April 8 – Barbie

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on April 8th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the Oscar-nominated screenplay BARBIE.

LOGLINE: Iconic dolls Barbie and Ken leave their perfect fantasy world to discover the joys and perils of living among humans in the real world.

ABOUT THE WRITERS: Based on the doll created in 1959 by RUTH HANDLER for her toy company, Mattel, and other characters that have appeared in three television specials, three Netflix series, numerous shorts and web series, and 42 direct-to-video computer-animated feature-length films, this live-action smash was adapted by GRETA GERWIG & NOAH BAUMBACH, one of three couples who competed in the two screenplay categories this year at the Academy Awards. Gerwig, who also directed Barbie, began her career as an actress in a series of acclaimed “mumblecore” movies. She has been nominated for Oscars for writing and directing Lady Bird and for her 2019 screenplay adaptation of Little Women. She shares her fourth Oscar nomination, for Barbie‘s screenplay, with her husband, Baumbach, who was previously nominated for his original screenplays Marriage Story and The Squid and the Whale, both of which he directed. Together, the pair had previously collaborated on Frances Ha and Mistress America, both of which Gerwig also starred in and Baumbach directed. They were married last December. Gerwig recently worked on a script for Disney’s upcoming live-action Snow White reboot and is currently working on two Chronicles of Narnia adaptations that she will direct for Netflix.

(registration deadline: Friday, April 5)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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Starring Margot Robbie (I, Tonya), who also produced the blockbuster, Barbie‘s cast includes Ryan Gosling (The Notebook), America Ferrera (Ugly Betty), Kate McKinnon (SNL), Rhea Perlman (Cheers), Will Ferrell (Old School), and Michael Cera (Arrested Development).

Released by Warner Bros. last July, Barbie went on to become the highest-grossing movie of the year, the highest-grossing live-action comedy ever, and the first film by a solo female director to gross over $1 billion.

It was nominated for 8 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay, and won for Best Original Song (“What Was I Made For?”). Cumulatively, the film has won over 180 awards (including six People’s Choice Awards) and received over 400 nominations, with five BAFTA nominations including Best Original Screenplay, nine Golden Globe nominations including Best Screenplay, and a Best Original Screenplay nod still pending from the Writers Guild of America.

Rated PG-13. 115 pages. 114 minutes. Comedy. Fantasy. Musical.

MELODY JACKSON will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. Melody completed her Ph.D. in Mythological Studies in 2003 with her dissertation on “The Mythic Impact of Film.” She has been praised by Creative Screenwriting on multiple occasions for her exceptional knowledge of traditional three-act structure and character development. Known for approaching plot and structure through examination of character motivation and relationships, Melody offers consulting and marketing services to screenwriters through Smart Girls, which she founded in 1992. Since then she has helped over 2,500 writers improve their screenplays to get them to 20th Century Fox, Warner Bros., Disney, Paramount, CAA, and countless medium-sized and smaller production companies. Visit SmartG.com or follow @smartgirlspr on Twitter.

March 11 – Poor Things

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on March 11th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the Oscar-nominated screenplay POOR THINGS.

LOGLINE: A dead woman, reanimated with a fresh brain by a mad scientist, embarks on an odyssey of self-discovery and sexual liberation in Victorian London.

ABOUT THE WRITERS: Poor Things was adapted from the award-winning 1992 novel by writer and artist ALASDAIR GRAY, who has been called “the father figure of the renaissance in Scottish literature and art.” Director Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth, The Lobster) first approached Gray in 2009 to acquire the rights to the book but was unable to get the film greenlit until his 2018 comedy, The Favourite, had become a major commercial success. Australian playwright and TV writer TONY McNAMARA co-wrote The Favourite, which won the BAFTA award for Best Original Screenplay and was also nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe in the same category. McNamara then co-wrote the Disney hit Cruella and created the series The Great for Hulu before adapting Poor Things for Lanthimos, earning him his second Academy Award nomination.

(registration deadline: Friday, March 8)

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Single Meeting Fee: $45
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Released last year by Searchlight Pictures on December 8, Poor Things is nominated for eleven Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay, and eleven BAFTA awards, including Best Film and Best Adapted Screenplay. The film also won two Golden Globe awards, including Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy) and more than 90 other industry awards (out of nearly 400 total nominations) so far!

