The Writers Panel
The definitive insider's guide to our current golden age of television, Ben Blacker's The Writers Panel is an ever expanding anthology of live convention panels and intimate in-studio interviews with the writers, producers, and show runners responsible for all the shows you can't stop watching. Over the course of nearly 500 episodes and counting, The Writers Panel has sat across from guests such as Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad), Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele (Key and Peele), Liz Meriwether (New Girl), and Damon Lindelof (Lost, The Leftovers) to talk about the art and business of creating great television. Produced by the Forever Dog Podcast Network.
1
Party Down, Daisy Jones & the Six, Tiny Beautif...
Scott Neustadter (creator, Daisy Jones and the Six); Liz Tigelaar (creator, Tiny Beautiful Things); John Enbom (co-creator, Party Down)
67 min
2
Supergirl, The Morning Show
Jay Faerber (Supergirl; Zoo); Ali Vingiano (The Morning Show)
59 min
3
Walker, The Midnight Club
Anna Fricke (creator, Walker, Walker: Independence, Being Human); Leah Fong (creator, The Midnight Club; The Haunting of Bly Manor)
60 min
4
Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, Koala Man, Grey's A...
Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez (creators, Koala Man); Steve Loter (Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur; Kim Possible); Felicia Pride (Grey's Anatomy; Queen Sugar)
56 min
5
Reservation Dogs creator Sterlin Harjo
Sterlin Harjo (creator, Reservation Dogs) talks about getting the show made, his struggles in indie film, breaking story with the writers room, and Free Fallin'.
50 min
6
Looking back and looking ahead. 2022 in review,...
Looking back and looking ahead. 2022 in review, 2023 in preview. With some returning favorites: Angela Kang (creator/showrunner, Silk; showrunner, The Walking Dead); Mickey Fisher (creator, Extant and Reverie); Carlos Foglia (Wolf Pack; Aeon Flux; The Lost Symbol); J. Holtham (The Handmaid's Tale; Supergirl); Gina Ippolito (Regular Show; The Unicorn)
79 min
7
Marvel's Echo, New Girl, Ordinary Joe, and more.
Marion Dayre (Better Call Saul; Shantaram; Marvel's Echo); Rebecca Addelman (creator, Guilty Party; New Girl); Ami Boghani (The Name Game; The Reluctant Fundamentalist); Abdi Nazemian (\)
64 min
8
Brigitte Muñoz-Liebowitz (One Day at a Time; Br...
Brigitte Muñoz-Liebowitz (Gordita Chronicles; One Day at a Time; Love Life; Diary of a Future President; Brooklyn 99) answers questions from DePaul University writing students as part of a class on TV showrunning. This Q&A is specifically about showrunners as writer/producers.
67 min
9
One Of Us Is Lying and I Ship It + C. Robert Ca...
Erica Saleh (creator/showrunner, One of Us Is Lying) and Yulin Kuang (creator, I Ship It; upcoming: People We Meet On Vacation) battle technical difficulties and interruptions to bring some great advice about pitching and what general meetings are good for
44 min
10
John Ross Bowie + Chuck Wendig
First, actor/writer John Ross Bowie (Big Bang Theory; Speechless) on his new memoir, No Job For a Man. Then, author Chuck Wendig (Wanderers; The Book of Accidents; Star Wars: Aftermath) on his new novel Wayward.
80 min
11
Vampire Academy, Shantaram, High School, and Th...
Julie Plec (creator/showrunner, Vampire Academy, Vampire Diaries, Legacies), Steve Lightfoot (creator/showrunner, Shantaram, The Punisher), Laura Kittrell (co-showrunner, High School; Insecure), and Dana Ledoux Miller (showrunner, Thai Cave Rescue) discuss their personal connections to their current projects, how it never gets easier, how it's always a joy. PLUS: Julia Yorks (1UP; Strawberry Shortcake) has a new podcast called The Baby Writers Podcast in which she chats with TV and feature writers who broke into the entertainment industry within the past few years.
89 min
12
Do Revenge + Confess, Fletch
Do Revenge director/co-writer Jennifer Kaytin Robinson (Thor: Love and Thunder) and co-writer Celeste Ballard (Space Jam: A New Legacy; Wrecked) discuss striking a specific tone, being the Alpha and Beta in friendship and working relationships, how the movie was written three times, how working on Thor: Love and Thunder changed Jenn's approach to directing, and more. PLUS a chat with writer/director Greg Mottola (Confess, Fletch; Adventureland; The Dangerous Book For Boys).
89 min
13
Will Graham (A League of Their Own;); Melissa L...
