The Script Lab Podcast

IMPRACTICAL JOKERS: THE MOVIE Writer/Director/Producer Chris Henchy

Guest: Chris Henchy is best known as the producing partner with Will Farrell and Adam McKay, working on movies like Daddy's Home and Tammy, and TV shows like Eastbound and Down, and Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis. Now he's making his directorial debut with Impractical Jokers: The Movie based on the hit hidden camera show. Chris talks about the difficulty of shooting challenges with hidden cameras and non-actors; he also shares what each of the Jokers (Sal Vulcano, Brian Quinn, Joe Gatto, Brian Murray) are like in real life. He also reveals the one challenge that went so wrong, they couldn't include it in the movie. Host: Shanee Edwards graduated from UCLA Film School with an MFA in Screenwriting. She recently won the Next MacGyver television writing competition to create a TV show about a female engineer. Her pilot, Ada and the Machine, is currently in development with America Ferrera’s Take Fountain Productions. You can follow her on Twitter: @ShaneeEdwards The Script Lab: For all the latest from The Script Lab, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And become a member of TSL 360 to enjoy the LARGEST screenwriting education content library, featuring masterclasses, deep-dive interviews, and lectures from Academy Award-winning screenwriters, TV show-runners, producers, literary managers, agents, studio executives, and leading educators – all in one place.

Andrew Heckler, Writer/Director of BURDEN, Sundance Audience Award Winner

Guests: Andrew Heckler wrote and directed the independent film Burden. This powerful independent film won the Audience Award at Sundance and stars Garett Hedlund, Forest Whitaker, Tom Wilkinson and Usher. It’s based on a true story about what happens when a museum celebrating the Ku Klux Klan opens in a small South Carolina town. The idealistic Reverend Kennedy (played by Forest Whitaker) strives to keep the peace even as he urges the group's Grand Dragon (played by Tom Wilkinson) to disavow his racist past. Burden will release in theaters in Los Angeles and New York on Feb. 28 and then roll out to other cities across the country. Host: Shanee Edwards graduated from UCLA Film School with an MFA in Screenwriting. She recently won the Next MacGyver television writing competition to create a TV show about a female engineer. Her pilot, Ada and the Machine, is currently in development with America Ferrera’s Take Fountain Productions. You can follow her on Twitter: @ShaneeEdwards The Script Lab: For all the latest from The Script Lab, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And become a member of TSL 360 to enjoy the LARGEST screenwriting education content library, featuring masterclasses, deep-dive interviews, and lectures from Academy Award-winning screenwriters, TV show-runners, producers, literary managers, agents, studio executives, and leading educators – all in one place.

OLYMPIC DREAMS Writer/Director Jeremy Teicher and Real-Life Olympic Athlete and Writer/Star Alexi Pappas

Guests: Alexi Pappas and Jeremy Teicher met when they were undergrads at Dartmouth. Alexi pursued her Olympic dreams as a long distance runner while Jeremy pursued his artistic dream as a filmmaker. Eventually, they decided to combine the two. Their latest film Olympic Dreams tells the story of a cross-country skier and volunteer dentist (Nick Kroll), who meet in the Olympic village and fall in love while dealing with the uncertainty of life. Olympic Dreams will release in theaters on Feb. 14. Host: Shanee Edwards graduated from UCLA Film School with an MFA in Screenwriting. She recently won the Next MacGyver television writing competition to create a TV show about a female engineer. Her pilot, Ada and the Machine, is currently in development with America Ferrera’s Take Fountain Productions. You can follow her on Twitter: @ShaneeEdwards The Script Lab: For all the latest from The Script Lab, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And become a member of TSL 360 to enjoy the LARGEST screenwriting education content library, featuring masterclasses, deep-dive interviews, and lectures from Academy Award-winning screenwriters, TV show-runners, producers, literary managers, agents, studio executives, and leading educators – all in one place.

Emmy-Nominated Actor Brian Presley, Writer/Director/Star of THE GREAT ALASKAN RACE

Guest: Brian Presley started his career as an actor, finding success on the ABC daytime show Port Charles, which earned him two Emmy nominations. He's now making his directorial debut with The Great Alaskan Race, which he wrote, produced and starred in along with Treat Williams, Henry Thomas and Bruce Davison. Based on a true story from 1925, the movie centers on a group of brave mushers (and dogs) who travel 700 miles to save the small children of Nome, Alaska, from a deadly epidemic. The Great American Race will be available on DVD and streaming Jan. 28. Host: Shanee Edwards graduated from UCLA Film School with an MFA in Screenwriting. She recently won the Next MacGyver television writing competition to create a TV show about a female engineer. Her pilot, Ada and the Machine, is currently in development with America Ferrera’s Take Fountain Productions. You can follow her on Twitter: @ShaneeEdwards The Script Lab: For all the latest from The Script Lab, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And become a member of TSL 360 to enjoy the LARGEST screenwriting education content library, featuring masterclasses, deep-dive interviews, and lectures from Academy Award-winning screenwriters, TV show-runners, producers, literary managers, agents, studio executives, and leading educators – all in one place.

Oscar-Nominated Screenwriter of TROOP ZERO & BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD Lucy Alibar

Guests: LUCY ALIBAR, screenwriter and playwright, discusses her new Amazon film Troop Zero along with her 2012 film Beasts of the Southern Wild that was nominated for four Oscars including Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress. She discusses her lonely childhood in northern Florida, reading plays in the school bathroom and having her first play produced at age 15. Host: Shanee Edwards graduated from UCLA Film School with an MFA in Screenwriting and is currently the film critic for SheKnows.com. She recently won the Next MacGyver television writing competition to create a TV show about a female engineer. Her pilot, Ada and the Machine, is currently in development with America Ferrera’s Take Fountain Productions. You can follow her on Twitter: @ShaneeEdwards The Script Lab: For all the latest from The Script Lab, be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. And become a member of TSL 360 to enjoy the LARGEST screenwriting education content library, featuring masterclasses, deep-dive interviews, and lectures from Academy Award-winning screenwriters, TV show-runners, producers, literary managers, agents, studio executives, and leading educators – all in one place.