Saturday Hot Links

Time for the 300th installment of Saturday Hot Links, your week’s essential reading about movies, TV, streaming, Hollywood, and other things of writerly interest.

NOTE: I’ve heard from a lot of people who actually like, even rely on the Saturday Hot Links for news about the business. So I will continue it for the foreseeable future, but depending on my work schedule may have to take a leave of absence.

Box Office: ‘Wonder Woman’ Is Now Sure To Be Summer’s Biggest Hit.

Box Office: ‘Wonder Woman’ Holding Better Than Any Superhero Movie in 15 Years.

Hollywood’s box-office woes: Is the industry aiming too narrowly at men?

The Real Lessons of The ‘Planet of the Apes’ Franchise.

Why ‘The Big Sick’ Is the Romantic Comedy You Need Right Now.

/film: All Our D23 Coverage, From Pixar to ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ to ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’.

At D23, Disney Showed Off Its Mighty Star Wars, Marvel, and Pixar Muscle.

6 Things We Learned About How Pixar Builds Their Universe From D23 Expo.

Comic-Con 2017: Why The Annual Blending of Pop Culture Still Matters.

Comic-Con: What to Expect From the Big TV Panels.

Comic-Con: The 5 Most Anticipated Panels From Film and TV.

Comic-Con Preview: 4 Big Trends to Watch Out For.

Toronto Film Fest to Tackle Trump-Era Moviemaking, Hollywood Gender Gap.

Two Studios Removed Putin From Their Films Because They Reportedly Feared a Retaliatory Hack.

How Sony Plans to Handle Its ‘Spider-Man’ Expanded Universe.

Sony Pictures Loses Key Co-Financing Partner LStar Capital.

Chinese Censors Ban Winnie the Pooh Because of Comparisons to President Xi.

South Korea Opens World’s Largest Imax Cinema.

Paradigm Talent Agency Moving to New Los Angeles Headquarters.

Disney Hired A ‘Game of Thrones’ Writer To Rewrite Guy Ritchie’s ‘Aladdin,’ Because Of Course.

Steven Soderbergh Shot a Secret Movie on His iPhone.

New Claim Asserts Steven Spielberg Directed ‘Poltergeist’.

“Every Distributor Passed”: Christopher Nolan Recalls “Devastating” Early Days Of ‘Memento’.

Christopher Nolan Slams ‘Bizarre’ Netflix Strategy, Praises Theater-Friendly Amazon.

The Story of the Time George Romero Walked Out on a Hollywood Exec.

In 1971, movie attendance reached an all-time low.

Movie Ticket Prices Hit Another Record High in First Quarter.

Where Is Hollywood Looking for Its Next Hit? Podcasts.

Introducing The New Yorker Movie Club, on Facebook.

Our Zombies, Ourselves: An Undead Reading List.

We Are Living in the Coen Brothers’ Darkest Comedy.

Sarah Jones Trial: Jury Finds Railroad Company Liable for Death of 27-Year-Old Camera Assistant.

SAG-AFTRA Board Approves TV/Theatrical Deal.

BBC Names Jodie Whittaker the Next ‘Doctor Who’ Lead, the First Woman in the Role.

The Internet Had Some Truly Spectacular Responses to the 13th Doctor, Jodie Whittaker.

We’re very near the end of civilization as we know it…

ESPN Shutters One of Its Channels to Cut Costs.

Mad Men: The Untold Oral History of the Pilot.

Scripps for Sale: Staying Small In Consolidating Media Industry Seems Tough.

MTV President Unveils Scripted Slate and Explains His New Approach.

How Game of Thrones Helped HBO Break Into the Streaming World.

‘Confederate’: Why The ‘Game of Thrones’ Creators’ Next HBO Series Is Already Causing Controversy.

The Producers of HBO’s ‘Confederate’ Respond to the Backlash and Explain Why They Wanted to Tell This Story.

Netflix Stock Rockets Behind Massive Q2 Subscriber Growth.

Netflix Now Has More International Than U.S. Subscribers.

