Write Your Screenplay Podcast
Education & Explainer
About
Rather than rating movies and TV shows like a critic, “two thumbs up” or “two thumbs down,” WGA Award Winning screenwriter Jacob Krueger breaks down scripts without judgment (from scripts you loved, to scripts you hated) to show you what you can learn from them as screenwriters. Plus meet special guests, and get answers to your most pressing screenwriting questions! WriteYourScreenplay.com
Episodes
- Beef Season 2: Metaphor, Engine, and Breaking the Rules
How do you reinvent a TV series without breaking its engine? Jacob Krueger breaks down Beef Season 2 to explore one of the most difficult balancing acts in screenwriting: evolving a show's engine without alienating your audience. At first,…
- Amadeus: Turn Intrusive Thoughts into Characters
What are intrusive thoughts—and what are you supposed to do with them as a writer? In this episode of the podcast, Jacob Krueger explores intrusive thoughts not as a psychological obstacle, but as a powerful creative tool. Because the real…
- Dying for Sex: A Lesson in Tone
How do you make a devastating story feel funny—without losing its truth? In this episode of the podcast, Jacob Krueger explores Dying for Sex, the extraordinary limited series created by Elizabeth Meriwether and Kim Rosenstock, to break do…
- The TV Bible: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Write One
What is a TV Bible today, and why do you need one to sell your show? In this episode of the podcast, Jacob Krueger breaks down the TV Bible not as an industry insider’s document, but as a practical creative tool for proving that your show…
- In the Blink of an Eye: Discover Your Theme And Trust Your Audience
What happens when you take the structure of a movie you love—and try to breathe new life into it? In this episode of the podcast, Jacob Krueger explores In the Blink of an Eye, the ambitious sci-fi drama written by Colby Day that premiered…
- No Other Choice: Plot vs. Structure (And the Secret to Making Us Care)
Why do we stay emotionally locked into a story even when the plot sounds flat on paper—or morally repellent in practice? In this episode, Jacob Krueger breaks down Park Chan-wook’s darkly hilarious, deeply unsettling No Other Choice to rev…
- How to Divorce During the War: 10 Craft Lessons from Sundance 2026
What does it actually mean to adapt a story- and how can radically different adaptations emerge from the same source material? In this episode, Jacob Krueger looks at the novel and film versions of Hamnet and the ’90s award darling Shakesp…
- Hamnet vs Shakespeare in Love
What does it actually mean to adapt a story- and how can radically different adaptations emerge from the same source material? In this episode, Jacob Krueger looks at the novel and film versions of Hamnet and the ’90s award darling Shakesp…
- 5 Steps To Raise The Stakes In Your Screenplay
What if raising the stakes in your screenplay has nothing to do with explosions, danger, or bigger plot events? In this rerelease of a classic episode, Jake takes on one of the most misunderstood producer notes—raise the stakes—and reframe…
- Why New Year’s Resolutions Fail: A Writer’s Guide to Lasting Change
Every year, writers make New Year’s resolutions with the best intentions—only to watch those resolutions crumble under real life. The problem isn’t discipline or willpower, but the same structural mistakes that cause character arcs to coll…
- Eddington vs First Blood: Genre Reimagined
What happens when a classic modern “Western” like First Blood is reimagined for a world where moral clarity has collapsed? In this episode, Jacob Krueger analyzes Ari Aster’s Eddington in comparison to First Blood to reveal how theme drive…
- Pluribus: Don’t Save the Cat
Pluribus isn’t just a masterclass in character, it’s a study in how the world around your protagonist shapes our empathy. Jake explores how Vince Gilligan uses contrast, irony, and a disruptive structural design in the pilot and second epi…
- Steven Bagatourian: The Fire, The Math & The Voice of the Screenwriter
With the LA Screenwriting Weekend approaching, Jake sits down with writer and teacher Steven Bagatourian to explore the balance between fire, craft, and voice. Together they dig into why instinct needs structure, why structure needs heat,…
- The Studio: How to Introduce Your Main Character
What do bad jokes, fake smiles, and status games have to do with story structure? In this episode, Jacob Krueger breaks down The Studio’s pilot to show how Matt Remick’s first few minutes on screen don’t just reveal his character, they bui…
- Rushing: What’s Your Inciting Incident?
Many writers rush to the inciting incident around page 10-12, weakening their script’s foundation. Jake Krueger shows how slowing down and embracing presence can transform your writing and creative journey.
- One Battle After Another: What’s your theme?
In this episode of the Write Your Screenplay Podcast, Jacob Krueger analyzes Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, revealing how theme, character development, and structure shape a screenplay’s emotional impact. Learn practical…
- The Girlfriend: Game and Series Engine
In this Write Your Screenplay Podcast episode, Jacob Krueger analyzes Amazon’s The Girlfriend to explore how the “game of the scene” fuels a lasting series engine. Learn why mirrored perspectives, foils, and escalation drive audience engag…
- Weapons: Should You Write a Horror Movie?
Thinking about writing a horror movie as your way into Hollywood? Horror is an $8.5 billion genre hungry for new voices and original stories. In this episode of the Write Your Screenplay Podcast, Jacob Krueger analyzes Zach Cregger’s Weapo…
- K-Pop Demon Hunters: 3 Ways to Elevate Your Writing
In this episode of the Write Your Screenplay Podcast, Jacob Krueger explores how K-Pop Demon Hunters transforms a wild premise into a moving story. You’ll discover 3 tools every writer can use to elevate their screenwriting: research that…
- Opus: ‘Elevated’ Horror and Allegory
In this episode of the Write Your Screenplay Podcast, Jacob Krueger breaks down Mark Anthony Green’s Opus to reveal how elevated horror and screenwriting allegory can emerge organically from what already exists on the page. Through deep an…
- Hypnosis for Writers: Break Through Writers Block with Jacob Krueger
Learn a powerful self-hypnosis technique to break through past trauma and writer’s and more deeply connect to your characters and your voice as a writer. Jacob Krueger shares life-changing tools drawn from hypnosis, NLP and neuroscience.
- Sinners: Theme, Tone & the Sea Change
Explore how sea change, bifurcated characters, and mythic symbolism power the structure and politics of Ryan Coogler’s Sinners. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake every Thursday night…
- Adolescence Episode 4: Should You Write a Limited Series?
This episode pulls it all together, with a deep dive into the structure of Adolescence Episode 4 and how it fits into the overall structure and series engine of Adolescence and how to know if your project should be a Limited Series. Join u…
- Adolescence Episode 3: Adolescence, The Wire and Pattern Based Engine
Learn how Adolescence Episode 3 (building upon structural techniques from The Wire) uses a Pattern Based Series Engine to navigate rare changes in characters and narrative form while still preserving the feeling of the series Join us for a…
- Adolescence Episode 2: Dialectical Screenwriting
Learn how to use dialectical structure to deepen your screenplay’s theme, character arcs, and emotional impact through a deep analysis of Adolescence Episode 2. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercis…
- Adolescence Episode 1: Playing at the Top Of Your Intelligence
Learn how Adolescence grabs its audience in the first ten seconds—and what screenwriters can take from its naturalistic style, one-shot structure, and emotionally grounded approach to character. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes!…
- Thunderbolts: Theme in Action Movies
Discover how Thunderbolts uses theme to explore depression, trauma, and healing within the structure and genre of a big budget superhero action movie—and how to bring emotional depth to your own screenwriting. Join us for a Special Thursda…
- The Last of Us Season 2: Resetting Your Series Engine
Learn how The Last of Us Season 2 resets its story engine—and what it teaches about rebuilding character dynamics, stakes, and tension in your own TV series. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises…
- Nickel Boys and Shawshank Redemption: Primary and Secondary Structure
Learn how Nickel Boys and Shawshank Redemption use secondary structure to shape audience expectations—and how to apply these techniques to the structure of your screenplay. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Wri…
- The White Lotus: Why Season 3 Feels Different
Learn how Engine and Theme function in all 3 seasons of The White Lotus and how slight changes in The White Lotus Season 3 massively affect the feeling of the series... Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing…
- Anora: Using the “Sea Change” to Supercharge Structure
Discover how Sean Baker’s Anora uses a seismic mid-story twist to reshape structure, character, and theme — and how to apply it to your screenplay. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake…
- The Brutalist Part 2: Do You Need an Active Main Character?