Poor Things stars Emma Stone (La La Land, The Amazing Spider-Man), Mark Ruffalo (The Avengers), Willem Dafoe (Spider-Man, Aquaman), and Ramy Youssef (Ramy).

Rated R. 97 pages. 141 minutes. Comedy. Science Fiction.

STEVE KAPLAN will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. The industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy, Steve has taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale, and other top universities, and created the HBO Workspace and the HBO New Writers Program. As co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre he developed writers such as Peter Tolan (Analyze This), David Crane (Friends), Tracy Poust (Ugly Betty), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), and Mark O’Donnel (Hairspray). Steve teaches a number of different workshops all over the globe, including The Comedy Intensive, a 2-day workshop that covers the fundamental principles of comedy. His new five-part interactive online class, “Write Your Comedy Screenplay,” starts on March 23, 2024. Look for his books The Hidden Tools of Comedy and The Comic Hero’s Journey, learn more about Steve and his workshops at kaplancomedy.com, and follow him on Twitter at @skcomedy where you can tweet quick comedy questions at him with the #AskKaplan hashtag.

February 12 – American Fiction

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on February 12th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the screenplay AMERICAN FICTION.

LOGLINE: A novelist writes an outlandishly stereotypical “Black” book under a pseudonym to make a point about offensive tropes, but the book’s surprise success propels him to the heart of the hypocrisy and madness he claims to disdain.

ABOUT THE WRITERS: American Fiction was adapted from the 2001 novel Erasure by PERCIVAL EVERETT, a Distinguished Professor of English at USC, best known for his 2009 novel I Am Not Sidney Poitier. Everett won the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize for fiction in 2023. Erasure is his first novel to hit the big screen. Former Gawker editor CORD JEFFERSON wrote the screenplay. When Gawker shut down in 2015, Jefferson began writing for such television shows as The Good Place and Master of None. In 2020, he won a WGA award and a Primetime Emmy for his writing on HBO’s Watchmen. American Fiction is both his first produced feature screenplay and his directorial debut.

(registration deadline: Friday, February 9)

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American Fiction stars Emmy and Tony Award winner Jeffrey Wright (Angels in America, The Batman), Tracee Ellis Ross (Black-ish, The High Note), Issa Rae (Barbie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse), Sterling K. Brown (The People v. O.J. Simpson), John Ortiz (Fast & Furious), Erika Alexander (The Cosby Show), and the legendary Leslie Uggams (Roots, Deadpool 1-3).

The movie premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September where it won the the festival’s People’s Choice Award. The film is nominated for five Independent Spirit Awards including Best Screenplay and Best Feature and has accumulated more than thirty awards and 140 nominations so far. It is currently playing only in theaters.

Rated R. 110 pages. 117 minutes. Comedy.

DIANA LESMEZ will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. A produced feature-film screenwriter and an award-winning filmmaker, Diana is a Jane-of-all-trades with vast industry experience in production, development, acquisitions, distribution, physical production, film finance, business and legal affairs, as well as new media. She wrote the adapted screenplay for the feature film The Journey Ahead starring Michael Madsen, and produced the feature film Culture Class in AmeriCCA directed by Emilio Estevez. Previously, she served as President of Production at a mini-studio, Arenas Entertainment in partnership with Universal Pictures, and was the Head of Development for a production entity, Patriot Pictures, and the industry liaison for Banque Paribas, a film financing institution, and has taught at the New York Film Academy. Via her banner company, Bumptious Media Consulting, Diana offers screenwriting and producing one-on-one coaching, workshops, and master classes, with a specialty in pitching and mastering communication skills. Follow her on Twitter (@DianaLesmez) and visit her website, dianalesmez.com, for more information.

September 11 – The Holdovers

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on September 11th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the comedy screenplay THE HOLDOVERS.

LOGLINE: An unpopular teacher, a rebellious student, and a school cafeteria cook are the only ones left at a boarding school over Christmas break in 1970.