Will Graham (co-creator, A League of Their Own; showrunner, Daisy Jones and the Six), Melissa London Hilfers (creator, Monarch) and Conner Shin (Harley Quinn; Fairfax) discuss writing for actors, building a machine that works, and why Will wants you to bring photos of your loved ones to the writers' room. PLUS a chat with The Ebo Twins (writer/director and producer of Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
67 min
14
Bruce Miller (The Handmaid's Tale); Veronica We...
Bruce Miller (creator/showrunner, The Handmaid's Tale), Veronica West (creator/showrunner, Surface; co-creator, High Fidelity), Natalie Chaidez (The Flight Attendant; Queen of the South), and Eric Haywood (Law & Order: Organized Crime; Manifest) discuss what keeps them going, specific shows they've worked on, what makes a room functional, and the best part of writing. PLUS: a chat with DC League of Super-Pets co-writer/co-director Jared Stern (creator, Dr Ken)
80 min
15
Better Call Saul series wrap-up
Better Call Saul co-creator Peter Gould and writers Tom Schnauz, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock, Ann Cherkis, and Ariel Levine discuss the road to the end, pitches that got away, whether the series had a happy ending, and, finally, the answer to the question they posed in previous appearances: What problem does becoming Saul Goodman solve?
92 min
16
Writers for young people with Ben Acker, Preeti...
Ben Acker (author, Stories to Keep You Alive Despite Vampires); Preeti Chhibber (author, Spider-Man's Social Dilemma); Sarvenaz Tash (author, The Geek's Guide to Unrequited Love; upcoming: A Whole Song and Dance); Lily Sparks (author, Teen Killers Club series); Halima Lucas (Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur; Rugrats) talk about writing for young audiences, their work habits, letting your characters lead, and more.
72 min
17
Writer/actor Bonnie Hunt (creator, Amber Brown,...
Bonnie Hunt is a comedy hero, an incredible funny writer, improvisor, and actor. If you've seen any of Bonnie's early sitcoms--The Building, Bonnie, and Life with Bonnie--then you know and love the "Bonnie Hunt voice." How she came to that voice and point of view, as well as translating it to movies like Return to Me (which she co-wrote and directed) and the new Apple+ series Amber Brown (based on the book by Paula Danziger) are discussed, along with her writing process, making television in the 90s and today, and how improv is like writing.
49 min
18
Steve Yockey (creator, The Flight Attendant; sh...
Steve Yockey (creator, The Flight Attendant; showrunner, Dead Boy Detectives); Dennis Lehane (creator, Black Bird; The Outsider; The Wire); Yahlin Chang (Handmaid's Tale; Supergirl);
61 min
19
Claudia Forestieri (creator/showrunner, The Gor...
Claudia Forestieri (creator/showrunner, The Gordita Chronicles); Akilah Green (Black Monday; A Black Lady Sketch Show); Pilar Golden (creator/showrunner, Sinking Ship’s Beyond Black Beauty; Gossip Girl)
52 min
20
Dan Gregor and Doug Mand (Chip n Dale: Rescue R...
Dan Gregor and Doug Mand (Chip n Dale: Rescue Rangers)
68 min
21
Joby Harold (showrunner, Obi-Wan); Kerry Ehrin ...
Kerry Ehrin (showrunner, The Morning Show; co-creator, Bates Motel), Joby Harold (showrunner, Obi-Wan; John Wick 3; Army of the Dead), and Gina Ippolito (The Unicorn; Murphy Brown; Regular Show) talk about the overwhelming responsibility of showrunning, big stars, weighty expectations, improvising plotting, and the death of Chewbacca.
54 min
22
Jason Katims (creator, As We See It, Parenthood...
Jason Katims (creator, As We See It, Parenthood); Tony McNamara (creator, The Great); The Girl from Plainville creators Liz Hannah (The Dropout; The Post) and Patrick MacManus (Dr. Death; Happy!) talk about plotting, writing for your characters, how they got their unique shows to air and how you can too!
57 min
23
Robert Eggers (The Northman; The VVitch; The Li...
Robert Eggers (The VVitch; The Lighthouse) discusses his new film, The Northman, as well as his interest in research, writing a "crowd pleaser" vs "weird stories," self-awareness, influences, and more.
44 min
24
The Chelsea Detective team with creator Peter F...
The Chelsea Detective team, creator Peter Fincham (former BBC/ITV director) and writers Glen Laker (Vera, Prime Suspect: 1972) and Liz Lake (Footballers Wives; Eastenders) discuss the challenges of a writing a classic-feeling detective show, the 90-minute format, compelling mysteries and compelling characters, and making yourself the audience.
63 min
25
Taylor Cox at DePaul University + Best Pick!
Taylor Cox (Miracle Workers; Single Parents) answers questions from DePaul University writing students as part of a class on TV writers rooms. Thanks to Martha McGee for extending the invitation and teaching such a cool class! PLUS: A chat with Best Pick podcast hosts and now AUTHORS about their new book all about the Oscars!
75 min