Scriptnotes Podcast

Why is it so satisfying to watch a highly-skilled character complete their goals? And why can it be equally hilarious to watch an incompetent character bumble through a slew of screw-ups? In this episode, John and Craig discuss how to play with competence in your characters. We also say goodbye to our producer Drew Marquardt with a thoroughly embarrassing exit interview, and reveal our new producer. However, it’s not really goodbye, because Drew will be staying on to work with John on an upcoming project (TBA). In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Craig deliberate on the question: Should you quit LOUDLY? Links: The attack on competence by Iris Meredith Scott Tenorman Must Die (South Park – Season 5, Episode 4) Bartosz Ciechanowski’s Curves and Surfaces Rhubarb Breakfast Dessert by Melissa Clark Easiest Citrus Roasted Rhubarb by “Kate Cooks” Get your copy of the Scriptnotes book! Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Become a Scriptnotes Premium member, or gift a subscription Subscribe to Scriptnotes on YouTube Follow Scriptnotes on Instagram and TikTok John August on Bluesky and Instagram Outro by Matthew Chilelli (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Meredith Stedman and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Our intern is Lauren Loesberg. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here.The post On Competence first appeared on John August.

John and Craig gather our listeners’ favorite news articles and ask, How Would This Be a Movie? Stories include an underground network delivering menstrual supplies in Minneapolis, a millennial travel group, how the US hacked ISIS, and a fake college squash team. But first we follow up on modern comps, email issues, teaching screenwriting, and what it means to be undeniable. We also answer listener questions on querying reps with a published book and whether writers really need to repeat the plot for a second-screen audience. In our bonus segment for premium members, what do we do with all our old CDs and DVDs? We weigh the pros and cons of physical media. Links: How an errand for a 12-year-old immigrant in Minneapolis became an underground operation by Jasmine Garsd and Sarah Ventre for NPR I Went on a Package Trip for Millennials Who Travel Alone. Help Me. by Caity Weaver for The New York Times How the US hacked ISIS by Dina Temple-Raston for NPR Whitman College: The Best College Squash Team in History by James Zug for Squash Magazine Shipping Out by David Foster Wallace Email deliverability tester Disempowerment patterns in real-world AI usage by Cornell University and Anthropic The world’s greatest song that simply shouldn’t exist Get your copy of the Scriptnotes book! Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Become a Scriptnotes Premium member, or gift a subscription Subscribe to Scriptnotes on YouTube Scriptnotes on Instagram and TikTok John August on Bluesky and Instagram Outro by Gloom Canyon (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here. UPDATE 3-5-26: The transcript for this episode can be found here.The post Torn from the pages of Squash Magazine first appeared on John August.

John and Craig ask, what makes a useful comp? Writers often use comparisons when pitching or discussing projects, but what separates good comps from bad comps, why do we use them, and when do comps hurt more than they help? Basically, it’s The Studio meets My Dinner with Andre. We also follow up on orality and “film by” credits, answer listener questions on getting AI feedback and attaching an actor to a microbudget feature, plus bring you another installment of John Recently Learned. In our bonus segment for premium members, John and Craig are having weird issues with their email servers and need your help! Links: The Sheep Detectives trailer The Great Gazoo Ben Turpin The Party (1968) Fulla Regrets on Instagram Kitty Carlisle Bobbie Wygant interviews Jodie Foster by Jack Plotnick on Instagram Catherine O’Hara dies via Variety Get your copy of the Scriptnotes book! Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Become a Scriptnotes Premium member, or gift a subscription Subscribe to Scriptnotes on YouTube Scriptnotes on Instagram John August on Bluesky and Instagram Outro by Pete White (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here. UPDATE 2-17-26: The transcript for this episode can be found here.The post Blank Meets Blank first appeared on John August.

John and Craig welcome the actor-writer-director of the acclaimed indie Sorry, Baby to discuss preparing to direct your first feature. Eva Victor’s year-long bootcamp included reverse-shotlisting movies, shadowing other directors, and lots of visual development. It earned them Best Directorial Debut by the National Board of Review. We also examine how Eva chose which scenes to cut, answer a listener question on how to talk to actors, and follow up on some excellent reviews of the Scriptnotes Book. In our bonus segment for premium members (like Eva!), Eva revisits their early career to think about how short-form video intersects with Hollywood. Links: Sorry, Baby Read the Sorry, Baby screenplay Eva vs. Anxiety Eva’s straight pride parade video on X Demetri Papadimitropoulos’s review of the Scriptnotes Book Certain Women I Saw the TV Glow Girl on Girl by Sophie Gilbert Vancouver SkyTrain Nutella mini jars rainymood.com Get your copy of the Scriptnotes book! Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Become a Scriptnotes Premium member, or gift a subscription Subscribe to Scriptnotes on YouTube Scriptnotes on Instagram John August on Bluesky and Instagram Outro by Nick Moore (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here. UPDATE 2-17-26: The transcript for this episode can be found here.The post Preparing to Direct (with Eva Victor) first appeared on John August.

John and Craig consider all the words they have to write and ask, how do you know when something deserves your best effort? They offer a useful rubric for deciding when something is worth perfecting, and when over-optimization is a waste of time. We also follow up on compulsive writing habits, industry euphemisms, back issues, and the impact and legacy of the WGA’s 2019 agency negotiations. In our bonus segment for premium members, it’s a new year! John looks back at things he accomplished in 2025 and his goals for 2026, while Craig sighs and gestures in the direction of The Last of Us. Links: Jamie Lee Curtis says “Trauma” Concept Creep: Psychology’s Expanding Concepts of Harm and Pathology by Nick Haslam Young Connor Storrie on YouTube Steve Jobs introduces the iPhone Elon Musk announces the Cybertruck Valentina Vee on TikTok and Instagram Birth by Madison Karrh John’s What I Did in 2025 Get your copy of the Scriptnotes book! Get a Scriptnotes T-shirt! Check out the Inneresting Newsletter Become a Scriptnotes Premium member, or gift a subscription Subscribe to Scriptnotes on YouTube Scriptnotes on Instagram John August on Bluesky and Instagram Outro by Eric Pearson (send us yours!) Scriptnotes is produced by Drew Marquardt and edited by Matthew Chilelli. Email us at ask@johnaugust.com You can download the episode here. UPDATE 1-22-26: The transcript for this episode can be found here.The post When Good Enough Isn’t Enough first appeared on John August.