Pens are down, so we’ve decided to invite film and TV writers from all levels to the WGF Library for a chat about why stories matter to them. Of course, we couldn’t also help but ask some craft questions, so watch and learn helpful writing advice, from how they overcome challenging stages of the process to practical ways writers can start putting words on the page.
Scroll down for the latest video interviews and stay tuned for more!
On February 9, we hosted Beyond Words 2023, our annual event highlighting the year’s Writers Guild Awards screenplay nominees, in person at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills.
Held in partnership with The Black List, Final Draft, and Variety, we welcomed Adapted Screenplay nominees Joe Robert Cole (Black Panther: Wakanda Forever), Rian Johnson (Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery), and Sarah Polley (Women Talking) and Original Screenplay nominees Todd Field (Tár), Daniel Kwan & Daniel Scheinert (Everything Everywhere All at Once), and Seth Reiss (The Menu) for back-to-back panels moderated by Sian Heder (CODA) and The Black List SVP Kate Hagen.
Listen to the full panel recording above.
Special thanks to our partners, The Black List, Final Draft, and Variety, and our sponsors Late Night with Seth Meyers and Saturday Night Live.
On March 9, WGF librarians Javier Barrios and Lauren O’Connor welcomed CODA writer/director Siân Heder for a Script Breakdown of her screenplay, which is nominated for a 2022 Writers Guild Award and Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
Watch and learn how Heder approaches crafting the script, from her outlining and extensive research to how she worked with the deaf community to tell an authentic story and translate the script into American Sign Language (ASL).
For more WGF Library Script Breakdown videos, click here.
On August 5, we learned about the role of the Staff Writer in a TV comedy writers room. Our panel of writers will share how they got the job, their experiences working in their respective rooms, and how they approach building a career writing for TV.
Panelists:
Aadip Desai - Staff Writer, The Goldbergs
Yael Green - Staff Writer, Space Force, Upload, Dickinson
Sarah Naftalis - Staff Writer, What We Do In The Shadows
Moderated by WGF librarian Lauren O’Connor.
Watch above or listen to the audio-only version below!
On August 4, we partnered with Business of Creating for an interactive panel and Q&A with seasoned entertainment professionals to learn about short-form content: What is it and how do you create it? Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent creating content specifically for mobile phones that consumers watch exclusively on mobile devices.
Topics will include: What types of short-form platforms exist? For whom can you create content? What is unique about short form platforms from 3 perspectives: Content Creators, Advertisers, and Audiences? How do you write, produce and pitch to short-form platforms like TikTok, Quibi, YouTube? How do you market your projects both to and on short-form platforms?
Panelists:
Catherine Halaby - Entertainment Content Partnerships Lead, TikTok
Dan Heale - CEO, Way To Blue
Jeffrey Wisenbaugh - Head of Content, Instagram
Michael Fisk - Studio Marketing Exec. and Owner of InterMark Strategy & Consulting
Moderated by Jennifer Mangan, Writer/Producer, Beautiful Day Productions
Watch above or listen to the audio-only version below!
