Act Two Podcast

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman sit down with Alyssa Alvarado, the Screenplay Department Director of the Austin Film Festival, to chat about what makes AFF the best festival in the US for Screenwriters and what writers can expect by both applying and attending the festival, including tips on networking successfully while in Austin.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GR...

It is the Midpoint of the 2023 Summer Blockbuster season! Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss the Barbenheimer phenomenon and what's been good, bad and ugly so far this Summer at the theaters.    TWIW: Act Two's Idea Creation Night, Why studios hire A-list writers when a lower-level writer could do the job for cheaper, Favorite MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE titles and why they do/do not work.   Questio...

Back by popular demand, Screenwriter Dan Kunka (12 ROUNDS) talks with hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman about his journey through arbitration for his latest film, LIFT, based on his spec, and why more writers need to learn that being rewritten is simply part of the job.    Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Screenwriters have been inspired for a long time by JJ Abrams's "Mystery Box" TED Talk from 2007. It gave a glimpse into JJ's genius as a writer whose movies and shows were irresistible and impossibly engaging. In this episode, hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman walk through JJ's TED Talk and how and why the "Mystery Box" could make you a better writer.   TWIW: SAG-AFTRA has joined the WGA on strike...

As huge genre fans, hosts Tasha Huo & Josh Hallman discuss their thoughts on FLASH and INDIANA JONES: DIAL OF DESTINY. *Spoilers definitely ahead, beware!*   TWIW: Quiet Writers vs. Loud Writers in a TV Writer's Room, that time Josh saw INCEPTION with Christopher Nolan, and NO HARD FEELINGS (with Jennifer Lawrence)   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundq...

It's a blockbuster Summer like we haven't seen in years. Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss the Summer 2023 line-up and what are the must-sees in theater.    TWIW: the unlikely origin story of a Fast & Furious cast member, and different structures writers use to write.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

This Week in Writing includes wildly different reviews of Spiderverse by hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman, Hollywood books that have made it on their reading lists, the DGA agreement and AI, and the State of the (Screenwriter) Union.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

What are the main tenets when writing a short film? Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss what you should be thinking about as you embark on writing your short film in terms of story, character and structure. TWIW: ChatGPT writes "Black Mirror" episodes and BURN IT DOWN by Maureen Ryan and toxicity in writers rooms.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundq...

What is Arbitration, how does it work, and what does a Screenwriter have to do when it happens to them? Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss Tasha's recent (and first!) arbitration experience trying to retain credit on one of her features, breaking the process down from start to finish.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

After a day of picketing, hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman chat about what it's like to picket and how WGA writers they talked to are currently feeling about the strike.    Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo & Josh Hallman discuss a blog post by Final Draft about 5 Ways to stretch your Screenwriting muscles every day so you never lose writing momentum, even on days you don't feel like writing.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss how Screen and TV writers get paid, and why the pay system can make it difficult to grow your Screenwriting career.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss how the WGA Strike has affected them and their projects, and suggest resources for WGA and pre-WGA writers to learn more about the Strike, why it's happening, and how it can affect them.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss the MARIO movie, 3 different kinds of note-taking writer personalities, the hopeful future of movie theaters, and Josh's first visit to a David H. Steinberg Writer Meet-Up.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Back by popular demand... In part two of a series, hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss Hollywood phrases that producers, studio execs, and reps say to writers. They discuss what they mean, where they're coming from, and how to address them as a writer.    Questions / Comments: ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hollywood has its own language that writers must learn to speak in order to succeed. In this Part One of a series, hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss some of the most-used phrases that producers, studio execs and reps say to writers. They discuss what they mean, where they're coming from, and how to address them as a writer.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREA...

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman have been in the same Writer's Group together since 2009. They discuss how their group started, how they function from week to week, and the Do's and Don'ts that have kept their group running smoothly.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss how they go about writing heists. Having written a few heists between them, both for film and TV, Tasha and Josh break down the first steps they take to organize and plot their heist before going to script.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and how you can apply it to your Screenwriting career.   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman break down what it means to "hustle" as a Screenwriter. TWIW: What writers can learn from actors on pitching, How pitching a movie requires multiple skills as a writer so get good at all of them, and the writer term "Is it a bug or a feature?"   Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist Music by 414Beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman talk about what we can learn about how actors look at writing, discuss whether specs are necessary for a successful Screenwriting career, how to sell a script in animation and more This Weeks in Writing!   Questions/Comments: ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the great Paul Lundquist Music by 414beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman talk with screenwriter Nicole Ramberg about her script CRAIGSHAVEN which landed on the 2022 Black List. We also talk about her career path, working in Hollywood, and her love for Amblin-esque movies.    Questions/Comments: ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the great Paul Lundquist Music by 414beg

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman sit down with Screenwriter Paul Bae, creator of the hit podcast series BLACK TAPES, and talk about how he turned his screenplay into a podcast to jump start his Screenwriting career, how he got his agents, how Twitter has helped his career, and how he has managed to make it in Hollywood as a Canadian still living in Canada.   Questions / Comments: ActTwoWriters@gma...

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss their This Week in Writing, including AMC's debacle with seat sales, the newly-released TED LASSO teaser, how to give and receive targeted notes to help a writer write the script they want to write (not you), and a look into what a typical pro Screenwriter's career actually looks like and why some call it the "Screenwriting Wilderness".   Questions / Commen...

Hosts Tasha Huo and Josh Hallman discuss... pacing and action sequences! We love action and the pacing is so important to your screenplay. We also discuss general meetings and the length of specs.    Questions / Comments:  ActTwoWriters@gmail.com Edited by the GREAT Paul Lundquist