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On the show
From 16 epsHost
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Recent episodes
The Brew | How I Prep for My 2nd Draft
Jun 23, 2026
Unknown duration
Bored of 'Star Wars'? As a Screenwriter, I Can Tell You Why
Jun 16, 2026
Unknown duration
The Brew | Why AI Destroys the Real Meaning of Filmmaking
Jun 2, 2026
17m 27s
The Cultural Necessity of Awe | Psychologist Dacher Keltner
May 26, 2026
59m 47s
Notes Survival Guide for Screenwriters & Authors
May 19, 2026
17m 29s
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| Date | Episode | Topics | Guests | Brands | Places | Keywords | Sponsor | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6/23/26 |  The Brew | How I Prep for My 2nd Draft | Starting a 2nd draft is one of the ultimate tests for screenwriters. Here’s why diving in too fast is a creative disaster!Fresh off wrapping the first drafts of two scripts (a TV pilot commission and a feature spec), I'm breaking down how I find perspective on my work, as well as my specific strategies to prepare for my next draft that will hopefully help you elevate your story from a messy 1st draft to the best 2nd draft possible. JOIN THE COMMUNITY! Join the 10,000+ members of the 5AM StoryTalk community at Substack mastering the craft of storytelling (and the art of life) together: https://colehaddon.substack.com/ON THE ITINERARY:THE ART OF THE PAUSE: Why finding perspective before you start a 2nd draft is the single most important step in the entire screenwriting workflow.THE REWRITING CIRCLE: How to curate a small, trusted circle of diverse readers – with diverse viewpoints – to stress-test your pages.FEATURE VS. TV PILOT REWRITES: The differences between rewriting specs and scripts you’ve been commissioned to write.‘OBSESSION’ AND ‘BACKROOMS’ MELT MY BRAIN: Thoughts on these films, but especially the Rorschach Test that ‘Obsession’ has turned out to be for audiences.MIRAGE IN THE DESERT: A core memory of 'Lawrence of Arabia' with my son. THE JODI PICOULT APPROACH: The brutal truth about the first draft that completely reframes how you look at a blank page. TIP JAR:Not up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” here to help keep me caffeinated (translation: writing):https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddonSOCIAL MEDIA:Follow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/Cole Haddon @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.socialThreads: https://www.threads.com/ColehaddonwashereEMAIL:5AMStoryTalk@gmail.comCREDITS:5AM StoryTalk acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.This podcast’s music is by Cary Brothers: https://www.carybrothers.com/ | — | ||||||
| 6/16/26 |  Bored of 'Star Wars'? As a Screenwriter, I Can Tell You Why | Why does Disney’s modern era of ‘Star Wars’ leave so many fans indifferent at best and running away at worst? It isn’t just you – and it isn't a lack of explosions and lightsaber duels. In this episode, I take a close look at the new film ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ to diagnose a massive narrative crisis in not just it, but most ‘Star Wars’ projects post-George Lucas. By breaking this golden rule of commercial storytelling, Disney has ensured that audiences will continue to tune out and films like ‘Mandalorian and Grogu’ will continue to bomb.Today’s conversation is as much for storytellers looking to improve their craft as ‘Star Wars’ fanatics who are having trouble putting a finger on why so many of these stories aren’t moving them or the broader culture anymore.ON THE ITINERARY:THE CONSEQUENCE CRISIS: Breaking down why modern ‘Star Wars’ stories feel like they’re spinning their wheels, and how avoiding real narrative stakes kills audience investment.THE FORGOTTEN GOLDEN RULE: Unpacking the essential rule of commercial storytelling that Disney keeps breaking – and how violating it directly triggers profound audience fatigue.THE SCREENWRITER'S DIAGNOSIS: A clinical look at the script-level choices that drain characters of true agency and leave zero room for permanent, impactful change.LESSONS FOR CREATORS: How screenwriters, novelists, and storytellers of any kind can look at the erosion of a multi-billion-dollar franchise to protect and sharpen their own stakes.JOIN THE COMMUNITY! Join the 10,000+ members of the 5AM StoryTalk community at Substack mastering the craft of storytelling (and the art of life) together: https://colehaddon.substack.com/EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE: "SCREENWRITERS: HOW TO SURVIVE HOLLYWOOD'S NO-WIN SCENARIO"I crashed and burned when I faced my first Kobayashi Maru test during the rewrite of a major spec feature sale... but you can learn from my mistakes.UNLOCK THE BONUS AT SUBSTACK: https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/hollywood-screenwriting-development-hellUNLOCK THE BONUS AT APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bonus-screenwriters-how-to-survive-hollywoods-no-win/id1807437928?i=1000772928000LINKS:Listen/Read "How 'Andor' Blows Up Star Wars' Obsession With Moral