ABOUT THE WRITER: According to Deadline, director Alexander Payne came up with the story idea but had no experience with boarding schools, so he hired DAVID HEMINGSON to write the screenplay after reading his writing sample for a TV pilot set in a prep school. Hemingson cut his teeth in children’s TV writing for Nickelodeon’s The Adventures of Pete & Pete and Disney’s 101 Dalmatians: The Series and Hercules: The Animated Series. He went on to write and produce for such sitcoms as Just Shoot Me, How I Met Your Mother, and Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23 and created Kitchen Confidential, based on Anthony Bourdain’s book of the same name and starring Bradley Cooper as a fictional version of Bourdain, for which Hemingson was nominated for a WGA Award. Moving into drama, Hemingson created the sexy spy thriller series Whiskey Cavalier, which premiered after the Oscars in 2019. The Holdovers is his first theatrical feature film writing credit.

(registration deadline: Friday, September 8)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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The Holdovers stars Paul Giamati (Sideways), Da’Vine Joy Randolph (Only Murders in the Building), Carrie Preston (True Blood), Tate Donovan (The O.C.), and newcomer Dominic Sessa. The film is scheduled to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in October. Focus Features is planning a limited theatrical release on October 27, followed by a wide theatrical release on November 10.

Rated R. 117 pages. 133 minutes. Comedy.

STEVE KAPLAN will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. The industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy, Steve has taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale, and other top universities, and created the HBO Workspace and the HBO New Writers Program. As co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre he developed writers such as Peter Tolan (Analyze This), David Crane (Friends), Tracy Poust (Ugly Betty), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), and Mark O’Donnel (Hairspray). Steve teaches a number of different workshops all over the globe, including The Comedy Intensive, a 2-day workshop that covers the fundamental principles of comedy. Look for his books The Hidden Tools of Comedy and The Comic Hero’s Journey, learn more about Steve and his workshops at kaplancomedy.com, and follow him on Twitter at @skcomedy where you can tweet quick comedy questions at him with the #AskKaplan hashtag.

June 12 – No Hard Feelings

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on June 12th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the raunchy comedy screenplay NO HARD FEELINGS.

LOGLINE: When an Uber driver’s car is repossessed, she answers a Craigslist ad posted by helicopter parents promising a Buick Regal if she can successfully “date” their introverted 19-year-old incel son before he goes to college without letting him know they hired her.

ABOUT THE WRITERS: Ukranian-born American filmmaker GENE STUPNITSKY began his writing career in 2005 with writing partner Lee Eisenberg on the staff of The Office. Their first feature writing credit came with Year One, directed and co-written by Harold Ramis. They followed that up with Bad Teacher starring Cameron Diaz and Justin Timberlake, which they spun off into a CBS sitcom, before Stupnitsky made his directorial debut with Good Boys for producers Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. He wrote No Hard Feelings specifically for his friend, Academy Award winner Jennifer Lawrence, to star in; she also produced the project through her Excellent Cadaver banner. Upright Citzens Brigade comedian JOHN PHILLIPS broke into the business with his raunchy comedy spec script Dirty Grandpa, which starred Robert De Niro and Zac Efron. He was an associate producer on Stupnitsky’s Good Boys before teaming up with him to write No Hard Feelings, which is his second writing credit.

(registration deadline: Friday, June 9)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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The Sony Pictures release, directed by Stupnitksy, opens on June 23 and co-stars Andrew Barth Feldman (Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway), with Matthew Broderick (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off), Laura Benanti (Supergirl), Natalie Morales (Stuber, Parks and Recreation), Scott MacArthur (The Mick), Hasan Minhaj (The Daily Show), Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Girls), and Kyle Mooney (Saturday Night Live) in supporting roles.

Rated R. 113 pages. Comedy.

DIANA LESMEZ will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. A produced feature-film screenwriter and an award-winning filmmaker, Diana is a Jane-of-all-trades with vast industry experience in production, development, acquisitions, distribution, physical production, film finance, business and legal affairs, as well as new media. She wrote the adapted screenplay for the feature film The Journey Ahead starring Michael Madsen, and produced the feature film Culture Class in AmeriCCA directed by Emilio Estevez. Previously, she served as President of Production at a mini-studio, Arenas Entertainment in partnership with Universal Pictures, and was the Head of Development for a production entity, Patriot Pictures, and the industry liaison for Banque Paribas, a film financing institution, and has taught at the New York Film Academy. Via her banner company, Bumptious Media Consulting, Diana offers screenwriting and producing one-on-one coaching, workshops, and master classes, with a specialty in pitching and mastering communication skills. Follow her on Twitter (@DianaLesmez) and visit her website, dianalesmez.com, for more information.

