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Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey' Writer-Director David E. Talbert Weaves Loss, Hope, and Heart

November 13, 2020

In Netflix’s Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey, the streaming service’s first-ever live-action musical, writer-director David E. Talbert weaves together a high-octane musical with a story filled with loss, hope and a lot of heart.

History of TV: Forever 'Charmed'

November 12, 2020

Something Wicca this way came in 1998 when the original Charmed hit The WB airwaves. Right out of the gate, the fantasy drama raked in 7.7 million viewers to be the fledgling network’s highest-rated debut at the time. Spelling Television had created ...

What Are The Responsibilities Of a Screenwriter?

November 12, 2020

One of the most searched screenwriting-related questions on Google is, "What are screenwriters responsible for?" Ending with a preposition aside, that's an incredibly loaded question that I'm going to try to answer. This question will likely prompt d...

Character Study Part I: The 3 Kinds of Character Arcs

November 11, 2020

Tony Soprano. Olivia Pope. Jack Bauer. Carrie Bradshaw. Jon Snow...

‘Come Play’ Pays Homage To the Spooky Amblin Tales of Yore

November 9, 2020

If you're looking to continue your spooky season during the spookiest year of them all, or you're an Amblin fan, Come Play is a worthy watch. The movie's writer-director Jacob Chase is living a filmmaker’s fairy tale; his short film Larry blew up the...

5 Screenwriting Takeaways: ‘The Undoing’ and Female Thriller Writing Tropes to Embrace and Avoid

November 9, 2020

The Undoing is flashy and feels familiar. But that also feels by design. The HBO show shares writers with Big Little Lies and sells itself on wealth, cheating and suspense. If it will be as big a hit as Lies is yet to be determined, but it’s a good c...

Can Screenwriters Thrive in New York City?

November 6, 2020

Can screenwriters thrive in New York City? That’s a great question. First, let me introduce myself: My name is Vanessa King. I am a self-taught screenwriter who grew up in a remote part of Canada. In the early aughts, I moved to New York to pursue my...

History of TV: ‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ Beams Us To a Whole New World of Understanding

November 5, 2020

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the first show I remember watching weekly. I also distinctly remember being in grade four and a boy named Michael telling me that I wasn’t allowed to like Star Trek because I was a girl. How I wish I’d responded? Tha...

Writer-Director-Star Juliet Landau On Narcissism and 'A Place Among the Dead'

November 4, 2020

Juliet Landau’s directorial debut, A Place Among the Dead, isn’t your typical vampire movie. Dubbed a “revealing and terrifying meld of fact, fiction and the fantastical,” the film stars Landau as Jules, a woman who embarks on a journey at the potent...