Final Draft Blog

All the tips, tricks and information you need to inspire your writing!
Read interviews with the pros, catch up with industry news, and listen to Write On: A Screenwriting Podcast by Final Draft.

Write On with 'Falling' Writer-Director Viggo Mortensen

February 16, 2021

Oscar-nominated actor Viggo Mortensen talks to host Phil Galasso about his transition into writing and directing with Falling, a stirring drama he also acts in alongside Lance Henriksen. The film is about a man who along with his male partner and ado...

David Perrault Explores the Family Bond During the Civil War In 'Savage State'

February 15, 2021

Filmmaker David Perrault doesn’t just believe in conflicts between characters in his stories — both externally and internally — but in the time period in which their stories take place, as well. Which is why he chose the Civil War to be the backdrop ...

A Strategy Primer for Writers: Part II

February 12, 2021

Welcome back to the strategy primer for writers! This series aims to provide you with a number of productivity strategies to help reduce procrastination and that can be used to build better habits for your writing career.

Afro Horror: Sugar Hill (1974)

February 12, 2021

This month for the Afro Horror podcast, I spoke with guest Evan J. Peterson about the criminally underrated Blaxploitation horror, Sugar Hill. It was my first time viewing this hidden treasure, and I knew immediately from the opening credits set to “...

5 Screenplay Takeaways from 'The Dig'

February 12, 2021

How do mounds of dirt in Suffolk, England become a compelling historical drama set in the late 1930s? Only if those mounds of dirt contain some of the most significant finds in archaeological history. This is the loose thought behind The Dig. Based o...

History of TV: No Objections To the Zaniness of Legal Dramedy 'Ally McBeal'

February 11, 2021

There was The Practice and then there was Ally McBeal. The story is that Fox originally conceived the whimsical legal dramedy as a way to keep female viewership firmly planted on the couch after that other ‘90s schmaltz-fest (and I say that with love...

Jessica Goldberg and Angela Russo-Otstot on co-writing the Russo Brothers' 'Cherry'

February 10, 2021

Apple TV+'s new crime drama Cherry is a film directed by Anthony and Joe Russo (best known for their directorial work on multiple films within the Marvel universe) and from a screenplay written by Angela Russo-Otstot and Jessica Goldberg, adapted fro...

Write On with 'Judas and the Black Messiah' Co-Writer Will Berson

February 9, 2021

Will Berson had been haunted by the story of the murder of Black Panthers leader Fred Hampton by police since his hippy parents told it to him as a child. As Will watched events like the Ferguson riots unfold he realized Fred Hampton's story had to b...

‘What Would Sophia Loren Do?’ Examines How Two Very Different Women Are Actually Very Closely Connected

February 9, 2021

The short documentary What Would Sophia Loren Do? is a lovely look at two women’s lives well-lived. There's Sophia Loren, the well-known actress who has lived life more than once over, and then there's Nancy “Vincenza” Kulik, a mom from New Jersey. T...