March 13 – Everything Everywhere All at Once

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on March 13th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the Oscar-nominated screenplay EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE.

LOGLINE: During an IRS audit, a laundromat owner is confronted by a version of her husband from a parallel universe who tells her she is the only version of herself who can save the multiverse from an evil version of her daughter.

ABOUT THE WRITERS: DANIEL KWAN and DANIEL SCHEINERT, collectively knowns as the Daniels, met while studying film at Emmerson College in Boston. They began their career making music videos for the likes of Foster the People, The Shins, and Tenacious D. Their 2014 video for “Turn Down For What” by DJ Snake and Lil Jon went viral, reaching one billion views on YouTube by 2020. Their first feature film, Swiss Army Man, stars Paul Dano as a shipwrecked man on an island whose only companion is a dead body that washes ashore, played by Daniel Radcliffe. Everything Everywhere All at Once is their second feature film together, following Scheinert’s solo outing, The Death of Dick Long, starring himself in the title role.

UPDATE: The Daniels originally wrote the script for Jackie Chan to star as the hero, Waymond. When he wasn’t available, they rewrote the script with Waymond’s wife, Evelyn, played by Michelle Yeoh, as the protagonist. We will discuss BOTH drafts, as well as how the finished film turned out.

(registration deadline: Friday, March 10)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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Everything Everywhere All at Once premiered at last year’s South by Southwest film festival and became distributor A24’s first film to gross $100 million worldwide. Currently, it leads this year’s Academy Award nominations with 11, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and four acting nominations. So far, the film has won two Golden Globes, four SAG awards, five Critics Choice Awards (including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay) and the Producers Guild award for Best Picture.

Currently streaming on Showtime and available everywhere to rent or purchase digitally or on DVD and Blu-ray, Everything Everywhere All at Once stars Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Avatar 3), Stephanie Hsu (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Ke Huy Quan (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, The Goonies), James Hong (Blade Runner, Chinatown), and Jamie Lee Curtis (Halloween, A Fish Called Wanda). If you have not yet seen the movie, it is highly recommended that you first read the screenplay so your initial impression is from the writing on the page.

Rated R. 125 pages. 139 minutes. Sci-Fi. Action. Comedy.

STEVE KAPLAN will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. The industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy, Steve has taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale, and other top universities, and created the HBO Workspace and the HBO New Writers Program. As co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre he developed writers such as Peter Tolan (Analyze This), David Crane (Friends), Tracy Poust (Ugly Betty), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), and Mark O’Donnel (Hairspray). Steve teaches a number of different workshops all over the globe, including The Comedy Intensive, a 2-day workshop that covers the fundamental principles of comedy. Look for his books The Hidden Tools of Comedy and The Comic Hero’s Journey, learn more about Steve and his workshops at kaplancomedy.com, and follow him on Twitter at @skcomedy where you can tweet quick comedy questions at him with the #AskKaplan hashtag.

October 10 – The Menu

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on October 10th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the dark comedy/horror screenplay THE MENU.

LOGLINE: A young couple travels to a remote island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the celebrity chef, who treats his food as conceptual art, has some shocking surprises for his wealthy guests.

WRITERS: The Menu is the first feature screenwriting credit for SETH REISS and WILL TRACY. A graduate of Boston University, Reiss began contributing to The Onion while working as a page for The Late Show with David Letterman. After interning at The Daily Show and working his way up to head writer at The Onion, he wrote for Late Night with Seth Meyers, earning Emmy nominations four years in a row for Best Writing for a Variety Series. Raised in Portland, Oregon, Tracy was the editor for The Onion and has won five Emmy awards: two for writing for Last Week with John Oliver, three for writing for HBO’s Succession. He also created the upcoming HBO miniseries The Palace starring Kate Winslet. Reiss and Tracy’s spec collaboration, The Menu, was on the 2019 Black List, and they both have executive producer credits on the film.

