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Articles
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The Biggest Mistake Writers Make

  • Holly Payberg-Torroija
  • . June 19, 2025
As a writing coach, one of the biggest mistakes I see writers make, is that they try to write their story before they’ve given themselves the proper time and space to go deep and truly know their story. They expect themselves to somehow go straight from having an idea, to writing pages that flow out looking close to a near perfe...
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June 18, 2025
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Creative Screenwriting
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What Filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof Endured for “The Seed Of The Sacred Fig"

The international film landscape is essential in shaping a global approach to cinema. Oftentimes, it isn’t simply the types of stories or the way they are told by specific voices that excite audiences, but also the way in which they were made.Mohammad Rasoulof’s The Seed Of The Sacred Fig is astonishing in its raw truthfulness, ...
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Magazine
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The Facets of Tribalism: A Conversation with ‘Opus’ Writer-Director Ma...

  • Sadie Dean
  • .March 14, 2025
Mark Anthony Green discusses his approach to filmmaking, focusing on thematic anchors, like tribalism and character development, particularly Ariel’s character. As well as his overall mission to engage with audiences, his dream collaboration with music artists Nile Rodgers and The-Dream and praises his crew for giving it their a...
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Moviemaker
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13 Oscar Winners Who Started in Sitcoms

  • Tim Molloy
  • .June 20, 2025
Think there's a wide gap between sitcoms and the Academy Awards? Don't tell that to these 13 Oscar winners who started in sitcoms.This list is proof that there are no small roles, and that the same skills that go into laugh-track driven half-hour comedies can also be applied to big-budget serious awards contenders.Sally FieldABC...
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Film Inquiry
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ISA TOP 25 SCREENWRITERS TO WATCH Interview With Adam Karlson

Each year, The International Screenwriters’ Association compiles a list of the 25 screenwriters to watch. This year, Film Inquiry is here to guide you through the incredible list of gifted individuals! Our next writer is Adam Karlson. Film Inquiry spoke with Adam about his writing process, the details of his script Choke, tips f...
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The Wrap
TheWrap
TheWrap

Ariana Madix Assures Fans ‘Love Island USA’ Is Not Rigged: ‘Don’t You Start Making...

  • Tess Patton
  • .July 01, 2025
“Love Island USA” Season 7 host Ariana Madix told TheWrap she’s stepped into a new role this season: conspiracy debunker. While the hostess and self-proclaimed superfan enjoys engaging with fans’ content online, often reposting and responding in the comments, Madix said she will not tolerate fans calling the show “rigged.”“You c...
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ISA ARTICLES

ISA Staff Picks: May 2025

The ISA team is proud to spotlight these screenplays and their writers as standout examples in their respective genres and formats for May 2025. These projects are currently under consideration for submission to ISA-approved agents, managers, producers, and production companies actively seeking fresh talent and high-quality mate...
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ISA ARTICLES

Write From The Wound, Publish From the Scar

  • Holly Payberg-Torroija
  • . April 15, 2025
I attended a retreat facilitated by Elizabeth Gilbert and Rachel Cargle, and this was just one, of the many, important wisdom bombs Liz dropped on us at this wonderful 3 day retreat.   She said it in response to a question one of the participants asked: was it better to write from the wound or the scar? And I felt her answer was...
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ISA ARTICLES

Top Reads Spring 2025

The ISA Top Reads list for Spring 2025 has been announced! The writers' projects have been evaluated by multiple ISA readers, advancing through multiple stages of the Writing Gig consideration process, contests, and fellowship applications.After being heavily considered for our gig mandates and other submissions, these writers a...
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ISA ARTICLES

Who is Your Favorite Antagonist and Why? Mine is Ted Lasso.

  • Holly Payberg-Torroija
  • . April 09, 2025
Of all your favorite books, shows and movies: who is your favorite Antagonist and why?  I know for some of you that this is like asking you to play favorites amongst your babies, but just pick the one that is striking you at the moment.  For me, my favorite Antagonist, at the moment, is Ted from Ted Lasso. I know some of you mig...
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CS MAGAZINE

What Makes High School Movies Work? (Part 2)

ArchetypesParents (good and bad), teachers (good and bad), friends, teammates, and classmates (good and bad), and siblings all form the basis of an archetypal character set.In The Edge of Seventeen:Nadine’s mother: a bit unraveled and trying to cope with her own life as well as her two children. Nadine’s father is dead and that’...
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CS MAGAZINE

What Makes High School Movies Work? (Part 1)

High school movies span decades. There are thousands covering most of film and TV history. This is mainly for one reason: the themes in them are universal.The stories of high school are the stories of life. Of joy, sadness, yearning, accomplishment, and all things in-between.On The Edge of Seventeen is a prime example of the com...
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CS MAGAZINE

6 Helpful Things To Consider To Make An Impactful Short Film

Short films have been an effective way for many screenwriters to showcase their storytelling skills. They can be shown at film festivals, industry screenings and events, and online to help promote your screenwriting career.Here are some pointers that screenwriters might consider when writing a short film script:1) Make It ShortA...
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CS MAGAZINE

Halina Reijn Wrestles With Control In Erotic Thriller “Babygirl”

Erotic thrillers are back.In an electric explosion of passion, sexuality, and gender dynamics, Dutch filmmaker Halina Reijn (Red Light, Bodies Bodies Bodies) tracks two super-charged and vulnerable characters Romy (Nicole Kidman) and Samuel (Harris Dickinson) who break most corporate and relationship norms when CEO Romy and her ...
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SCRIPT MAGAZINE

Interview with Director Catherine Gund about Her New Film 'Meanwhile'