Absolutism": https://open.substack.com/pub/colehaddon/p/new-podcast-how-andor-blows-up-staRead "Luke Skywalker Isn't the Hero You Want Him to Be": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/luke-skywalker-isnt-the-hero-you Read "Lucasfilm’s Disregard for the O.G. Heir to the 'Star Wars' Empire Is Part of a Larger Entertainment Industry Problem": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/the-og-heir-to-star-wars-empire-sayRead: "What Really Went Wrong With the 'Star Wars' Prequels...Maybe": https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/what-really-went-wrong-with-the-starTIP JAR:Not up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” here to help keep me caffeinated (translation: writing):https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddonSOCIAL MEDIA:Follow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/Cole Haddon @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.socialThreads: https://www.threads.com/ColehaddonwashereEMAIL:5AMStoryTalk@gmail.comCREDITS:5AM StoryTalk acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.This podcast’s music is by Cary Brothers: https://www.carybrothers.com/Cover art: 'The Mandalorian and Grogu' | — | ||||||
| 6/2/26 |  The Brew | Why AI Destroys the Real Meaning of Filmmaking✨ | AI filmmakingfilmmaking process+4 | — | The PittScrubs+1 | IKEA | AIfilmmaking+7 | — | 17m 27s | |
| 5/26/26 |  The Cultural Necessity of Awe | Psychologist Dacher Keltner✨ | awecreativity+4 | Dacher Keltner | Berkeley Social Interaction LabAwe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life+1 | — | awecreativity+5 | Screenplay Performance Studio5AMStoryTalk | 59m 47s | |
| 5/19/26 |  Notes Survival Guide for Screenwriters & Authors✨ | feedbackscreenwriting+4 | — | — | — | screenwritingfeedback+5 | Screenplay Performance Studio5AMStoryTalk | 17m 29s | |
| 5/12/26 |  The Brew | Overcomplicating your world-building? •.producer notes on my TV pilot • 'The Pitt', at last✨ | world-buildingstorytelling+4 | — | The PittStar Wars+1 | — | world-buildingstorytelling+5 | — | 10m 04s | |
| 5/5/26 |  Actor David Dastmalchian | Letting the Darkness Speak✨ | darkness in storytellingvulnerability and art+3 | David Dastmalchian | DuneLate Night with the Devil+2 | — | storytellingdarkness+5 | — | 47m 46s | |
| 4/28/26 |  The Brew | How I Picked My Next Spec Screenplay✨ | screenwritingcreative process+3 | — | — | — | spec screenplaycreative challenges+3 | — | 14m 10s | |
| 4/22/26 |  'Project Hail Mary' Is the Blueprint to Save Hollywood (and Our Future)✨ | Hollywoodmovie industry+4 | — | PROJECT HAIL MARYDeep Impact | — | PROJECT HAIL MARYHollywood+5 | — | 15m 13s | |
| 4/15/26 |  Immigration Researcher Zoe Gardner | The Migration 'Crisis' Is a Myth✨ | immigrationcultural narratives+4 | Zoe Gardner | Labor PartyReform Party+1 | — | immigrationcolonial amnesia+5 | — | 57m 08s | |
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| 4/7/26 |  A Screenwriter's Real-Life Ghost Story (Or: How I Wasted 6 Months of My Life)✨ | screenwritingHollywood+4 | — | SubstackDracula | — | screenwriterHollywood+5 | — | 9m 13s | |
| 3/31/26 |  The Brew | Why Screenplay Templates Are Making You a Hack (and What to Do About it)✨ | screenplay structureoriginality in writing+4 | — | THE BREW5AM RealTalk+2 | — | screenplaywriting+5 | — | 12m 31s | |
| 3/25/26 |  Screenwriters Meg LeFauve & Joe Forte | Breaking Your Story (and Life)✨ | screenwritingstorytelling+4 | Meg LeFauveJoe Forte | Inside OutCaptain Marvel+2 | — | screenwritingstorytelling+5 | — | 1h 09m 42s | |
| 3/17/26 |  The Brew | Why ‘Sinners’ Really Lost • box office free fall • 'The Testament of Ann Lee' and ‘The Bride!’✨ | hustle culturecreative risk+4 | — | 'Sinners''The Testament of Ann Lee'+1 | — | SinnersThe Testament of Ann Lee+7 | — | 15m 38s | |
| 3/10/26 |  The F*cked Up Amount of Work It Takes to (Not) Sell Something in Hollywood Today✨ | screenwritingHollywood+5 | — | Hollywoodprestige limited series | — | screenwriterdevelopment+5 | — | 14m 24s | |
| 3/3/26 |  Comedian Riki Lindhome | The Freedom of No Opportunities✨ | creativitycareer development+4 | Riki Lindhome | Garfunkel and OatesWednesday+4 | — | Riki Lindhomecomedy+7 | — | 56m 44s | |
| 2/24/26 |  The Brew | Hustle culture 'religion' • 'I can't do this anymore' • 'Marty Supreme'✨ | hustle culturegig economy+3 | — | Marty Supreme | — | hustle culturegig economy+5 | — | 15m 56s | |
| 2/17/26 |  Sen. Fatima Payman | Defiance, Gaza & Free Speech in Australia✨ | freedom of speechmulticulturalism+3 | Fatima Payman | Labor PartyRage Against the Machine+1 | AustraliaGaza | Fatima Paymanfreedom of speech+5 | — | 47m 54s | |
