The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna

The fabulous duo behind Sing Sing and this years Oscar nominee, Train Dreams, Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley join TSL to talk about their inspiring partnership and the process of Train Dreams.

Greg and Clint give us a sense of their unique partnership; Who is the glass half full, how they decide who writes and directs and the intricacies of their writing process.

Joe Forte joins Meg on this episode to talk with Greg and Clint about the special film, Train Dreams, and all that went into the challenges of crafting a feature from a 118 page novella.

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Looking for more support on your writing journey? Join Meg and Lorien inside ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL Workshops⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Episode Links:

Train Dreams is available on ⁠https://www.netflix.com/title/82020378⁠

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The Screenwriting Life is produced and edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Alex Alcheh.

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Chandler Baker joins us to talk about her hilarious and heartfelt Christmas adventure, "Oh. What. Fun."

Chandler has worn many hats in her life. She walks us through her journey of being a lawyer turned New York Times Bestselling novelist, and now an acclaimed screenwriter.

To finish off the episode, Chandler reveals to Lorien her devout listenership to TSL!

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Looking for more support on your writing journey? Join Meg and Lorien inside ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL Workshops⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Episode Links:

Check out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL merch shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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The Screenwriting Life is produced and edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Alex Alcheh and audio engineered and mixed by ⁠⁠Urban Olsson.
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In this special craft supercut, we gather wisdom from recent guests on one essential question: how do you introduce a character?

From subtle entrances to defining first actions, writers including Sharon Horgan, George Saunders, Dana Fox, and Akiva Goldsman share how they think about character, voice, and point of view from the very first moment.

Featured writers:

Sharon Horgan (Episode 225)

Clint Bentley (Episode 230)

Malcolm Washington & Virgil Williams (Episode 237)

Dana Fox (Episode 239)

George Saunders (Episode 240)

John Henion (Episode 242)

Carla Banks-Waddles (Episode 245)

Rob Spera (Episode 247)

Sheila Hanahan Taylor (Episode 253)

Sylvia Batey Alcalá & Mac Smullen (Episode 255)

Kaz Firpo (Episode 261)

Akiva Goldsman (Episode 264)

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Looking for more support on your writing journey? Join Meg and Lorien inside ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL Workshops⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠- use code HOLIDAY25 for 50% off your first month.

Episode Links:

Check out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL merch shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

TSL on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Screenwriting Life is produced by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jonathan Hurwitz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Kate Mishkin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and audio engineered and mixed by ⁠⁠Urban Olsson⁠⁠.

Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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IN YOUR DREAMS writer/directors Alex Woo and Erik Benson join us to talk about writing animated features - from storyboarding as a form of rewriting to building emotional stakes in fantastical worlds.

Alex and Erik break down collaboration in animation, adapting personal experiences for family storytelling, and why animated characters must be treated as real, complex people.

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Looking for more support on your writing journey? Join Meg and Lorien inside ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL Workshops⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠- use code HOLIDAY25 for 50% off your first month.

Episode Links:

"In Your Dreams" on Netflix

Kuku Studios

Check out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL merch shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

TSL on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Screenwriting Life is produced by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jonathan Hurwitz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Kate Mishkin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and audio engineered and mixed by ⁠Urban Olsson⁠.

Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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Noah Baumbach (MARRIAGE STORY, FRANCES HA) and Emily Mortimer (THE PURSUIT OF LOVE, DOLL & EM) join Lorien to talk about co-writing their new Netflix film JAY KELLY, from long conversations and false starts to discovering the emotional core of the story together.

They talk about writing without outlines, why not knowing is part of the job, how acting informs writing, and the surprising gift of having permission to be “whimsical, wrong, and brave” before locking a script into shape.

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Looking for more support on your writing journey? Join Meg and Lorien inside ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL Workshops⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠- use code HOLIDAY25 for 50% off your first month.

Episode Links:

"Jay Kelly" on Netflix

"The Pursuit of Love" on Prime Video

Check out the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TSL merch shop⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

TSL on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Screenwriting Life is produced by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Jonathan Hurwitz⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and edited by ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Kate Mishkin⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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