  • Susan Kouguell
  • . March 13, 2025
In this wide-ranging interview, Susan Kouguell discusses with filmmaker Catherine Gund their respective work and shared artistic sensibilities in terms of employing nontraditional filmmaking structures, the inclusion of poetry in film, tackling challenging subject matter, and how to make it the most honest. It was a pleasure to ...
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SCRIPT MAGAZINE

What Happens in the Field, Stays in the Field: David Koepp Discusses His New Thriller 'Black Bag'

  • Andrew Bloomenthal
  • . March 12, 2025
David Koepp talks about penning this crackling thriller, writing on spec, and utilizing a MacGuffin that’s simple and powerful. Espionage films are notoriously delicious. Black Bag--the new spy thriller written by David Koepp, is no exception. In this taut tale of British intrigue, National Cyber Security Centre agent George Woo...
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SCRIPT MAGAZINE

Make Your Script's Opening Pages Stand Out

  • Script Magazine
  • . March 11, 2025
This live webinar will explore why these pages matter so much, and how you can entice a reader to stay with your script.The opening pages of a script matter far more than you think. They are the chance a busy Literary Manager/Agent/Producer/Actor gives you to impress them with your command of craft, story and above all, characte...
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SCRIPT MAGAZINE

Writing the Sci-Fi Screenplay

  • The Writers Store
  • . March 11, 2025
When writing the Sci-Fi script, audiences are looking for entertaining stories with interesting, developed characters that take them out of this world and into another. The Writer’s Store staff created this bundle of ten products to help Sci-Fi writers take their script to the next level and get it sold. With examples from block...
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MOVIEMAKER

The 12 Funniest ’90s Comedy Movies

  • Tim Molloy
  • . June 21, 2025
These are the 12 funniest ‘90s comedy movies of - a list that made us realize the '90s may have been the best ever-decade for comedies.There are many great '90s movies that technically fall into the comedy genre but aren't always laugh out loud funny. They are not on this list. These are the funniest '90s comedies, the ones that...
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MOVIEMAKER

12 Must-See 1984 Movies: a Year of Boundary-Busting Blockbusters

  • Chris Morgan
  • . June 21, 2025
These 12 must-see movies of 1984 will take you back to the blockbuster era of four decades ago.1984 was an important year, not just because it helped blockbuster and franchise culture take hold completely, but also because it was the year of releases that spawned a whole new rating: PG-13.It was a great year for movies, thanks t...
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MOVIEMAKER

Post-Production to Promotion: HTML Email Templates for Film Studios and Editors

  • MM Writers
  • . June 22, 2025
It is a time and action-packed industry in which time factors have to be communicated. Being either an independent editor or working with a team in a studio, email continues to remain one of the most effective means to communicate the progress, update, and promotional content. However, not any email, it has to be made presentabl...
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MOVIEMAKER

12 Stories From the 1970s Comedy Classic That Led to Airplane, Animal House and… Out of Africa

  • Tim Molloy
  • . June 22, 2025
Without Kentucky Fried Movie, the first film from Jim Abrahams and his partners, Jerry and David Zucker, we might never have gotten Animal House, Airplane!, or The Naked Gun films.We also might not have gotten the Oscar-winning drama Out of Africa. (We're totally serious about that: Read on.)Here are 12 behind the scenes stories...
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FILM INQUIRY

Glasgow Film Festival 2024: THE G

There seems no end to the vulturous nature of late-stage capitalism. Just when it seems every crevice of society has been mined for content, a fresh new subject crops up waiting to be explored. In this wintery cold noir from Karl R. Hearne, the subject is elder care facilities and the way they’re used to exploit the elderly and ...
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FILM INQUIRY

SKIN DEEP: A Body Swap Romance Exploring The Modern “Self”

Skin Deep opens as a disoriented man totters through a bedroom. There’s a catatonic figure lying in the bed nearby as light streams through the window. His befuddlement is ours as well. It sets a perturbing mood against the Gregorian undertones of the music. There’s something strikingly beautiful in another subsequent image: a y...
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FILM INQUIRY

Scream Dreams Podcast Interview

In the world of horror podcasts, some can be a nightmare. Or, in the case of Scream Dreams, AMP’s podcast, the horrors are actual nightmares, as the podcast dives into them in a compelling and unique fashion. With a myriad of guests from within the horror genre, co-hosts Catherine Corcoran and James A Janisse interview and get i...
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FILM INQUIRY

TAYLOR SWIFT: THE ERAS TOUR: A Lightning In A Bottle Cultural Phenomenon

In her ongoing quest for world domination, Taylor Swift made a quick detour at the gates of cinema last year with her uniquely marketed concert film. Being released in tandem with her ongoing Eras Tour, which the film documents, Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour was a box office juggernaut that defied expectations. And while the film ...
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THE WRAP

Musk Says He Plans to Form ‘Alternative’ Political Party if Trump’s ‘Insane’ Budget Bill Passes

  • Sean Burch
  • . June 30, 2025
Elon Musk again shared his displeasure with the Trump-backed “Big Beautiful Bill,” saying he will form an “alternative” to the Republican and Democratic parties if the budget bill is approved by the Senate.“If this insane spending bill passes, the America Party will be formed the next day,” the Tesla and SpaceX boss posted on X,...
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THE WRAP

‘Project Hail Mary’ Release Date, Cast and Everything We Know About the Ryan Gosling Movie

  • Jacob Bryant
  • . June 30, 2025
For many book readers, the upcoming “Project Hail Mary” adaptation is one of the most anticipated films of 2026.The film follows a molecular biologist-turned middle school science teacher played by Ryan Gosling who is tasked with traveling almost 12 light years from Earth to figure out a way to stop the Sun from dying. If that i...

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