Working on my current machinima feature has made me realize I've been doing previs without knowing that's what it was. Previs — previsualization — is a moving storyboard, and like traditional storyboards it comes in many forms. For a presentation I've been developing for this group, I pulled together several versions of the same scene from Anna Fermin's MADE pilot: a written cinematic breakdown I WROTE, FORMATED by Claude and a visual storyboard generated with GPT. For my own work I use Boords software — essentially a digital cork board, the same way a writer might pin index cards the way David Stem does, just without the tactile element. Each method has a different cost, a different look, and a different use case — but they all originate from the same place: the creative mind of the writer and creator. The Coen Brothers are famous for boarding every shot before they touch a camera, the entire film mapped before a single day of principal photography. A storyboard in any form is a director, crew, or screenwriter seeing the story before anyone else does.

Hello guys. Just a quick one. One I’m struggling with but not in a rush yet. How do you guys come up with a catchy title. - I’m being picky af. And i know it’s a me problem. So i struggle to settle on one. I’m thinking, something short, sweet and rememberable. But ya girl over thinks it. 🫣

"How to Get to Heaven from Belfast" (9.4 RT) ...an 8 part series about 4 high-school friends who reunite when one of them dies (or did she?). Hilarious...and terrific writing. (although I would suggest subtitles as the Irish accents are a bit thick in some spots) Think of it as a mashup of Fleabag and Ripley (also both excellent). Enjoy.

Really great session today — the kind where we got into the stuff that actually matters. Before we got into pages, @Krystel Biasotti debuted a web tool she built for the group that will let everyone RSVP, claim character roles, and upload scripts before each session. No downloads, no accounts — one link. This is exactly the kind of initiative that makes a community more than just a class. Grateful she brought it. Then we went deep on something I've been wanting to address for a while: how to work with producers, rights holders, and IP — before you've written a single page they've asked for. Ian raised a question about a prequel he's developing based on an existing film, and it opened up a conversation that I think applies to every writer in this group. The instinct is to go away, write the perfect script, and come back with something polished and finished. I get it. I've felt that pull too. But that approach almost always backfires. The people who own the rights — or the executives sitting across from you — need to feel like creative partners. They need to feel like they helped shape what's on the page, even if you did all the actual writing. That's not a compromise of your vision. That's understanding the game. I shared a story about a pitch I took solo a few years back, based on a video game IP. I went in and told the producer flat out: "I'm not here to hand you a movie. I'm here to engage you in a process that a movie results from." That shift in framing changed everything. By the fourth meeting, they'd already let the other writer go — and I was still talking through ideas. The lesson: come prepared, come passionate, come with 200 pages of private notes if you need them. But walk into that room ready to listen and collaborate, not just to impress. We also talked about the difference between a "Story By" credit and a "Written By" credit — and why writers shouldn't fear giving producers a sense of ownership. They want the producing credit. You protect the screenplay credit.

Coaching Sesh - Friday 12 Pacific Time Thanks to everyone who's been showing up and dramatically up-levelling their writing game. I'm not even sure up-levelling is a word. But I'm declaring it one because that's what's going on in these sessions! What word would you have it be? Throw one out below and drop your pages. Let's keep the momentum going, people! And if you're a Standard Member and have yet to be part of one of these special Premier sessions, DM me and I'll get you in so you can see what the excitement is about! Thx! David