584 episodes

The definitive insider's guide to our current golden age of television, Ben Blacker's The Writers Panel is an ever expanding anthology of live convention panels and intimate in-studio interviews with the writers, producers, and show runners responsible for all the shows you can't stop watching. Over the course of nearly 500 episodes and counting, The Writers Panel has sat across from guests such as Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad), Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele (Key and Peele), Liz Meriwether (New Girl), and Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers) to talk about the art and business of creating great television.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Writers Panel Ben Blacker

    • TV & Film
    • 4.8 • 5 Ratings

The definitive insider's guide to our current golden age of television, Ben Blacker's The Writers Panel is an ever expanding anthology of live convention panels and intimate in-studio interviews with the writers, producers, and show runners responsible for all the shows you can't stop watching. Over the course of nearly 500 episodes and counting, The Writers Panel has sat across from guests such as Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad), Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele (Key and Peele), Liz Meriwether (New Girl), and Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers) to talk about the art and business of creating great television.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    David Koepp (Jurassic Park; Spider-man; Mission Impossible)

    David Koepp (Jurassic Park; Spider-man; Mission Impossible)

    Jurassic Park, Spider-man, Mission: Impossible, Carlito's Way, Indiana Jones, Bad Influence, Kimi, Snake Eyes, Panic Room, Presence, Black Bag, and even more. We're lucky to have David Koepp on today's episode.
    Want to participate in a writing workshop this summer with Ben Blacker and some terrific writers? Go from idea to first draft or get a rewrite into fighting shape? Email NerdistWriters@gmail.com
    Come see Dead Pilots Society on Sunday, June 30, 2-4pm PT at the Elysian Theater in LA! In Dead Pilots Society scripts that were developed by studios and networks but were never produced are given the table reads they deserve.
    The June 30 show at the Elysian Theater features scripts by Dario Konjicija & Damir Konjicija (Home Economics; Young Sheldon) and Jordan Roter (American Housewife).
    The cast includes: Beth Dover (Orange Is the New Black), Jonathan Tucker (Kingdom; Westworld), Josh Banday (Upload; Not Dead Yet), Vinny Thomas (Platonic; Ahsoka), Leah Lewis (Matlock; Elemental), Punam Patel (Special; Ghosts) and more to be announced!
    Get live or video-on-demand tickets here.
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 4 min
    Quinn Shephard and Samir Mehta (Under the Bridge)

    Quinn Shephard and Samir Mehta (Under the Bridge)

    Under the Bridge creator Quinn Shephard (writer/director, Not Okay) and showrunner Samir Mehta (Narcos; Fear the Walking Dead) discuss couching emotional story in mystery plot, finding the universal in the specific, the Sopranos as children and as comedy, writing from the heart, reading to hire a room, and lots more.
    Come see Dead Pilots Society on Sunday, June 30, 2-4pm PT at the Elysian Theater in LA! In Dead Pilots Society scripts that were developed by studios and networks but were never produced are given the table reads they deserve.
    The June 30 show at the Elysian Theater features scripts by Dario Konjicija & Damir Konjicija (Home Economics; Young Sheldon) and Jordan Roter (American Housewife).
    The cast includes: Beth Dover (Orange Is the New Black), Josh Banday (Upload; Not Dead Yet), Vinny Thomas (Platonic; Ahsoka), Leah Lewis (Matlock; Elemental), Punam Patel (Special; Ghosts) and more to be announced!
    Get live or video-on-demand tickets here.
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 40 min
    The Big Cigar's Janine Sherman Barois and Jim Hecht

    The Big Cigar's Janine Sherman Barois and Jim Hecht

    The Big Cigar's Janine Sherman Barois (Claws; Criminal Minds) and Jim Hecht (Winning Time; Ice Age) discuss the responsibility of telling true stories, how The Big Cigar isn't just a biopic, working on multiple projects, the state of the industry, and more.
    Come see Dead Pilots Society on Sunday, June 30, 2-4pm PT at the Elysian Theater in LA! In Dead Pilots Society scripts that were developed by studios and networks but were never produced are given the table reads they deserve.
    The June 30 show at the Elysian Theater features scripts by Dario Konjicija & Damir Konjicija (Home Economics; Young Sheldon) and Jordan Roter (American Housewife).
    The cast includes: Beth Dover (Orange Is the New Black), Josh Banday (Upload; Not Dead Yet), Vinny Thomas (Platonic; Ahsoka), Leah Lewis (Matlock; Elemental), Punam Patel (Special; Ghosts) and more to be announced!
    Get live or video-on-demand tickets here.
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 37 min
    The First Omen's Arkasha Stevenson + Tim Smith

    The First Omen's Arkasha Stevenson + Tim Smith

    The First Omen writer/director Arkasha Stevenson and co-writer Tim Smith discuss bringing their perspective to a beloved franchise, body horror, David Lynch, their writing process, that image, and more.
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 42 min
    Ned Benson (The Greatest Hits)

    Ned Benson (The Greatest Hits)

    Writer/director Ned Benson (The Greatest Hits; The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby) discusses writing an earnest love story, writing through the lens of a director, the delusions of belief, when to let go, and more.
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 42 min
    Aron Eli Coleite (Spiderwick Chronicles; Atlas)

    Aron Eli Coleite (Spiderwick Chronicles; Atlas)

    Aron Eli Coleite (creator/showrunner, The Spiderwick Chronicles; Atlas) discusses dialogue and action, helpful Aron-isms, our goldfish attention spans, key differences between TV and movie writing, why development takes so long now, and lots more.
    Come see Retrospecs on Sunday, May 19, 2-4pm PT at the Elysian Theater in LA! In Retrospecs, we dig those old scripts by established writers out of their drawers and expose them to the warm light of the stage. Starring actors you know and love from TV, film, comedy, and the stage. From Girls to Gilmore Girls, from the Big Bang Theory to Buffy, get NEW EPISODES of your favorite shows, written by writers who never wrote for those shows!
    The May 19 show is a benefit for the Green Envelope Fund and features a Seinfeld by David Iserson (The Spy Who Dunped Me; New Girl) and a Succession written by "Fake Carol Lombardini" that takes place during the WGA/SAG strike and co-stars real Carol Lombardini!
    Live or streaming/VOD tickets here: https://tinyurl.com/Retro519
    THE WRITERS PANEL IS A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.
    Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, Re:Writing, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 48 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
5 Ratings

5 Ratings

FelishaP ,

Worth Listening

Love this podcast! Thank you Ben for taking the time to interview so many writers. Your own curiosity regarding the writers and their projects shows though and makes the podcast great (especially when a writer gives a cryptic / vague answer, and then you interrupt to dig a little deeper, therefore satisfying your own curiosity and mine). This is all very helpful, so thanks again.

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