On The Page

Brian Pope, Mike Musa, Nina Berry and Pat Francis join Pilar for their annual discussion of the Oscar nominees for best screenplay and best adapted screenplay.

Writer Jake Morgan describes the ways in which taking meetings and working in a writers' room is like dating. And, in honor of Valentine's Day, Pilar walks us through a structural template for romantic comedies.

Writer Jennifer Joyce talks about how her life and experiences become the starting point for sketches, TV shows and movies.

Writer John Whittington (The Lego Batman Movie, When We First Met, Boy 21) talks about his live action/animation writing career and the surprising script that changed everything.

Writer Ed Solomon ("Now You See Me," "Men in Black," "Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure") wrote the HBO six-part series "Mosaic" as well as the eight-hour storytelling app that goes with it. Here he discusses objective and subjective storytelling and talks about how he breaks and rewrites his scripts.

Doug Jones, star of the Golden Globe winning film "The Shape Of Water," reveals how he brings silent and non-human characters to life.

Writer Matthew Aldrich and writer/co-director Adrian Molina discuss their approach to story, pay-off and world building for "Coco," the winner of the 2018 Golden Globe for animated feature.

Jennifer Julian and Holly Payberg of June Bug Pictures talk about the techniques they use to hook a listener in a two-minute pitch.

Alan Jenkins, President of The Opportunity Agenda, and Jon Fitzgerald, author of "Filmmaking for Change," discuss ways to change the world through film, TV and documentary storytelling.

Writer Brian Turner returns to talk about his new job writing for the Netflix series "Trolls" and helps Pilar answer more questions from her neglected e-mail inbox.

Career-coach Lee Jessup returns to talk about the changes we saw in 2017 and writing trends ahead for 2018.

Pilar and Aadip review log lines sent in from listeners! Who will be the winner?

Non-binary characters don't fit into classic male or female molds. Writers Laura Erickson-Schroth and Sonya Ellis discuss the challenges and creative opportunities. Pilar's 17-year-old daughter Ezra Rae Dodson leads the way.

Armed with a case of thumb drives and a bag filled with aspirin, filmmakers Curt Wiser, Al Mauro and John Wotring went to the American Film Market for four days of pitching, meetings and networking. Hear their day-by-day account in this special "roving reporter" episode.

Filmmakers Shazia Malik and Danish Renzu talk about their experiences pitching, writing and directing movies in India and the U.S.

Sometimes you just happen to run into an old client from New York, who happens to be in town taking meetings for his feature after wrapping production for his short film. So, what do you do next? Put him on the podcast of course! Guest: Keith Armonaitis

Pilar gives a sneak preview of her next book, "The Coffee Break Screenwriter Breaks the Rules," with this discussion about narrative devices like voice over and flashback.

Josh Stolberg, writer of "Jigsaw" (in theaters now), talks about the "Saw" franchise, working with Clive Barker and his advice for being scary on the page.

Writer on the verge Eric Rudnick talks about rewriting, video pitching and channeling your inner Bruce Springsteen.

So you've got a script. What happens next? Producer Rona Edwards fills us in. A must-listen for those who want to understand the true business side of showbiz. Also check out the third edition of her book, "I Liked It, I Didn't Love It: Screenplay Development from the Inside Out."

Animation writer Katie Mattila (Avatar: The Last Airbender, Kung Fu Panda, Harvey Beaks, 100 Things to do Before High School, Tangled: The Series and Home: Adventures with Tip and Oh) talks about her experience with script-driven animated series and story-board driven animated series.

Pilar's students from the International Film School in Cologne, Germany talk about their stories and feelings about US and German television.

With the help of writer Suzanne Keilly, Pilar clears out her overstuffed e-mail inbox and gives long overdue answers to listener questions.

Using comedy expert Steve Kaplan's upcoming book as a launching point, he and TV writer Ellen Sandler discuss the journey, goals and drive of main characters in comedy features and TV shows.

