Trending Lounge Discussions

Ethan Hawke is a genius. I've always appreciated how he can seamlessly flow in and out of mainstream and indie worlds. The best actors do.

Ethan is a consummate professional. Working with him on First Reformed was a delight as he executed with precision and great style, with the help of Paul Schrader of course. A good example of star power elevating beyond face value with talent and purpose.

That makes sense. The best actors think like producers too.

My 2026 wishlist → (GOLD) a sold script / (SILVER) 2 new scripts / (BRONZE) 2 fully reworked existing scripts

Hey, Lauren Hackney! A webinar about how to write and pitch a short story. It's been a long time since I've written and pitched one.

I just started writing a holiday screenplay myself, and would love to swap and give each other feedback if you're willing

If you're writing in acts, you already have an idea of where you want to go. If your deadline is late December, then it's not for this year so don't wait for other's opinions. Just write it out. With all the titles you have listed in your credits, you are more likely far more qualified to judge your own work. As a writer, you should know that you write for yourself and hope that you can build a fan base off of your inspired creative thoughts. Just go for it. On other sites for producers looking for screenplays, I only submit the first 10-30 pages for them to judge if they want to read the rest, but the work is finished. I think you're already on the right track, just remember that what you finish with should be something that audiences will want to revisit every year. A one and done viewing of a film is a failure. Make it memorable and make it part of a family tradition and you'll be fine.

I'll read it and let you know what I think. I do a good amount of this and the people whose works I read usually compliment my comments. Let me know if you want me to read it and I'll send my e-mail address where you can send it.

Looking for Management or Producing Partner – Original Sci-Fi Series: THE PHOENIX

Hello Stage 32 community!

I’m seeking representation or a producing partner for my original series THE PHOENIX, a

mythic sci-fi drama that explores humanity’s lost history and the legends written in our DNA.

Materials completed:

Pilot Script

50-Page Show Bible

Full Pitch Deck

Storyboards + Music Direction

Season One Draft (with arcs through Season Four)

The Phoenix is built for HBO-level storytelling — cinematic, character-driven, and deeply

mythological.

If you manage or produce genre content and love stories with scale, mystery, and heart, I’d love

to connect.

Ilanna: Send it to lenilevi@comcast.net

i'm with ya Maurice Vaughan

Congratulations to Matt on his win.

The Writing Room sounds amazing — I really need to join.

You can get your first month of the Writers' Room for free, Meriem Bouziani. www.stage32.com/writers-room/plans-vip

Thank you very much Maurice Vaughan

I’ll join once I get a new laptop.

You're welcome, Meriem Bouziani. Ok, great. I think you're gonna really like the Writers' Room!

Welcome Phoebe - great to meet you and I think you will be very pleased with the Stsge 32 universe.

You're welcome, Phoebe Nortey. It's Week 3 of Stage 32's November Write Club. It can help you reach a goal(s), it's a chance to connect with writers, directors, producers, etc., and you can get support for your goal and projects. Week 3's blog came out Monday. There's three prizes you could win this week! www.stage32.com/blog/november-write-club-week-3-how-to-make-a-strong-fir...

Welcome :))

Hey Phoebe, it's nice to meet you! Welcome to Stage 32! Congratulations on taking that next step in getting your work out there. That's a big step! Moving from sharing with friends to a bigger audience is scary, but you'll gain so much among other writers. I'm excited for you!

Stage 32 has a blog at https://www.stage32.com/blog that can help you find your way around the site.

We also have an FAQ section that might answer any questions you might have in the beginning. You can find that here: https://www.stage32.com/help

This month is November Write Club and creators all over the platform are taking part. We make goals, meet challenges, keep each other motivated and accountable. New challenges are posted on the Blog every week.

https://www.stage32.com/blog/november-write-club-week-3-how-to-make-a-st...

We also have the open house coming up here soon. You can find info for that here: https://www.stage32.com/blog/the-stage-32-community-open-house-returns-t...

I'm so glad you've joined us! I can't wait to see what you create!

welcome to Stage32 Phoebe Nortey ! Excited for the journey you're on and to learn more about your projects! the story world is increasingly 'polyglot-ish' - look forward to learning from your experiences. cheers

Congratulations to you and the team on wrapping principal photography, Morgan Aitken Ipg! I usually jump into another project.

Morgan -- vacay! Go somewhere you've never been, bring a camera (small) and get a change of scenery. Fast.

Sorry to hear you got ripped off, Michael T Gregory. Was it a screenwriting agent?

Hey Michael,

I'm always warning others of the scumbags that infiltrate the industry and yet I get warned not to bitter (Truthful) or stand-offish (Cautiously optimistic). Now the biggest rip-off when dealing with agents is that they are all, to some degree, rip-offs. There are no REQUIRED licenses needed to become a literary agent. They mostly just weasel their way into the bedrooms and backseats of "decision" makers and studio head morons that love to greenlight overpriced bombs like The Running Man remake and lose 100's of millions of dollars.

