Screenwriter and director John August talks about writing his first script, how to keep an audience immersed, and why his favorite genre is "movies that get made."
You've written an impressive number of scripts over the last several years. Were you always this creatively productive?
I've always written, but it wasn't until I started approaching writing as a full-time job that I really felt any mastery of it. Sometimes I'm an artist, but mostly I'm a craftsman. I write for very specific purposes, and I can sort of switch it on and off. That came with experience.
I think "productivity" is a pretty limited concept. If you're writing a lot, but you're writing crap, that's not particularly helpful. I think what I hit in my early-to-mid 20s was a sweet spot between Getting Stuff Done and Getting Stuff Perfect. My first drafts are pretty strong. They feel like the final movie. Some writers do what they call a "vomit draft," which is long and messy, then edit it down. I don't. I write the script that could be shot.
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Ze Frank
The Show's Ze Frank talks about unsolvable problems, "brain surfing," pain management, and how creative pursuits change perception.
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Howard Kremer
Stand up comic, sitcom writer, and rapper Howard Kremer talks about the upside of getting bored easily, the power of changing one thing, and finding his name scribbled in a copy of The Artist's Way.
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Jeff Raz
Clown, playwright, actor, and teacher Jeff Raz talks about sneaking up on a laugh, writing a play in a week, and what to do when inspiration shows up at 6:30 Sunday morning.
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