Star student turned star TV writer Charmaine DeGrate returns to the podcast to share what she's learned as a writer and producer of the popular CW series "The 100."

Christopher Vogler, author of the landmark book "The Writer's Journey", discusses mythic structure, connectivity and "the wisdom of the body."

David Kessler spent years attempting to get life rights for the scripts he wanted to write. In this episode he shares his journey and provides tips for the passionate (and brave) screenwriter.

It's another On The Page/Rock Solid mash-up as Pilar and Pat Francis read listener's log lines and play the songs that the writer would want on the soundtrack.

Want to get a laugh? Try some conflict and hostility. Peter Desberg, psychologist, teacher and author, explains it all to you.

Silicon Valley writer Shawn Boxe talks about getting work, navigating the writers room and creating story while also battling cancer.

The great Scotty Mullen returns to talk about his latest movie: Sharknado 5!

Time, place, pacing and continuity: these are just some of the responsibilities of a script supervisor. Sylvia Parker (Edge of Tomorrow, T2 Trainspotting, The Theory of Everything, Murder on the Orient Express), covers the details!

Kirsten (Kiwi) Smith, the co-writer of "Legally Blonde," "10 Things I Hate About You," "Ella Enchanted" and (in development) "The Expendabelles" and "Sister Act 3," talks about breaking story, creating set-pieces and discovering the "joy" of a character.

From inner wounds to onion chopping, Pilar and author Michael Hauge hash out the complex character arc of the on-screen protagonist.

Writing partners Lauren Hynek and Elizabeth Martin describe their journey from winning contests to writing the live action "Mulan" for Disney.

How do you find the next great story? Writers Jacob Coakley, Alicia Lomas-Gross, Amanda Torigiani, Nadia Madden and Neal Thibedeau share the ways they brainstorm new ideas and find character inspiration from news, work and life.

Jamie Anderson has worked hard creating content and pitching ideas. Now it's paying off with representation and features in development.

Producer Wendy Miller (formerly with Playboy TV, NBC Universal, Lifetime, Oxygen) has heard many, many reality pitches. Here are some of her do's and don'ts!

Heather Overton, manager of original programming at Crown Media Family Networks, discusses the mission and story approach at the Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries.

Irish writer/director John Butler discusses the ways he honored and subverted archetypes in his "coming out of age" film, "Handsome Devil."

Pilar learns from husband Pat Francis about the "three phases" of Marvel story-lines in the movies and on television.

Writers Melissa Cassera and Hunter Doohan separately made their first script sales with Lifetime. Hear how they did it, what it's taught them and what's next on the horizon.

Carole Kirschner, Director of the WGA Showrunner Training Program, CBS Diversity Program and Humanitas Fellowship, returns with business advice on how to create your personal PR packet, how to prep for a meeting and what not to wear to an interview.

A distributor, marketing expert, acquisitions director, producer, writer and filmmaker offer their opinions and expertise at the Cartagena International Film Festival.

"Go-getters" Aydrea Walden, T. Michael Martin and Denise Cruz reveal the unique approaches to story and business that helped them hit the ground running with their writing careers.

Pilar welcomes legendary Director John Badham (Saturday Night Fever, War Games, Blue Thunder, Stakeout) to the show to discuss his career in filmmaking and his approach to the script.

Pilar celebrates the 500th episode of the On the Page Podcast with her producers past and present.

Director Elliott Lester discusses his upcoming slate of projects including the new film "Aftermath" starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Daniel Pyne, screenwriter (sum of all fears, manchurian candidate, pacific heights) and novelist, drops by the OTP Studio to chat about noir tropes, writing authentically, and the challenges of inaccurate IMDB descriptions.

Pilar and guest co-host Jason Levy (winner of the 2016 Log Line Contest) listen to the movie and TV pitches of writers Cat Alvarado, Barbara Cole, Julianne Eggold, Darius Garland, Misha Klein and Ryan Nanni.