123 | Dustin Lance Black (Milk, Under the Banner of Heaven) On Nuanced Screenwriting and Avoiding Cliches

The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna

Meg LeFauve & Lorien McKenna

Tv & Film

4.8 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 2 February 2023

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Dustin Lance Black is an Oscar-winning writer/director, known for writing the films like Milk and J. Edgar, in addition to creating the award-winning 2022 crime miniseries Under the Banner of Heaven, starring Andrew Garfield. Black is a fierce LGBTQ rights advocate, serving as a founding board member of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, and writing 8, a courtroom drama reenacting the overturn of Prop 8 in California. On today's show, we discuss the common pitfalls of writing biopics, how Lance uses his own life to inform his work, and the research and work it takes to avoid cliches in our writing.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, welcome to the screenwriting life. I'm Meg Lafour. And I'm Lorraine McKenna.
0:05.1	We are professional screenwriters. We've worked together as a team and separately. We've worked
0:09.1	on studio and indie films, live action, and animation, from my work on Inside Out and
0:13.9	Captain Marvel. To my work in Pixar Story Department on Up, Brave, and Inside Out.
0:17.9	We are here to share our insights on the craft of screenwriting and also the lights,
0:23.5	had to not only survive the ups and downs, but thrive.
0:26.6	We want to help you become the best screenwriter you can be
0:29.1	and to reassure you that you are not alone on this journey.
0:32.4	Hey everyone, welcome back to the show.
0:34.0	Today we're chatting with celebrated screenwriter, playwright, and TV creator showrunner,
0:39.0	Dustin Lance Black.
0:40.0	Hi.
0:41.0	Lance is an Oscar winning writer, director known for writing films like Milk and J
0:45.8	Edgar in addition to creating the award-winning 2022 crime miniseries under the
0:50.6	banner of Heaven starring Andrew Garfield.
0:54.0	Lance is a fierce LGBTQ rights advocate serving as a founding board member of the American
0:59.3	Foundation for Equal Rights and writing 8, a courtroom drama reenacting the overturn of Prop 8 in California.
1:05.8	Hello, Lance.
1:07.8	Hello.
1:08.8	How are y'all?
1:09.8	It's so good to see you.
1:11.8	Yeah, good to see you. Yeah, good to see you.
	...

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