John August on Screenwriter Insights and Founding Scriptnotes

This week on One Moore Hollywood Podcast, our hosts, Chris Moore, Katie Marpe, and Dennis De Nobile, have screenwriter John August on the pod to discuss everything from his iconic career as a screenwriter to developing his podcast Scriptnotes. They chat about his inspiration for Scriptnotes, why versatility is valuable in screenwriting, and why a screenwriter needs good people skills. 

Paving the Way for Future Screenwriters

Early in August's career, IMDB started a weekly column for industry folk to answer questions about their jobs. This column became a popular online forum in the early stages of blogging. For about a year, August did this, responding to questions from people worldwide who were interested in screenwriting.

Unbeknownst to August, this stint of giving advice and engaging in conversation with curious people would eventually lead to his blog and subsequent podcast, Scriptnotes. As a kid from Iowa who saw a screenplay for the first time in college, August imagines the same kid listening to his podcast, fascinated by screenwriting but with no clue how to get started. "If I can give the right answer, I want to,” he says. 

For August, the transition from blogging to podcasting was welcome, partly because of the ability to have guests who brought depth and variance to the conversations. "It gives me a chance to meet some really interesting other filmmakers, writers, and actors…and it gets me out of just me having the right answer," he says.

All About Scriptnotes

Now approaching 600 episodes, Scriptnotes has been a successful journey thus far, helping aspiring writers learn about the ins and outs of writing for Hollywood. Scriptnotes focuses on demystifying the process of screenwriting in the film and television industry and breaking down major events and changes within the industry. As an important sidenote, Scriptnotes is also Marpe’s favorite podcast. She used to send select episodes to her students to explain current industry news and still listens to it regularly. 

On Scriptnotes, August discusses the processes that make up a screenwriting career and brings a dose of healthy criticism to the industry. Following the MeToo movement, Scriptnotes asked listeners what pressing issues in the industry warranted discussion. One topic that came to the forefront was low assistant pay, so August recorded conversations unpacking the unjust financial reality of assistants in Hollywood, discussing what would need to change so that they could survive and flourish. As a podcast, Scriptnotes wants to identify what should be addressed in Hollywood that might be consistently overlooked, overshadowed, or ignored. 

Screenwriting Insight

August began his screenwriting career in Hollywood with the movie Go in 1999. Since then, he has made a considerable name for himself with works such as Big Fish, Charlie's Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 

What's clear from this list of films is that even from a small sampling, August has written within a wide range of genres, and this versatility has been invaluable for his career as a screenwriter. "My ability to work in a lot of genres and work with many different people makes my career possible," August says. 

While being a good writer is obviously necessary, August is adamant that writing a script is only part of the requirements for being a screenwriter. Social skills are vital to this career path because you need to sell your work (i.e., your stories). These days, it's harder than ever to sell anything, making those social skills even more valuable. 

A regularly featured episode on Scriptnotes that helps listeners understand how executives read through scripts is called the three-page challenge. These episodes give live feedback on the first three pages of several user-submitted scripts (plucked from a pile of approximately 150). "This gives listeners a sense of what the person reading the script is experiencing and what a studio executive or agent is going to think when they look at these pages," August explains. 

So, if you're interested in a career as a screenwriter, brush up on those people skills, try writing in as many different genres as possible, and listen to an episode of Scriptnotes because they're liquid gold.

Listen to the entire episode here: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or iHeartRadio.