Netflix Execs Defend Cancellations, Saying 93% of Series Have Been Renewed.

Sure, Netflix Spends Big, But Critics Ignore the Bigger Picture.

Classic Video Game ‘Galaga’ to Be Developed Into Animated Series.

Facebook Looking to Launch Paid Subscription Feature for News Publishers.

A Cloudy Future: Why It Matters If SoundCloud Lives Or Dies.

‘Twilight Zone’ Play Gets World Premiere in London in December.

“Wicked” Becomes the Second-Highest-Grossing Broadway Show of All Time.

Princeton University’s Lewis Center for the Arts Announces Recipient of the Holmes National Poetry Prize.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: 3 Ways to Build a Better Black Superhero.

Read: Reddit AMA with screenwriter Eric Heisserer.

Watch: Christopher Nolan’s Time Puzzle.

George A. Romero, ‘Night of the Living Dead’ creator, dies at 77.

Edgar Wright Pens Moving Tribute to His Mentor George Romero: ‘A Major Satirist’.

Screenwriting Master Class tip of the week

Imagine having your very own private script workshop. A structured environment with content and a schedule tailored to meet your specific creative needs. Your own unique online course site. And a one-on-one mentor relationship with a professional screenwriter and educator.

You can do this through Screenwriting Master Class.

Perhaps all you need is a 4-week rewrite workshop to add more depth to a couple of characters in your script and polish the overall dialogue.

Maybe you have gotten through a few drafts of your story, but you need to do a page 1 rewrite.

You could have already worked out your story and want guidance during the first draft process.

Or you’re starting with a concept and want to do prep and page-writing.

Maybe you are a beginner looking to learn the essentials of screenwriting and end up with a finished screenplay.

At Screenwriting Master Class, we can create private script workshops to match up with your individual goals as a writer.

Since launching SMC in 2010, Tom Benedek and I have worked with writers of all backgrounds and interests in the context of numerous private script workshops. Here are testimonials from two:

“Working with Scott in SMC’s private workshop was an invaluable experience. The private workshop gave me the attention I needed to address my script’s problem. I was so impressed with the quality of his teaching, the way the course was structured and the interactive process. In the end, not only did Scott help me solve my character problem, he elevated my script as a whole. He is a wonderful mentor and I learned a lot about the craft of screenwriting.” — Gladys Stone, screenwriter of “Tulio” (Semifinalist, Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition)

“Working with Scott in a private workshop arrangement through SMC greatly accelerated my screenwriting knowledge and craftsmanship. Scott is a most dynamic, gifted and generous educator. He offered a holistic, character-driven approach to story that helped bring out my best as a writer. The flexible syllabus of the mentorship invites exploration of creative impulses without fear of losing direction or purpose. The script on which Scott consulted placed in the top one percent of the 2011 AFF screenwriting competition and has opened industry doors. Most importantly the SMC has cemented lasting self confidence in my abilities as a writer.” — Gyan Alexander, screenwriter of “Convinced” (Seminfinalist, Austin Film Festival Screenplay Competition)

People who have done private script workshops through Screenwriting Master Class include professional screenwriters, best-selling non-fiction authors, playwrights, and novelists, as well as beginning, intermediate and advanced writers.

One popular approach: Combine Prep: From Concept to Outline, Pages I: The First Draft, and Pages II: Rewriting Your Script enabling you to take a story from its inception all the way through final polish — all with a knowledgeable mentor.

Here are three big reasons to consider an SMC private script workshop:

• Writing a screenplay involves making thousands of choices about characters, plot, theme and so forth. Wouldn’t it be helpful to have feedback from a professional to help steer you through the process enabling you to avoid huge story pitfalls that could derail your scripting process?
• Writing a screenplay is a thankless, lonely job. Wouldn’t it be great to have the ongoing support of a professional to enable you to overcome inevitable story problems and emotional downswings?
• Writing a screenplay is a mystery. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to learn proven principles and practices from a professional with years of experience working in the entertainment industry, an approach to writing you can use again and again on your future stories?

For more information, contact us here.