Austin Film Festival's On Story

This week on On Story, filmmakers Stanley Kalu and Ali Leroi discuss the journey of bringing The Obituary of Tunde Johnson from a screenplay competition to the screen. The film follows an African-American teenager that is trapped in a terrifying time loop after being shot to death by police. Ali LeRoi is an Emmy Award-winning writer who is best known for co-creating the hit series Everybody Hates Chris. Stanley Kalu, is a screenwriter and former USC student - Tunde Johnson is his first produced screenplay. The pair spoke with Senior Film Programmer, Casey Baron, at the 2019 Austin Film Festival. Clips of The Obituary of Tunde Johnson courtesy of Wolfe Releasing.

This week on On Story, a conversation with industry veteran, Akiva Goldsman. Goldsman has written across multiple genres -- from superhero movies to biographies tackling mental health issues. Some of his most recognizable film credits include Batman Forever and Batman and Robin, The Client, The Da Vinci Code, and the four-time Academy Award Winner A Beautiful Mind, which earned Goldsman a win for Best Adapted Screenplay. Recently, Goldsman has worked as a writer, director, and producer for the newest addition to the Star Trek television franchise, Star Trek: Picard.

This week on On Story, John Lee Hancock discusses writing and directing The Little Things. The film stars Denzel Washington, Jared Leto, and Rami Malek, and follows two police officers in pursuit of a serial killer terrorizing Los Angeles in the 1990s.

This week on On Story, a conversation with award-winning screenwriter, director, and author Amy Talkington. In 2020, she wrote the series finale episode of Hulu’s Emmy-nominated hit series Little Fires Everywhere, which she also co-executive produced. 2020 also saw the release of Valley Girl, a musical remake of the 80s cult film, which Talkington wrote. Sarah Lawrence professor Fred Strype, spoke with Talkington about Little Fires Everywhere and her career starting out as an independent filmmaker at the Austin Film Festival. Clips of Little Fires Everywhere courtesy of ABC Signature Studios, Be Sunshine LLC, and Disney Enterprises Inc

This week on On Story a conversation with Gina Prince-Bythewood. Prince-Bythewood is an award-winning writer, director, and producer who has been working in film and television for over 20 years. As a writer/director Prince-Bythewood has released three feature films; Love & Basketball, The Secret Life of Bees, and Beyond the Lights.   Clips of Love & Basketball courtesy of New Line Cinema, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks Clips of Beyond the Lights courtesy of BET Films and Relativity Media Clips of The Old Guard courtesy of Netflix

From Austin Film Festival this is On Story, a look inside the creative process from today’s leading creators, writers and filmmakers. I’m your host, Barbara Morgan.   Academy Award-winning screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie’s films include Jack Reacher, The Way of the Gun, and the two most recent Mission: Impossible films – Fallout and Rouge Nation.  His writing credits include Edge of Tomorrow, Top Gun: Maverick, and The Usual Suspects. The Usual Suspects garnered McQuarrie an Academy Award and the BAFTA for Best Original Screenplay, as well as the Edgar Allan Poe and Independent Spirit Awards. It has since been named one of the 100 greatest screenplays of all time by The Writers Guild of America. I spoke with McQuarrie at an Austin Film Festival virtual event that was co-presented by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

From Austin Film Festival this is On Story, a look inside the creative process from today’s leading creators, writers and filmmakers. I’m your host, Barbara Morgan.   From Christmas classics to modern holiday hits, the magic of storytelling seems to be stronger during the holiday season. We spoke with the writers behind some of the most celebrated modern Christmas films to discuss writing stories set during the most wonderful time of the year. Karen Schaler wrote 2017’s A Christmas Prince which was Netflix’s first original Christmas film and spawned two sequels. Matt Lieberman wrote 2018’s The Christmas Chronicles, also released by Netflix, which starred Kurt Russell. Lieberman also wrote the sequel, The Christmas Chronicles 2. David Berenbaum wrote the 2003 holiday hit Elf which stars Will Ferrell. The three writers spoke with moderator Fabienne Harford at the Austin Film Festival.

From Austin Film Festival this is On Story, a look inside the creative process from today’s leading creators, writers and filmmakers.  Ric Roman Waugh is a director, writer, producer, and former stuntman. As a writer/director, Waugh’s work include Felon, Snitch, and Shot Caller. In 2019, he co-wrote and directed Angel Has Fallen, the third film in the Fallen film series, with Gerard Butler reprising his role as Secret Service agent Mike Banning. In 2020, Waugh directed the apocalyptic disaster film Greenland, which also stars Butler as a family man trying to find sanctuary from a planet-killing comet that threatens to destroy Earth. I spoke with Waugh about the film after an advance screening in Austin, Texas.

From Austin Film Festival this is On Story, a look inside the creative process from today’s leading creators, writers and filmmakers. I’m your host, Barbara Morgan. In 1989, screenwriter Ron Bass won an Academy Award for co-writing Rain Man. The iconic road trip film stars Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman and took home 4 Oscars – including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor, in addition to Bass’ award for writing. Bass’ other writing credits include My Best Friend’s Wedding, The Joy Luck Club, and Stepmom. Over his 35-year career Bass has written 211 scripts which span a variety of genres. Ron Bass spoke about his illustrious career with former AFF Creative Director Erin Hallagan at the 26th Austin Film Festival where he was awarded the Bill Wittliff Award for Screenwriting.   Clips of What Dreams May Come courtesy of Polygram Filmed Entertainment & Universal Pictures Home Entertainment Clips of Rain Man courtesy of United Artists & 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Clips of My Best Friends Wedding courtesy of TriStar Pictures & Sony Pictures Entertainment Clips of The Joy Luck Club courtesy of Buena Vista Home Entertainment Clips of When a Man Loves a Woman courtesy of Touchstone Pictures Clips of Black Widow courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox