Michael Green, screenwriter
This episode of Zack’s Film Talks at SDSU is hosted by Libsyn. My guest is Michael Green, who wrote Blade Runner 2049 with Hampton Fancher. Michael was raised in Mamaroneck, NY, and went to Stanford University. He wrote for Sex and the City and is the co-creator of American Gods. In this episode, Michael talks about: the importance of reading why it's good to go to the movies, as opposed to just watching them how he once made two stacks of film scripts—ones he felt were better than his, and those he felt he could do better than—and spent time studying and learning “by dissection” from the best JohnAugust.com—a screenwriting website/podcast he highly recommends Green Lantern and his early fascination with comics the “constant battle” he undergoes between creating original projects and working on adaptations To prep for Blade Runner 2049, Michael read the great noir novels. We collected a few lists here: https://www.amazon.com/Hardboiled-America-Lurid-Paperbacks-Masters/dp/0306807734, http://www.mensjournal.com/expert-advice/best-old-school-noir-novels-20160217, https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/50-must-read-noir-detective-novels/. Full interview transcription: Hello, and welcome to Zack’s Film Talks at SDSU, a film podcast featuring interviews with screenwriters, directors, cinematographers, and more. This is Episode 1. My guest today is screenwriter Michael Green, who co-wrote Blade Runner 2049. Michael talks about the importance of structure in a screenplay, and he warns writers not to become paralyzed by research. Our conversation was recorded November 9, 2017. ZS: Hey, Michael, how are you? MG: Hey, great. ZS: Thank you so much for doing this, by the way. So was there a particular moment in your life when you knew you wanted to be in the film industry or just screenwriting in general? MG: … That question comes up from time to time, because people will often look for creation myths in writers and writing. Unfortunately, writers and writing tends to be a much less romantic profession—much more a slog. But what I can definitely track in myself is a persistent love of television and film. Even times when I wanted to be a doctor or a comedian or carpenter or doctor or any of the other things that seemed appealing, I did all that fantasizing while watching way too much TV and wanting to go to the movies. That’s where my passion lay. And I just got very fortunate that I had a moment of brain connection that perhaps I should do what I loved, and also even more fortunate that I was given the opportunities to do so. ZS: Great. So is there anything in particular that gives you inspiration as a screenwriter? MG: I think any screenwriter that doesn’t read a lot is probably not tapping into their best potential or inspiration. Reading has always been what makes for more writing—and going to the movies, and watching television shows that are great and wonderful. These days going to the movies as opposed to just watching them at home—they’re very different experiences. … [I]n television, [watch] the show on-air the way the audience would see it. So if it’s a network show … watch it on the air with commercials. … ZS: Yeah, I definitely agree. I think going to the movies is probably just the best way to watch anything. It gives you a completely different experience than just watching it in your own home. MG: Absolutely. It’s an indulgence. But one should indulge, especially if that’s your art. What’s the last movie you saw in a theater? ZS: It was actually Blade Runner. MG: Oh! Good answer! I will take that! ZS: It was great, by the way. MG: I strongly recommend that the next movie you see be Murder on the Orient Express. … ZS: So you mentioned reading in one of your answers. I saw that you—I read the Hollywood Reporter interview where you said that when you started writing you made two stacks of scripts: one that you thought your work was