| 2/12/26 |  Director Justin Simien | Predicting the Future by Telling the Truth in Your Art Today | Screenwriter-director JUSTIN SIMIEN (Dear White People, Haunted Mansion, Hollywood Black) discusses his life and craft, truth-telling in your art, finding your voice as an artist in an industry that increasingly doesn’t want you to have one, and Hollywood’s problematic relationship with Black artists.Pay attention, screenwriters: This episode is an intimate look at breaking into and sustaining your career in Hollywood in-between deep dives into how personal perspective and identity shaped Justin’s work – which will hopefully encourage you to pour as much of yourself into your own art as he does.A BONUS EPISODE is available via Apple Podcasts or at Substack.Justin returns to break down a seminal film from his life – Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 science-fiction classic 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY.Justin offers a radical new take on the film that will blow your mind. I know it did mine. This is a masterclass in deconstructing films – especially sacred cows.Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/justin-simien-talks-2001-a-space-odyssey/id1807437928?i=1000748605227Substack: https://colehaddon.substack.com/p/justin-simien-2001-space-odysseyLINKSLearn more about Justin Simien: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_SimienWatch ‘Hollywood Black’ on MGM+: https://www.mgmplus.com/series/hollywood-blackRead Justin’s brilliant screenplay for ‘Dear White People’: https://assets.scriptslug.com/live/pdf/scripts/dear-white-people-2014.pdf?v=1729114894SUBSCRIBE TO THE ‘5AM STORYTALK NEWSLETTER’https://colehaddon.substack.com/You’ll gain access to both the 5AM StoryTalk newsletter and all episodes of this podcast – including exclusive bonus episodes in which my guests discuss seminal pieces of art from their lives. Ask questions in the comments section there, too!SUBSCRIBE TO THE ‘5AM STORYTALK PODCAST’ AT APPLEA paid subscription at Apple will get you access to all of my bonus episodes in which my guests return to break down a seminal artwork from their lives.https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/5am-storytalk/id1807437928TIP JARNot up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” here: https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddonSOCIAL MEDIAFollow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/Cole Haddon @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.socialThreads: https://www.threads.com/ColehaddonwashereEMAIL5AMStoryTalk@gmail.comCREDITS5AM StoryTalk would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present.This podcast’s music is by Cary Brothers. https://www.carybrothers.com/ | — | ||||||
| 2/10/26 |  The Brew | Death of cinema? • Horror's killer year • Screenwriter's waiting game | 5AM RealTalk is a 5AM StoryTalk plog where Cole Haddon - veteran screenwriter (creator, 'Dracula') and novelist ('Psalms for the End of the World') - discusses the highs and lows of his life as an artist and human being living and creating in Australia.On the itinerary today (Feb. 10, 2026):America in the shitter, the death of neoliberalism, and racism on the march in AustraliaArtists answer the call...or would if not for billionairesStill waiting for notes on my pilotWhat happened to all the personal projects I hoped to tackle during my break from this podcast?Awards season screeners - wah wahThe problem with ‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’, if there is oneThe death of nuance and subtlety in cinema according to NetflixFilm students who can’t watch films anymoreWhy you should resist the instinct toward ‘content’-style storytellingWes Craven’s philosophy about horrorHorror’s triumphant year in 2025 (i.e., ‘Sinners’, ‘Frankenstein’, ‘Weapons’, and more)The impact of real-life horror on my work (and yours?)SUBSCRIBE TO THE '5AM STORYTALK NEWSLETTER'https://colehaddon.substack.com/You'll gain access to both the 5AM StoryTalk newsletter and all episodes of this podcast – including exclusive bonus episodes in which my guests discuss seminal pieces of art from their lives. Ask questions in the comments section there, too!SUBSCRIBE TO THE '5AM STORYTALK PODCAST' AT APPLEhttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/5am-storytalk/id1807437928A paid subscription at Apple will get you access to all of my bonus episodes in which my guests return to break down a foundational artwork from their lives.TIP JARNot up for a paid subscription but appreciate the work that’s gone into making this podcast happen? You can “buy me a coffee” here: https://buymeacoffee.com/colehaddonLINKSRead 'The Film Students Who Can No Longer Sit Through Films' at The Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/01/college-students-movies-attention-span/685812/SOCIAL MEDIAFollow Cole/5AM StoryTalk at…5AM StoryTalk @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5amstorytalkpodcast/Cole Haddon @ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colehaddonwashere/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/colehaddon.bsky.socialThreads: https://www.threads.com/@colehaddonwashereEMAIL5AMStoryTalk@gmail.com-5AM StoryTalk would like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is recorded, the Djarra people of the Kulin Nation and pay respects to Elders past and present. Sovereignty was never ceded.This podcast's music is provided by my brilliant friend Cary Brothers. https://www.carybrothers.com/ | — | ||||||
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