Discover why Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, rejects the idea that protagonists must drive the action and how its unconventional approach grows out of its thematic exploration of the immigrant experience. Join us for a Special Thursday Night…
- The Brutalist Part 1: How to Deal with Experts & Research
Learn how to balance expert research and creative freedom in your screenwriting as we explore Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, starring Adrien Brody- Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake e…
- The Apprentice: Writing The Antihero
Learn from The Apprentice the art of writing complex antagonists by connecting to the universal emotional needs that drive character choices Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake every T…
- Lessons from Sundance 2025 Part 2
Learn from Sundance 2025 genre stand-outs Together and Didn’t Die how to explore deeply human characters and questions within an elevated horror or zombie format. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exerc…
- Lessons from Sundance 2025 Part 1
From an ambitious one-shot pilot to a haunting exploration of grief, Jacob Krueger unpacks how three Sundance selections demonstrate the vital principle that "form is function" in screenwriting. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes!…
- A Real Pain: Building Characters With Vignettes
Learn from “A Real Pain” how to master the art of character vignettes - those crucial first moments that create the lens through which you can build the structure of your screenplay, hook A-list talent, and unlock your own understanding of…
- A Complete Unknown: Writing The Biopic
Learn what makes A Complete Unknown work as a biopic, and how to approach the complex relationship between truth and dramatization in the adaptation of any true life story. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Wri…
- How to Prepare a 3 Minute “Elevator Pitch”
Get your 3 minute pitch ready for our free online pitching event (or any other pitching opportunity) with this podcast recording of Jake’s recent Thursday Night Writes class. Join us for a Special Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of W…
- Keep Your New Years Resolutions: Do You Need More Discipline?
Learn practical techniques for transforming your writing blocks into bridges by understanding the psychology of creative resistance and how to work with it rather than against it. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writin…
- Ensemble Pieces with Erin Brown Thomas
In this interview with Erin Brown Thomas, you’ll learn how to write an effective ensemble film through deep analysis of Erin’s Sundance film, Chasers and PT Anderson’s Magnolia. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing…
- The Penguin: What’s The Container for Your Show or Movie?
Learn from The Penguin how to master the art of packaging complex, character-driven stories within commercial frameworks that can sell in today's Hollywood marketplace. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises…
- How To Get The Most From Film Festivals
Learn how to strategically choose and attend film festivals, build meaningful industry relationships and advance your screenwriting career through authentic networking and mentorship opportunities. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Ha…
- The Starless Sea: Harnessing The Power of Metaphor
Learn from Erin Morganstern’s brilliant novel The Starless Sea how to harness your subconscious mind to create writing that resonates on both literal and metaphorical levels. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exe…
- Between the Temples – Alternative Forms of Structure
Learn from Between The Temples how to create compelling structure in your screenplay, even when working with passive main characters or unconventional narratives. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with…
- Strange Darling: Primary and Secondary Structure
Learn from Strange Darling the difference between primary and secondary structure in screenwriting, and how harness both to provide maximum impact for your audience. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises wi…
- The Bear Season 3 and Furiosa: The Past is Prologue
This unlikely pairing of The Bear, Season 3 and Mad Max, Furiosa will teach you how to build an engine for a TV Series or Film Franchise, and how to avoid BREAKING that engine in later installments. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our H…
- Deadpool vs Wolverine: Action Movie Structure and Set Pieces
Learn the structure and engine of Deadpool & Wolverine and how to craft compelling set pieces with both visual and emotional stakes in your action writing. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake ev…
- The Boys, Season 4: The Series Engine
Learn from The Boys how to develop a consistent yet evolving story engine across multiple seasons of a TV series, using theme as a guiding principle for character development and plot progression. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Hap…
- Longlegs vs Hereditary: Character Wants
Learn the secrets of elevated psychological horror writing in this breakdown of the structure of two related scripts: Longlegs and Hereditary. Join us for Thursday Night Writes! Our Happy Hour of Writing Exercises with Jake every Thursday…