(registration deadline: Friday, October 7)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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Directed by Mark Mylod (Succession, Game of Thrones, Shameless), The Menu stars Ralph Fiennes (Schindler’s List, The English Patient), Anna Taylor-Joy (The Queen’s Gambit, Emma) and Nicholas Hoult (About a Boy, Renfield), with Hong Chau (Downsizing), Janet McTeer (Ozark), Judith Light (Who’s the Boss?), and John Leguizamo (Moulin Rouge!).

Produced by Adam McKay and Will Ferrell, the film premiered at the Toronto film festival in September and is scheduled to be released by Searchlight Pictures on November 18.

Rated R. 104 pages. 106 minutes. Drama. Thriller. Horror. Comedy.

Donna Michelle Anderson, will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. “DMA,” as she is professionally known, is a story analyst, development executive, and the author of Write It, Pitch It, Sell Your Screenplay: A Hollywood Buyer’s Insider Guide to Getting Your Script Past the Gatekeepers, an update of her 1-3-5 Story Structure Made Simple System: The Nine Essential Elements of a Sellable Screenplay, which was the first story structure system integrated into Final Draft. She has helmed top-rated programming for CBS, Bravo, BET, A&E, TLC and more. Visit her at PlanetDMA.com.

July 11 – Vengeance

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on July 11th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the black comedy screenplay VENGEANCE.

LOGLINE: A true-crime podcaster from New York investigates the mysterious death of a Texas woman he once dated.

B.J. NOVAK wrote, directed, and stars in Vengeance. Novak began his writing career while in college at the Harvard Lampoon and later performed stand-up comedy after graduating and moving to Los Angeles. He made his TV acting debut on MTV’s Punk’d with Ashton Kutcher, who co-stars with him in Vengeance, but is best known for his portrayal of temp worker Ryan Howard on The Office, where he also served as writer, director, and executive producer, earning five Emmy nominations and a WGA award. As an actor, Novak has appeared in such films as Inglourious Basterds, Saving Mr. Banks, and The Founder. He makes his feature film writing/directing debut with Vengeance.(registration deadline: Friday, July 8)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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Novak is joined on screen by Boyd Holbrook (The Sandman), Dove Cameron (Liv and Maddie), Issa Rae (Insecure), and Ashton Kutcher (That ’70s Show). The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 12 and is scheduled to be released nationwide by Focus Features on July 29.

Not Yet Rated. 116 pages (12/7/17 draft). 107 minutes. Comedy.

STEVE KAPLAN will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion of the sci-fi action comedy Free Guy. The industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy, Steve has taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale, and other top universities, and created the HBO Workspace and the HBO New Writers Program. As co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre he developed writers such as Peter Tolan (Analyze This), David Crane (Friends), Tracy Poust (Ugly Betty), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), and Mark O’Donnel (Hairspray). Steve teaches a number of different workshops all over the globe, including The Comedy Intensive, a 2-day workshop that covers the fundamental principles of comedy. Look for his books The Hidden Tools of Comedy and The Comic Hero’s Journey, learn more about Steve and his workshops at kaplancomedy.com, and follow him on Twitter at @skcomedy where you can tweet quick comedy questions at him with the #AskKaplan hashtag.

May 9 – The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on May 9th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the screenplay THE UNBEARABLE WEIGHT OF MASSIVE TALENT.

LOGLINE: Hollywood has-been Nick Cage finds himself tumbling down a rabbit hole of references to his past roles in a real-life action-adventure.

THE WRITERS: TV writer/producer KEVIN ETTON began his career as a writer for The Late Show with David Letterman. His credits include such notable shows as Scrubs, Reaper, Ghosted, and Desperate Housewives, for which he won a Golden Globe award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy. Unbearable is his first feature film screenplay credit, which he shares with the film’s director, TOM GORMICAN. In addition to working with Etton as a writer on Ghosted, Gormican co-produced the 2013 anthology comedy Movie 43 and made his directorial debut in 2014 with That Awkward Moment starring Zac Efron, Miles Teller, and Michael B. Jordan, from his spec script, Are We Officially Dating?, which landed on the 2010 Black List.

(registration deadline: Friday, May 6)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

Single Meeting Fee: $45
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The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent stars Academy Award winner NICOLAS CAGE (Leaving Las Vegas, Adaptation) as Nick Cage. The film also stars Pedro Pascal (The Mandalorian), Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe), Tiffany Haddish (Girls Trip), Ike Barinholtz (Suicide Squad), Alessandra Mastronardi (Master of None), DEMI MOORE (G.I. Jane) as Cage’s ex-wife, and Neil Patrick Harris (Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle).

Filmed in Croatia, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent premiered in March at the South by Southwest film festival. The Lionsgate film was released on April 22 and spent its opening weekend in the top five at the box office.

If you have not yet seen the movie, it is highly recommended that you first read the screenplay so your initial impression is from the writing. After reading the screenplay, please make an effort to watch the movie as our meeting will include discussion of the writing as well as what is seen and heard while watching the movie.

Rated R. 117 pages. 107 minutes. Action. Comedy.

BILL TAUB will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion. Screenwriter, producer, author, creative troubleshooter, and teacher Bill Taub has written or co-written the pilots for Relic Hunter, Friday the 13th: The Series, Mission Genesis, The Odyssey, and Dark Shadows (1991), as well as two unproduced pilots for NBC, Blue Skies and Burger Palace. He was recently honored by the WGA for his work on Barney Miller and Hill Street Blues, and his spec pilot, Raffle Guy, won first place at Scriptapalooza. Bill has also recently taught Creating a Web Series at UCLA Extension Online. His book, Automatic Pilot: Writing a TV Pilot has never been so easy!, is available at Amazon. For more information, visit billtaub.com. or follow @BillyTaub on Twitter.

August 9 – Free Guy

Meet ONLINE from 7:00-10:00 PM Pacific Time on August 9th for an in-depth analysis and discussion of the comedy screenplay FREE GUY.

LOGLINE: A bank teller discovers that he’s actually an NPC (non-player character) inside a brutal, open world video game.

SCREENWRITERS: The first draft of Free Guy was a spec script by MATT LIEBERMAN that appeared on the 2016 Black List, an annual survey of the industry’s best unproduced screenplays. Lieberman’s screenwriting career began in the Disney Feature Writer’s Program, where he worked on various scripts based on IP like Monopoly and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride that are still in development. His first spec sale, 12/24, a found-footage feature about two kids trying to catch Santa Claus on video, eventually became Netflix’s hit comedy The Christmas Chronicles. Lieberman also received story and writing credits on computer animated reboots of The Addams Family (2019) and Scooby Doo (Scoob!, 2020), and has several other projects in development, including reboots of The Jetsons and Rin Tin Tin, as well as the original screenplays Meet the Machines and Meebo and Me. Before going into production, Free Guy was re-written by ZAK PENN, whose other high-concept output includes Last Action Hero, The Incredible Hulk, The Avengers, and Ready Player One. [We will be reading and discussing Lieberman’s draft only.]

(registration deadline: Friday, August 6)

Registration in advance is required to attend the discussion, and includes a copy of the script sent to you in advance.

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Directed by Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum), Free Guy stars Ryan Reynolds (Deadpool), Jodie Comer (Killing Eve), Lil Rel Howery (Get Out), rapper Utkarsh Ambudkar (The Mindy Project), Joe Keery (Stranger Things), and Academy Award winner Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit). The comedy will be released theatrically by Disney’s 20th Century Studios on Friday, August 13.

Rated PG-13. 115 minutes. 109 pages (Lieberman’s undated Black List draft). Sci-Fi Action Comedy.

STEVE KAPLAN will provide in-depth analysis and lead our discussion of the sci-fi action comedy Free Guy. The industry’s most sought-after expert on comedy, Steve has taught at UCLA, NYU, Yale, and other top universities, and created the HBO Workspace and the HBO New Writers Program. As co-founder and Artistic Director of Manhattan Punch Line Theatre he developed writers such as Peter Tolan (Analyze This), David Crane (Friends), Tracy Poust (Ugly Betty), Kenneth Lonergan (Manchester by the Sea), and Mark O’Donnel (Hairspray). Steve teaches a number of different workshops all over the globe, including The Comedy Intensive, a 2-day workshop that covers the fundamental principles of comedy. Look for his books The Hidden Tools of Comedy and The Comic Hero’s Journey, learn more about Steve and his workshops at kaplancomedy.com, and follow him on Twitter at @skcomedy where you can tweet quick comedy questions at him with the #AskKaplan hashtag.