Trending Lounge Discussions

Johnie Blaze Congratulations on your project. Great things take time. ;) Very cool also on the car dealership. I used to collect Oldsmobiles. I encourage you to check out some of the Lounges and Blogs to find your tribe. :)

Hi Johnie Blaze, welcome to Stage 32! I’m Ashley, Head of Community here on the platform, and it’s great to see a fellow Texan jumping into the community.

Spending 20+ years developing a franchise concept like Shadow of the Light shows a serious level of dedication. I’d definitely encourage you to spend time participating in the Screenwriting Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting). It’s a great place to join conversations about structure, development, pitching, and the business side of screenwriting while connecting with other writers and filmmakers who are building projects.

If you’re thinking about next steps for the project, whether that’s positioning the franchise, pitching, or connecting with the right professionals, our Success Team can also help guide you toward curated opportunities and resources aligned with your goals. You can reach them anytime at Success@Stage32.com.

I’m also hosting our March Community Open House webcast where I walk through how to navigate Stage 32 strategically, build meaningful industry relationships, and make the most of the platform’s tools and resources:

https://www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32s-march-2026-communit...

Glad you’re here, Johnie. Looking forward to seeing you around the Lounges and hearing more about the world you’ve been building.

Hey Yolanda Perez welcome to the community. What inspires you to act?

Yolanda, have a great time. I'm a music publicist and writer in a wonderful New York City borough.

welcome Yolanda and wish you all the best in your journey

Welcome to the Yolanda community!

Hi Yolanda Perez, welcome to Stage 32! I’m Ashley, Head of Community here on the platform. I’m really glad you introduced yourself, starting a journey in the acting world is exciting, and it’s great that you’re already looking to connect with like-minded creatives.

A good place to begin meeting other actors and learning from their experiences is the Acting Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/acting). It’s a supportive space where people share advice about auditions, training, and navigating the industry.

You might also enjoy exploring our Acting Education library, which includes classes and webinars on everything from audition technique and self-tapes to building relationships with casting directors and understanding the business side of acting:

https://www.stage32.com/education/collections/acting

We also have a great free webcast coming up called Heated Rivalry: Breaking Down the Script, where we’ll be diving into the storytelling and craft behind the script. It’s a fun way to learn more about how scripts translate to performances on screen:

https://www.stage32.com/education/products/heated-rivalry-breaking-down-...

And if you’d like to learn more about how to navigate the platform and make the most of the community, I’m hosting our March Community Open House. It’s a free event where I walk through how to build meaningful industry relationships and use Stage 32 strategically:

https://www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32s-march-2026-communit...

Really glad you’re here, Yolanda. Looking forward to seeing you around the community and cheering you on as you begin your acting journey.

Superb

Welcome here!

Hi Jim Greer, welcome! I’m Ashley, Head of Community here at Stage 32. It’s great to see you finally jumping in and introducing yourself, especially as a fellow Texan. I’m just down the road in Austin as well.

I also see that you’ve been a Writer’s Room member for over a year, which is fantastic. One thing I did notice, though, is that this looks like your first post in the community, and I really can’t stress enough how important regular participation is if your goal is to build the kinds of relationships that lead to real opportunities.

The Lounges are where a lot of those connections begin. Asking questions, sharing what you’re learning, posting about resources, discussing your filmmaking experiments, or even talking about lessons learned from your YouTube projects all help make you more visible. Over time, people start recognizing your name, engaging in conversation with you, and that’s often where collaborations and job opportunities grow from.

Since you’re exploring filmmaking, writing, and voice acting, I’d recommend staying active in the Screenwriting Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting), the Filmmaking Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/directing), and the Producing Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/producing). They’re great spaces to meet creatives who are developing projects and looking for collaborators.

Also, if you’d like a deeper look at how to navigate the platform strategically and get the most out of the community, I’m hosting our March Community Open House webcast. It’s a free event where I walk through how to build meaningful industry relationships and position your projects for real traction here:

https://www.stage32.com/education/products/stage-32s-march-2026-communit...

Glad you spoke up, Jim. Your sense of humor and willingness to experiment creatively will fit right in around here. Looking forward to seeing you around the Lounges.

Congratulations favour

Congratulations!

congrats favourdrey Love to see this for any writer but sending you double the love because you’ve made it from Nigeria to Hollywood!

Congratulations!

can’t wait to be next

Awesome to meet you Kevin Patel! The Long Way Back sounds right up my alley.

Hi Kevin Patel , great to meet you here. Both projects sound really interesting, especially STAN—the psychological horror concept with the teddy bear is a very intriguing idea. I also appreciate stories that focus on emotional depth and character-driven moments.

I'm Abhijeet, a filmmaker and director based in Mumbai. I enjoy working on grounded, intimate stories as well, and it's always great to connect with creatives who value strong storytelling and visual tone.

Wishing you the best with the development and crowdfunding. Looking forward to seeing how the projects evolve.

hello kevin.. welcome

Hi Kevin Patel I'm Prosper Okenyi (P. J Oken). I focus mainly on action thrillers and psychological drama with a blend of sci-fi. I'm based in Nigeria.

Hi Kevin Patel, welcome to Stage 32! I’m Ashley, Head of Community here on the platform. Glad you took the time to introduce yourself.

One quick suggestion that can really help with networking here, you may want to consider using a real profile photo instead of a company logo. Stage 32 is a very relationship-driven community, and people tend to connect more easily when they can see the person they’re talking with. It helps make conversations feel more personal and approachable.