That being said, the biggest rip-offs are stealing your screenplay and then ripping you off out of cash. Never pay an agent anything! They get 10% of what they structure a deal for. Always copyright your work. The process is fairly simple through The Library of Congress. After that, you just can't be just a screenwriter anymore. You should have some rudimentary knowledge on how to construct a business plan which will include, but not limited to a shooting schedule, a budget for Above the Line and Below the line talent, a cast wish list, but don't go for too big of a name because that no longer has any pull with audiences because audiences are becoming sick and tired of being lectured by these celebrities on what they should like as opposed to what they just like. The thing is, there are a lot of morons out there ready to take your money. They say you need to hire a Line Producer. Now you don't. You need to budget for one then when he's hired, he can make the appropriate adjustments.

Thing is that you have to research these people. I have had producers talk a big game and after a little digging have found out that they produced nothing of note. I myself am a director/screenwriter that made a film for $2,200.00 which grossed $4,500.00 on a 3 day/9 show weekend at a privately owned theater. The film featured over 14 locations and over 20 actors so I never lost money, but studios would rather lose $100M than take a gamble on a $1.5M budget action film.

Don't take anyone on face value alone. Do some research or have a trusted friend research them. Everyone says "They know the business," but according to the track record just from 2025 alone, none of these "professionals" know anything about the film industry or they are just to dense to learn from their past mistakes.

Michael T Gregory so very sorry to hear this. I can see why it feels even more bitter because your work is worthy of an agent. I can see also then how that could have made you more open to this fraudster. I know there was a post a few months ago about an actor who almost got ripped off by an agent.

Thank you for this share. You keep finding these amazing articles Ashley Renee Smith

Very cool stuff Ashley Renee Smith. Some of the snippets from the Hungarian sample reel have such a classic feel to them. I'll have to hop on Hunimation.com and check that out!

Wow, this is awesome Ashley Renee Smith. I love how this community is getting exposed to international markets.

Congratulations on making the bold move, Suzanne Bronson! I used to be a lurker on Stage 32. After RB gave the community a challenge to be more active, I started being a lot more active. I've had a lot of success on here since. Meeting people, learning about different areas of the industry, getting script requests, paid jobs, and more.

That's great Maurice Vaughan see my comment to RB's blog. Similar to what you just said.

Suzanne Bronson I know the money is on its way to you! For me, it is deciding to get back to acting classes in January to continue my training at a time when time-wise it is really not practical due to my two young kids. However I realise that I need to honour it no matter what if I want something to come of it and also because it has brought me joy so i need to honour the joy too.

Scott Olsen, this absolutely made my day. I’m so glad our paths crossed at AFF, and it’s been such a joy to watch you dive deeper into your storytelling and celebrate this well-earned win. Hearing how long this project has lived with you, from your earliest experiences to now, makes it even more meaningful to see you getting recognition for it.

I’m thrilled the Stage 32 Lounges feel like a good next step. There’s a lot here, but once you find your rhythm, the connections and conversations become incredibly energizing. And yes, I would love to see you at the Open House on the 25th. It’s designed for exactly that purpose, to give you a sense of where everything lives and how to make the platform feel more like home.

And I’m still laughing about the lobby of the Omni. You were absolutely not the only one wandering that maze. I’m just glad I was standing in the right spot at the right time.

Welcome again to Stage 32, I’m really excited to see where your journey goes from here.

Ashley Renee Smith I'm so glad to have made your day any better and begun paying off my debt for all of your pro bono mapping assistance! I have a feeling you are the unofficial face of AFF Navigation for more than a few attendees these last few years!

I’m looking more and more forward to the Open House and diving even deeper into everything Stage 32 has to offer! Hope to talk soon!

-Scott

Congratulations @scottolsen! Bravo!!

Nice to meet you Scott Olsen ! I placed as a screenwriter in AFF last year and this year, and wasn't able to go either time! Congrats on winning and attending. I'd be happy to connect, too. Always fun to chat about the industry and how to navigate it.

Congrats on winning the Comedy Teleplay spec award! Well done!

By the way, I would make this film truly satirical. And to add a little twist, if I ever do this project, I would probably do two things. First, make the lawyer a dwarf. Second, the main character would actually be the lawyer, while the one who “starts” the story — the person who supposedly dies, but in reality does not — is a very clever older man who’s tired of his nagging wife and his enemies. He decides to get revenge on everyone. He fakes his death, leaves some inheritance to his wife in the will, so she thinks he’s gone, and for his enemies, he leaves debts.

A good idea is to do it through businesses: he bequeaths companies with huge debts to his enemies, almost pushing the owners to the brink of seizure. And his lawyer, the dwarf, wins the case. Then… the older man lives somewhere, for example, on an island, drinking cocktails. At the end of the film, the lawyer comes to him, and they relax together, celebrating the success of their operation.

I think this is a fantastic idea and it could be absolutely hilarious!

From a real legal perspective, I doubt something like this would actually be possible — if transferring debts in a will were allowed, a lot of people would take advantage of it. :D

But if the film manages to creatively bend or reinterpret the legal rules, this could turn into a really entertaining and clever story. :)

As I’m saying, if this were actually possible, the film wouldn’t really work — unless it were a documentary showing how it all happens. But here’s the thing: in reality, this is impossible. Yet if it’s played out in a way that the lawyer manages to make the debts transferable through inheritance, I think it would be very engaging. The audience would be genuinely curious to see how he achieves it and what decision the court will make.

I think this sounds Hilarious!! Damn wouldn't that be great to be able to that?

This sounds like a British comedy I haven't seen yet. And I've seen some weird British comedies.