Since you’re working in storytelling and development, I recommend spending some time in the Screenwriting Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/screenwriting) and the Filmmaking Lounge (https://www.stage32.com/lounge/directing). Those are great places to join conversations about craft, collaboration, and project development while getting to know other creatives.

We also have a great upcoming free webcast you might enjoy called Heated Rivalry: Breaking Down the Script, where we’ll be diving into the storytelling, structure, and craft behind the script. You can check it out here:

https://www.stage32.com/education/products/heated-rivalry-breaking-down-...

Really glad you’re here, Kevin. Looking forward to seeing you around the Lounges and learning more about what you’re working on.

Spencer Robinson Sorry, I'm aware of that. Wrong question, what I meant: would you recommend writers to build up a structure in detail before writing the scenes throughout?

Hi Frank Meijden, jumping in as I'm online (UK time!).

In most writers’ rooms I’ve worked in, we beat out the structure first, scene by scene for the pilot and then episode by episode. If someone is writing a pilot, I’d generally recommend mapping out the whole episode before drafting.

The beats don’t need to be super detailed, they can be broad (e.g. “X character meets Y character” or “X and Y fall out over Z”). The goal is simply to know the key events and the order they happen in before writing scenes.

Of course, every writer’s process is different. Some people can draft from a blank page and instinctively land on good structure. But if that approach isn’t working, building the structure first can really help... Interested to hear your take, Spencer! x

William Goldman (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Princess Bride, All the President's Men, Marathon Man) used to say: "Screenplays are structure."

Tash Smurthwaite Frank Meijden I always suggest starting with an outline. Different writers do this in different levels of detail, and a beat sheet is great if that's something a client wants to do. At the very least, a detailed outline helps catch potential issues early.

It's true, Spence (I can call you Spence, right?) Whenever I leave a movie theater, the first thing I talk about is the movie's structure. If the movie doesn't evenly distribute the acts or if I'm not seeing an inciting incident within the first fifteen minutes -- then forget it!, ON the other hand, I rarely care about dialogue or the characters. How about everyone else?

Film I made

Another

Hey, I’m also starting out again after leaving the filmmaking and writing for years. I’m trying to get back into it. Would love to find collaborators.

Michael Thorn Swing over to YouTube and type the title into the search box. It’s there.

OK.

Best of luck to you, Bill!

Michael David Thanks, Mike. You’re very kind, which is why I’m tossing all my luck over to you. This new-found Double Luck Identity will enable you to….. Dare I say it…….RULE THE WORLD!!!!!!

Bill Brock Great topic Bill. I totally agree with you as I have noticed the same thing. I don't like the movies that come out now because they seem empty or a duplicate plot from a previous movie. I only went to the theater twice last year and did not like either movie. I was bitching about them on my way out of the theater. Makes you think with the rise of AI that they have software nowadays that will make the entire movie with your script. I haven't used it yet but I often wonder if Hollywood is dying, will writers turn to these programs with their scripts and create a full length feature film? A film created by AI that the writer can post on You Tube or TikTok and charge viewers $1 to view the movie. If viewers don't like it, the review comments would sink the video but on the flip side, if the viewers do like it, the review comments would garner more paying customers and writers would get their payday upfront. I love technology.

No Country for Old Men

I didn't think I would like it when I started it but, Hacksaw Ridge

Most Hitchcock films, but especially Rebecca, Notorious, Rope, Rear Window, Lifeboat, Suspicion, Strangers on a Train, Dial M for Murder, North by Northwest, and Psycho.

No Country for Old Men does it really well

black mirror

Elara Wright Really intriguing concept. The idea of receiving messages from a future version of yourself is a great psychological hook, and the twist that the warnings might actually be guiding the disaster is very compelling. It builds a lot of tension just from the premise alone. I’d definitely be curious to see how the final voicemail plays into the climax. Great setup for a psychological thriller!

Reminiscent of "The Man That Corrupted Hadleyburg."

wow

Leonardo Ramirez I had written 3 scripts, but no bites. Then I wrote American History X, which I felt was a highly controversial yet compelling topic, and it sold. Yeah, baby!

Avril David well, I discuss this a lot in my bootcamp. I didn’t have a plan b. And waiting tables allows you to survive and write simultaneously!

Ruslan Malakhov I had written 3 scripts that were really good, and that got me an agent. But none of these scripts sold, and that’s when I wrote American History X.

Very cool David McKenna!

No plan B = Burning the ships! Sometimes the only way to move is forward!

Morgan, I love that animation pulled you in through the VFX door—what a fun rabbit hole to fall into. It’s amazing how quickly you start tossing around names like Maya and Houdini once you see that pipeline in action. Keep exploring and definitely keep us posted on what inspires you next!

If you’re on Apple TV+, check out The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse—the hand-drawn style is gorgeous. Also Blush, a short but beautifully animated sci-fi story :)

Daniel, huge congratulations - that festival run is incredible! 75 selections across 24 countries and 20+ awards is no small feat. I love that you leaned into practical techniques and the joy of building sets and shooting physically. SUPER TURBO JET BOATS sounds like such a unique project - excited to see where Episode 2 takes it.

Cyrus, happy Monday! I love what you said about animation being a space where diverse voices and global collaboration can really shine. And you’re so right - sound and music can completely elevate the emotional experience of a story. It’s exciting to hear what you’re working on at Creative Station!

I'm not an animator but I do have dozens of ideas, and I'm excited too.

This is encouraging Sydney S. I had worked with Clayton Conroy and several of my screenplays and he helped improve them every single time - right up to the point one of them got a double recommend. I got an email saying he's in the agent program. I hope he is because I loved working with him.